Houston History Timeline

• 1836-08-30 The city of Houston is founded by Augustus Chapman Allen and John Kirby Allen
• 1891-05-19 Rice Institute, which became Rice University in Houston, Texas, is chartered

• 1917-08-23 Race riot in Houston Texas (2 blacks & 11 whites killed)
• 1917-12-11 13 black soldiers hanged for participation in Houston riot
• 1918-09-03 5 soldiers hanged for alleged participation in Houston riot (or Camp Logan riot); in all 19 mutineers were executed.

• 1943-09-07 Fire in decrepit old Gulf Hotel kills 45 (Houston, Texas)
• 1949-01-01 KPRC TV channel 2 in Houston, TX (NBC) begins broadcasting
• 1953-05-12 KUHT TV channel 8 (PBS) in Houston, TX, begins broadcasting
• 1953-05-25 1st non-commercial educational television station - Houston, Texas
• 1954-11-20 KTRK TV channel 13 in Houston, TX (ABC) begins broadcasting
• 1956-04-26 First modern container ship, the Ideal X, leaves Port Newark, New Jersey for Houston, Texas
• 1959-08-14 First (American Football League) meeting is held in Chicago; charter memberships handed to Dallas, NY, Houston, Denver, LA and Minneapolis-Saint Paul; 'AFL' named following week
• 1960-07-18 Baseball's NL votes to add Houston and NY franchises
• 1960-10-16 NL votes to admit Houston & NY to league
• 1961-01-31 Houston voters approve bond to finance luxury domed stadium

• 1962-04-10 Houston Colt .45s make their MLB debut with an 11-2 win over the Chicago Cubs at Colt Stadium; outfielder Román Mejías hits a pair of 3-run homers
• 1962-12-22 Harris County voters approve all-weather stadium for Houston Colt .45s
• 1963-05-17 Houston Colt .45's Don Notterbart no-hits Phillies, 4-1
• 1963-06-09 1st Sunday night game in baseball SF Giants lose to Houston Colts 3-0

• 1963-09-10 Phillies beat Houston Colt .45s, 16-0
• 1963-09-29 Houston Colt .45 John Paciorek goes 3 for 3 in his only game
• 1963-12-22 Oakland Raider Tom Flores passes for 6 touchdowns vs Houston (52-49)
• 1964-04-23 Houston Colt 45s Ken Johnson becomes 1st major league pitcher to lose a 9 inning no-hitter, Reds win 1-0
• 1964-05-17 Phillies triple play Houston Colt .45s
• 1965-01-16 4th AFL All Star Game, Jeppeson Stadium, Houston: Western Division beats Eastern Division, 38-14; MVPs: Keith Lincoln, LA Chargers, RB; Willie Brown, Denver Broncos, DB

• 1967-01-06 KHTV TV channel 39 in Houston, TX (IND) begins broadcasting
• 1967-06-18 Houston Astros pitcher Don Wilson no-hits Atlanta Braves, 2-0 at the Astrodome, Houston
• 1968-01-20 Houston Cougars defeat the UCLA Bruins 71-69 to win basketball's Game of the Century and end UCLA's 47 game winning streak
• 1969-04-04 Haskell Karp receives the 1st temporary artificial heart, implanted by surgeon Denton Cooley at Texas Heart Institute in Houston
• 1969-05-01 Houston Astros hurler Don Wilson blanks Reds, 4-0 for second career no-hitter, at Crosley Field in Cincinnati
• 1970-04-13 Apollo 13 announces "Okay, Houston, we've had a problem here", as Beech-built oxygen tank explodes en route to Moon
• 1971-08-15 KVRL (now KRIV) TV ch 26 in Houston, Texas (Fox) begins

• 1974-01-13 Super Bowl VIII, Rice Stadium, Houston, TX: Miami Dolphins beat Minnesota Vikings, 24-7; MVP: Larry Csonka, Miami, RB

• 1975-05-04 Houston's Bob Watson scores baseball's one-millionth run of all time
• 1975-11-02 First sports event at The Summit arena in Houston - NBA's Houston Rockets beat Milwaukee Bucks, 104-89; future Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich top scores with 24 points
• 1976-12-12 Spaniard Manuel Orantes beats Wojtek Fibak of Poland 5–7, 6–2, 0–6, 7–6, 6–1 to win his first and only season-ending ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis title in Houston, Texas
• 1978-09-02 John McClain performs 180 outside loops in an airplane over Houston
• 1981-01-18 Phil Smith and Phil Mayfield become the first two people to BASE jump from objects in all four categories (buildings, cliffs, bridges, antennae) after parachuting off a Houston skyscraper
• 1982-04-05 43-year-old St. Louis reliever Jim Kaat pitches 1 inning for the Cardinals in a season-opening, 14-3 rout of Houston; sets a MLB record for pitchers by playing in his 24th consecutive season
• 1983-04-04 45th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: North Carolina State beats Houston, 54-52; Wolfpack win with buzzer-beating dunk by Lorenzo Charles off a desperation 30 foot shot from Dereck Whittenburg
• 1983-08-18 Hurricane Alicia battered Houston & Galveston, Texas

• 1985-02-24 Jim Kelly (Houston USFL) passes for pro football record 574 yds
• 1985-09-18 BBC Radio reports prime # 2^216091-1 found in Houston

• 1988-08-25 Challenger Center opens its classroom doors in Houston
• 1989-06-13 Houston's Terry Puhl plays in his 1,403rd game (most by a Canadian)
• 1989-10-21 Houston becomes 1st major college team to gain 1000 yards in a game
• 1989-12-02 55th Heisman Trophy Award: Andre Ware, Houston (QB)

• 1991-08-31 Houston QB David Klingler sets NCAA record with 6 touchdown passes in the 2nd quarter as the Cougars clobbered Louisiana Tech 73-3
• 1991-09-11 14 die in a Continental Express commuter plane crash near Houston
• 1991-11-09 Houston's Roman Anderson is 1st NCAA to kick 400 pts
• 1993-01-10 Maiden flight of Ultrair (Houston to LA)
• 1993-09-08 Houston's Darryl Kile throws 3rd MLB no-hitter of season in Astros' 7-1 win over New York Mets
• 1995-03-01 Part of Houston begins using new area code 281
• 1995-04-18 Houston Post folds after 116 years

• 2000-04-11 MLB: Pacific Bell Park (now Oracle Park) in San Francisco, California and Comerica Park in Detroit, Michigan open
• 2001-06-05 Tropical Storm Allison makes landfall on the upper-Texas coastline as a strong tropical storm and dumps large amounts of rain over Houston. The storm caused $5.5 billion in damages, making Allison the costliest tropical storm in U.S. history.
• 2001-09-13 Relative calm returns to world oil markets as US retail gasoline prices return to normal levels; energy trading by Houston energy companies resumes and limited commercial aviation starts

• 2001-10-04 SF Giants slugger Barry Bonds hits his 70th home run in 10-2 win v Houston; ties Mark McGwire for the most MLB home runs in a single season
• 2002-09-08 Rookie quarterback David Carr throws for 2 TDs as the Houston Texans beat Dallas Cowboys 19-10 to become only the 2nd expansion team (1961 Minnesota Vikings) to win their inaugural game
• 2002-10-31 A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas formally indicted former Enron Corp. chief financial officer Andrew Fastow on 78 counts of wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice related to the collapse of his ex-employer.

• 2004-07-13 75th All Star Baseball Game: AL wins 9-4 at Minute Maid Park, Houston
• 2004-11-21 Roger Federer of Switzerland wins back-to-back season-ending Tennis Masters Cup titles with a 6–3, 6–2 victory over Australian Leyton Hewitt in the final in Houston, Texas
• 2005-06-01 The longest oil/natural gas explosion in the Houston, Texas area occurs in Crosby, Texas. The drill was owned by the Louisiana Oil and Gas Company.
• 2007-04-20 Johnson Space Center Shooting: A man with a handgun barricades himself in NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas before killing a male hostage and himself.
• 2008-09-13 Hurricane Ike makes landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast of the United States, causing heavy damage to Galveston Island, Houston and surrounding areas.

• 2015-06-03 Dr. Jesse Selber performs the world's first partial-skull and scalp transplant at Houston Methodist Hospital
• 2016-02-25 Tenth Republican presidential candidates debate hosted by CNN, held in Houston, Texas
• 2017-02-05 Super Bowl LI, NRG Stadium, Houston, TX: New England Patriots defeat Atlanta Falcons, 34-28; MVP: Tom Brady, New England, QB
• 2018-07-16 Historic cemetery (1878-1911) announced discovered near Houston, Texas, containing 95 remains though to be African Americans forced into labour
• 2019-02-10 Sexual abuse investigation into US Southern Baptist churches reveals 400 church members implicated with over 700 victims, according to The Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News

Birthdays 1 - 100 of 148

• 1882-07-10 Ima Hogg, American society leader, Texas arts patron. and founder of Houston Symphony, born in Mineola, Texas (d. 1975) [1]
• 1895-07-23 Florence Vidor, American actress (Jack Knife Man), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1977)
• 1900-11-07 Efrem Kurtz, Russian conductor (Houston Symphony, 1948-54), born in St. Petersburg, Russia (d. 1995)
• 1904-07-04 Seger Ellis, American jazz pianist, pop vocalist, songwriter, and bandleader, born in Houston, Texas (d. 1995) [1]
• 1905-01-19 Oveta Culp Hobby, American government official (1st US Secretary of Health) and newspaper publisher (Houston Post), born in Killeen, Texas (d. 1995)
• 1906-11-12 (Booker T. Washington) "Bukka" White, American country and Delta blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter ("Shake'Em On Down"; "Parchman Farm Blues"), born near Aberdeen, Mississippi (d. 1977)
• 1912-01-11 Donald "Red" Barry, American actor (Adventures of Red Ryder, Jesse James' Women), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1980)
• 1916-09-02 Penny Santon [Pierina Burlando], American actress (Fletch, Roll Out, Matt Houston), born in New York City (d. 1999)
• 1917-04-11 David Westheimer, American novelist (Von Ryan's Express), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2005)
• 1918-07-25 Nan Grey [Eschal Miller], American actress (Three Smart Girls, Dracula's Daughters), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1993)
• 1918-10-04 Red Munger, American baseball (MLB All Star 1944, 47, 49; St. Louis Cardinals), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1996)
• 1920-08-22 Denton Cooley, American heart surgeon (1st artificial heart transplant), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2016)
• 1921-09-05 Jack Valenti, American political advisor and film executive, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2007)
• 1924-01-26 Annette Strauss, American philanthropist and politician, born in Houston, Texas (d. 1998)
• 1927-04-01 Amos Milburn, American R&B singer and pianist ("One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer"), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1980)
• 1928-03-22 Bill Archer, American politician (Rep-R-TX, 1971-2001), born in Houston, Texas

• 1928-11-11 Ernestine Anderson, American jazz vocalist and blues singer, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2016)
• 1929-02-24 David Houston, Major-General/Lord Lieutenant of Sutherland
• 1929-10-11 Curtis Amy, American jazz and session saxophonist ("Way Down"), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2002)
• 1930-04-28 James Baker, American Secretary of the Treasury (1985-88), Secretary of State (1989-92), born in Houston, Texas
• 1932-05-30 Pauline Oliveros, American avant garde composer (Sound Patterns), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2016)
• 1933-05-04 J. Fred Duckett, American sports announcer (Houston Astros, Rice University, US Track & Field) and teacher, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2007)
• 1933-06-29 John Bradshaw, American theologian, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2016)
• 1933-11-25 Kathryn Grant Crosby, actress (Mr Cory, Big Circus), born in Houston, Texas
• 1934-06-01 Peter Masterson, American actor (Ambush Bay), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2018)
• 1934-09-24 John Brunner, Britsih sci-fi author (100th Millennium), born in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, England (d. 1995)

• 1935-12-09 David Houston, American country music singer (Almost Persuaded), born in Bossier City, Louisiana (d. 1993)
• 1936-01-11 Katie Webster [Kathyrne Jewel Thorne], American boogie pianist (The Swamp Boogie Queen), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1999)
• 1936-02-21 Barbara Jordan, American politician (Rep-D-Tx, 1972-78), born in Houston, Texas
• 1936-12-05 James Lee Burke, American writer (Dave Robicheaux series), born in Houston, Texas

• 1938-11-06 P. J. Proby [James Marcus Smith], American singer, songwriter and actor (Hold Me, Three Week Hero), born in Houston, Texas
• 1939-02-12 John D Hancock, American actor and director (Black Marble, Traxx, Houston Knights), born in Kansas City, Missouri
• 1939-09-08 Guitar Shorty [David William Kearney], American blues-rock guitarist, singer and songwriter (You Don't Treat Me Right), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2020) [some sources cite Loughman, Florida]
• 1940-03-23 Luis Gasca, American jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player, born in Houston, Texas
• 1940-08-19 Johnny Nash, American pop-reggae-soul singer-songwriter and record producer ("I Can See Clearly Now"), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2020)
• 1940-08-31 Wilton Felder, American jazz-fusion saxophonist and bassist (The Crusaders), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2015)
• 1941-03-04 John Hancock, American actor (Black Marble, Traxx, Houston Knights), born in Hazen, Arkansas (d. 1992)
• 1941-06-01 Edo de Waart, Dutch conductor (New Zealand Symphony, 2016-19; Milwaukee Symphony, 2009-17; Minnesota Orchestra, 1986-96; San Francisco Symphony, 1977-85), born in Amsterdam, Holland
• 1941-06-10 Mickey Jones, American drummer (Trini Lopez; The First Edition; Bob Dylan), and actor (Home Improvement; Tin Cup; Justified), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2018)
• 1941-07-03 Wylie Walker Vale, American endocrinologist who discovered the stress hormone, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2012)
• 1941-11-01 Robert Foxworth, American actor (Chase-Falcon Crest, Frankenstein), born in Houston, Texas
• 1942-12-30 Michael Nesmith, American rock guitarist (The Monkees), and singer-songwriter ("Different Drum"), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2021) [1]
• 1943-03-17 Don Mitchell, American actor (Mark-Ironside), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2013)
• 1943-04-06 Susan Tolsky, American actress (Madame's Place; Here Come The Brides), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2022)
• 1943-10-10 Frederick Barthelme, American author (There Must be Some Mistake), born in Houston, Texas
• 1945-04-12 Willie Parnell, American singer (Archie Bell & the Drells - "Tighten Up"), born in Houston, Texas
• 1945-05-30 Meredith MacRae, American actress (Petticoat Junction. 1966-70- "Billie Jo"; My Three Sons, 1964-66 - "Sally"), and talk show host, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2000)

• 1945-11-09 Charlie Robinson, American actor (Night Court, 1984-92 - "Mac"; Hart of Dixie), born in Houston, Texas (d. 2021)
• 1946-07-23 Keith Ferguson, American blues-rock bassist (Fabulous Thunderbirds), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1997)
• 1946-08-15 Kathryn Whitmire, American accountant and politician (4 time Mayor-Houston), born in Houston, Texas

• 1947-11-12 J. C. Crowley, American country-rock singer-songwriter (Player - "Baby Come Back"), born in Houston, Texas
• 1948-01-12 Khalid Abdul Muhammed, American Nation of Islam spokesman, born in Houston, Texas (d. 2001)
• 1948-06-19 Phylicia Rashad, American Tony Award-winning actress (The Cosby Show - "Clair"; A Raisin in the Sun; One Life to Live), and singer, born in Houston, Texas
• 1948-11-21 John "Rabbit" Bundrick, American keyboardist and organist (The Who, The Rocky Horror Picture Show), born in Houston, Texas
• 1948-12-06 JoBeth Williams, American actress (Kramer vs Kramer, Poltergeist), born in Houston, Texas

• 1949-01-10 Teresa Graves, American actress (Laugh-in, Get Christie Love!), born in Houston, Texas
• 1949-02-02 Brent Spiner, American actor (Data-Star Trek the Next Generation), born in Houston, Texas

• 1949-08-21 Loretta Devine, American actress (Boston Public), born in Houston, Texas
• 1949-12-16 Billy Gibbons, American blues-rock guitarist (Moving Sidewalks; ZZ Top - "Cheap Sunglasses"; "Legs"), born in Houston, Texas
• 1950-01-16 Debbie Allen, American dancer, choreographer, actress (Fame -"Lydia"), producer, and director (A Different World), born in Houston, Texas
• 1950-08-07 Rodney Crowell, American country singer-songwriter (Above and Beyond; She's Crazy for Leavin'), and record producer, born in Houston, Texas
• 1950-10-01 Randy Quaid, actor (Midnight Express, Vacation, Saturday Night Live), born in Houston, Texas
• 1951-08-18 Greg Pruitt, American football running back (LA Raiders, Super Bowl XVIII), born in Houston, Texas
• 1952-04-01 Annette O'Toole, American actress (Cat People, Superman III), born in Houston, Texas

• 1953-06-21 Michael Bowen, American actor (Valley Girl; Breaking Bad), born in Houston, Texas
• 1953-12-06 Gina Hecht, American actress (Melanie-Hizzoner, Mork & Mindy), born in Houston, Texas

• 1955-05-15 Lee Horsley, American actor (Nero Wolfe, Matt Houston), born in Muleshoe, Texas
• 1956-05-27 Lisa Niemi, actress (Dirty Dancing, Will Rodgers Follies), born in Houston, Texas
• 1956-06-01 Lisa Hartman Black, American actress (Tabitha; Knots Landing), and singer, born in Houston, Texas
• 1956-08-24 John Culberson, American attorney and politician (Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas), born in Houston, Texas
• 1958-02-26 Greg Germann, American actor, born in Houston, Texas
• 1958-03-28 Oran "Juice" Jones, American R&B singer ("Curiosity"; "Here I Go Again"), born in Houston, Texas
• 1958-08-22 Stevie Ray [Lane Huffman], American professional wrestler, born in Houston, Texas
• 1958-12-23 Joan Severance, American actress (Hear No Evil, See No Evil), born in Houston, Texas

• 1960-10-19 Jennifer Holliday, American Grammy and Tony Award-winning stage actress, and pop, R&B, and gospel singer (Dream Girls), born in Houston, Texas
• 1961-08-01 Mark "Red" Mitchell, American actor (JFK; 8 Seconds; I Want to Live), born in Houston, Texas (d. 1994)
• 1962-07-21 Ike Eisenmann, American actor (Scott-Fantastic Journey), born in Houston, Texas
• 1963-03-24 Sammy Giammatva, tennis star, born in Houston, Texas
• 1963-07-13 Bobby Rock [Brock], American rock drummer (Nelson - "Love & Affection"), born in Houston, Texas
• 1963-08-03 Isaiah Washington, American actor (The 100), born in Houston, Texas

• 1964-07-21 Susan Swift, American actress (Chisholms), born in Houston, Texas
• 1964-12-22 Mike Jackson, US pitcher (Seattle Mariners), born in Houston, Texas
• 1965-01-12 Henry Thomas, American defensive tackle (Detroit Lions, New England Patriots), born in Houston, Texas

• 1965-03-01 Booker T [Robert Booker Tio Huffman], American pro wrestler (WCW Heavyweight Champion 2000–01; WWF Heavyweight Champion 2006–07), born in Houston, Texas
• 1966-01-19 Anthony Young, American baseball pitcher (NY Met, Chicago Cubs), born in Houston, Texas
• 1966-06-28 Mary Stuart Masterson, American actress (Some Kind of Wonderful), born in Houston, Texas
• 1966-10-05 Peter Fonseca, Canadian politician and marathon runner (Toronto, Houston Marathon 1995), born in Lisbon, Portugal
• 1967-06-02 Mike Stanton, American pitcher (MLB All Star 2001; World Series 1998-2000; NY Yankees), born in Houston, Texas
• 1967-06-29 Melora Hardin, American actress (Family Tree, Best Times), born in Houston, Texas

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