Brick Laid Roads

[IronTiger]

OK, help me out here: in 2005-2006, I read an article in the Houston Chronicle about a controversial road repair, in which a road somewhere in Houston had bricks that were laid by former slaves, and that workers were to remove the bricks (and place them back) to do utility repairs. Which road was that, and was the outcome of it?

 

I've kind of wanted to know as of late.

[FilioScotia]

Actually, it was two streets, both in the area known as Freedmen's Town, a community founded and built by former slaves just west of downtown Houston. 

 

Here's a link to the newspaper article you mention.

 

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/New-plan-would-leave-brick-streets-undisturbed-1530969.php

[aarosurf]

Zoom in on Google Maps and you can see them. Sabine street in the 6th ward is also brick.

[IronTiger]

Oh wow! That's really neat. It looks like at Andrews and Wilson, there used to be a trolley line at one time.

[Croberts]

I think it was originally a horsecar line.

[IronTiger]

Regardless, the fact that it can still be seen in the year 2013 is a very neat sight indeed.

[sinister1]

Mostly all roads with in the city limits had brick streets especially the one where trolleys ran through. Below is a pic of Houston Avenue. I wonder if they were all done by slaves?

 

[sinister1]

Here is another brick laid street. I think it's Washington Ave. headed towards downtown.

 

[sinister1]

Here is another brick laid street. I think it's Washington Ave. headed towards downtown.

 

 

Although this street looks like they have already black topped it, you can still see brick under where the pavement is cracked.

[IronTiger]

The point was that Freedmen's Town was founded and built by former slaves entirely, not that it used slave labor. The newspaper article was about how workers circa 2006 wanted to take out, clean, fix utilities, and replace the bricks, and how preservationists did not like the idea.

[sinister1]

The point was that Freedmen's Town was founded and built by former slaves entirely, not that it used slave labor. The newspaper article was about how workers circa 2006 wanted to take out, clean, fix utilities, and replace the bricks, and how preservationists did not like the idea.

 

Okay, thanks for clearing that up, I wasn't really saying it was built by slave labor; what I meant to say was I was just wondering if it was?

[Michelle C]

When I was a kid in grade school we lived on Heights Blvd. At that time Heights Blvd was still a brick street. I am not sure but it may have still had the trolley tracks on it.

[Subdude]

Here is another brick laid street. I think it's Washington Ave. headed towards downtown.

 

 

I think this is actually looking away from downtown.  That would be the old Brazos Hotel on the left.  This site is currently the front of the main downtown post office.

 

Very interesting photo.  The old Southern Pacific station is on the right.  The picture has to date from before 1934, since that is when the Brazos Hotel was demolished and the new Southern Pacific Station built over this section of Washington Ave.