The decedents of Felix A. Fraga and Angela Zamarron became business owners, judges, and elected officials, all well known in the East End and the larger Houston area. Growing up, I had heard bits and pieces of our family’s history, but some of the stories seemed to be hearsay. It became my mission to paint […]
A battle rages today about tearing down the “8th Wonder of the World,” a nickname coined by Judge Roy Hofheinz for the Astrodome during its construction in the 1960s. But now another 8th Wonder stands in Old Chinatown east of downtown Houston in today’s EaDo (East Downtown) district.
Space Center Houston plans to open the exhibit in the summer of 2015 that will feature the mock-up shuttle Independence sitting atop the Boeing 747, in the “ferry position.” Visitors here will have a far more tangible, hands-on educational experience than those who visit sites housing the formerly active shuttles. They can explore the insides […]
One of Houston’s most important literary figures was the late writer and novelist Donald Barthelme (1931–1989). But for many years Barthelme labored in the shadow of his better-known father, Donald Barthelme, Sr. (1907–1996), a nationally prominent architect.
Houston History celebrates the Houston Ship Channel’s centennial. The Fall 2014 issue explores the deep-water channel from its initial concept in the 1830s to one of the world’s largest ports today. The magazine also pays tribute to the men and women who make the Port of Houston a success, like lineman Bobby Kersey, shown on […]
The Allen brothers’ mission to create a city where none had been before was fueled by the same philosophy that led to Houston’s long-term success: dream big, and do everything possible to realize your dreams. The realization of Houston and the Houston Ship Channel is a tale of promotion, ingenuity, and decades of dedicated effort […]
Fifty-two miles long and recognized as a public works engineering marvel, the Houston Ship Channel gave birth to the nation’s busiest port, its leading export port, its leading break bulk port, and its largest petrochemical complex. Indeed, the town that built a port that built a city sums up the Houston Ship Channel’s first century.
Houston is often called the city that built the port that built the city. The measure of success, however, should not be in the building of what has become the nation’s largest inland port but rather in the hundreds of thousands of ships the Houston Pilots have quietly and safely guided along the channel over […]
Long before its formal entry into the Second World War in December 1941, the United States was actively supporting Great Britain and its allies in the struggle against Germany through the Lend-Lease program and other efforts. Part of this assistance was the U.S. Maritime Commission’s decision in late 1940 to accept a contract to build […]
By Debbie Z. Harwell The success of the Houston Ship Channel and the Port of Houston is built on more than the determination of businessmen, however. Since its earliest days the city has acted as a magnet for people coming here to look for work, particularly in jobs associated with the ship channel and the […]
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