Heights

 

By 1891 millionaire Oscar Martin Carter and a group of investors established the Omaha and South Texas Land Company. The company purchased 1,756 acres of land and established infrastructure, including alleys, parks, schools, streets and utilities, worth $500,000 United States dollars. When Houston Heighs was founded, it was a streetcar suburb of Houston which attracted people who did not wish to live in the dense city. It had its own municipality until the City of Houston annexed the Heights in 1919.

The Heights is Houston’s oldest planned community (circa 1890). Originally a very small area, it was annexed to the City of Houston in 1918. Unofficially, The Heights now includes the Woodland Heighs, Norhill Heights, Sunset Heights, and surrounding tiny subdivisions that have all grown together into one diverse and funky area.

Due to the date of its inception, the area still has many original Victorian homes and  classic Craftsman Bungalows. Some new construction, on the other hand, reflects the diversity of the residents, and is as modern as you’ll find anywhere. Warehouses, derilict gas stations, and old grocery stores become homes, cafes, restaurants and bars, while steel-framed metal-clad residencies sit between 1920’s constructions.

The Heights are serve by the Houston Independent School District. Elementary schools include Crockett, Field, Harvard, Helms Community Learning Center, Love, Sinclair, and Travis. Secondary schools include Hamilton and Hogg. Reagan High is the lone high school.

There are two charter schools in The Heights: Houston Heights Learning Academy and Houston Heights High School. The New School in the Heights, on the other hand, is a K-9 private school, while the Houston Outdoor Learning Academy is grade 6-12 private school.