One of the things we understandably don’t think about much is that the names of streets, even major streets, sometimes change over time. Why does this happen? I guess sometimes it’s to honor a person but other times I just don’t know. In any event, it can leave gaps in my understanding even of photographs that are labeled. Here’s one that I noticed a while back, a picture of the April 1912 flood that I’ve talked about before, labeled neatly in the bottom left corner:
It’s an impressive amount of water, but where the heck is the intersection of Reynolds Avenue and Westmoreland Boulevard?
There’s a nice clue in the box full of maps and drawings that I came across before Christmas, a 1909 map I’ve never seen anywhere before called “Westmoreland Farms.”
Zoom in and there’s Reynolds Avenue Road, running north to south along the west side of the still undeveloped Rice Institute property. (You can also see the notch along Main Street where Charles Weber’s farm was.) What I can’t find is any evidence of Westmoreland Boulevard, although it must be near campus somewhere for them to have bothered to photograph it. I wonder if it might actually refer to Bellaire Boulevard, which goes out to Westmoreland Farms. That would explain the presence of those tracks in the foreground of the picture, wouldn’t it? Or am I all turned around? Help me out here, people.
I think you’ve got it, although Bellaire is still W. Holcombe at that point. The lines overhead appear to be a power line (which the streetcar would need) and perhaps a telephone line.
Reynolds Ave. is now Kirby Dr. The north-south property lines beginning at the west edge of the campus are present-day Greenbriar, Morningside, Kirby, Wakeforest, Buffalo Speedway and Edloe. “Richmond Road” southwest from the A.C. Reynolds Survey is now Bissonnet, which at the time was just “County Road” east of that point.
Yes, I agree. I’ll bet the picture is mis-labeled and the writer meant “the boulevard to Westmoreland Farms,” or present day Bellaire Boulevard, which as far as I can find was always called that. The area is still called “Westmoreland Farms” by Bellaire residents. There, of course was the small Westmoreland Addition and Westmoreland Street just south of Courtlandt Place, but I believe that’s a red herring for this question.
I think Marty’s right. I grew up in Bellaire (in what is still identified as the Westmoreland Farms subdivision), and I’m pretty sure that Bellaire Blvd was always named that. The “Toonerville Trolley” started operation in 1910 down Bellaire Blvd. (The Holcombe portion was a later rename by Houston, which never set well with Bellaire.) What I’d never realized until today was that Westmoreland Farms was originally the Wm. Marsh Rice ranch, which was purchased by Wm. Baldwin (a relative of Elizabeth Baldwin, perhaps?) to found Bellaire in 1908. I’m curious about that green triangle that sits on the south side of what’s today University Blvd. Was that part of the original Institute’s property and sold off at some point?
Seems like there used to be a Westmoreland Dairy? Does my memory serve me? I also note some land owned by J.S. Rice and Associates. Could that be part of the original Rice Food Market?
There was a Westmoreland Dairy, which existed at least into the 1970s. It was located on South Rice and offered home delivery.
So, the photo should be labelled “The Intersection of Reynolds Ave. Rd. (later named Kirby Dr.) and Bellaire Blvd., 1912″? Is this correct?
Yes. At least I think so.
Thank you nburch, good to know my memory is still with me.
Yep, no evidence of a “Westmoreland Blvd.” in any directories of that era..
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