Memories Of Alief

[jack31850]

GeorgetownGal, Due to a family connection I got to attend some of those BBQ's. It was fantastic BBQ.

[morfin44]

A while back I did a project on Alief (an architecture class by Stephen Fox at Rice), and I have a good number of pictures left. They were taken recently (2004), but are of the older/more historically important buildings. Let me know if you want em. I also have some photos of the graveyard at Dairy Ashford in detail, plus photos that are legible of the two historical markers if you want to read them.

Rob

hey do you have any info on the big old house right accros it its siting in an acre or half and it has a lots of big trees, right next to the gas statio. the house is right on alief clodine and J st

.

[WestparkVillager]

I miss the railroad track that now makes up the westpark tollway I remember racing trains there with my dad.

[HtownBandit]

Any memories from the late '70s through the '80s of of the areas along Beechnut, say between Kirkwood and Highway 59? Currently, I reside near Boone and Beechnut, along Shannon Hills drive. Yeah, the area is pretty rough. I'm much too young to have lived during the '70s-'80s, but I'd have loved to imagine how much better it was. Any pictures would be awesome.

 

Also, maybe a bit of a specific question, but was there always a cut-off on Leawood Blvd between the schools of Olle Middle School and Boone Elementary, and the residential area going towards Beechnut? 

 

And a bit of a darker question, but I heard stories from some of my older neighbors, at least two different accounts, about a young girl at her Fifteen party, or something along those lines, who was murdered by her boyfriend, I can't remember the exact details. But according to my Cuban neighbor who lived on my street since the late '70s (who recently moved away after the passing of her husband, RIP Rolando) this was over 30, 35 years ago, but depending on the account happened either on either side of Bissonnet. Anybody heard of this at all? Honestly, this is just morbid curiosity here. 

[MaxConcrete]

Any memories from the late '70s through the '80s of of the areas along Beechnut, say between Kirkwood and Highway 59?

 

I grew up in west Sharpstown in the 1970s, so I had some exposure to that area.

 

Beechnut stopped at Pella street when I moved to Sharpstown in 1971, but there was at least one section in existence in Alief. I think it was from Boone to Kirkwood. It was a big event when the missing link was opened. I remember those original sections of Beechnut in Alief were very cheaply built to low standards, and that section was totally rebuilt maybe 10 or 15 years ago.

 

I remember when Club Creek drive was first built and there was nothing out there. There was a lot of erosion of topsoil onto the road, and my father took me out there to load the back of a truck with soil for our flower beds. I also remember some kind of major golf event at Westwood Country Club around that time. I think it was an LPGA event. Cars were parked on Club Creek for a long distance away from the Westwood CC entrance, most of the way to Beechnut.

 

The apartments on Beechnut just west of the Breas Bayou crossing were somewhat trendy when first built. The bayou was different back then - there was a flat, dry area at the bottom and a narrow water channel. I remember a lot of folks running up the side of the bayou for exercise, and there were rumors that Houston Oilers players were among those who would sprint up the slope for exercise. I have no idea if those rumors were true, but I recall seeing numerous athletic-looking black guys at that site, and that was definitely consistent with the rumor.

 

I passed by the bayou crossing because it was on the way to the Eagle supermarket in the shopping center at Club Creek. Eagle was somewhat expensive, I seem to remember, and it was gone as soon as the area started to become low income.

 

Of course, Roark Road was on the alignment of the present-day northbound BW8 frontage road. I remember driving my bicycle out there, wondering when the beltway would be built. Further north along Roark, closer to Bellaire, there where numerous relics of the old R.E. "Bob" Smith Ranch. Some of those relics lasted a long time, maybe into the 1990s.

 

I remember riding my bicycle out to Corporate Drive and watching work crews pour the pavement. Corporate was obviously built to low standards since it has been in bad shape for a long time.

 

Going further west along Beechnut, there was not anything memorable. Boone was a two-lane country-style road until around the early 1980s when it was paved with concrete to have four lanes. There was the Charlie Club hotel and fitness club near Bissonnet. In 1983, the first year I could drive, I paid $100 for a three-month summer membership to use the gym. That's about $238 in today's money! But that seemed to be the going rate back then, and as a 16-year-old I thought it was cool to hang out in the weight room. I remember Akeem Olajuwon was there at least once when I was working out.

 

Further west near Kirkwood, in the 1980s people began converting those mini-storage units facing Beechnut into storefronts. That seemed to last for a long time, but I don't remember seeing any storefronts on a recent drive-through.

 

One interesting historical tidbit that I remember is that homebuilding was still active in Alief in the 1970s, especially between Alief-Clodine and Westheimer. I remember that builders touted "Alief Schools" to attract buyers, both with signs at the subdivisions and in the newspapers. That ended very quickly when Alief became a low-income school district seemingly overnight.

 

There was a weekly Alief newspaper called the Advertiser Advocate, which was also distributed in Sharpstown west of Gessner. I was a delivery boy in Sharpstown. I remember reading the newspaper, and it had reports for and all the neighborhoods and schools in Alief. Of course, Alief was a different world in the 1970s, overwhelmingly white and community-focused. I don't know when the Advocate ceased operation, but it seems like it was gone by the 1990s.

 

As another observation, there was a lot of drugs being distributed at Sharpstown High School in my first year there, 1981-1982. In fact, at my table in homeroom I sat with a drug dealer. Every day he would spread out numerous baggies and foil wrappers on the table, and every day he would say the same thing, "At the end of the day this will all be gone." (Our homeroom teacher was an old lady who was half-senile.) However, by then end of my first year there was a drug crackdown, and one day that kid was gone, never to return. The next year the smoking area at Sharpstown was closed. I think a lot of that drug activity shifted to Alief. My neighbor two houses over was a major stoner, and he transferred to Alief Elsik because he said there were more drugs available. (His mother worked for AISD, so he could transfer.) He could have been exaggerating, but I think there was plenty of drugs moving through Alief in the early 1980s.

 

Huntington Village near Bissonnet and Dairy Ashford was a good area when first built. The tennis center was especially active, and since my parents were avid tennis players, I was there often.

 

Others may have commented about Great Skate on Bellaire near Boone. It was the skate rink closest to Sharpstown, and I remember a few birthday parties there. But it never seemed crowded, and I think it was gone by the early 1980s.

 

As far as Alief has fallen, I must say it seems to have rebounded in recent years, mainly due to the Vietnamese influence. On a recent drive-through, it was not nearly as trashed out as I expected. Beechnut Street between BW8 and Boone has been repaired, and is no longer horrendous, but still needs a complete rebuild.

 

That's enough recollections. :-)  

Edited December 21, 2015 by MaxConcrete

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

I grew up in Huntington Village, 1975 to 87 when i went on the road with various punk and metal bands.

HV fated better than most Alief neighborhoods, as there were fewer rental properties as compared to the rest of the area. The real estate crash ob 87 didn't affect HV much.

The entire Alief area went to hell between 93 and 94... Former sister in law graduated from a mostly white Elsik in 93, former brother in law graduated from a mostly black Elsik in 94.... Alief has been in a downward spiral since.

Ma and Pa moved out of HV in 97

[Ross]

There was an article in the Houston Press about Huntington Village and its HOA http://www.houstonpress.com/news/tipping-point-in-huntington-village-the-community-association-has-all-the-power-7998755

[HtownBandit]

I grew up in Huntington Village, 1975 to 87 when i went on the road with various punk and metal bands.

No way? Like well known bands or bands you were in? Any metal bands that performed in the area?

Edited January 1, 2016 by HtownBandit

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

I worked at Cardis, Backstage, still at Warehouse, Fitz, HoB, wad just reminiscing about Motorhead and all the local shows with Lemmy, and I even did a short stint in a punk band called Green Jello..... heh

[HtownBandit]

I worked at Cardis, Backstage, still at Warehouse, Fitz, HoB, wad just reminiscing about Motorhead and all the local shows with Lemmy, and I even did a short stint in a punk band called Green Jello..... heh

Ha! I read on a different forum of someone who went to a Motorhead show at Cardi's around 1986, and actually met Lemmy. Lemmy asked him and his friend if they wanted an autograph, and his friend said "no, I want one of those warts on your cheek" and Lemmy punched him squarely in the nose hahaha

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

Oct of 86, yep. I hid behind the PA on Lemmy's side during the show, it was so fkn loud... LOL

[georgetowngal]

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/Alief%20aerial%202.jpg

 

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/12052634_1211192652240791_5460194648163670472_o.jpg

 

 

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/12063658_10207385351458184_3691796539780031532_n.jpg

[georgetowngal]

Here are some aerial photos I found:

 

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/Alief%20aerial%202.jpg

 

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/12052634_1211192652240791_5460194648163670472_o.jpg

 

 

file://localhost/Users/candyminshew/Desktop/12063658_10207385351458184_3691796539780031532_n.jpg

[Blade Runner]

I worked at Cardis, Backstage, still at Warehouse, Fitz, HoB, wad just reminiscing about Motorhead and all the local shows with Lemmy, and I even did a short stint in a punk band called Green Jello..... heh

 

 

 

Little pig little pig, let me in....

 

 

 

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

They were with Judas Priest, Alice, Megadeth and Testament. They were the loudest band of the night

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

it was either late 91 or early 92. it was one of three concerts I have paid to see since then 

[HtownBandit]

I just discovered Google Earth and it's nifty historic view, but in my area only a few 20th C. dates are available: 1944, 1953, 1978, 1989 and 1995. Still cool to see what was there and what wasn't

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

78 was when the Alief area was annexed into Houston, so that's probably why there's a nap from then

[IronTiger]

Historic Aerials has a few more and some in slightly better quality if you don't mind the watermarks.

[georgetowngal]

My father obtained a historic metal Alief sign from a building that existed in Alief in 1950's.  It is approximately 2 feet high and 10 feet wide. My daughter has possession of it.  We have no family.  Just she and I.  I am positive it will go in a dumpster when she dies.  Know one will want it.

 

Is there a museum in Houston or Sugarland etc.  that has old signs/memorbilia from Alief and surrounding area on display?.  For instance, where are old things from Imperial Sugar???

 

I don't want to say what sign is or show picture.  Sorry.

 

I want to donate, not sell.

 

Thanks in advance for your reply.

[I-beam]

I know the feeling. Best to look for a good home now. I don't know of any museum per se, but the Fort Bend Chamber might have ideas or even take it for display in their offices. 

[georgetowngal]

Thanks I-Beam.  Just looked at photos of interior of FBChamber.  Afraid they are to "elegant" for this metal sign.  Does not fit their decor which to me is WOW.  What a great place to work.

 

It would look great in an old dance hall or restaurant such as Gruene Hall.  I would feel comfortable giving it to established place such as Gruene Hall.  Don't think they would be shutting down any time soon.

Thanks again.

Edited June 19, 2016 by georgetowngal

[Kasper]

Hey @georgetowngal Any chance you still have this sign??

[ChannelTwoNews]

On 6/19/2016 at 10:11 AM, georgetowngal said:

My father obtained a historic metal Alief sign from a building that existed in Alief in 1950's.  It is approximately 2 feet high and 10 feet wide. My daughter has possession of it.  We have no family.  Just she and I.  I am positive it will go in a dumpster when she dies.  Know one will want it.

 

Is there a museum in Houston or Sugarland etc.  that has old signs/memorbilia from Alief and surrounding area on display?.  For instance, where are old things from Imperial Sugar???

 

I don't want to say what sign is or show picture.  Sorry.

 

I want to donate, not sell.

 

Thanks in advance for your reply.

I have no idea if the person who posted still even checks this... but I know that Sugar Land history is dealt with by the http://slheritage.org/, which does accept donations tied to local history.

For something Alief specific, you might want to reach out to the Alief Super Neighborhood Council. If nothing else, they might know of someone who might be able to get it where the sign would be put to good use.

[fjg]

On 6/19/2016 at 10:11 AM, georgetowngal said:

My father obtained a historic metal Alief sign from a building that existed in Alief in 1950's.  It is approximately 2 feet high and 10 feet wide. My daughter has possession of it.  We have no family.  Just she and I.  I am positive it will go in a dumpster when she dies.  Know one will want it.

 

Is there a museum in Houston or Sugarland etc.  that has old signs/memorbilia from Alief and surrounding area on display?.  For instance, where are old things from Imperial Sugar???

 

I don't want to say what sign is or show picture.  Sorry.

 

I want to donate, not sell.

 

Thanks in advance for your reply.

Good evening, I work in the community and there was a recent opening of the Alief Neighborhood Center. Might you still have possession of the old antique sign mentioned in 2016? You can reached me at: Fjg6051@gmail.com 

[bugtoaster]

"Old Alief" is, for the record, the neighborhood north of Alief Middle School, but that is not what this post is about. It's more about YouTube. If you search for Alief on YouTube, you can find lots of neat stuff, like this film (made in the same year that the Texas-centric movie Dazed & Confused is set, and looking pretty much like it): 

 

But if you focus your search to "Old Alief" in quote marks, it pulls up this:

 

The video above is somewhat rambling, but does in fact contain some relevant descriptions of life in Alief in the 1970s, mostly beginning at 21 minutes into the video. It's only one of thousands this guy made, starting about ten years ago, and ending his production run five years ago. A number of his videos contain details about Alief, although there is a lot to filter through to get to it.

 

Edited July 10, 2023 by bugtoaster

[cowboybud]

On 7/10/2023 at 1:10 PM, bugtoaster said:

"Old Alief" is, for the record, the neighborhood north of Alief Middle School, but that is not what this post is about. It's more about YouTube. If you search for Alief on YouTube, you can find lots of neat stuff, like this film (made in the same year that the Texas-centric movie Dazed & Confused is set, and looking pretty much like it): 

 

 

 

Looks downright rural. Is that Bellaire Blvd. toward the end of the film? Is that HS football stadium on the same site as the current stadium?

[bugtoaster]

55 minutes ago, cowboybud said:

Looks downright rural. Is that Bellaire Blvd. toward the end of the film? Is that HS football stadium on the same site as the current stadium?

That's what it looks like, based on my memories of many high-school lunches spent seeking out fast food on Bellaire.

The stadium in the 1976 film looks the same as I remember it in the '80s, although it might have been expanded by the time I was there. Google Maps shows a stadium there now, "LeRoy Crump Stadium." Is it the same one?