The City of Sonora, known as the "Queen of the Southern Mines," was established in 1848 by miners emigrating from the State of Sonora, Mexico. The early settlement was often referred to as the Sonoran Camp.
Sonora is located in Tuolumne County, of which it is the county seat, east of Stockton between Oakdale and Twain Harte along Highway 108 near New Melones Lake and the Tulloch Reservoir.
There is also a Sonora, Texas.