Harrisburg, Houston

Last updated

Harrisburg is a community that is now (originally documented as Harrisburgh, then shortened to Harrisburg in 1892) located within the city of Houston, Texas, United States.

Contents

The community is located east of downtown Houston, south of the Brays Bayou and Buffalo Bayou junction, and west of Brady's Island. It was founded before 1825 on the eastern stretches of the Buffalo Bayou in present-day Harris County, Texas, on land belonging to John Richardson Harris. In 1926, Harrisburg was annexed into the city of Houston. The original name of Harris County was Harrisburg (Harrisburgh) County until it was shortened after the demise of the City of Harrisburg. Historical markers at the John Richardson Harris site tell of Santa Anna's razing the town on his way through chasing Houston and his retreating army just before they reached Lynch's ferry.

History

Mexican Texas

Harrisburg was surveyed in 1826 and formally named Harrisburg by its founder, John Richardson Harris. Harris named the town both after himself and after Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, which had been named for his great-grandfather. [1]

Texas Republic

John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen wanted to establish a new town upstream from Galveston Bay. The location of Harrisburg, which had been platted by Harris in 1826, was the Allen brothers' first choice. They could not buy Harrisburg since Harris was dead, and no clear title to the land existed. The brothers founded the city of Houston in an area which was their second choice. [2]

In 1835, the General Council of Texas, a provisional government of Texas, made Harrisburg its capital. On April 16, 1836, during the Texas Revolution, almost all of Harrisburg was burned by the forces of Antonio López de Santa Anna. After the Texas Revolution ended, the city of Houston was founded just west of Harrisburg and was named county seat of Harrisburg (later shortened to Harris) County and capital of the Republic of Texas.

After Texas Annexation

In 1851, the chief engineer of the Buffalo Bayou, Brazos, and Colorado Railway (B.B.B. & C.), surveyed the route between Harrisburg and the Brazos River. [3] It began operations on January 1, 1853. Harrisburg was the starting point of the line, the first functioning railroad line in the state. [4]

After the Civil War, the railroad expanded and changed its name to the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway. Harrisburg remained an important rail town until a fire in the 1870s destroyed the rail yards, which were rebuilt in Houston.

The population of Harrisburg dwindled with the loss of the railroads and with the widening of the Houston Ship Channel in 1919. In December 1926, the City of Houston annexed Harrisburg. [5] The 1926 annexation of the Harrisburg area added 1,293 acres (523 ha) of land to the city limits. [6]

Government and infrastructure

Harrisburg is in Houston City Council District I. [7]

The United States Postal Service operates the Harrisburg Post Office at 8330 Manchester Street. [8] In July 2011 the USPS announced that the post office may close. [9]

The Harris Health System (formerly Harris County Hospital District) designated the Ripley Health Center for the ZIP code 77012. [10] In 2000 Ripley was replaced by the Gulfgate Health Center. [11] The designated public hospital is Ben Taub General Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. [10]

Demographics

In the city of Houston-defined Harrisburg/Manchester Super Neighborhood, which also includes Manchester, there were 2,926 residents in 2015. 82% were Hispanics, 14% were non-Hispanic blacks, and 3% were non-Hispanic whites. The percentages of non-Hispanic Asians and others were both zero. In 2000 the super neighborhood had 3,768 residents. 88% were Hispanics, 6% were non-Hispanic blacks, and 5% were non-Hispanic whites. The percentages of non-Hispanic Asians and others were both zero. [12]

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Harrisburg is served by the Houston Independent School District. [12]

Many area residences are zoned to J. R. Harris Elementary School, including everything east of Broadway and some areas west of it, generally north and/or on Elm. [13] Some are zoned to Dávila Elementary School. [14] Residences are zoned to Deady Middle School, [15] [16] and Milby High School. [17]

The area was previously in the Harrisburg Independent School District. [18] J. R. Harris opened as Harrisburg School in 1895. [19] A school for black students, also called Harrisburg School, opened in 1904. In 1952 that school for black students moved into a new building and was renamed "Kay Elementary School", after its first principal, who had been Savannah Georgia Kay. Kay Elementary School closed in 1978. Students at Chávez High School use the former Kay Elementary School as a "land lab". [18]

Public libraries

Harrisburg is served by the Stanaker Branch of Houston Public Library.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cloverleaf, Texas</span> Census-designated place in Texas, United States

Cloverleaf is a census-designated place (CDP) in east central Harris County, Texas, United States. The population was 24,100 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hunters Creek Village, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Hunters Creek Village is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States, part of the Greater Houston metropolitan area. The population was 4,385 at the 2020 census. It is part of a collection of upscale residential communities in west Houston known as the Memorial Villages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacinto City, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Jacinto City is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States, east of the intersection of Interstate 10 and the East Loop of Interstate 610. Jacinto City is part of the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area and is bordered by the cities of Houston and Galena Park. The population was 9,613 at the 2020 census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piney Point Village, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Piney Point Village is a city in Harris County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,128 at the 2020 census. Piney Point Village is the wealthiest place in Texas, as ranked by per capita income. It is part of a collection of upscale residential communities in west Houston known as the Memorial Villages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Webster, Texas</span> City in Texas, United States

Webster is a city in the U.S. state of Texas located in Harris County, within the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. Its population was 12,499 at the 2020 U.S. census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen F. Austin High School (Houston)</span> Public school in Houston, Texas, United States

Stephen F. Austin High School is a secondary school located at 1700 Dumble Street in Houston, Texas, United States. The school handles grades nine through twelve and is a part of the Houston Independent School District. In 2013, the school was rated "Met Standard" by the Texas Education Agency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westbury, Houston</span> Neighborhood in Houston, Texas, United States

Westbury is a neighborhood in the Brays Oaks district of Southwest Houston, Texas, United States. It is located east of Bob White Road, north of U.S. Highway 90 Alternate, and west of South Post Oak Road, adjacent to the Fondren Southwest and Meyerland neighborhoods, just west of the southwest corner of the 610 Loop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memorial, Houston</span> Super neighborhood in Harris County, Texas, United States

The Memorial area of Houston, Texas is located west of Downtown, northwest of Uptown, and south of Spring Branch. The Memorial Super Neighborhood, as defined by the City of Houston, is bounded by Buffalo Bayou to the south, Barker Reservoir to the west, Westview to the north, and the Memorial Villages, a contiguous group of independent municipalities, to the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chávez High School (Houston)</span> Public high school in Houston, Texas, United States

César E. Chávez High School is a secondary school located at 8501 Howard Drive in the Allendale neighborhood in Houston, Texas, United States.

Eastwood is a historic neighborhood in the East End area of Houston, Texas, United States. Eastwood maintains Houston’s largest intact collection of Craftsman, Arts & Crafts, Foursquare and Mission style architecture.

Pecan Park is a neighborhood in Houston, Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milby High School</span> Public secondary school in Houston, Texas

Charles H. Milby High School is a public secondary school at 1601 Broadway in the East End, Houston, Texas, United States. It serves grades 9 through 12, and is a part of the Houston Independent School District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clinton Park, Houston</span> Neighborhood in Houston, Texas, U.S.

Clinton Park is a neighborhood located in Houston, Texas. Clinton Park is located outside the 610 Loop in eastern Houston. Clinton Park is predominantly African-American. Carolyn Campbell of KHOU-TV described Clinton Park, close to the Port of Houston, as "small" and "isolated."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnolia Park, Houston</span> Area of Houston, Texas, U.S.

Magnolia Park is an area of the East End, Houston, Texas, located near the Houston Ship Channel. One of the oldest Hispanic neighborhoods in the City of Houston, Magnolia Park was formerly incorporated as the City of Magnolia Park in eastern Harris County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenbrook Valley, Houston</span> Subdivision in Houston, Texas, United States

Glenbrook Valley is a subdivision located in Houston, Texas, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East End, Houston</span> District in Houston, Texas, United States

East End Houston, managed by the East End District (EED), is a district in eastern Houston, Texas, United States, located between the eastern edge of downtown to the Port of Houston and South to Hobby Airport. The District is home to Houston's early history and industry and is the site of Harrisburg, the seat of government for the Republic of Texas in 1836. East End Houston consists of many different ethnic groups, including Hispanic, Asian, White, and African American. Latinos make up more than half of the 100,512 residents, The area includes two of Houston's oldest Hispanic neighborhoods, Magnolia Park and Second Ward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Idylwood, Houston</span>

Idylwood is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of the I-610 loop in Houston, Texas. Idylwood, as of 2021, is the most expensive neighborhood in the East End. As of that year its houses were priced between $295,000 and $679,900. It currently has approximately 340 homes. Bill England, a redeveloper in the East End area, stated in 2004 that Idylwood appealed to buyers who are priced out of houses located in the cities of Bellaire and West University Place.

Manchester is a community in southeastern Houston, Texas, United States.

Port Houston is a neighborhood located on the East Side of Houston, Texas, United States.

Houston/Trinity Gardens is an African-American neighborhood in Houston.

References

  1. Andrew Forest Muir, "HARRISBURG, TX (HARRIS COUNTY)," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hvh27 Archived 2012-10-23 at the Wayback Machine ), accessed August 21, 2015. Uploaded on June 15, 2010. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
  2. Rust, Carol. "Houston has street sense (and nonsense as well)" (Archive). Houston Chronicle . Wednesday April 16, 1997. Houston 1. Retrieved on October 26, 2011.
  3. Briscoe, P. (1904). "The First Texas Railroad". The Quarterly of the Texas State Historical Association. 7 (4): 283. JSTOR   27784974.
  4. Rust, Carol. "Houston has street sense (and nonsense as well) Archived 2021-07-13 at the Wayback Machine ." Houston Chronicle . Wednesday April 16, 1997. Houston 1. Retrieved on October 26, 2011.
  5. FOREST, MUIR, ANDREW (15 June 2010). "HARRISBURG, TX". www.tshaonline.org. Archived from the original on 1 March 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. Lee, Renée C. "Annexed Kingwood split on effects Archived 2010-09-25 at the Wayback Machine ." Houston Chronicle . Sunday October 8, 2006. A21. Retrieved on July 6, 2011. Print version exclusively has the information cited; the information is not included in the online edition.
  7. City of Houston, Council District Maps, District I Archived 2013-09-18 at the Wayback Machine ." City of Houston. Retrieved on November 5, 2011.
  8. "Post Office Location - HARRISBURG." United States Postal Service . Retrieved on December 4, 2008.
  9. Weisman, Laura. "Nine Houston post offices marked for closure (with poll) Archived 2011-10-26 at the Wayback Machine ." Houston Chronicle . July 26, 2011. Retrieved on July 26, 2011.
  10. 1 2 "Clinic/Emergency/Registration Center Directory By ZIP Code". Harris County Hospital District. 2001-11-19. Archived from the original on 2001-11-19. Retrieved 2021-04-08. - See ZIP code 77012. See this map for relevant ZIP code.
  11. "Gulfgate Health Center" (Archive). Harris County Hospital District. Accessed October 17, 2008.
  12. 1 2 "Super Neighborhood Resource Assessment No. 65 Harrisburg/Manchester" (PDF). City of Houston. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2018-12-25. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  13. "J.R. Harris Elementary Attendance Zone" (PDF). Houston Independent School District. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-04-02. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  14. "Davila Elementary Attendance Zone" (PDF). Houston Independent School District. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-04-01. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  15. "Deady Middle School Attendance Zone" (PDF). Houston Independent School District. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-12-07. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  16. "About Us Archived 2012-05-25 at the Wayback Machine ." Deady Middle School. Retrieved on October 28, 2011.
  17. "Milby High School Attendance Zone" (PDF). Houston Independent School District. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-04-02. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  18. 1 2 "Elementary Schools (K-Z) Archived 2016-06-13 at the Wayback Machine ." Houston Independent School District. Retrieved on June 15, 2016.
  19. "Elementary Schools (A-J) Archived 2014-06-10 at the Wayback Machine ." Houston Independent School District. Retrieved on June 15, 2016.

Other resources