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Offered languages
- English
Will bring 2 or 3 videos to watch during the tour. I will have maps and population tables of the past 150 years. I will bring 4 books to peruse about African-American Texans, African-American Houstonians, The Green Book, and lastly a booklet about Memorial Park, where the biggest race riot in Texas took place in 1917. I will also play hit songs by local African-Americans from the 1960s and 1970s. You will have lots of stimuli. This tour covers portions of the 3rd and 4th Wards and southeast Houston beyond the Wards. It includes a variety of disparate Black communities that are spread across Houston. We will drive over 25 miles within the city.
What's Included
Meeting and pickup
On Monday through Friday, we meet in the rotunda on the first floor. On Sunday and Saturday, we meet outside on the east side of the building at a picnic table on the upper level.
Itinerary
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1
This is the oldest African-American settlement in Houston, found in 1865.
10 minutes • Admission ticket free -
2
This is the oldest African-American church in Houston. It was established in 1866. The church building was initially built in 1875. We stop to take photos of the stained glass, historic doors, the building, the historical marker, and the 2 cornerstones.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
3
This is the largest such museum in the United States. We usually do not go into on this tour as it has a separate fee and will take about 45 minutes to 1 hour to tour. However, you now will know where it is located and return to it. If you want us to stop so you can tour inside at your expense, and you understand that we will have to delete other sites to make time for touring it, that is fine.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
4
This relatively small museum is open only 3 days a week for limited hours. General admission is free; special exhibits have a fee. If it is open and you want to tour inside it, we will accommodate you.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
5
This traditional African American school has a beautiful multicultural mural that takes up one side of the building.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
6
The former school from 1926 in Freedmen's Town is now a museum of local African-American history. It has wonderful exhibits in about 5 rooms. It is free!
40 minutes • Admission ticket free -
7
Jack Yates was a former enslaved man who became Houston's first civil rights leader. His house along with another formerly enslaved family in the post-Civil War era have been relocated in Sam Houston Park. It is free to view. If you would like to tour inside, the Heritage Society will open them by special arrangement for a fee that you will have to pay. Allow 1 hour to tour these 2 homes along with a 3rd historic home.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
8
This area of beautiful mansions dating to the 1920s was the wealthiest African-American neighborhood in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s.
20 minutes • Admission ticket free -
9
Texas Southern University (TSU) opened in 1947 as Texas State University for Negroes (TSUN). In 1951, it was given its current name. It is the 5th largest Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in the nation.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
10
Frenchy's was found in 1969 by a Creole Percy "Frenchy" Creuzot. It is arguably the best fast food chicken place in Houston. The chicken is spicy. You can pour jalapeno juice on your chicken. Mr. Creuzot died in 2010, but his legacy survives. We sometimes stop for lunch here.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
11
This site used to be the This is It Soul Food Restaurant until October 2025. It is one of the largest soul food restaurants in Texas. Do you want chitlin's, pork chops, fried fish, smothered chicken, ox tails, or something else? We sometimes stop here for lunch.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
12
This popular local restaurant has a loyal crowd for breakfast. You can often see queues that go around the block as people wait to get in. It is famous for its wings and waffles. We can stop here for lunch, if you like.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
13
This is the largest and oldest African-American live performance theater in the South. George Hawkins found it in 1978.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
14
This is one of Houston's oldest jazz and rhythm and blues (R&B) bars. You may want to return at night to relax and listen to the music.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
15
Juneteenth celebrations have been celebrated here for over 150 years. It is the most famous park associated with Houston's African-American population. Since 2015, several renovations have been made to beautiful it and make it more functional.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
16
Built in 1939, this was the foremost venue in Houston for nationally known musicians and singers to perform during the years of segregation.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free -
17
Artist Roderick Lowe created this artists colony in the 1990s out of old 1930s Depression-era homes. It is open on Sunday and Wednesday through Saturday during the afternoon. Each artist has to create something that is relevant to the culture of the area.
5 minutes • Admission ticket free
Additional info
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Tags
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
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Cancellation Policy
- For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
- If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
- Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
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