I too have wonderful and fond memories of Westbury Square, even though I didn't move to Houston until 1979 (from Louisiana). It was June of 1968, a heady time if there ever was one, for me at least.
At a church camp in the Ozarks, I met some kids from South Main Baptist, got to be friends with them and subsequently came to Houston for a visit later that same summer. In the fall I would enter my senior year in high school, and one of my new friends was a lovely Houston girl. Boy, was I in love.
Anyway, while I was here, on a date with this girl, we wound up at Westbury Square after seeing a movie at a big theatre, a Cinemascope theatre, as a matter of fact, located on Richmond just outside the loop. Wow; haven't thought about that place for a long time...interesting how your mind takes you back.
So, we wound up at Westbury Square, walking hand in hand in the warm summer night. I remember the Candle Shop, Rumpleheimer's Ice Cream (we shared an ice cream soda), the men's clothing store (the name will come to me...years later, I bought a suit there); the book store, the Holland shop (one of the last holdouts, by the way); a leather crafts shop, and just a myriad of small boutique shops. And I remember those wonderful gas lamp posts, with real gas lamps burning - stopped and kissed her under one of those...ok, several of them.
Well, I'm sure I was heavily biased by the company I kept that night, but I'll never forget what a magical feeling it was being at Westbury Square, and it will always live in my memory the way it was that night. I live in Westbury today, and yes, I'm aware of the changes, but I don't really see them, I still see it the way it was. Dumb, I guess, to be so sentimental and romantic about a retail business establishment, but for me, it was a lot more than that.
If I were wealthy, I'd buy the property and try to bring it back, whether it made a dime or not. But then, I guess that attitude is probably why I'm not wealthy!
What Did Your Neighborhood Look Like
in Historic Houston
Posted
I too have wonderful and fond memories of Westbury Square, even though I didn't move to Houston until 1979 (from Louisiana). It was June of 1968, a heady time if there ever was one, for me at least.
At a church camp in the Ozarks, I met some kids from South Main Baptist, got to be friends with them and subsequently came to Houston for a visit later that same summer. In the fall I would enter my senior year in high school, and one of my new friends was a lovely Houston girl. Boy, was I in love.
Anyway, while I was here, on a date with this girl, we wound up at Westbury Square after seeing a movie at a big theatre, a Cinemascope theatre, as a matter of fact, located on Richmond just outside the loop. Wow; haven't thought about that place for a long time...interesting how your mind takes you back.
So, we wound up at Westbury Square, walking hand in hand in the warm summer night. I remember the Candle Shop, Rumpleheimer's Ice Cream (we shared an ice cream soda), the men's clothing store (the name will come to me...years later, I bought a suit there); the book store, the Holland shop (one of the last holdouts, by the way); a leather crafts shop, and just a myriad of small boutique shops. And I remember those wonderful gas lamp posts, with real gas lamps burning - stopped and kissed her under one of those...ok, several of them.
Well, I'm sure I was heavily biased by the company I kept that night, but I'll never forget what a magical feeling it was being at Westbury Square, and it will always live in my memory the way it was that night. I live in Westbury today, and yes, I'm aware of the changes, but I don't really see them, I still see it the way it was. Dumb, I guess, to be so sentimental and romantic about a retail business establishment, but for me, it was a lot more than that.
If I were wealthy, I'd buy the property and try to bring it back, whether it made a dime or not. But then, I guess that attitude is probably why I'm not wealthy!