Patsy Swayze: Queen of Dance
“It was a life-changing thing to meet her. It was like she had a magic bubble of enthusiasm around her, and you could not walk by without getting some of it on you,” said Judy Jones, a former student of Patsy Swayze. The two met after Jones won the Miss Houston Pageant in 1959, and […]
Preserving History: The Importance of Independence Heights
I remember the first time I saw the sign that read “Independence Heights: Historic Houston Community.” It piqued my curiosity, and that interest stayed with me. As the years went by, townhomes that reigned on the other side of the 610 Loop began creeping into the historic neighborhood. As the landscape changed and the old […]
Marching into History: The Sisterhood of the Stephen F. Austin Scottish Brigade
On June 23, 1972, nearly thirty-five years prior to the passage of Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or educational program that receives federal funding, there was the Scottish Brigade Drill Team. Beatrice Lytle, the group’s sponsor, organized the Scottish Brigade Drill Team in September of 1937 in conjunction with the newly […]
Capturing Diversity in Houston’s Near Northside
University of Houston Anthropology and World Cultures photography students enrolled in the Visual Stories class experienced the world of the historic Near Northside as they walked about the neighborhoods during the spring of 2023. Impressed by the multi-layered history of the city, they looked for the firsts in the neighborhood. Although we could not see […]
21.2 Table of Contents: Reflecting on Our History
Download the full pdf here 21.2 Letter from the Editor, Debbie Z. Harwell 2Harris County Historical Society: A Century of Preserving and Sharing Local HistoryBy Charlie Becker8Movers and Shakers: Houston Women in the ArtsBy Don Looser12More than a Museum: Living History and a Vibrant Future at The Heritage Society in Sam Houston ParkBy Katherine R. […]
22.1 Table of Contents, Harrisburg and Milby
Download the full pdf here22.1 Letter from the Editor, Debbie Z. Harwell 2Why Houston, Not Harrisburgby Ariel Peña7Charles H. Milby: How the Man and the School Shaped Harrisburgby Braden Dodson and Winnie Wong9The Milby COED Cadettes: 100 Years of Friendship, Honor, and Serviceby Dan Broughton13The Long Road Ahead: Desegregation in HISD and Milby High Schoolby […]
For the City
Houston History celebrates its twentieth anniversary with its fiftieth issue in the fall of 2023. The issue also marks the culmination of the three-year grant project: 100 Years of Stories – Documenting a Century at the University of Houston highlighting the way the university, its programs, and individuals have impacted the community.
Twenty Years of Houston History
In 1999 one door closed on Houston history and a new one opened thanks to the vision of Joe Pratt, then the University of Houston’s (UH) Cullen and National Endowment for the Humanities Chair in History and Business, and Marty Melosi, director of the Institute for Public History, now the Center for Public History (CPH). […]
Philip G. Hoffman Leading UH
As one of the most ethnically diverse major research university in the United States, the University of Houston’s identity is intertwined with its varied, multicultural student body. With students from 137 different nations, the University of Houston (UH) is a melting pot of cultures and identities that reflect the city’s community. Knowing that makes it […]
50 Years of Blaffer Art Museum
In the early 1970s, Houston was shaking off its mid-century identity as a provincial backwater. The Johnson Space Center directed regular flights to the moon. The city’s major league ball club played in a futuristic, air-conditioned dome. The legalization of selling liquor by the glass in 1971 enlivened nightclub and restaurant culture. The rise of […]

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