Tour & Save Memorial Bend Mods 8-8-21

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View this email in your browser   August Mod of the Month Houston Mod invites you to join us Sunday, August 8, 2021 for a Mod of the Month open house event from 2 - 4 PM. Please help find new preservation-minded owners for these outstanding vintage modern houses located in Memorial Bend, about 14 miles west of downtown Houston.  This is a special opportunity for Modsters to meet in Memorial Bend and celebrate the upcoming return of the Memorial Bend Architecture website Thanks to Houston MODern Market for sponsoring this FREE event.  12922 Traviata Drive, Memorial Bend, Section 2, Houston, TX 77024  HAR Link   |   Google Map Architect William Floyd designed this well composed house which balances privacy with great views of the forested Memorial area setting. Thanks to the reactivation process of the Memorial Bend Architecture website,  long forgotten information about the house has just resurfaced.  The house won a national design award from American Builder magazine in 1958 plus it was once home of the Emmy award-winning journalist John Davenport. Early promotions for Memorial Bend proclaimed the neighborhood had more good contemporaries than any other subdivision in Houston. Floyd participated in the development of Memorial Bend while designing a good number of the houses.  Young architects took note of the bid for excellence and purchased Floyd designed houses in Memorial Bend for themselves while a number of other architects designed houses here. Along with the attractive setting and high design standards, the area is also noted for its excellent schools, trendy shopping and dining spots and convenient location. William Norman Floyd (1910-2004) was from Norman Oklahoma and a 1934 graduate of the University of Oklahoma where he studied mechanical engineering and architecture. He opened an office in Houston after serving in the military. Floyd also designed houses in Lindale Park, Briarcroft, Bellaire, Briargrove, Robindell, Meyerland, Walnut Bend, Pine Hollow, Gaywood, Braes Timbers, Larkwood and Spring Branch. Don't miss the "Contemporary Center Idea Street", 13,000 block of Kimberley Lane in Memorial Plaza, where William Floyd designed a block of houses for a home show event.   12902 Figaro Drive, Memorial Bend, Section 3, Houston, TX 77024 (Drive-by only) HAR Link   |   Google Map Here is another sophisticated design by architect William Floyd also in need of a preservation-minded new owner.  The Memorial Bend Architecture website reports this house was featured in American Builder magazine, August 1959. The Memorial Bend Architecture website was created by Houston Mod co-founder Michael Brichford and provided a rich online resource featuring researched information about the neighborhood along with addresses of the vintage modern houses, links to publications about the area's development and a listing of noted previous owners. Reading the material is an enlightening experience and it was a leading factor in the creation of Houston Mod. The website has been offline lately but work is now underway to restore access through Houston Mod.  The AIA Houston Architectural Guide by Stephen Fox has additional information about this area. Take the 2003 Memorial Bend online tour created by Michael Brichford for Cite Magazinehere. If you have more information about these, or other vintage modern houses and/or architects, please contact Houston Mod so we can include it in our Modern Houston Index on our new website. The Mod Squad will be on hand at Sunday's event to assist with membership and publication purchases.  After Alden: Midcentury Architecture in Brazosport, Texas, Houston Mod's new publication by Marty Merritt with a forward by Stephen Fox and photography by Benjamin Hill, will be available at Sunday's event along with our other publications. Or, you may purchase a copy online at our website.   News & Upcoming Events Here's a spiffy mod available in El Campo, an hour southwest of Houston: 811 Peach Street. How should the Astrodome be reused? Please help our friends at the Astrodome Conservancy by taking their Future Dome survey. Houston Mod is a friend organization of Docomomo US, a national non-profit organization dedicated to the Documentation and Conservation of the Modern Movement. Docomomo US has been dedicated to this mission for nearly 25 years as a chapter of Docomomo International. A single Docomomo US Domestic membership may be added to any Houston Mod membership for the 50% discounted Friend Organization rate of $45.00 Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe  |  Become a Member Houston Mod is dedicated to promoting knowledge and appreciation of modern architecture and design in Houston and Texas and advocates the preservation of this cultural legacy, seeking support from its members and the general public in achieving this goal. Copyright © 2021 Houston Mod, P.O. Box 541353, Houston, TX 77254, All rights reserved.