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HUMBLE,
TEXASHarris
County, Texas
Gulf Coast
Hwy 59 and FM 1960
18 miles NE of Houston
Just East of Houston
Intercontinental Airport
Population 14,579 (2000)
|
| | A
downtown scene
Photo by John Troesser, 9-4-04 |
History
in a Pecan Shell
The town was named after early settler Pleasant
S. Humble, who operated a ferry on the San Jacinto River before the Civil
War.
Humble ran a commissary, cut timber into railroad cross ties and
served as a Justice of the Peace. In 1876 the town was a flag station on the railroad.
Humble was on the Old Atascosa Road - a trade and cattle trail that
crossed the San Jacinto River at Humble, the Trinity River at Liberty and the
Neches at Beaumont. The terminus was Opelousas,
Louisiana.
By 1880 the population of Humble was a mere 60. Mill owner
Charles Bender purchased the townsite and established a commissary for the lumber
mill workers. He issued trade tokens to maximize profits. A post office opened
in 1886 and the next year Humble had a school, two hotels, two stores, and the
sawmill. In 1894 the existing railroad was taken over by the Houston, East and
West Texas Railway.
In 1904 oil was discovered in the area. The population
soared to 10,000 and the following year the Humble oilfield was the largest field
in Texas. In1906, however, with reduced production, the population declined to
7,500.
Ross S. Sterling, who founded Humble Oil in 1911, once operated
a feed store at Humble. His company relocated to Houston in 1912. An oil well
drilled in 1912 struck water and the hot sulphur artesian water has been flowing
ever since. A bathhouse was set up by a Mrs. Mary Standley who charged .25 per
bath (including soap). |
| | The
artesian well - fast approaching its 100th birthday
Photo by John Troesser,
9-4-04 |
| | The
well with Koi pond
Photo by John Troesser, 9-4-04 |
By 1914
the population of Humble had shrunk to only 3,000.
During World War I
elements of the 19th Inf from Fort Sam Houston were stationed at Moonshine Hill.
The Moonshine Hill Road is ruputed to be the oldest paved road in Texas. A reminder
of WWI exists today in the name of Belleau Woods Drive.
In 1918 a fire
destroyed "several saloons, stores and a cafe." In the 30s the population dropped
to 1,500.
Hwy 59, which was begun in 1932 as a two-lane highway, was
finally opened in 1970 as the four-lane divided highway we know today. Humble
passed a city ordnance prohibiting saloons in 1936.
Prosperity returned
when World War II brought workers back to the oilfields. The population doubled,
but increased mobility eventually drained off people who chose to commute to Houston.
The old city of Humble has been preserved by antique dealers and store owners
that have kept the early commercial buildings intact.
Humble Hotels
> Book Hotel |
| | A
building in Old Humble
Photo by John Troesser, 9-4-04 |
Humble
Attractions & RecreationHumble
Historical Museum - 219 Main Street
Mercer
Arboretum and Botanical Garden
-
22306 Aldine Westfield Rd.
214 acre facility. Garden, arboretum, picnic
areas, and nature trails.
Lake
Houston - FM 1960
East. Fishing and watersports.
Humble
Tourist Information
Humble Area Chamber of Commerce
110 West Main Street, Humble, TX77338
281-446-2128
http://www.humbleareachamber.org/
Humble
Hotels
Book Hotel |
| |
The Jewel Theater
Photo by John Troesser, 9-4-04 |
| Humble
People
Humble has a very entertaining history that was published
in 1976 by the James Tull Chapter of the DAR. The book introduces readers to colorful
characters the type of which they just aren't making anymore. Like Constable Marvin
"By-Jingo" Winters, who was known for his favorite exclamation and who died in
1937 directing traffic on the new Hwy 59. Or Ed "Danger" Dangerfield Foltz who
wore a Tom Mix white Stetson and wore twin .45s. Also known as "Mr. Tough," Ed
wore a blue serge suit (summer or winter) with the pantlegs tucked into hightoped
boots.
In the book Friend N. Kenyon wrote of his father, an early Humble
settler: "My father Thomas A. Kenyon was born in New York State. He studied McGuffy's
Reader and went through the same arithmetic book over and over until he finished
his schooling."
The book also mentions Vinny Baily - who was Humble's
oldest resident at the time of the book's publication. Born in the Rockwell-Caldwell
area in 1870, Vinny who gave birth to 11 children and outlived nine of them, was
106 when she was interviewed. |
Humble
ChroniclesHumble
Fire
by Mike Cox
"...Hudson's enthusiasm for the oil business changed
abruptly on July 23, 1905. That evening, a thunderstorm triggered a bolt of lightning
that ignited the oil in one of the large tanks Hudson had helped build. Sending
billows of thick, black smoke high in the sky, the fire spread quickly..."
more
Moonshine
Hill by Paul Latour
Located 2 miles east of Humble off of FM
1960, Moonshine Hill began as a result of an oil boom...
Humble
Hotels > Book Hotel |
| |
The
Humble water tower as seen from the railroad tracks
Photo by John Troesser,
9-4-04 |
Book
Hotel
Humble
Hotels | Houston Hotels
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Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
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