Houston
The city centre of Houston, Texas, USA, is characterized by tall, glass skyscrapers, some of which are interconnected by underground tunnels.
City and port in southeastern Texas, USA; linked by the Houston Ship Canal to the Gulf of Mexico, in the Gulf Coastal Plain; population (2000 est) 1,953,600. A major centre of finance and commerce, Houston is also one of the busiest US ports. Industrial products include refined petroleum, oilfield equipment, and petrochemicals, chief of which are synthetic rubber, plastics, insecticides, and fertilizers. Other products include iron and steel, electrical and electronic machinery, paper products, and milled rice. The Lyndon B Johnson Space Center (1961), the command post for flights by US astronauts, is located here.
History
Houston was first settled in 1826 as Harrisburg. It was destroyed in 1836 by the Mexican army while in pursuit of the Texas army. It was incorporated as Houston in 1837, and was the capital of Texas from 1837 to 1839. It became a major cotton port and, following the discovery of oil in 1907 and the completion of the ship canal in 1914, its importance grew rapidly, and it became a leading oil centre, with natural-gas pipelines. The first major refinery was set up in 1918, and important oil companies operating in Houston went on to include Texaco, Exxon, and Gulf.
Features Texas Street is 30 m/100 ft wide, the width needed for 14 Texas longhorn cattle being driven to market. Most of the architecture in Houston is modern, and many downtown buildings are connected by underground tunnels. In the Smith-Louisiana corridor, between tall glass buildings, there are outdoor sculptures by Joan Miró, Claes Oldenburg, and others. The Museum of Fine Arts houses the Bayou Bend Collection of American decorative arts. Other art centres include the Menil Collection (1987), and the Rothko Chapel, which contains 14 paintings by Mark Rothko. The Grand Opera House dates from 1894, and the Houston Symphony Orchestra (founded in 1913) performs at the Jesse H Jones Hall for the Performing Arts (1966). The Houston Ballet dates from 1969, and the Hobby Centre for the Performing Arts is set to open in May 2002. |
| Tranquillity Park commemorates mankind's first landing on the Moon, on the Sea of Tranquillity (20 July 1969) and Neil Armstrong's words, ‘Houston, Tranquillity Base here. The eagle has landed.’ The Astrodome is the world's first all-purpose, air-conditioned domed stadium. Universities include Rice University (1912), the University of Houston (1927), the University of St Thomas (1945), Texas Southern University (1947), and the Houston Baptist University (1963). The Texas Medical Centre (1945) has 14 hospitals, including the M D Anderson Cancer Centre, and is the largest medical centre in the world. |
| Houston has three airports, including Bush Intercontinental (1969) and William P Hobby (1954). A Light Rail Project set up by the Metropolitan Transit Authority is due for completion in 2004. |
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