Archive | Communities

Commerce Street, 1890, the “heart of produce row.” Photo from the George Fuermann “Texas and Houston” Collection, courtesy of Special Collections, University of Houston Libraries

Houston’s First Ward: Producing Food from Farm to Counter

In 1839 Houston was divided into four wards, each a geographic area which provided representation for the municipal government. The crossing at Congress Avenue and Main Street became the intersecting point for dividing the wards. The First Ward, located in the northwest quadrant of that intersection, bordered the strategic location where Buffalo Bayou and White […]

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St. Vincent's Cemetary is the final resting place for many of the SEcond Ward's early prominent residents. Photo by Thomas McWhorter.

From Das Zweiter to El Segundo, A Brief History of Houston’s Second Ward

Second Ward was home to the extremely wealthy and extremely poor, bartenders and brewers, renters and ranchers, priests and politicos. The residents lived in a variety of situations ranging from traditional neighborhoods to suburban ranches. The area boasted one of Houston’s first churches, several early park and recreational areas, and the city’s first suburb.

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