Jump to content

Historic Houston Images


doug

Recommended Posts

  • 1 year later...
  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...
On ‎1‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 4:26 AM, Urbannizer said:

Downtown Houston, 1929

 

Photo was taken where the Buffalo  Bayou hike and bike trail exist today, near 45. The Bayou looked pretty rough back then.

 

high_res_d

https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc504919/m1/1/high_res_d/

 

This was the farmer's market in the foreground to the right, which extended over the bayou. You can see the long canopies. I believe several other buildings around it also had produce shops.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
On 8/29/2019 at 3:47 PM, Urbannizer said:

 

 

I wonder which corner this building occupied. Bremond dead-ends into Main at this intersection; however, the block opposite Bremond (west side of Main) is currently occupied by Central Cadillac, which probably was built soon after the Houston Auditorium was demolished. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, dbigtex56 said:

 

I wonder which corner this building occupied. Bremond dead-ends into Main at this intersection; however, the block opposite Bremond (west side of Main) is currently occupied by Central Cadillac, which probably was built soon after the Houston Auditorium was demolished. 

 

Sam White Oldsmobile opened in 1951 in the building currently occupied by Central Cadillac. There was a Swamplot piece that had a bit more info on it last year:

 

Your Next Best Bets for Houston’s Most Historic Car Dealership Building Once 1621 Milam Gets Demolished

 

That still leaves the question of what, if anything, was there between 1937 and 1951.

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, mkultra25 said:

 

Sam White Oldsmobile opened in 1951 in the building currently occupied by Central Cadillac. There was a Swamplot piece that had a bit more info on it last year:

 

Your Next Best Bets for Houston’s Most Historic Car Dealership Building Once 1621 Milam Gets Demolished

 

That still leaves the question of what, if anything, was there between 1937 and 1951.

In 1940, 2518 and 2520 Main were vacant. 2501 was South Main Chevrolet Used Cars, 2519 was Main-McGowen Service Station

In 1942, 2520 was LeBlanc's Restaurant

City directories are pretty sparse until the 50's. Sam White himself lived at 202 Millbrook in 1956

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 hours ago, Ross said:

In 1940, 2518 and 2520 Main were vacant. 2501 was South Main Chevrolet Used Cars, 2519 was Main-McGowen Service Station

In 1942, 2520 was LeBlanc's Restaurant

City directories are pretty sparse until the 50's. Sam White himself lived at 202 Millbrook in 1956

 

Interesting. 202 Millbrook is in Piney Point Village. I assume the area in and around the Memorial Villages would have been at least semi-rural back in the 50s, well before the later waves of development extended their reach that far from the city's center. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 7/3/2019 at 8:14 AM, Subdude said:

Nice pictures!  Can anyone identify the street with the accident in front of Jack-in-the-Box?

 

Unless the lens is extraordinarily screwed up, the intersection isn't perpendicular. The other road is wide, accommodating three lanes on each side, which eliminates a lot of options. There's also a movie theater in the background.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
11 hours ago, MidCenturyMoldy said:

 

I think that "movie theater" is actually a liquor store. Pretty sure it says "LIQUORS."

 

 

On 7/3/2019 at 8:14 AM, Subdude said:

Nice pictures!  Can anyone identify the street with the accident in front of Jack-in-the-Box?

 

 

On 9/1/2019 at 4:58 PM, IronTiger said:

Unless the lens is extraordinarily screwed up, the intersection isn't perpendicular. The other road is wide, accommodating three lanes on each side, which eliminates a lot of options. There's also a movie theater in the background.

 

 

I don't know why i didn't notice the angled street intersection before.  That makes it almost obvious to me that it is the corner of Telephone and Dumble.

https://goo.gl/maps/sYPg1NR1GogPrueQ7

 

There is still a liquor store at the same spot today.

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I searched for the Jack in the Box in my "defunct restaurants" list, it wasn't there because it was rebuilt on the same site at one time. The fried chicken place is now a taqueria, and that other building between the fried chicken restaurant and the liquor store (notice it still has the same facade) was torn down prior to 1978.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...
49 minutes ago, ljchou said:

My house was built in 1930 (East End/Second Ward) and I'm trying to find historic photos of either the home or the close-by neighborhood. Could anyone help direct me where to look?

If I recall, the "1930" date used by HCAD isn't necessarily accurate because of lost/missing records in those days.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/10/2019 at 3:14 PM, ljchou said:

@IronTiger I'm moreso just looking for historic photos of things nearby to have and frame as a memorial to the neighborhood. Old stores along harrisburg/navigation, lady of guadalupe church, parks, etc. Not sure where to look - any suggestions?

 

Thanks!

 

This was linked just above your post, but the first place I'd look would be the collections at Houston Metropolitan Research Center that have been digitized and are available online:

 

https://digital.houstonlibrary.org/hmrcic

 

Since a huge chunk of their image holdings are not yet digitized, the next step would be to visit the HMRC at the Julia Ideson building downtown, and get reference assistance from the staff who are familiar with the collections and can point you in the right direction once you've laid out the boundaries of what you're looking for. Alternately, they also provide reference services via phone and email, but those options may be less optimal as there's obviously no substitute for looking through the photographs in person. Probably not a bad idea to call/email them first to get an idea of the scope of their holdings related to the specifics of what you're searching for, though.   

 

http://www2.houstonlibrary.org/hmrc/index.html

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 hours ago, cspwal said:

In case anyone is wondering, that was at the corner of McKinney and Main, which is now a parking garage


the good news is we got the Julia Ideson building as our new library. In the above picture it’s interesting that it seems like downtown more or less ends at McKinney. Not sure if there were any notable buildings south of there at that time. 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Obnoxityscribbling said:

Here's a sign I found on Google maps and got a picture of the other night. It's at 1712 Telephone Rd in Lawndale/Wayside. I have been looking for information on it and coming up short.

IMG_20191216_041440_1.jpg

 

Since you have the address, this should be easy to figure out by consulting the Houston City Directories covering the approximate time frame (the sign looks to be from the late 1950s or early-to-mid 1960s). The public library has digitized some of the city directories and made them available online, but they're only up to 1922 currently. They're all available for perusal in the Texas Room at the Julia Ideson Building downtown - you might be able to get an answer quickly if you call or email the HMRC using the contact info I posted a little further up this page. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, mkultra25 said:

 

Since you have the address, this should be easy to figure out by consulting the Houston City Directories covering the approximate time frame (the sign looks to be from the late 1950s or early-to-mid 1960s). The public library has digitized some of the city directories and made them available online, but they're only up to 1922 currently. They're all available for perusal in the Texas Room at the Julia Ideson Building downtown - you might be able to get an answer quickly if you call or email the HMRC using the contact info I posted a little further up this page. 

Probably in the 60's. Nothing with that sort of sign was there in the 50's, at least through 1956, the last directory on ancestry.com that had listings by street. The address is more like 1721, though. The animal hospital has been there for a long time, it was in the 1952 directory.

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 hours ago, Ross said:

Probably in the 60's. Nothing with that sort of sign was there in the 50's, at least through 1956, the last directory on ancestry.com that had listings by street. The address is more like 1721, though. The animal hospital has been there for a long time, it was in the 1952 directory.

Thanks for all this information. I want to try and draw it as it originally appeared! The Animal hospital has a new, modern sign with Art Deco lettering, if I remember right.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
On 4/25/2021 at 8:46 PM, hindesky said:

What I find incredible is the suits and hats that all the men wore back in those days. Must have been during the winter.

The gentlemen's shadows are not too long.  Looks pretty early close to a summer afternoon.   

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 months later...
4 hours ago, hindesky said:

Great images. Thanks for sharing. Obviously not all are from the 1930s though the structures in the images may date from that time. It is amazing to see how Houston has changed in less than 100 years though.

Even though oil was making its way on the scene in a big way cotton was still an essential commodity.

Edited by Specwriter
added information
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...
  • The title was changed to Memorial Dr.

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...