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How far back do your Houston roots go?

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scd88
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8:01p, 3/5/26
AG
I went to lunch with a guy I hired for a consulting job on a project I'm working on. Really nice guy. His mom passed away last week and I learned she was 100. Damn, what a life. I also learned she was born in Houston. I can't wrap my head around that. lol. So damn cool, I bet she has some great stories.

My parents came to Houston from India in 1964; I was born in 1966. While I don't live there anymore, I still like going back and will always believe growing up in Houston in '70's and '80's was so damn awesome. It was a great place to grow up.

But, my family history only goes back to 1964. What about y'all?
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DiskoTroop
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10:17p, 3/5/26
My dad's side great grandmother (born est 1900-1901, we don't know for sure) immigrated from Italy through Galveston in 1907. Her family initially moved to east Texas but eventually moved to Glenbrook Valley down off of Lawndale Dr. this would have been 1911 or so.

My mom's side has been in Texas since just after the revolution. 1840 or so, but they never came to Houston until the 1970's.
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txags92
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10:19p, 3/5/26
AG
My parents moved to Houston in 1958. They moved out to Friendswood right before I was born in 1970.

Wife's family came in through Galveston in the 1840s, but settled in DHanis.
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Psycho Bunny
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12:24a, 3/6/26
4th Great grandfather who was 12 at the time, came to America in 1853 from Germany to avoid the Crimean War. 3rd great grandfather helped start Heights Hospital. 2nd great grandfather and 2nd great uncle were on the 1907 Heights High football team. Great Grandfather owned a bus service that my grandfather inherited till WW2 started and he sold the business because of rationing. Grandfather who was 32 when WW2 started was considered to old, so he went to Elington field and workd as a private contractor working on war planes heading to Europe or the Pacific.



Can't decide if I want to be cute and cuddly, or go blow some sh*t up.
Decisions decisions
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Jugstore Cowboy
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12:57a, 3/6/26
AG
My grandfather's family moved to Houston around 1920; they were South Texas carpetbaggers before that.
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BMX Bandit
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5:44a, 3/6/26
hitched up the wagon and headed south to get here and set up stakes along buffalo bayou all the way back in 1998
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Ragoo
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6:31a, 3/6/26
AG
Both sets of grand parents were born in Oklahoma in the 1920-30s. My mom's side moved from Tulsa to Houston in 1963. My dad's parents moved to Houston a few years later by way of Amarillo, Tyler, and NYC. My parents were born in 1958 and 1959. I was born in Houston in 1985 but moved to New Braunfels in 1988.
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Mega Lops
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6:47a, 3/6/26
AG
Did a bunch of seed dispersal along the Richmond Strip in the 90s. Who knows what took root? It's not an uncomfortable conversation I've had to have yet, but I fear one of those DNA services is gonna catch me one day.
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sts7049
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7:08a, 3/6/26
AG
our first phone number had a 713 area code
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bigjag19
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7:29a, 3/6/26
AG
Mom's family goes back to founding of Brazoria county. Her dad grew up in Brenham. First time family was actually Houston was 1977.
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maroonpivo
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7:40a, 3/6/26
AG
My grandfather was born in Shiner in 1921 and met my grandmother at SPJST Lodge 88 during a Czech polka dance and lived in West U where he was part owner of JMH grocery store- now known as Tinys No. 5. He was an incredible man.
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malenurse
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In reply to sts7049 • 8:14a, 3/6/26
AG
sts7049 said:
our first phone number had a 713 area code

Our first phone number was 2-2518
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AgLA06
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8:19a, 3/6/26
AG
Great grandparents on both sides were original owners in Oak Forest. One worked for Humble Oil.

My kids are 5th generation GOOF residents. Before all the transplants, people didn't say they were Houstonians, but what neighborhoods. Kinda like NYC and the boroughs.

Going to area codes ticked people off. Going to more than one Houston area code was damn near a riot if your cell number wasn't 713.
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sts7049
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In reply to malenurse • 8:21a, 3/6/26
AG
yeah, i guess technically our number predated the time when you had to dial the area code. i forgot that.
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scd88
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8:29a, 3/6/26
AG
Great responses on this thread. Thanks, all.
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scd88
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8:31a, 3/6/26
AG
Not too long ago it was straight 7 digit dialing and everything was 713. We lost our **** when we had to add 713 or, gasp, 281.

Damn cell phones...

(Man states as he replies via his cell phone...)
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cajunaggie08
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8:46a, 3/6/26
AG
My grandfather with my dad in tow first got transferred to Houston by Global Marine around 1964. Bounced around internationally for a few more years before settling down to help start Atwood Oceanics in 68.
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12thMan9
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9:26a, 3/6/26
AG
St. Joseph baby here, adopted thru the Catholic Diosoce back then. Moved from 1st OF home to another that put us near the beginning of the cemented part of White Oak Bayou. Then moved into Candlelight Oaks, easily the nicest neighborhood in the area in the late 70's, early 80's.

Dad graduated from Jeff Davis a few years on front of Kenny Rogers while Mom graduated from the other country club at the south end of River Oaks w/Fred Hofeinz as a classmate. She lived out where Lee High School is now.

Her mom came from Czechoslovakia, landed in Halletsville in 1903. Her dad was Polish. I started eating kolaches long before they became a thing. My dad's family traces back to Germany, on both sides if I reckon correctly.

We left Houston in '83 at the top of the oilfield rollercoaster & moved to San Antonio where my dad got relocated. My wife & I moved back in '94, bought a home in Memorial, sold it in '20. After 5 years as renters & getting tired of a city that has a ton of issues, we moved to Ben****er in Montgomery County.
Ronnie '88
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BBRex
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9:34a, 3/6/26
AG
Me? I'm first gen here. My wife? Well, Charlotte Baldwin Allen was her 5X great aunt, and the brother she's descended from was Houston's third mayor.

Edit: She's also descended from Elizabeth Baldwin, who was William Marsh Rice's second wife. When Elizabeth died, her will, written in Texas, tried to leave part of the Rice estate to her family. William disputed the will, which would have reduced the amount left to the Rice Institute (later Rice University), and the resulting legal battle led indirectly to Rice's murder.
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Marauder Blue 6
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9:43a, 3/6/26
AG
Both sets of grandparents came here in the early 50's. Both grandfathers were WWII veterans looking for jobs and a place to put down roots and the plants on the Ship Channel were calling. Mom's dad worked in a plant for a few years and then moved to the docks for a union job that he retired from. Dad's dad worked for Champion Paper in Pasadena for his entire career.
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drumboy
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9:56a, 3/6/26
AG
All grandparents moved to GOOF in the 40s and 50s. Kinda wonder if they knew some of the family mentioned here.

In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.
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cajunaggie08
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In reply to drumboy • 10:20a, 3/6/26
AG
drumboy said:
In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.

I was shocked how rare that was even in Oil and Gas, Most of the field techs and plant workers are local but most of my office is recent transplants. I still get funny looks when I tell people I grew up down the road from the office.
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txags92
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In reply to sts7049 • 12:21p, 3/6/26
AG
sts7049 said:
our first phone number had a 713 area code

I grew up when we didn't have to dial the area code first.
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txags92
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In reply to cajunaggie08 • 12:27p, 3/6/26
AG
cajunaggie08 said:
drumboy said:
In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.

I was shocked how rare that was even in Oil and Gas, Most of the field techs and plant workers are local but most of my office is recent transplants. I still get funny looks when I tell people I grew up down the road from the office.

We used to ride our motorcycles out in the Hastings Oil Field between Friendswood, Pearland, and Alvin. I got called out by an oil field client to do an environmental site assessment for a site in that field where they wanted to buy space to setup a new tank system. When the guy gave me directions to it, I had to start thinking of how I was going to tell them that I had witnessed open dumping of oily tank bottoms and evaporation pit sludge on the property for years while trespassing on my motorcycle. The piles just looked like big dirt piles...until you tried to ride over the top of them and broke the crust into the oily sludge. My friend sunk his ATC up to the tank the first time we tried to ride there and it took us hours to get him out.
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Captain Winky
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12:43p, 3/6/26
Since 2011, when I moved here. I got lucky and was one of the last immigrants allowed in before the city became full, and everyone was diverted to El Paso.
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AggieT
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In reply to malenurse • 1:23p, 3/6/26
AG
malenurse said:
sts7049 said:
our first phone number had a 713 area code

Our first phone number was 2-2518

Ours was 251-2518.
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redaszag99
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In reply to txags92 • 1:28p, 3/6/26
txags92 said:
cajunaggie08 said:
drumboy said:
In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.

I was shocked how rare that was even in Oil and Gas, Most of the field techs and plant workers are local but most of my office is recent transplants. I still get funny looks when I tell people I grew up down the road from the office.

We used to ride our motorcycles out in the Hastings Oil Field between Friendswood, Pearland, and Alvin. I got called out by an oil field client to do an environmental site assessment for a site in that field where they wanted to buy space to setup a new tank system. When the guy gave me directions to it, I had to start thinking of how I was going to tell them that I had witnessed open dumping of oily tank bottoms and evaporation pit sludge on the property for years while trespassing on my motorcycle. The piles just looked like big dirt piles...until you tried to ride over the top of them and broke the crust into the oily sludge. My friend sunk his ATC up to the tank the first time we tried to ride there and it took us hours to get him out.

I grew up in Hastings field and my parents still live there about a mile South of Dixie Farm Rd on SH 35
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txags92
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In reply to redaszag99 • 1:32p, 3/6/26
AG
redaszag99 said:
txags92 said:
cajunaggie08 said:
drumboy said:
In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.

I was shocked how rare that was even in Oil and Gas, Most of the field techs and plant workers are local but most of my office is recent transplants. I still get funny looks when I tell people I grew up down the road from the office.

We used to ride our motorcycles out in the Hastings Oil Field between Friendswood, Pearland, and Alvin. I got called out by an oil field client to do an environmental site assessment for a site in that field where they wanted to buy space to setup a new tank system. When the guy gave me directions to it, I had to start thinking of how I was going to tell them that I had witnessed open dumping of oily tank bottoms and evaporation pit sludge on the property for years while trespassing on my motorcycle. The piles just looked like big dirt piles...until you tried to ride over the top of them and broke the crust into the oily sludge. My friend sunk his ATC up to the tank the first time we tried to ride there and it took us hours to get him out.

I grew up in Hastings field and my parents still live there about a mile South of Dixie Farm Rd on SH 35

We lived near Friendswood Highschool and used to ride out to the oilfields through the old tree farm that is now a subdivision behind the high school. There were several areas out near Baker Road and Custom Safety products with large piles of dirt that were perfect for making motocross tracks.
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redaszag99
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1:40p, 3/6/26
I went to Alvin but live in Friendswood now near the Softball Fields on 528 and Moore Rd.

I used to ride the school bus all back up in the part of hastings field. If you go straight down my parents road through the oil field you come out on 129/2351 near the road to custom safety products.

I have several friends that lived in that part of the field. We would ride our bikes to Sun Meadow and Friendswood near 518/2351.
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1981 Monte Carlo
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1:45p, 3/6/26
Born here in 1981



Spent my entire life growing up in Spring Branch (norteño) and am convinced that it was the absolute coolest spot to come up in in the 80's and 90's. We felt like we owned the area behind Addicks. Spring Branch north of I-10 feels like one of the few remaining spots in the city that has actually remained somewhat recognizable over the decades. Still has some of that vibe left to it. Scenery hasn't changed all that much.

Random story, when I was 7 or 8, my mom was pumping gas at the station that used to be at the corner of Hammerly and N Gessner, where a McDonald's currently sits, and my bro and I heard screeching tires and turned our heads just in time to see some tall white guy get hit by a car doing at least 40mph...they were going north on Gessner and ran a red light. We could not believe how far he flew. His binder and books went everywhere. Luckily we heard he made it. But point being, there used to be white kids at Spring Woods.
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txags92
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In reply to redaszag99 • 1:51p, 3/6/26
AG
redaszag99 said:
I went to Alvin but live in Friendswood now near the Softball Fields on 528 and Moore Rd.

I used to ride the school bus all back up in the part of hastings field. If you go straight down my parents road through the oil field you come out on 129/2351 near the road to custom safety products.

I have several friends that lived in that part of the field. We would ride our bikes to Sun Meadow and Friendswood near 518/2351.

We used to use the oilfields as a shortcut to get to Sun Meadow as well. One night, long after he should have been home, my brother was coming back through the tree farm behind the high school in his truck. When he went to go around the gate, he realized just a little too late that the tree company had gotten tired of people driving around the gate and had used one of their tree spades to dig a giant hole where the trail around the gate was. He got to walk home and wake up my dad at 2am to get help to try to get the truck jacked back up and out of the hole before sunrise.
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bigjag19
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2:16p, 3/6/26
AG
I grew up NE of FW at old refinery fields on top of toxic waste.

Good times.
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Morbo the Annihilator
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In reply to drumboy • 2:38p, 3/6/26
AG
drumboy said:
All grandparents moved to GOOF in the 40s and 50s. Kinda wonder if they knew some of the family mentioned here.

In corporate Houston, especially tech, it's rare to meet people born & raised here.

Last time I checked, fewer than 2 in 5 Houstonians were born here.
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EclipseAg
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In reply to 1981 Monte Carlo • 2:52p, 3/6/26
AG
1981 Monte Carlo said:
But point being, there used to be white kids at Spring Woods.

I've told this story before on TexAgs, but I once was forced to go to a dance recital at Northbrook High School. This was probably mid to late '90s.

There were like 80 different dances, and I got completely bored out of my mind, so I went to the lobby of the auditorium where they had all the school's senior class photos displayed, from the first year to the present.

As you walked down the row of glass cases, you could see the school's demographics change before your eyes. It was fascinating.
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1981 Monte Carlo
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In reply to EclipseAg • 2:57p, 3/6/26
EclipseAg said:
1981 Monte Carlo said:
But point being, there used to be white kids at Spring Woods.

I've told this story before on TexAgs, but I once was forced to go to a dance recital at Northbrook High School. This was probably late mid to late '90s.

There were like 80 different dances, and I got completely bored out of my mind, so I went to the lobby of the auditorium where they had all the school's senior class photos displayed, from the first year to the present.

As you walked down the row of glass cases, you could see the school's demographics change before your eyes. It was fascinating.

Ha yep, it happened rapidly between the late 80's through the 90's. An incredibly dramatic shift.
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