Houston City Hall

Last updated
Houston City Hall
Houston City Hall-1.jpg
Houston City Hall
General information
Type City hall
Architectural styleArt Deco, Modernistic
Address901 Bagby Street
Houston, Texas 77002
Coordinates 29°45′37″N95°22′10″W / 29.7602°N 95.3694°W / 29.7602; -95.3694
Construction startedMarch 7, 1938
CompletedJuly 1939
Cost$1.67 million USD
Technical details
Floor count17
Design and construction
Architect(s) Joseph Finger
Houston City Hall
Area3.1 acres (1.3 ha)
NRHP reference No. 90001471 [1]
Added to NRHPSeptember 18, 1990

The Houston City Hall building is the headquarters of the City of Houston's municipal government. Constructed during 1938 and 1939, the City Hall complex is located on Bagby Street on the western side of Downtown Houston. It is surrounded by the Houston Skyline District and is similar in design to dozens of other city halls built in the southwest United States during the same time period. [2] City Hall is flanked by Tranquility Park and the Houston Public Library. The simply designed structure featured many construction details that have helped to make this building an architectural classic.

Contents

History

The City Hall and Market House, located on Travis Street at Prairie Avenue, was shared by the Houston city government and the city market.(1904) City Hall and Market House Houston 1904.jpg
The City Hall and Market House, located on Travis Street at Prairie Avenue, was shared by the Houston city government and the city market.(1904)
Houston City Hall and Market (postcard, circa 1912-1924) Houston City Hall and Market.jpg
Houston City Hall and Market (postcard, circa 1912-1924)

From 1841 to 1939, Houston's municipal government was headquartered at Old Market Square. It was destroyed by fire in the 1870s, and also in 1901, and rebuilt each time. In those days, City Hall was part of the lively commercial atmosphere of the Square. However, by the 1920s, the city leaders decided the site was no longer appropriate for their needs. [3]

In 1929, the city's planning commission urged the establishment of a civic center around a downtown park, Herman Square. However, the Great Depression sidetracked the plans for the new center. When President Franklin Delano Roosevelt instituted the Works Progress Administration program, the city applied for a WPA grant to help finance the construction of a new City Hall. [3] The grant was approved, and construction began in March 1938, continuing for 20 months.

Joseph Finger had designed the city hall building in a stripped classical style. [4] He wanted to place on the front terrace statues of John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen, but the City of Houston lacked the funds needed to add the statues. The statues would have cost $8,000 and the city was still suffering from the Great Depression. The Texas Star Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (DRT) discovered this fact from reading a November 1939 article of the Scripps Howard Houston Press and publicized it in 2010. [5] The statue project was dropped by the DRT chapter and the Oran M. Roberts Chapter 440, UDC, stepped in and raised the funds to have the Allen Brothers statues commissioned and cast in bronze.

On July 15, 2008, world-renowned surgeon Dr. Michael E. Debakey lay in repose in Houston City Hall after he died the previous Friday due to natural causes, the first such honor for any deceased resident of the city. [6]

Usage

City Council Member offices located at City Hall Annex HoustonCityHallAnnex.JPG
City Council Member offices located at City Hall Annex
City Council Chambers Houston City Council Chambers, February 2016.jpg
City Council Chambers

The Mayor of Houston and City Controller have their offices in this building. Council Members have their offices immediately across the street at the City Hall Annex building.[ citation needed ] Tuesdays at 1:30pm, and Wednesdays at 9:00am, Houston City Council meets in the chamber. All meetings are open to the public. [7]

Beginning in October 2013, 12,000 Square feet of space on the West side of the first floor was renovated for use by HTV Houston Television ( HTV studios ). The renovations were overseen by Balfour Beatty Construction [8] and were completed on March 14, 2014. [9]

Architectural details

Houston City Hall Houston May 2022 15 (Houston City Hall).jpg
Houston City Hall

The architect of the City Hall was Joseph Finger, an Austrian-born Texan architect responsible for a number of Houston-area landmarks. [2]

The exterior of the building features a sculpture by Herring Coe and Raoul Josset, and regional white, pock-market Texas limestone. The front faces Hermann Square, accessible by a series of paved terraces and stairs. The City hired Hare and Hare of Kansas City to design the rectangular pool and its surrounding landscaping, which includes lawns, rows of shrubs, and live oak trees. [10]

The design on the lobby floor depicts the protective role of government. In the grillwork above the main entrances are medallions of "great lawgivers" from ancient times to the founding of America, including Thomas Jefferson, Charlemagne, Julius Caesar and Moses, [3] and an outdated city seal adorns the interior doorknobs. [2]

The building is faced with Texas Cordova limestone, and the doors to the building are of a specially cast aluminum. The lobby is walled with lightly veined marble. The gateways to the Tax Department are inlaid with bronze, nickel and silver. The elevator lobbies are treated with marble base, walls and wainscoting. [3]

Above the lobby entrance is a stone sculpture depicting two men taming a wild horse, which is meant to symbolize a community coming together to form a government to tame the world around them. The plaster cast for this sculpture, and twenty-seven casts for friezes around the building, were done by Beaumont artist Herring Coe and co-designer Raoul Josset. [11]

Hermann Square

The front of the city hall building steps down to a small park, George and Martha Hermann Square, which is dominated by a reflecting pool. That was once the homestead of George H. Hermann for whom Hermann Park in the Museum District is named. Hermann Square contains a simple, but regal elegance and is regularly used for festivals, protests and concerts. To accommodate larger events, the reflecting pool is planked over and tents and kiosks are often erected. [2]

Although there is some speculation about whether or not people are allowed to stay in the park overnight, the Parks Department officially says that people are not permitted to sleep there. In 1987, the city attorney's office stated in the Houston Chronicle that the police are not to arrest anyone sleeping in the park. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JPMorgan Chase Tower (Houston)</span> Skyscraper at 600 Travis Street in downtown Houston, Texas

The JPMorgan Chase Tower, formerly Texas Commerce Tower, is a 305.4-meter (1,002-foot), 2,243,013-square-foot (208,382.7 m2), 75-story skyscraper at 600 Travis Street in Downtown Houston, Texas, United States. It is currently the tallest building in Texas and the South Central region of the United States, the tallest five-sided building in the world, the 29th-tallest building in the United States, and the 107th-tallest building in the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anzac Memorial</span> Heritage-listed war memorial in Sydney, Australia

The Anzac Memorial is a heritage-listed war memorial, museum and monument located in Hyde Park South near Liverpool Street in the CBD of Sydney, Australia. The Art Deco monument was designed by C. Bruce Dellit, with the exterior adorned with monumental figural reliefs and sculptures by Rayner Hoff, and built from 1932 to 1934 by Kell & Rigby. This state-owned property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 23 April 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Phimister Proctor</span> American sculptor

Alexander Phimister Proctor was an American sculptor with the contemporary reputation as one of the nation's foremost animaliers.

The George R. Brown Convention Center (GRB), opened on September 26, 1987, is located on the east side of Downtown Houston, Texas, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermann Park</span> Park in Texas, United States of America, United States of America

Hermann Park is a 445-acre (180-hectare) urban park in Houston, Texas, situated at the southern end of the Museum District. The park is located immediately north of the Texas Medical Center and Brays Bayou, east of Rice University, and slightly west of the Third Ward. Hermann Park is home to numerous cultural institutions including the Houston Zoo, Miller Outdoor Theatre, the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Hermann Park Golf Course, which became one of the first desegregated public golf courses in the United States in 1954. The park also features the Mary Gibbs and Jesse H. Jones Reflection Pool, numerous gardens, picnic areas, and McGovern Lake, an 8-acre (32,000 m2) recreational lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architecture of Houston</span>

The architecture of Houston includes a wide variety of award-winning and historic examples located in various areas of the city of Houston, Texas. From early in its history to current times, the city inspired innovative and challenging building design and construction, as it quickly grew into an internationally recognized commercial and industrial hub of Texas and the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One Woodward Avenue</span> Skyscraper in Detroit

One Woodward Avenue, formerly known as the Michigan Consolidated Gas Company Building, is a class-A office skyscraper in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. Located next to the city's Civic Center and Financial District, it overlooks the International Riverfront and was designed to blend with the City-County Building across Woodward Avenue, Huntington Place, and the former Ford Auditorium to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brooklyn Borough Hall</span> United States historic place

Brooklyn Borough Hall is a building in Downtown Brooklyn, New York City. It was designed by architects Calvin Pollard and Gamaliel King in the Greek Revival style, and constructed of Tuckahoe marble under the supervision of superintendent Stephen Haynes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Houston Park</span> A park in Houston, Texas.

Sam Houston Park is an urban park located in downtown Houston, Texas, United States, dedicated to the buildings and culture of Houston's past. The park, which was the first to be established in the city, was developed on land purchased by former Mayor Sam Brashear in 1900.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matchett Herring Coe</span> American sculptor

Matchett Herring Coe (1907–1999) was an American sculptor active in Texas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph Finger</span> American architect

Joseph Finger was an Austrian American architect. After immigrating to the United States in 1905, Finger settled in Houston, Texas in 1908, where he would remain for the duration of his life. Finger is best remembered for his role in bringing modern architecture to Texas.

Karl Kamrath was an American architect and tennis player. He, along with Frederick James MacKie, Jr., created the Houston-based architectural firm Mackie and Kamrath. The firm's buildings reflected the principles of Organic Architecture and Usonian architecture, an outcome of Kamrath's friendship with Frank Lloyd Wright. His career spanned over five decades during which he designed residential, commercial, institutional and government buildings. Prior to founding MacKie and Kamrath, Karl Kamrath worked for Pereira and Pereira, the Interior Studios of Marshall Field and Company, and the Architectural Decorating Company in Chicago, Illinois.

The campus of Rice University is located on a heavily wooded 290-acre (120-hectare) plot of land on South Main Street in the Museum District of Houston, Texas. It is located east of Rice Village, a retail district, south of Boulevard Oaks and Southampton, west of the Texas Medical Center, and north of Southgate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raoul Josset</span> French sculptor

Raoul Jean Josset was a French-born American sculptor. He was born in Tours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark</span>

The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is a public skatepark in Houston, Texas, United States. The $2.7 million project opened in June 2008. At over 40,000 square feet, it is one of the largest in Texas. It has two cradles, one of which is thought to be the largest in the United States, as well as a kidney pool, a large bowl with 12.5 ft (3.8 m) deep end and a street/flow area. The park was designed by Gridline Concrete Skatepark Design. The facility is free to the public. BMX bikes are not permitted. It is named after Texas billionaire lawyer Joe Jamail and his wife Lee. The Lee and Joe Jamail Skatepark is located at 103 Sabine Street Houston, TX 77007, on the Sabine Street bridge with a view of the Houston skyline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First City Building</span> United States historic place

The First City Building was built in 1962 for the First Security National Bank. The five story building was built by renowned architect L.W. Pitts and built in the modernism style. It is known for its facade of cast concrete, sculpted by Beaumont artist Herring Coe, designed to reflect the sun and reduce cooling costs. The building is used as offices today.

<i>Sam Houston Monument</i> Equestrian statue by Enrico Cerracchio in Houston, Texas, U.S.

The Sam Houston Monument is an outdoor bronze sculpture of Sam Houston by Enrico Cerracchio, installed at the northwest corner of Houston's Hermann Park, in the U.S. state of Texas. The work is administered by the City of Houston's Municipal Arts Commission.

<i>Benito Juárez</i> (Martinez) Pair of sculptures by Julian Martinez

Benito Juarez is one of two sculptures of the Mexican president of the same name, created by Julian Martinez. One full-length statue is installed in Chicago, in the U.S. state of Illinois, and another bust is installed in Hermann Park's McGovern Centennial Gardens, in Houston, Texas. The Chicago statue replaces a previously installed bust.

Confucius, also known as Bronze Statue of Confucius, Confucius Bronze Statue, Confucius Statue, and Great Confucius, is an outdoor 2009 bronze sculpture of the Chinese editor, philosopher, politician, and teacher of the same name by Willy Wang, installed in Hermann Park's McGovern Centennial Gardens in Houston, Texas, United States.

References

  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Houston City Hall". www.glasssteelandstone.com. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006. Retrieved 2007-05-20.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Project Profiles – Houston City Hall". Resources, Hunter, www.hunterindustries.com. Archived from the original on April 15, 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-20.
  4. "Front Matter". Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory . Oxford University Press on behalf of the Public Management Research Association. 11 (2): i-264. April 2001. JSTOR   3525687.
  5. Hlavaty, Craig. "Texas history group says it found unfinished part of Houston City Hall." Houston Chronicle . February 7, 2014. Retrieved on March 30, 2014.
  6. "DeBakey remembered as medical pioneer, good friend - Yahoo! News" . Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  7. "City Council Meeting Schedule" (PDF). Retrieved 2010-07-13.
  8. http://www.houstontx.gov/citysec/agendas/2013/Oct0813.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  9. "Press Release". Archived from the original on 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2014-07-10.
  10. Fox, Stephen (2012). AIA Houston Architectural Guide (Third ed.). Houston: AIA Houston and Minor Design. p. 6. ISBN   9780615669595.
  11. "City Hall History". About Houston Government, City of Houston, www.houstontx.gov. Retrieved 2007-05-20.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Houston City Hall at Wikimedia Commons