Industry & Growth
Oil and a New Business Base
Houston had mainly property damage from wind and rain, while survivors came to the city for temporary shelter. The city sent water, food, medical supplies, and clothing to Galveston by steamboat and repaired damaged railroads to restore service to the island.
Within a few years, oil companies were setting up offices in Houston to manage oil fields in East Texas.
Rail Jobs, New Neighborhoods, and Downtown Building
Around 1910, many Mexican immigrants settled in the Second Ward, near industrial jobs connected to railroads and manufacturers of railroad supplies. Immigration from Mexico continued into the 1920s, especially as civil unrest persisted there, and Houston developed a Mexican-American community during this period.
Subdivisions grew along streetcar lines, mostly to the south, including Westmoreland. By 1912, the city had twenty-five tall buildings of six to sixteen stories, including office buildings, residential buildings, and hotels. Union Station and Grand Central Station served passenger rail traffic, and the Rice Hotel was under construction that year.
Port, Roads, and Air Service During the Depression
Several local roads were paved around the same period.
Air travel expanded as new passenger service began from Houston to Atlanta. Houston International Airport added commercial and passenger facilities during the 1930s, and Braniff, Eastern, and Southern airlines all offered regular service by 1941. Federal support from the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and the Works Progress Administration helped fund major construction projects in the mid-1930s, including assistance for a new Houston City Hall and Lamar High School.
Civic Projects and Convention Growth
Houston hosted the 1928 Democratic National Convention. The city approved funds for a new convention hall, and Sam Houston Hall was completed within four months after houses on the site were condemned and demolished. Houston also funded beautification work, mainly by planting gardens and trees at public buildings and parks.
The city prepared for visitors with a limited supply of hotel rooms. Several hotels broke ground, and additional accommodations included campgrounds, temporary dormitories, and converted railcars. Earlier in the decade, Hermann Park was developed on donated land, and the Houston Zoological Garden opened there two years later.
World War II Industry and Medical Expansion
In the early 1940s, Houston increased petrochemical production and contributed to the United States war effort. Shell Oil accelerated construction of its Deer Park refinery, where toluene production expanded. Humble Oil in Houston also refined toluene and produced more than one billion gallons of aviation fuel during World War II.
General Tire and Rubber operated a plant in 1943 that was financed and built by the federal Defense Plant Corporation, adding synthetic rubber production to Houston’s wartime manufacturing. In 1942, city and foundation leaders arranged the sale of municipal land to the M.D. Anderson Foundation, which secured commitments from the Texas Dental School and Baylor Medical School for campuses near Hermann Hospital. This marked the founding of the Texas Medical Center.