In 1970, federal courts mandated that the Houston Independent School District integrate its public schools. In order to bypass full integration, board members emphasized the white legal status of the growing Mexican-American population. This upset . . . — — Map (db m235734) HM
Promoted by the Wright Land Company, the Independence Heights community began about 1908. Many black families purchased lots and built their own homes. A school was established in 1911. Businesses in Independence Heights included retail stores, . . . — — Map (db m170616) HM
A native of Alabama, Mollie Arline Kirkland was married to James Augustus (Gus) Bailey in 1858. The son of a circus owner, Gus Bailey formed the Bailey Family Troupe with Mollie, his brother Alfred, and Mollie's sister Fanny. They traveled . . . — — Map (db m235845) HM
Houston's Fifth Ward developed primarily after the Civil War, when freedman came to the area. In 1866, an alderman represented the ward, comprised of Anglo and African Americans, in the city's government. The earliest institutions were churches, . . . — — Map (db m235733) HM
This congregation originated in 1865, and is one of the oldest in Houston. The Rev. Emanuel Toby (also called Uncle Toby or Toby Gregg) and friends cut brush, built an arbor on Vine Street near the banks of Buffalo Bayou, and began to worship there. . . . — — Map (db m235652) HM
During the first half of the 20th century, the mass-market recordings of African American musicians were grouped under the term "Race Music," regardless of their musical genre, and these musicians were marketed strictly to African American . . . — — Map (db m235655) HM
Phillis Wheatley High School, Houston's third oldest high school for blacks, is named for Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784), renowned African-American poet and author. The first campus, located at 3415 Lyons Avenue in the Fifth Ward, was the former . . . — — Map (db m171054) HM
Reagan Lodge, the first Masonic Lodge instituted in the Houston Suburbs, marked the beginning of the second wave of Houston Masonic lodges and accompanied major surge in the growth of the city and the birth of its suburbs. The Lodge was chartered . . . — — Map (db m157794) HM
Organized in 1869, Saint Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church has been a part of First Ward history for over a century. The first Pastor of the church was the Rev. David Wren. Services were held in a brush arbor until a sanctuary was built in . . . — — Map (db m159239) HM
This congregation traces its history to 1875, when the Rev. Rudolph Brueck organized Emanuel German Methodist Episcopal Church. It was renamed Zion German Methodist Church in 1891 and Norhill Methodist Episcopal Church, North, in 1924. Woodland . . . — — Map (db m235760) HM
A distinct ethnic cultural group, “Creoles of Color”, developed in Louisiana in the 18th and 19th centuries with roots in French, Spanish, African and Native American cultures, they spoke standard or Creole French and practiced Catholicism. Free . . . — — Map (db m235851) HM
In the early 20th century, William A. Wilson, with the financial backing of James A. Baker, Jr., Joseph B. Bowles, Rufus Cage and J.M. Cotton, established the Woodland Heights community north of and topographically higher than downtown Houston. . . . — — Map (db m235767) HM
Prior to 1914, Houston only had two Lutheran congregations, both downtown in this sprawling city. The Mission Board of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Iowa recognized the opportunity to establish congregations in Houston's suburbs.
In May . . . — — Map (db m235765) HM
In the 1920s, Creole families from Louisiana, known as "Creoles of Color," migrated to Houston, establishing the neighborhood known as Frenchtown. In addition to their culture and language, they also brought their music to Houston. Zydeco, a fusion . . . — — Map (db m235847) HM
This site recalls a historic African American Church, school and cemetery in Alief. Only a few African Americans lived in the area in the nineteenth century, working as farm laborers or tenant farmers. More families came in the early twentieth . . . — — Map (db m202061) HM
After World War II, African Americans struggled to find housing in much of Houston. Restrictive covenants in some recorded plats specifically excluded African Americans, while in other neighborhoods discrimination was more subtle, yet no less real. . . . — — Map (db m236111) HM
This African American congregation predates the purchase of this lot in 1902. The first known pastor was Rev. Elijah Crooms. Members met under a brush arbor until the first wooden church, featuring twin bell towers and a special seating area for . . . — — Map (db m235522) HM
Houston architect Ernest L. Shult designed this mid-century modern house for his own residence in 1959. The home, sited on a triangular lot in the River Oaks neighborhood, is representative of the contemporary style popular in the post-war years. . . . — — Map (db m169832) HM
A significant example of the International style of architecture, the 1950 Neuhaus House has a strong horizontal emphasis and expression of private and public space, as well as an integration of living space and landscape. Architect and Houston . . . — — Map (db m169836) HM
Chinese immigrants arrived in Texas in the 1870s and 1880s, primarily to build railroads and work as laborers. These early immigrants faced harsh working conditions and racism from those fearing they would take away jobs. Chinese Texans were also . . . — — Map (db m232196) HM
Completed in 1924, this apartment building is a good example of multi-family housing constructed in the south end of downtown Houston after World War I. Successful businessman Benjamin Cohen (1875-1951) hired noted Houston architect Alfred Finn to . . . — — Map (db m30199) HM
Founded in 1893 in memory of Kezia Payne DePelchin, a remarkable social worker, teacher, and nurse in Houston during the latter half of the 1800s. The orphanage moved to this building upon completion in 1913 and remained here until 1938. Designed . . . — — Map (db m155207) HM
Eastwood Elementary School was constructed in 1916 on land deeded by William A. Wilson, the developer of Eastwood, one of Houston's first master-planned neighborhoods. Designed by City of Houston architect Maurice Sullivan in the mission . . . — — Map (db m235887) HM
The Evergreen Cemetery Association organized in 1894 and purchased 25 acres at this site to establish a cemetery. The first recorded burial was that of the infant Nellie Storkes on October 4, 1894.
Charles Hooper replaced first sexton Joseph . . . — — Map (db m235890) HM
Semi-professional baseball was a major attraction at the first annual State Fair held in Houston in May of 1870. One year later, the fairgrounds moved to a new location near where Main Street ended onto the prairie at Houston's south edge. The . . . — — Map (db m236007) HM
On July 1, 1851, a group led by the Rev. Caspar Messon Braun (1822-1880) founded the Erste Deutsche Evangelische Lutherische Kirche, or First German Evangelical Lutheran Church. The State of Texas issued the church's charter in September of that . . . — — Map (db m119857) HM
Businessman and developer Oscar Holcombe (1888-1968) and his wife Mary hired Houston architect L.W. Lindsay to design this home. Completed in 1925, it featured gardens designed by landscape architect Herbert L. Skogland. Outstanding features of the . . . — — Map (db m59776) HM
Houston's oldest fire house, this building was designed by Olle J. Lorehn (c.1864-1939) and was completed in January 1899. The two-story brick structure features rusticated stone details, a five-bay front with central arched entry flanked by two . . . — — Map (db m62757) HM
Designed by noted Houston architect Alfred C. Finn, the Armory was constructed in 1925 to replace an 1892 building that had become obsolete. Finn detailed the building to suggest a late renaissance period neo-Gothic English masonry, represented by . . . — — Map (db m119860) HM
The City of Houston developed rapidly in the 19th century due in large part to its capacity for shipping and transportation. This was made possible by waterways, such as Buffalo Bayou, and railroads, five of which radiated from the city in 1861. . . . — — Map (db m62835) HM
In 1911, Houston's Church of the Immaculate Conception sent four Oblate priests to establish a mission church to serve the city's Spanish-speaking population. At that time, Houston's Mexican community was growing rapidly, absorbing many refugees . . . — — Map (db m235883) HM
Conceived by the San Jacinto Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (SJCDRT), the Pioneer Memorial Log House was created to commemorate Texas' 1936 Centennial. Designed by the SJCDRT and a Houston architect to model an authentic pioneer . . . — — Map (db m160209) HM
William Marsh Rice (1816-1900) came to Texas in 1838 and through extensive entrepreneurship became one of the state's wealthiest men. Rice envisioned a polytechnic school as his philanthropic legacy. The State of Texas chartered the William M. . . . — — Map (db m140718) HM
Portland Cement Association
Safety Trophy Award
Trinity Portland Cement Company
Houston Texas Plant for a
Perfect Safety Record in 1929
Reawarded for a Perfect Safety Record in
1945, 1947, 1959 — — Map (db m83582) HM
On November 9, 1891, eight Houston women organized the San Jacinto Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. Founding members were Mrs. Andrew Briscoe; Miss Belle Fenn; Mrs. John R. Fenn, who served as chapter president until 1896; Miss . . . — — Map (db m196484) HM
South End Junior High School opened its doors in 1914 with 750 students in an impressive classical revival style structure built here in 1913. South End Junior High became a senior high school in 1923, and in 1926 its name was changed to San Jacinto . . . — — Map (db m119852) HM
In 1903, state evangelist Livingston T. Mays of the Baptist General Convention of Texas held a tent revival meeting at the corner of Tuam and Fannin, with 32 local Baptists, including many from existing congregations, forming a new church and . . . — — Map (db m235581) HM
Congregation Beth Israel is the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas. Early Jewish families that settled in the area formed the Hebrew Benevolent Society in 1844, under the leadership of Lewis Levy. By 1854, seventeen adults organized themselves into . . . — — Map (db m119855) HM
Organized as a Texas Militia unit on April 21, 1873, the Houston Light Guard originally participated in parades, ceremonies, and competitive drills, and served as guard of honor for visiting dignitaries. The first commander was Capt. Edwin Fairfax . . . — — Map (db m119858) HM
The Baylor University College of Medicine moved to Houston in 1943 from Dallas to launch the proposed Texas Medical Center. The building to house Baylor’s medical school was named after Hugh Roy and Lillie Cullen who moved to Houston in 1911 and . . . — — Map (db m196487) HM
This three-story apartment building was constructed in 1922 to help ease a housing shortage in Houston. It was built and owned by Robert C. Duff, a prominent Texas railroad man and banker before the Great Depression. The building features bracketed . . . — — Map (db m130824) HM
Established in 1893, Trinity Episcopal Church acquired this site in 1910. Construction of the sanctuary, designed by architect Ralph Adams Cram, began in 1917 and was completed in 1919. Features of the Gothic revival structure include a basilica . . . — — Map (db m119850) HM
Barbara Charline Jordan, one of the nation's preeminent African-Americans orators and politicians of the 20th century, was born in Houston to Benjamin Meredith and Arlyne Patten Jordan. Her close-knit family greatly influenced her religious and . . . — — Map (db m236006) HM
In the early 20th century, Houston's African American community wanted to provide recreational facilities for its youth and for African American troops stationed at Camp Logan. Various groups formed, including two interested in the welfare of young . . . — — Map (db m62915) HM
Dr. Benjamin Jesse Covington (c.1871-1961), his wife Jennie Belle Murphy (1881-1966), and the stately home they built here in 1911 represented a level of achievement, dignity, and civic service matched by few African Americans in Houston during . . . — — Map (db m171291) HM
Organized as Watts Chapel in 1877, Fourth Missionary Baptist Church was established by the Rev. Henry Watts, a native of South Carolina. Watts arrived in Houston that same year, and with the help of fellow Houston ministers and deacons, secured a . . . — — Map (db m171294) HM
Legislator and activist Mickey Leland fought passionately for the rights of the poor and disadvantaged. Born George Thomas Leland III on November 27, 1944, in Lubbock, Mickey was raised in Houston's Fifth Ward, where he attended segregated schools. . . . — — Map (db m236016) HM
Good Hope Missionary Baptist Church was established by the Rev. Samuel Grantham. The pastor first held services in his own backyard before members built a structure out of wooden boxes. Because of its appearance, this first building was called a . . . — — Map (db m236015) HM
African American fraternal benefit societies experienced a "Golden Age" from the 1870s to the 1930s as they were one of the few venues where members could exercise influence within their communities and attain needs, such as sick benefits and life . . . — — Map (db m171325) HM
Members of Greater Zion Missionary Baptist Church have served residents of Houston’s Greater Third Ward since the late 1800s. Tradition holds that the Rev. Gilbert Green and several area residents organized the church, which first met under a . . . — — Map (db m171310) WM
As Houston's Third Ward neighborhood developed, the Rev. James Harvey Makey (1849-1915) called neighbors to his home in 1879 to form the Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church. Makey, a member of Antioch Baptist Church, found guidance from Antioch's . . . — — Map (db m171166) HM
John Thomas Biggers was born to Paul and Cora Biggers in Gastonia, North Carolina. His artistic creativity emerged at a young age when he and his brother, Joe, crawled under their home and used clay to model the entire town of Gastonia. In 1941, . . . — — Map (db m236071) HM
As residents of the Fourth Ward neighborhood known as "Freedmantown" began moving to Houston's Third Ward in the 1870s, the need arose for a church to serve the spiritual needs of African Americans in the area. According to oral tradition, an . . . — — Map (db m171169) HM
Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church was one of three African American churches founded in Houston in 1866, the year after the end of the Civil War and the emancipation of enslaved Texans. The congregation was organized by the Rev. Henry Stewart, . . . — — Map (db m171297) HM
The Reverend G.B.M. Turner and educator E.O. Smith organized Pilgrim Congregational Church, Houston's first African American Congregational Church, in the Freedmen's Town community in 1904. Early services were held in Turner's home. Permanent . . . — — Map (db m236077) HM
David Elias Dibble was born enslaved in Darien, Georgia and brought to Texas in 1837. He was self-educated and was a carpenter by trade. Dibble became a respected religious and community leader. In 1864, he became an anointed preacher. A year . . . — — Map (db m171242) HM
One of Houston's most respected and influential religious, civic and business leaders, Jack Yates was born enslaved in Virginia. He was enslaved when he came to Matagorda County, Texas in 1860. After emancipation he moved his family to Houston. He . . . — — Map (db m171244) HM
Born enslaved in Virginia and brought to Texas in 1837, Richard Allen emerged as an influential community and political leader in Houston after emancipation. He was a skilled carpenter, contractor, mechanic and bridge builder. Allen attended . . . — — Map (db m171240) HM
Richard Brock was born enslaved in Kentucky and brought to Texas around 1847. After emancipation, he became an early land owner, civic and political leader in Houston. He was a trustee of the Colored People of Harris County Festival Association . . . — — Map (db m171243) HM
African American Blues singer and guitarist Sam Hopkins was born in Centerville, Leon County, Texas in 1912, the youngest of five children of Abe and Frances (Washington) Hopkins. Sam learned to play guitar from John Henry and Joel Hopkins, two of . . . — — Map (db m171163) HM
Houston's first African-American Christian Science congregation was organized in 1914, when founding members Wesley and Patsy Gales, Aurelia and John Snell, Florence Frazier, Alice Jackson, Minerva Thomas, and W. E. Bartlett met in the Gales' . . . — — Map (db m171265) HM
In August 1899, the Rev. Hilliard R. Johnson led a small group of African Americans to establish St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Houston's Third Ward. During his years as pastor, 1899-1901 and 1904-1924, he pioneered the practice of two . . . — — Map (db m171271) HM
St. John Missionary Baptist Church, organized in 1899 by Reverends Gilbert Green and Hilliard R. Johnson, first met in a small building near Calhoun Avenue and Live Oak Street. In 1901, Rev. James B. Bouldin purchased property, later conveyed to . . . — — Map (db m235886) HM
Emancipation Park was acquired in 1872 by previously enslaved African Americans who were in unanimous support of purchasing their own land on which to celebrate Juneteenth and to use for community development and cultural enrichment. Rev. Jack . . . — — Map (db m171255) HM
The student murals of Hannah Hall located on the campus of Texas Southern University, embody the culminating experiences of a people as seen through the eyes of student artists. Almost from the beginning of the art department in 1950, it became a . . . — — Map (db m236064) HM
The congregation of Trinity East United Methodist Church has served Houston's Greater Third Ward since the early 20th century. It is an offspring of Trinity United Methodist Church, the oldest black Methodist Church in Houston. In the early 1900s, . . . — — Map (db m171320) HM
This congregation grew from a small mission organized in 1848 for the slave membership of the Houston Methodist Church (now first United Methodist Church). The Rev. Orceneth Fisher served as first pastor of the African mission, which was given a . . . — — Map (db m171171) HM
In 1917, during World War I, the Houston Chamber of Commerce lobbied the federal government to establish an air field here. Named for Lt. Eric Lamar Ellington, an Illinois aviator killed in a California plane crash in 1913, it opened in November . . . — — Map (db m58470) HM
In 1894, fourteen people met in the township of Genoa under the leadership of the Rev. J.R. Murray to organize the community's first Methodist congregation. On February 10, 1895, thirty-three people became charter members of the Genoa Methodist . . . — — Map (db m236090) HM
After the fall of the Alamo on March 6, 1836, Gen. Sam Houston led the Texan Army in retreat from Gonzales. The Mexican army under Gen. Santa Anna followed eastward from San Antonio. On April 14, while Houston's army was north of him, Santa Anna . . . — — Map (db m201933) HM
The Carl Wilhelm Rummel and Carl Siegismund Bauer families landed in Galveston in October, 1848, and made their way to this site by ox cart in December, 1848. Crossing Spring Branch Creek, they saw a beautiful grove of oak trees, and one said, . . . — — Map (db m169521) HM
Life was unimaginably difficult for Spring Branch settlers in the early years, as evidenced by cemetery burial records. Yellow fever, malaria, typhoid and cholera made all too frequent visits to the struggling new community.
"1849 was an . . . — — Map (db m169520) HM
St. Peter Church was begun in 1848 with the arrival of German immigrants in the area. In 1854 a log church was erected, followed by the present frame building in 1864. Land for a cemetery as well as a school play area was donated by August and . . . — — Map (db m195022) HM
Founded, 1848, by five German immigrant families. A log cabin erected in 1854 served as house of worship until 1864, when this building was dedicated. It is one of the oldest church buildings in continuous use in Harris County. Many of the . . . — — Map (db m169523) HM
Due to the efforts of businessman Jesse H. Jones, the Democratic National Committee chose Houston as the site of the 1928 Democratic National Convention. Located on this site, the 20,000-seat Sam Houston Hall was completed in 64 days at a cost of . . . — — Map (db m116847) HM
Baker Common The Baker Family history and Houston’s history are one and the same Few have contributed more to our city’s progress than the members of the James Addison Baker family. They pioneered Texas law, built the law firm Baker Botts, . . . — — Map (db m140419) HM
The Sam Houston Coliseum, now the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, was the site of the first National Women's Conference held on November 18th through 21st, 1977. It was the largest political conference of women in the United States since . . . — — Map (db m117295) HM
First Masonic Lodge in Texas. Organized in March 1835 at Brazoria. Set to work Dec. 27, 1835, under dispensation of Grand Lodge of Louisiana, for whose 1835-37 Grand Master, John Henry Holland, this lodge was named. Labors were interrupted in Feb. . . . — — Map (db m59774) HM
In 1924, seven friends who lived near the newly constructed Museum of Fine Arts formed the Garden Club of Houston. They planned to study horticulture, experiment with new plants and further the beautification of the city of Houston. From this small . . . — — Map (db m125880) HM
Anson Jones was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. He earned his M.D. degree in Philadelphia in 1827; by October 1833, Jones had moved to Texas, establishing a successful medical practice in Brazoria. In 1835, he helped organize Holland Lodge . . . — — Map (db m122935) HM
Archibald Wynns was born in Henry County, Tennessee to Thomas Henry and Winniford (Outlaw) Wynns. Archibald married Martha Elizabeth Edmunds in January 1836, and the couple soon set out for Texas. The Wynns constructed their first home on the corner . . . — — Map (db m123010) HM
The daughter of Texas Revolutionary War general Sidney Sherman and Catherine Isabell (Cox), Belle Sherman (1847-1919) was born in Harrisburg and married William E. Kendall in 1867. After making Houston her home in 1878, Belle S. Kendall became a . . . — — Map (db m123014) HM
Soon after the United States' entrance into World War I in 1917, the U.S. Army established 34 training camps to prepare troops for warfare. Named for General John A. Logan, Mexican War and Civil War veteran and senator from Illinois, Camp Logan . . . — — Map (db m201939) HM
A native of Germany, Caspar Braun was educated in Switzerland. A physician and teacher as well as a Lutheran clergyman, he was sent to Pennsylvania as a missionary in 1847. He arrived in Houston in 1850. The following year he organized the first . . . — — Map (db m123015) HM
Considered by many as the "Mother of Houston," Charlotte Marie Baldwin Allen was a leader in Houston during a time when women had few rights and fewer opportunities. She was born in Onondaga County, New York, and was the daughter of Elizabeth . . . — — Map (db m122984) HM
(front)
Native of Kentucky. Came to Texas, 1831. Member Secession Convention. Commanded reinforcements of State troops sent to Rio Grande for the capture of Federal Army property at Fort Brown. Went to Virginia hoping to be in first battle . . . — — Map (db m122936) HM
This congregation traces its history to 1866, when the Rev. I. S. Campbell was sent by the National Baptist Convention to organize African American churches in Texas immediately after the Civil War. Assisted by Joseph Smalley, Campbell . . . — — Map (db m201893) HM
Born in Nicholasville, Jessamine County, Ky. Arrived in Texas, 1827. Received land grant in Austin's second colony, 1831. Fought (Oct.-Dec. 1835) in Siege of Bexar, including the Grass Fight (Nov. 26). Married Susan . . . — — Map (db m123022) HM
David Finney Stuart was born in Brooke County, Western Virginia, to William and Mary Cummins Stuart. Upon the death of his parents, Stuart moved to Texas to live with his sister Elizabeth, wife of the Rev. Dr. James Weston Miller. A brother-in-law, . . . — — Map (db m122989) HM
Ellis Benson (1813-1896), a veteran of the Texas Revolution and participant in the Battle of San Jacinto, was born in Vermont. Before immigrating to Texas, he fought in the Black Hawk War (1832) in Illinois. By 1835, Benson was in New Orleans, where . . . — — Map (db m122987) HM
Emily Clay Family Scramble You are currently standing about 21 feet above the old Memorial Drive roadbed. In 2022, concrete from the roadway was cut, stacked and reused to create the Emily Clay Family Scramble. The concrete blocks around you . . . — — Map (db m235834) HM
Born in New York City to German immigrants Nicholas and Margaretta Heiner, Eugene Thomas Heiner apprenticed himself to a Chicago architect when he was thirteen years old and later completed his training in Berlin, Germany. Heiner became a draftsman . . . — — Map (db m122983) HM
Gustav (Gustaf, Gustave) August Samuelson (1832-1919) was one of 13 children born to Johannes Samuelson and Anna Petersdotter of Forserum, Sweden. At the age of 16, he emigrated from Sweden, arriving in Houston with a group of other Scandinavians on . . . — — Map (db m122988) HM
The Houston Cemetery Company was one of several chartered and private associations promoted by Houston business leaders for the purpose of effecting civic, cultural and economic improvements following the Civil War. Houston Cemetery Company was . . . — — Map (db m122956) HM
South Carolina native Irvin Capers Lord (1827-1914) came to Houston with his family in 1854. A machinist by trade, he was co-owner of Lord and Richardson's Eagle Iron Works. In 1858 he was elected alderman, representing the First Ward until 1863 . . . — — Map (db m123013) HM
Born in England in 1845, James Robert Cade immigrated to the United States in mid-1869, arriving in Harrisburg, Texas, in 1873 with his new bride, Annie Mortimer, also of English descent. James Robert previously trained in England as a railroad . . . — — Map (db m123020) HM
James Sherwood Lucas (1836-1888) and his son Alfred T. Lucas (1863-1922) immigrated to the United States and became influential brick masons and contractors who helped develop the city of Houston. James Lucas was born in Nottingham, England, to . . . — — Map (db m122992) HM
This cemetery served the early African-American community in Houston for approximately 100 years. The Olivewood Cemetery Association incorporated in 1875 and purchased 5.5 acres of this property that same year from Elizabeth Morin Slocomb. The . . . — — Map (db m201895) HM
Established 1900 as St. Thomas College, and housed that year in a former Franciscan Monastery built in 1861 at Franklin Avenue and Caroline Street. The founders were the Rev. Nicholas Roche, C.S.B., and two other Basilian Fathers. (Their order . . . — — Map (db m235523) HM
