Freedmen's Town Community

[IronTiger]

They have aerial photographs of the area (and possibly have even crisper ones than what Google Earth can provide). That way, they could tear it up, repair the utilities and place them exactly in the way they were placed (to a certain degree)

[TGM]

I'd hate to own a home in the 4th ward. Between the apathetic deferred maintenance of churches to brick streets, the residents who lived there all their lives not caring, now suddenly care, but want someone else to do the leg work or foot the bill.

[Luminare]

Looks like the city is moving forward and finally repair, replace, and restore this area of town of some much needed infrastructure improvements! I can't believe people would actually oppose this -.- They are seriously trying to push for an option to TUNNEL under bricks! That is ridiculous. I know they are important to the community, but that is just foolish lol. Anyway here is the link:

 

http://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/news/houston-to-move-forward-with-removal-of-freedmens-town-bricks/

 

They are even hiring an archaeologist from the beginning...so I say they are taking this seriously. Who knows maybe they might find some stuff and maybe this area will get a nice museum out of all this  

[(Otto Mation)]

Patrick Feller has added a photo to the pool:

Brick Streets, Andrews at Wilson

Showing location of trolley tracks

Click here to view this photo at the HAIF Photo Pool on Flickr

[(Otto Mation)]

Patrick Feller has added a photo to the pool:

Brick streets, Andrews at Wilson

Showing location of trolley tracks

Click here to view this photo at the HAIF Photo Pool on Flickr

[TheGlen]

The more I research this the less sense it seems to make.  Tradition says the red bricks on Andrews was handmade by freed slaves locally for $1 each and those are the bricks that are still there.  The bricks were made from the mud of Buffalo Bayou either right after the Civil War or the Great Hurricane.

The problem with the story is that no brick cost $1 in either 1865 or 1904.  The bricks there are Kansas red slate, not Texas mud or clay.  The company that made the bricks was Pullum Brick, but the maker's marks on the bricks there are from Coffeyville Brick and Tile (in business 1893-1920).  The city and local community organizers are going at each other on this topic, but none of the evidence matches up with the story presented.

[terra002]

Who cares about those damn bricks? Tear up the streets and all those crappy houses around them. There's nothing but drugs and crime in there. Cant wait to see that last bit of 4th ward squeezed out. 

[TheGlen]

Who cares about those damn bricks? Tear up the streets and all those crappy houses around them. There's nothing but drugs and crime in there. Cant wait to see that last bit of 4th ward squeezed out. 

 

My editor.  She wants a story on the bricks, she gets a story on the bricks.

[kbates2]

That is really interesting. I have followed that battle and to find out that the story was BS in the first place is crazy.

[brian0123]

I always wondered if the bricks aren't as historic as people think. They'll probably be a mish mash of bricks that were replaced sometime by the city in the 30s with leftover junk bricks laying around and the locals just think they're historic because the bricks have just been there awhile. The city probably kept bad records back then (they barely keep track of roads today).

[TheGlen]

I always wondered if the bricks aren't as historic as people think. They'll probably be a mish mash of bricks that were replaced sometime by the city in the 30s with leftover junk bricks laying around and the locals just think they're historic because the bricks have just been there awhile. The city probably kept bad records back then (they barely keep track of roads today).

 

City records were destroyed in 1935 because of the Magnolia Brewery Flood, and again in 1972 when the archives were full and the city just threw them away.  One reason researching Houston's history tends to be a fool's errand.

[brian0123]

City records were destroyed in 1935 because of the Magnolia Brewery Flood, and again in 1972 when the archives were full and the city just threw them away. One reason researching Houston's history tends to be a fool's errand.

So the historic accuracy of the bricks isn't officially noted in COH records? Are we really relying on the history of the bricks based on hearsay from locals?

[TheGlen]

So the historic accuracy of the bricks isn't officially noted in COH records? Are we really relying on the history of the bricks based on hearsay from locals?

 

No, I went down to the street and had a brickmaker look at the bricks themselves.  There are a few records here and there, but incomplete at best.  There are receipts and reports from the city as well as maps.  The brickmaker however was a definitive source of information.  He was able to give the age, location and type of the bricks involved.  The street itself is a horrific Frankenstein patchwork of paving, but it's dominated primarily by the red slate bricks.  There are some concrete bricks but those are at the earliest only twenty years old.  The most common bricks were the Coffeyville bricks, which are apparently very high quality but had a relatively short run.  The red/burgundy/wine colored bricks were the dead giveaway that they were from Kansas, not Texas.

[UtterlyUrban]

You are trying to make sense of a controversy at the nexus of politics, race, community activism, historic preservation, renovation, and history?

Don't bother. You won't be able to as that nexus of pain doesn't rely on "sense" but rather "emotion and votes"...... "Sense" (however Defined by whichever partisan camp, scientist, author, researcher, or historian) is irrelevant.

Edited December 4, 2015 by UtterlyUrban

[cspwal]

I suspect the original bricks were handmade per the story, but over time bricks were replaced as they were broken, and at a certain point they were probably just replaced through normal municipal channels, which tend to source pavers from established companies.  There are probably some of the handmade bricks still there, but they might not be common

[JLWM8609]

Who cares about those damn bricks? Tear up the streets and all those crappy houses around them. There's nothing but drugs and crime in there. Cant wait to see that last bit of 4th ward squeezed out. 

 

This is the train of thought that has led to Houston's reputation as having a lack of regard for historic preservation.

[MaggieMay]

This is the train of thought that has led to Houston's reputation as having a lack of regard for historic preservation.

 

Don't omit the racism....

[ChannelTwoNews]

Whitmire backs efforts to revitalize Houston’s Freedmen’s Town (houstonlanding.org)

"City Council voted in mid-2021 to designate the community as its first Heritage District. The designation allowed nonprofits to raise money for restoring historically significant features and to develop cultural landmarks. 

Backed by a $1.25 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts, the ambitious, multiyear project was announced early 2023 under former Mayor Sylvester Turner’s administration with much fanfare and enthusiasm. 

Although city involvement initially sparked community skepticism, community advocates were confident that this time would be different because it’s rooted in community involvement. Now with support from Whitmire’s administration, advocates are optimistic and confident that the project will be prioritized."

HPW Design Concept for Brick Streets Report: https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/24536479/2024-03-freedmens-town-dcr-community-meeting_sm.pdf

[JLWM8609]

Man, I didn't realize how much casual racism and cultural insensitivity there was in some of these older posts. 😖

[hbg.50]

27 minutes ago, JLWM8609 said:

Man, I didn't realize how much casual racism and cultural insensitivity there was in some of these older posts. 😖

Maybe you’ve changed?