Becky's Best Bungalow Bets for the Week of Apr 09, 2023: Top 4 + A Blast from the Past

Hello BBBB Friend,

By recent standards, it was a busy week for listing and shopping for homes in the Heights. I have selected 4 new listings for this holiday posting. Click HERE to see price changes, new contracts, and final sales for homes that are Still on My List.

FUN FACTS: A BLAST FROM THE PAST

This week I found an interesting book at the Heights Library, The History of Houston Heights by Sister M. Agatha. It provides a detailed account of the neighborhood's formation from 1891 to its annexation by Houston in 1918.

Here are a few fun tidbits from the book:

• Prices in the Heights have always been on the rise. In 1836, the price per acre of land was $1; in 1891, it had increased to $45 per acre. If we compare it to today's average lot sale price of $77 per square foot, the current price per acre would be a staggering $3,357,720.
• The Heights was established in 1896 as a village under Texas law.
• Instead of going grocery shopping, the grocer would collect a list of groceries each morning and deliver the items to the doorstep in the afternoon. It's the analog version of today's Shipt and Instacart services!
• The Heights was the first location in the country to produce compressed wallboard. (The factory where the wallboard was produced was subsequently a pickle factory, an irrelevant but still fun fact.)
• An amusement park was built in 1895 along the banks of White Oak Bayou at the southern end of Harvard Street. It featured a natatorium that was still in use as of 1942. The park originally had a man-made lake that showcased a high-diving act, with live alligators swimming in the water.
• The book itself, written in 1956, also offers a fascinating glimpse into the Heights in the 1950s. The 1950s was a time when the neighborhood was still dry, meaning no alcohol was permitted to be sold, schools were segregated, and even some street names were different. The Cooley mansion was still standing in the location that is now Marmion Park and was occupied by the original Cooley family. Dr. Denton Cooley, of heart transplant fame, lived in the home as a child.

Although Sister M Agatha's book does not provide sources for all of its information, it offers valuable insights into the fascinating history of Houston Heights, including a number of pictures. If you are interested, there is a copy of the book in the reference section of the Heights Library.

By the way, I will be on vacation next week but will be back the following week with my monthly market report and more new and interesting listings.

Let's go look at houses or talk about selling yours!
Becky

CLICK HERE FOR THIS WEEKS BEST BUNGALOW BETS