In 1949, oil tycoon Glenn McCarthy opened the $21 million Shamrock Hotel. To ensure maximum publicity, McCarthy invited 2,000 guests, including reporters, Hollywood royalty and the mayor of Houston.
Houston History
-
-
Born in 1793, Sam Houston ran away from home as a teenager to join the Cherokee and became known as “Raven.” At age 19 he fought in the War of 1812, and at 30, was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
-
If you head west of downtown to 3695 Overture Drive, you’ll discover an abandoned, signless palace befitting of Dr. Evil. Its intentions, however, were much more peaceful.
-
The Houston Rodeo was started because America needed a special kind of cow.
-
Builder, banker, publisher and politician Jesse H. Jones was once known as Mr. Houston. An eighth-grade dropout, he arrived in Houston in 1898 and made his fortune as a developer and builder, constructing 35 skyscrapers.
-
National Women’s History Month was created to highlight the many unsung female figures in our nation’s history. Each of us has benefited from contributions made by women who have helped to build and protect America.
-
Fall is here and even though we’re escaping 100-degree weather, we’re still hitting 100s over the city.
-
Houston didn’t have a deep-water port until 1914. For years, the harbor was too shallow to allow anything but barges to pass through. But after a hurricane devastated Galveston in 1900, leaders approved a dredging plan to make way for larger vessels.