Memories Of Sharpstown

[roym]

WestUNative & 57TBird,

Thanks for all the Sharpstown Country Club facts and figures - great info! I didn't know that little course had that much history.

It was closed down for a while during the 70s and 80s and grew up a lot during that time. I'm sure it's a much more mature looking course these days.

I fished a bunch of the ponds on that course both when it was originally open and during the time it was closed. Even rode my motorcyle across the old fairways and greens during the closed years (sorry to you golfers... )

[apollopride]

There was a cool place to eat on the end that you ordered using telephones at the table. I don't recall the name.

I loved that restaurant! I think it was called Across the Street.

(And Mrs. Hughes was my 4th grade teacher too)

"Mansion" at Gessner and Beechnut? Yes, I wondered what kind of person would have invested in a building at that site at a busy intersection. Gypsy's? most likely.

So funny that you said that! I guess we heard the same rumor. If anyone asks me I always say the King of the Gypsys lives there. My 41 year old brain can't remember where that tidbit came from. I thought it was one of those crazy things my Mom was always coming up with.

[enviromain]

Does anybody remember a grocery store near Fondren and Bissonett called Sacco Bros.? I'm not sure I spelled it correctly. When I was a LITTLE kid I'd go there with my Mom and "Mr. Sam" would always give me a piece of bubblegum.

I remember Saccos! He had big barrells of candy, gum, and peanuts. That was back in the day when my mom would give a "big quarter" as a tip to bring her groceries to the car and load them. It closed about the same time as Homers didn't it? And what about Henry's BBQ?

[roym]

I remember my Dad getting fresh with my Mom there, lol.

On the swingset?! Kinky. Thanks for the visuals...

[enviromain]

On the swingset?! Kinky. Thanks for the visuals...

funny!

[nm5k]

Yes, Sharpstown High School had 2 smoking areas. You had to have had a permission slip from your parents in order to smoke there (not that anyone checked). It was there at least during my time there from 79 to 81.

Westbury High School had smoking areas when I was there in 73-75.. In fact, I think they

started it my freshman year if I remember right.. It was always packed.. But many used

other places, like the handball courts, etc.. I still remember my usual breakfast at Westbury..

A cigarette along with the usual Mr. Pibb. Some indulged in those funky herbal cigs with no

filters.. :/

MK

[enviromain]

Yes, Sharpstown High School had 2 smoking areas. You had to have had a permission slip from your parents in order to smoke there (not that anyone checked). It was there at least during my time there from 79 to 81.

It still had both smoking areas when I went there as well, graduated in '83. I don't think smoking permits were ever checked after the first of the year. Mrs. Ott used to check them during the first week. Mr. Jackson didn't care. People even smoked in the bathroom back in the day.

[alybeary]

This forum has brought tears to my eyes. Oh what great memories. We moved to Sharpstown in 1965. I was 4 years old. We lived on Langdon Lane, 3 blocks from K-Mart, in between Mary Bates and Gessner. I went to Pat Neff Elementary, Sharpstown Jr. High, and graduated from Sharpstown High School in 1979. I remember our house being built prior to moving in. There was only 1 other house on our street, which was our next door neighboors. We use to fly bat kites in the fields all around us. I remember going to the houses that were being built and walking all around them when they were nothing but 4x4's and nails everywhere. I remember getting a tetnus shot for stepping on a nail. I remember the hill in front of Pat Neff Elementary School that always seems so big when we hunted Easter Eggs. We too walked to The Purple Cow and got purple ice cream on a cone. Last time I was in Houston, the sliding window that opened up to order your ice cream was still there. We also walked to the 7-elevan to get candy and icee's. I remember the 2 houses on the next block over that burned down. One was the corner of Mary Bates. I remember the car the drove through the window of the one houses on the corner of Mary Bates. Can't remember the street names they were on. Also I remember their was a Dairy Queen that we use to go to on Bellaire. You could drive up to it and order your ice cream! I can picture the Country Club Pool in my mind. We were not members, but I always got to go with my friends as Guest. The high diving board seemed really high to me. I remember getting up early and standing in line at Landsdale Pool to sign up for Swim Lessons. The entrance to the pool seems to have stayed the same. My sister worked at K-Mart, and I worked at Gemco. One year I was the one who you showed your membership card to when you came in the front door. Taco Bell was on the same parking lot. I remember how it flooded so bad in our neighborhood that we took an air boat from K-mart parking lot to our street to get home. I remember going to Sharpstown Mall to watch the fireworks on July 4th and how much traffic we always had to sit in to get back to MaryBates from Bellaire Blvd. I remember the Marie Callendars across the street from the mall on Bellaire. I also worked a couple years as a checker at Handy Andy. I remember it was robbed on a night that I was not working. How about Uncle Sam's. It was in a strip center off of Fondren I think. Anyone remember when we got to paint the fire hydrants red, white and blue in the neighborhood. I think that was in 1976 for the bicenttenial. Or when it snowed and they closed Sharpstown Jr. High because the snow actually stuck. I was able to make my first snowman on our backyard picnic table. I remember the water tower on the corner of Gessner and Bellaire.

I remember waking up in the middle of the night when Hurricane Alicia hit and the electricity was out and seeing our pine trees in the front yard be bent to the roots. We taped up our windows several times when I lived on Langdon in fear that hurricanes were going to hit. Over the years I went back to Sharpstown to visit my parents, who lived in our house for 38 years and moved 2 years ago to New Mexico. It was hard to drive down Bellaire and Gessner. I always thought their neighborhood was well kept, but the surrounding eye sore apartments were so hard to see after all those years. Oh I also remember the Sharpstown Ice Skating Rink..spent many friday nights there skating to the song Philadelphia Freedom! HA!. I think there was also a bowling alley over there, and I remember when they first put it in, it had those automated score keeper machines. They were hugh! I also remember going to a Pizza Hut on Gessner, past Bellaire Blvd. on the right past the strip center by Fiesta. Fondren also had a Jack-in-the-box where you actually ordered through Jack in the box. Well that is all I can think of now. I will always have great memories of growing up in Sharpstown!

[alybeary]

One more thing I remember...going to Sharpstown Mall and eating at the Woolworths, when it had windows that faced out to the interior of the mall. I always ordered a cherry coke and we sat in the booths by the windows.

[apollopride]

I remember the hill in front of Pat Neff Elementary School that always seems so big when we hunted Easter Eggs...

Well you just recounted MY life! Only I was one year old when we moved to Sharpstown in 1965. Funny you mentioned the hill in front of Neff. I just drove past the school last weekend and wondered to myself why they had to get rid of the hill. Probably from fear of some Jack or Jill tumbling down and filing a lawsuit. Remember how there were always two Golden Eggs when they had the Easter Egg hunt out front? And did you ever encounter a horny toad on the kick ball field?! We are in the process of moving my Dad to a retirement center and I can't help but be pretty sad about not having a home in Sharpstown anymore.

[apollopride]

7) I remember the old EATON Car Parts and repair place when it went up near the corner of Gessner and Beechnut. I thought, "wow, what a cool building". I think we all know the building.

I don't think you bored anyone here - we all seem to be Sharpstonians in our hearts! Those are some great memories. I remember when they built that Eaton building and how "mod" it was...well it was kind of like that store in Astroworld, "The Mod Box." But oh it looks awful now! They demolished the old car dealership and lot next to it and I wish they could just keep going and raze that building too.

[alybeary]

Funny you mentioned the hill in front of Neff. I just drove past the school last weekend and wondered to myself why they had to get rid of the hill. Remember how there were always two Golden Eggs when they had the Easter Egg hunt out front? And did you ever encounter a horny toad on the kick ball field?!

It has been several years since I have been back to Sharpstown. I don't recall the Golden Eggs, but I am sad to hear that the hill is gone. I do remember the day that "man first walked on the moon" - they wheeled in one of those tv's on a cart and we all sat and watched it in our classroom. I always thought that cement square thing in the middle of the school was strange.

Anyone remember SFDS carnivals? We went to those every year. I can remember playing BINGO.

Oh and I think the K-Mart grocery part was a Lewis and Coker. And Churches Chicken was on the corner of that parking lot. We had fried chicken every week! But my favorite was Long John Silver's. It seems like LJS's was on the same parking lot until they moved it across to the other side of the freeway over there by Channel 2?

my family used to go pick dewberries in a some of those fields off of Hillcroft before they were all developed. The comment about Horny Toads caught my eye because we used to run across horned toads in those fields while we were picking berries (along with lots of snakes).

My dad used to take us to pick Dewberries also. What fun! I had forgotten about that...One thing that you brought memories of was seeing dead "frogs" smashed in the street. I know this sounds terrible, but we use to see them all the time, then many years later when I would go back to my parents home, I always wondered where all the "frogs" went to.

[enviromain]

Only I was one year old when we moved to Sharpstown in 1965.

We moved to Sharpstown in 1969. We lived on the corner of Neff St. and Larkwood. The house with the big white barking german shepard. The dog's name was "Marbles," but my mom used to yell out, "stop barking Killer." I guess Killer sounded more intimidating than Marbles.

Of course my brother and I moved out in later years, but my parents stayed there until 1991. I went to went to Sutton Elementary, Jane Long Jr. High and graduated from Sharpstown High with the class of 1983.

[apollopride]

We moved to Sharpstown in 1969. We lived on the corner of Neff St. and Larkwood. The house with the big white barking german shepard. The dog's name was "Marbles," but my mom used to yell out, "stop barking Killer." I guess Killer sounded more intimidating than Marbles.

Of course my brother and I moved out in later years, but my parents stayed there until 1991. I went to went to Sutton Elementary, Jane Long Jr. High and graduated from Sharpstown High with the class of 1983.

Well I know I've driven past your house many times because one of my best friends lived on the corner of Carvel and Larkwood. I bet I know you too! Or at least know who you are - I was in Class of '83 as well. We were going through boxes at my Dad's house tonight - getting ready to move him out - and I found this little black and white cartoon that Mom cut out of the paper one day and stuck on my bedroom door. It said "Class of '83 is Number One." It stayed there for years until they turned my bedroom into an office....about the same time my favorite Dallas Cowboys poster mysteriously disappeared!

[apollopride]

Anyone remember SFDS carnivals? We went to those every year. I can remember playing BINGO....

...My dad used to take us to pick Dewberries also. What fun! I had forgotten about that...One thing that you brought memories of was seeing dead "frogs" smashed in the street. I know this sounds terrible, but we use to see them all the time, then many years later when I would go back to my parents home, I always wondered where all the "frogs" went to.

SFDS still has the "carnivals" - it's called the Bazaar! I too loved to go when I was a kid. It must have been over 30 years ago that I bought a little green plant there (that I named Simon) and took it home to my Mom. It somehow jumped out of the pot and took over the flower bed in the backyard. It really made kind of nice ground cover. Mom called it "Simon's children." It is still there today along the side of the house! I am going to grab some for sure before we sell the place so I can have some of Simon's children at MY house.

I remember all the dewberries in that area too. There was a row of them that grew between Sharpstown General Hospital and Gethsemane Methodist Church. We picked some one day at nursery school and I put them in my front pocket to bring to my Grandfather who was visiting at the time. Too bad I did that BEFORE nap time. I ended up with smashed dewberries in my pocket.

And I remember all the frogs too! And you know what else has disappeared? Turtles. We were always finding turtles and keeping them as pets until they wandered off again. I guess it's just too much development - no place for the turtles and the frogs to hang out anymore.

[enviromain]

Well I know I've driven past your house many times because one of my best friends lived on the corner of Carvel and Larkwood. I bet I know you too! Or at least know who you are - I was in Class of '83 as well. We were going through boxes at my Dad's house tonight - getting ready to move him out - and I found this little black and white cartoon that Mom cut out of the paper one day and stuck on my bedroom door. It said "Class of '83 is Number One." It stayed there for years until they turned my bedroom into an office....about the same time my favorite Dallas Cowboys poster mysteriously disappeared!

Yep, that's the house! It's painted brown now - weird to see. And yes I was a member of MYF at the Gethsemane Methodist church on Bellaire Blvd. We were always at the church for one reason or the other. Cool to run into a SHS fellow classmate here at HAIF. Those were the days!

I heard that the kids there still talk about our graduating class because of all the quarters we handed Mr. Jackson as we shook his hand and walked across the stage! Who would have believed we were still talked about 20 years later? Class of "83 still rocks!

[Dado]

Hi. I was at Jane Long from 76-79. I was in the band and I played the clarinet. Jack Lalane was a great band director. He took us from the worst band in the city to winning all 1's at the city UIL contest in a two year period. Mr. Lalane was a former professional musician with the NBC orchestra. And I remember that one year we cut a record. My father probably still has it. I also remember doing alot of push ups. Enviromain I probably knew you and I am sure as a member of the flute section that you never had to do push ups. Do you remember those little practice rooms that were at the back of the band room? We had alot of cute girls in the band which made it hard for us boys to concentrate hence all the push ups. Ah youth.

Long was a tough school I remember having to do bear crawls around the track during gym for

Coaches Golden and Castoria. By the way Coach Holly taught Drivers Ed at Coaches Driving School in

Bellaire where I learned to drive. Long was a very strict school. I remember what a shock it was to go to

Sharpstown High School which had few if any enforced rules and was pretty much a party school.

Life was good.

[Dado]

Hi. I just want to say that this thread is great. We moved to Sharpstown in 1966. I went to Sutton, Long and SHS. Do any of you remember that huge Olde English style hotel called the Royal Coach Inn? It was just north of Sharpstown mall on 59. That place was huge. I remember going to a Star Trek convention there and meeting James Doohan "Scotty" there. Also on the east side of 59 where Pappas Bar-B-Q is used to be

Steak And Ale with the inside done in the Olde English style. And yes I worked for the target on 59 as a teenager and as a child I remember the conveyer belt where they would deliver your groceries on the west side of the store. Does any one remember the Purple Cow on the east side of Bayland Park on Hillcroft?

And speaking of Bayland Park I remember that one of the Bad News Bears movies was filmed on the Sharpstown Little League field M-2. Those were good times. As a teenager I also worked at Der Weinersnitczel (sp) on Hillcroft at Bissonett and I remember Doug Johnson ( the weatherman at channel 2)

and his family stopping for hot dogs after church on Sundays.

[roym]

Well you just recounted MY life! Only I was one year old when we moved to Sharpstown in 1965. Funny you mentioned the hill in front of Neff. I just drove past the school last weekend and wondered to myself why they had to get rid of the hill. Probably from fear of some Jack or Jill tumbling down and filing a lawsuit. Remember how there were always two Golden Eggs when they had the Easter Egg hunt out front? And did you ever encounter a horny toad on the kick ball field?! We are in the process of moving my Dad to a retirement center and I can't help but be pretty sad about not having a home in Sharpstown anymore.

Yeah, I guess that hill has memories for lot's of people. A friend of mine and I got busted by the principal, Mr. Martin, for running around on that hill and throwing our Patrol helmets up in the air! We got suspended from Patrols for two weeks.

And I remember all the frogs too! And you know what else has disappeared? Turtles. We were always finding turtles and keeping them as pets until they wandered off again. I guess it's just too much development - no place for the turtles and the frogs to hang out anymore.

It didn't help any when the paved the bayou that ran between Osage and Tours in the late 70s... Unless I was riding my bike, I used to cut along the bayou on my way to Neff Elementary every day.

[enviromain]

Hi. I was at Jane Long from 76-79. I was in the band and I played the clarinet. Jack Lalane was a great band director. He took us from the worst band in the city to winning all 1's at the city UIL contest in a two year period. Mr. Lalane was a former professional musician with the NBC orchestra. And I remember that one year we cut a record. My father probably still has it. I also remember doing alot of push ups. Enviromain I probably knew you and I am sure as a member of the flute section that you never had to do push ups. Do you remember those little practice rooms that were at the back of the band room? We had alot of cute girls in the band which made it hard for us boys to concentrate hence all the push ups. Ah youth.

Long was a tough school I remember having to do bear crawls around the track during gym for

Coaches Golden and Castoria. By the way Coach Holly taught Drivers Ed at Coaches Driving School in

Bellaire where I learned to drive. Long was a very strict school. I remember what a shock it was to go to

Sharpstown High School which had few if any enforced rules and was pretty much a party school.

Life was good.

Wow, we were definitely in the band there together! Here's your challenge: See if you can remember me. I'm the one between Kirby and Christina. If you recognize me, you'll understand my username here.

Now you have to give me a hint who you are....what did you play? What's your first name? This is fun.

[enviromain]

Hi. I just want to say that this thread is great. We moved to Sharpstown in 1966. I went to Sutton, Long and SHS. Do any of you remember that huge Olde English style hotel called the Royal Coach Inn? It was just north of Sharpstown mall on 59. That place was huge. I remember going to a Star Trek convention there and meeting James Doohan "Scotty" there. Also on the east side of 59 where Pappas Bar-B-Q is used to be

Steak And Ale with the inside done in the Olde English style. And yes I worked for the target on 59 as a teenager and as a child I remember the conveyer belt where they would deliver your groceries on the west side of the store. Does any one remember the Purple Cow on the east side of Bayland Park on Hillcroft?

And speaking of Bayland Park I remember that one of the Bad News Bears movies was filmed on the Sharpstown Little League field M-2. Those were good times. As a teenager I also worked at Der Weinersnitczel (sp) on Hillcroft at Bissonett and I remember Doug Johnson ( the weatherman at channel 2)

and his family stopping for hot dogs after church on Sundays.

Murph and I walked or rode our bikes to the Purple Cow. We also swam at Dunfee's Royal Coach. I watch them film the Bad News Bears at Bayland too. Okay, who are you? You were in my band at Jane Long, you're obviously my age, and I went to Sutton, Long, and SHS. What street did you live on??? You have to at least give a hint here.....????

[Sharpstown Bill]

Great Post! Was it GiGi's Model Shop or Gene's Model Shop that was in the mall?

[SpaceAge]

Great Post! Was it GiGi's Model Shop or Gene's Model Shop that was in the mall?

The 1966 and 1969 city directory show Jean's Model Shop at #216 and Playhouse Toy Store at #217 which was on the end near Montgomery Wards, Finger's and Oshman's.

[apollopride]

Love your post Chief! Not sure about your recollection of where Battelsteins was located...I thought it was on the other side of the mall just outside of Foleys - but you appear to have a much better memory than me - so you're probably right. Wasn't the restuarant with the phones at the tables called, "Across the Street"? That's what I remember.

Thanks for the trip back to the good ole days!

[hbcu]

why did everyone leave the area? Bellaire and Hillcroft used to be nice....

it's shame the way they've abandoned Sharpstown High School and left it for the dogs

[VicMan]

why did everyone leave the area? Bellaire and Hillcroft used to be nice....

it's shame the way they've abandoned Sharpstown High School and left it for the dogs

I took my SAT Subject Test at SHS. The doors automatically lock over there, even during the daytime.

[thesaint]

Great Post! Was it GiGi's Model Shop or Gene's Model Shop that was in the mall?

In 1964, at age 9, I was strolling through the recently opened Sharpstown Shopping Center, and one of my favorite places there was the model shop near Montgomery Ward. It was named either "Gene's" or "Jean's", not "Gigi's". It not only had plastic models, train sets, etc., but also coins. Last year, I was shocked to stumble across an almost exact replica of this shop in "The Village" (and indoor/outdoor collection of trendy stores and restaurants) near Rice University. It was like walking back in time. The store was the same size as its Sharpstown "twin", and its merchandise was even laid out in the same way! One of the two men running the place told me the owner of The Village store was also the owner of the Sharpstown facility, which he had opened second.

I grew up in the mid-1960s about a block from Pat Neff Elementary School, on Sharpview near Osage. I didn't leave until around 1978. Four years ago, however, I got a job nearby, so I often stroll through Sharpstown on my lunch hour. The main differences between then and now? The homes have aged, of course, and the demographic mix is now much more Hispanic/Black/Asian than White. The apartment complex across from Sharpstown Middle School is a run-down eyesore and has been for many years, but it used to be quite nice. The trees throughout the neighborhood have had 40 years to blossom from saplings into full-grown beauties, causing one to ponder how God's creations improve through time while man's decay. The saddest difference is all the security bars on the doors and windows of the homes, and all the fencing around the schools and Lansdale Park. In the 1960s and 1970s, you could walk virtually anywhere you wanted and never even think much less worry about trespassing, burglaries, muggings, pedophiles, drive-by shootings, major vandalism, etc. People locked their doors at night, yes, but generally they went through their lives feeling safe. Also, because almost everyone in the neighborhood was a stereotypical, lily-White American, we all celebrated the same American holidays; whereas, in the neighborhood where I now reside, holidays are variously and less publicly celebrated by Whites, American Blacks, African Blacks, Indians, Arabs, Asians, and Pakistanis. This heterogeneous mix also seems to work against neighbors getting to know each other, at least as compared to Sharpstown in the mid-1960s.

Back to Sharpstown Mall: Does anyone know how/where I can find the names of the original tenants of Sharpstown Shopping Center? A few years ago, I tried getting a list of the stores and restaurants from a manager at Foley's, who initially promised to help me, but things subsequently fizzled out.

[LarryDallas]

JMLS and SHS are warzones now. If you went there and left Houston in the late 70s you will cry should you come back and see the schools today. The apartments in the area have been a haven for crime because the kids that grow up in therm know nothing but crime since an early age so many fall in with the whole thing. It's really kind of sad how that area has declined so hard.

I did not attend SHS but I went to some garage sale they had there about 7 years ago. The place looked full of history and tons of memories but it has just been abondoned. Even HISD has rigged test scores at SHS to get funding and promotions of administrators. Years ago I bought a few of the SHS yearbooks from the 70s at an estate sale. If anyone wants to see a photo of a football team, dance, or club at the school from that era let me know and I can post.

[SharpTexan]

When my family was vacationing in New Mexico, we went to a town called Magallion (pronouned locally as Muggy-own). My father was talking to your father there. He saw the Jane Long Jr. High School sticker on our station wagon and let us know that his father was Frank Sharp that built Sharpstown. Small world.

Hi, sorry I had been away from the site for awhile. Frank Sharp, was actually my mother's father and had two daughters. No son. If it was Claude Hooton, then it was my Dad and Pop Pop was his father in law.

I don't think he's been in NM recently though-certainly not living there. Interesting.

Good to see that folks still remember and appreciate Sharpstown anyway.

Frank

[gwilson]

I, for one, and glad I still live in Sharpstown. I love it here.

Frank, it would be awesome to sit down with you some time and chat about Sharpstown and it's history. My uncle and I are Sharpstown fanatics. We want to do so much for the area (he was responsible for getting the TIRZ and PID implemented here and has tried to do many other things).

Raze the complexes and duplexes and Sharpstown will be great. The neighborhoods are still, in my opinion, the most beautiful in Houston.

I would LOVE to see a comprehensive collection of old Sharpstown photos.