Woodland Heights, Houston facts for kids
The Woodland Heights is one of the oldest and most historic neighborhoods in Houston, Texas. It has about 2000 homes and is located in the 77009 ZIP code. The neighborhood is bordered by Pecore Street to the north, Studewood Street to the west, I-45 to the east, and I-10 to the south.
When the neighborhood was planned in 1907 by William A. Wilson, it was a 20-minute streetcar ride north of downtown Houston. It was designed to be its own streetcar suburb, but it later became part of the city of Houston. Today, it's one of the closest neighborhoods to downtown, besides the smaller Sixth Ward.
Woodland Heights is located between two major Interstate highways. People sometimes overlook it or think it's part of the larger, older Houston Heights neighborhood to its west. (Studewood Street is the line between them.) However, if you know what to look for, you'll see that the buildings in Woodland Heights look a bit different from those in Houston Heights. Houston Heights was planned in 1891, more than 15 years before Woodland Heights. During that time, American architecture changed. Homes went from the bigger, more detailed Victorian style of the late 1800s to the smaller, simpler bungalow style of the early 1900s Arts and Crafts era. The two neighborhoods show this change. In fact, Woodland Heights' buildings are more like those in the Norhill neighborhood to its north and the Eastwood neighborhood on the east side of downtown. William A. Wilson also planned Eastwood in 1911 as a slightly fancier version of his Woodland Heights project.
After World War II, both the fancy Houston Heights and Eastwood neighborhoods slowly declined. But they started to recover by the end of the 1900s. Woodland Heights and Norhill, with their more modest, working-class bungalows, largely avoided this decline. Now, they are among the most desired neighborhoods in the city, along with the mostly restored Houston Heights and revived Eastwood areas.
Even though Woodland Heights is slowly becoming more modern and expensive, it still has a lot of unique charm. It has large, old trees and many amazing gardens, both for flowers and vegetables. Some gardens are so big they are almost like small farms! The neighborhood also has at least one resident beekeeper. In many places, there are no proper gutters, and water drains into open ditches. You can often hear choruses of frogs on summer evenings.
On June 29, 2011, Houston’s City Council voted to make a small part of the original Woodland Heights a historic district. This Woodland Heights Historic District covers about 386 homes. It includes many different building styles like Queen Anne, bungalow, American Craftsman, late Victorian cottages, American Four square, and English Cottage.
The main road into the neighborhood, Studewood Street, is special. It's a three-lane road where the middle lane changes direction. In the morning rush hour, it's for cars going south (towards downtown). In the evening rush hour, it's for cars going north (into the neighborhood). It's one of only a few such streets in Houston. Woodland Heights is also famous for "Lights In the Heights," where many homes are decorated with Christmas lights, and you can find different performances around the neighborhood.
The walking paths, baseball fields, and public swimming pool along White Oak Bayou offer great views of the Downtown Houston skyline. White Oak Bayou runs along the southern border of the neighborhood. This area is known for flooding, and the bayou has overflowed in 1992, 1998 (from Tropical Storm Frances), and in 2001 during Tropical Storm Allison.
Woodland Heights was one of the first neighborhoods in the United States to connect its community through an email list. Its active neighborhood group holds an annual "Lights in the Heights" celebration every December. During this event, 14 blocks of two parallel streets are lit up with luminaria (paper lanterns) and closed to cars. The celebration offers hot drinks, live music, and carriage rides, attracting visitors from all over the city. The 2006 "Lights in the Heights" even had a parade with several art cars!
Contents
Education
Schools for Kids and Teens
Public Schools
Woodland Heights is part of the Houston Independent School District. It is home to Travis Elementary School, which is located on Block 5. Students from Woodland Heights also attend Hogg Middle School, which is in the nearby Norhill neighborhood, and Heights High School (which used to be called Reagan High School), located in the Houston Heights.
Travis Elementary was first built in 1908, and a new campus was constructed in 1926. An addition was made in the 1970s. As part of a 2002 school bond, the 1926 section was renovated, and a new building was planned to be finished in 2006.
Private Schools
Houston Outdoor Learning Academy is a private school for grades 6-12. It combines classroom learning with outdoor activities and international trips. This school is located near the edge of Woodland Heights.
Community Colleges
Residents of Woodland Heights can attend classes at the Houston Community College System.
Parks and Fun Activities
The Woodland Park and Community Center is run by the City of Houston. It has an outdoor basketball court, an indoor gym, a lighted sports field, and a lighted tennis court for everyone to enjoy.
Notable Residents
- William Goyen (a novelist, which is a writer of books)
- Rosie Walker, who published Houston Downtown magazine and was a candidate for the 1989 election for the Mayor of Houston (the city's top leader).
