[13][14] The Port of Houston ranks first in the United States in international waterborne tonnage handled and second in total cargo tonnage handled. Houston has an active visual and performing arts scene in the Theater District, and offers year-round resident companies in all major performing arts. [55] The rainfall exceeded 50 inches in several areas locally, breaking the national record for rainfall. [67], As of 2007[update], there were about 4,000-5,000 ethnic Armenians in the Houston area, according to St. Kevork parish council chairperson Vreij Kolandjian and pontifical visit host committee chairperson David Onanian. Westpark Tollway and Fort Bend Parkway are operated conjunctly with the Fort Bend County Toll Road Authority. [164] Altogether, however, Baptists of the Southern Baptist Convention, the American Baptist Association, American Baptist Churches USA, Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship, National Baptist Convention USA and National Baptist Convention of America, and the National Missionary Baptist Convention numbered 926,554. Sizable numbers, however, came through the domestic slave trade. A 2017 study by the Rice University Kinder Institute for Urban Research found 56% of Harris County residents have a preference for dense housing in a mixed-use, walkable setting as opposed to single-family housing in a low-density area. The Houston Community College System (HCC) serves most of Houston proper; its main campus and headquarters are in Midtown. In January, the normal mean temperature at George Bush Intercontinental Airport is 53F (12C), with an average of 13 days per year with a low at or below 32F (0C), occurring on average between December 3 and February 20, allowing for a growing season of 286 days. Compare Houston population breakdown by race In Houston, 44.3% of people are of Hispanic or Latino origin. [320] A plurality of survey respondents also indicated traffic congestion was the most significant problem facing the metropolitan area. The Houston MSA is home to the nations fourth-largest Hispanic population. Their plan would bring in $360 million in revenue and boost city population and tax revenue. Total Population: 7,206,841 (An increase of 1.19 % in the past 5 years.) [6] Thousands of enslaved African Americans lived near the city before the American Civil War. On February 14 and 15, 1895, Houston received 20 inches (51cm) of snow, its largest snowfall from one storm on record. About 62percent of Hispanics (of any nationality) in the area are declared or favor Democrats. This story map uses the Texas Demographic Center Vintage 2022 population projections to map future county population changes. Prior to the construction of the church, those of the Ethiopian Orthodox faith worshiped at Coptic Orthodox churches. 13 Catholic: No. [303] All 49 member institutions of the Texas Medical Center are non-profit organizations. Refugees from Afghanistan, Bhutan, El Salvador, Cuba, Iraq, Myanmar, and Somalia have settled in Houston; Burundians from Rwanda have also settled in Houston. There was a Native American museum, Southern Apache Museum, that opened in 2012 in Northwest Mall. Paul Broussard was murdered in Montrose in 1991. [273], Murders fell by 37 percent from January to June 2011, compared with the same period in 2010. [272] In 2010, the city's murder rate (per capita rate of 11.8 murders per 100,000 population) was ranked sixth among U.S. cities with a population of over 750,000 (behind New York City, Chicago, Detroit, Dallas, and Philadelphia) according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Comprising a land area of 640.4 square miles (1,659km2),[8] Houston is the ninth-most expansive city in the United States (including consolidated city-counties). Houston is a majority-minority city. [92], Houston has a significant Romani population. In the early 2010s, two additional linesthe Green Line, servicing the East End, and the Purple Line, servicing the Third Wardopened, and the Red Line was extended northward to Northline, bringing the total length of the system to 22.7 miles (36.5km). Sam Houston was baptized by a priest in 1833. [292] The Houston Community College and Lone Star College systems are among the 10 largest institutions of higher learning in the United States. $489,950 4003 Centre Meadow Way 3 Bed 4 Bath 2256 SqFt $477,990 2024 Groveland Glen Drive 3 Bed 4 Bath 2264 SqFt [102] The coldest temperature officially recorded in Houston was 5F (15C) on January 18, 1930. [40] As of 2011, 22% of Greater Houston residents were born in another country. [189] Much of its success as a petrochemical complex is due to its busy ship channel, the Port of Houston. [21]:58, In the early 1980s, there were 300,000 native Hispanics and Latinos, and an estimated 80,000 illegal immigrants from Mexico in Houston. [100][101] Snowfalls of at least 1 inch (2.5cm) on both December 10, 2008, and December 4, 2009, marked the first time measurable snowfall had occurred in two consecutive years in the city's recorded history. [176], The Hindu, Sikh, and Buddhist communities form a growing sector of the religious demographic after Judaism and Islam. [99] As of 2010 many Houston Bah are refugees from Iran. The JPMorgan Chase Tower is the tallest building in Texas and the tallest 5-sided building in the world. [252] PNC Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium for the Houston Dynamo, the Texas Southern Tigers football team, and Houston Dash, in East Downtown. The Houston Astros are a Major League Baseball expansion team formed in 1962 (known as the "Colt .45s" until 1965) that have won the World Series in 2017 and 2022 and appeared in it in 2005, 2019, and 2021. Joseph Bays was the first of the Baptists while Sumner bacon was the first Presbyterian. The Space Center has many interactive exhibits including Moon rocks, a Space Shuttle simulator, and presentations about the history of NASA's manned space flight program. [301] La Voz de Houston is the Houston Chronicle's Spanish-language newspaper and the largest in the area. [62] Flat terrain and extensive greenfield development have combined to worsen flooding. [dubious discuss][119], In a recent case testing these regulations, near the Brickhouse Gulley, an old golf course that long served as a floodplain and reservoir for floodwaters, announced a change of heart toward intensifying development. [268], Texas has banned sanctuary cities,[269] but Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Houston will not assist ICE agents with immigration raids. It closed in 2017 due to redevelopment. In: Allen, Carol M. (editor). the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020. [113] Excessive man-made emissions in the Houston area led to a persistent increase of atmospheric carbon dioxide over the city. Houston is the seat of the Texas Medical Center, which is the largest medical center in the world,[302] and which describes itself as containing the world's largest concentration of research and healthcare institutions. [17][232] Houston is also home to folk artists, art groups and various small progressive arts organizations.[233]. [38], Highlighting and preserving their culture, the American Indian Genocide Museum is in Houston. The original city council line-up of 14 members (nine district-based and five at-large positions) was based on a U.S. Justice Department mandate which took effect in 1979. military. [112] The rankings are in terms of peak-based standards, focusing strictly on the worst days of the year; the average ozone levels in Houston are lower than what is seen in most other areas of the country, as dominant winds ensure clean, marine air from the Gulf. [98], As of 2006, most member of the Houston Haziratu'l-Quds (a Bah Faith center) were Persians. . [187] Petroleum products, chemicals, and oil and gas extraction equipment accounted for roughly two-thirds of the metropolitan area's exports last year. [147] The proportion of non-Hispanic whites in Houston has decreased significantly since 1970, when it was 62.4%. [20], As of 2010, Strait and Gong, authors of Ethnic Diversity in Houston, Texas: The Evolution of Residential Segregation in the Bayou City, 19902000, stated that Hispanics and Latinos had "intermediate levels of segregation" from non-Hispanic whites. PRRI's 2020 Census of American Religion provides unprecedented county-level data on religious identity and diversity in the United States. [18][19][20] These tribes are almost nonexistent today; this was most likely caused by foreign disease, and competition with various settler groups in the 18th and 19th centuries. [60], European immigration was often from Western Europe until 1965. The 2020 Census of American Religion - PRRI [226][227][228], The Houston Theater District, in Downtown, is home to nine major performing arts organizations and six performance halls. In 1948, the city annexed several unincorporated areas, more than doubling its size. Houston Is the Most Diverse City in America - Houstonia Magazine [11] After briefly serving as the capital of the Texas Republic in the late 1830s, Houston grew steadily into a regional trading center for the remainder of the 19th century.[12]. . [263] At-large council members represent the entire city. [33], President Woodrow Wilson opened the deep-water Port of Houston in 1914, seven years after digging began. [211], Located in the American South, Houston is a diverse city with a large and growing international community. Religion in Harris County, Texas - Sperling's BestPlaces Of the 10 most populous U.S. cities, Houston has the largest total area of parks and green space, 56,405 acres (228km2). Houston is also one of the first cities in the world to have a major esports team represent it, in the form of the Houston Outlaws. About 1,600 refugees arrive at George Bush Intercontinental Airport per year. Approximately 470,000 people lived within the Interstate 610 loop, while 1.65 million lived between Interstate 610 and Beltway 8 and 2.25 million lived within Harris County outside Beltway 8 in 2015. [185] Major technology and software companies within Greater Houston include Crown Castle, KBR, Cybersoft, Houston Wire & Cable, and HostGator. Hearst Communications, which owns and operates the Houston Chronicle, bought the assets of the Houston Postits long-time rival and main competitionwhen Houston Post ceased operations in 1995. The damage for the Houston area was estimated at up to $125 billion U.S. dollars,[56] and was considered to be one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States,[57] with the death toll exceeding 70 people. [19], As of 2011, the city was 44% Hispanic and Latino American. In 2012 Kate Shellnutt of the Houston Chronicle described Houston as a "heavily Christian city". [110] Ground-level ozone, or smog, is Houston's predominant air pollution problem, with the American Lung Association rating the metropolitan area's ozone level twelfth on the "Most Polluted Cities by Ozone" in 2017, after major cities such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, New York City, and Denver. The Houston metro area grew about 56%, from a population of 4.7 million to more than 7.3 million people. In 2000 there were over 41 mosques and storefront religious centers, with the largest being the Al-Noor Mosque (Mosque of Light) of the Islamic Society of Greater Houston. It is the tallest structure in Texas, 19th tallest building in the United States, and was previously 85th-tallest skyscraper in the world, based on highest architectural feature. [117], A total of 938,123 residents of the city of Houston said that they spoke English only, according to the 2000 census. Lakewood Church: The Houston megachurch by the numbers - Click2Houston Race, Diversity, and Ethnicity in Houston, TX - BestNeighborhood.org Such restrictions have had mixed results. [327], METRO began light rail service in 2004 with the opening of the 8-mile (13km) north-south Red Line connecting Downtown, Midtown, the Museum District, the Texas Medical Center, and NRG Park. They have won two NBA Championships, one in 1994 and another in 1995, under star players Hakeem Olajuwon, Otis Thorpe, Clyde Drexler, Vernon Maxwell, and Kenny Smith. At least 11 other states have, too", "U.S. Cities Prepare For Planned ICE Raids", "Houston homicide rate changes little in 2016", New FBI stats suggest crime's in decline in Houston, "FBI report: Houston's murder rate down, violent crime increases", "Distribution Houston High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Drug Market Analysis 2009", "Residents of Houston Curbing Murder Talk", "Two Worlds a Mile Apart: A Brief History of the Fourth Ward", "Carnegie Foundation Gives University of Houston its Highest Classification for Research Success, Elevating UH to Tier One Status", "UH achieves Tier One status in research", "UH takes big step up to Tier One status", "Histories of TSU and UH marked by segregation", "Rice tops the list of 25 hardest colleges to get into in Texas", "Largest HBCU In The Nation: Top 10 Black Colleges By Enrollment", "4 Texas Southern University graduates turned black history trailblazers", "Telemundo Station Group, part of the NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations division", "Houston Press Shutters Its Print Operation", "Best Local Magazine: OutSmart | Best of Houston 2008: Your Key to the City", "Texas Medical Center, largest medical complex in the world, reaches 98 percent ICU capacity", "Texas Medical Center Largest Medical Center (Video HD (English))", "Rice and Baylor College of Medicine extend MOU", "Fort Bend County lacks hospital district", "2016 American Community Survey, 1-year estimates: Commuting Characteristics by Sex", "Transit Mode Share Trends Looking Steady; Rail Appears to Encourage Non-Automobile Commutes", "The growing distance between people and jobs in metropolitan America", "Commuting to Work in the Largest 30 U.S. Cities", "Patterns of automobile dependence in cities: an international overview of key physical and economic dimensions with some implications for urban policy", "Study: Houston among cities with poor sustainable transit systems", "Four Texas counties rank among nation's top ten for gasoline consumption", "The Kinder Houston Area Survey: Thirty-Six Years of Measuring Responses to a Changing America", "Car Ownership in U.S. Cities Data and Map", "Major Thoroughfare and Freeway Plan Policy Statement", "Gulf Coast Regionally Coordinated Transportation Plan 2016 Transportation Resource Inventory Update", "2040 Regional Transportation Plan (RTP)", "Vote against Metro referendum could mean more rail", "Metro's Silver Line starts, first of many bus rapid transit planned in region in lieu of rail", "Federal funding pulled for light rail line construction along Richmond Avenue", "Amtrak Fact Sheet, Fiscal Year 2008, State of Texas", "Amtrak ridership up in Houston area, Brookings Institution reports", "Texas Eagle Thruway Motorcoach Schedules", "Hike and bike trail extensions coming to four bayous", "Houston saddles up for downtown bike share program", "Houston bikesharing program enjoys robust growth", "Houston Bike Share names new executive director", "FAA selects the HAS as 2005 Airport of the Year", "George Bush Intercontinental Airport Fact Sheet", "2005 Total Airline System Passenger Traffic Up 4.6% From 2004", "United Continental Planning Houston Flight Resumption", "Houston Airport System Statistical Report: 2017 Fiscal Year Summary", "Airport designated 'model port of entry', "Southwest launches new international service at Houston Hobby Airport today", "William P. Hobby Airport Rated Among Top Five Performing Airports Worldwide", "Houston William P. Hobby Airport is the first 5-Star Airport in North America", "Houston City Council unanimously approves Sister City Agreement between Houston, Texas and Basrah, Iraq", Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau, Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) Houston Chamber, Greater Houston Transportation and Emergency Management Center, San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site, Republic of Texas House of Representatives, Sam Houston and Native American relations, Sam Houston High School (Arlington, Texas), Sam Houston Math, Science, and Technology Center, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, list of cities and towns in HoustonThe WoodlandsSugar Land MSA, National Register of Historic Places Sites, cities with populations exceeding 100,000, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Houston&oldid=1164573094, 1836 establishments in the Republic of Texas, Former state capitals in the United States, Pages with non-numeric formatnum arguments, Articles with dead external links from April 2020, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Pages using multiple image with auto scaled images, Pages using infobox settlement with possible nickname list, Articles with disputed statements from January 2020, Articles containing potentially dated statements from January 2016, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2019, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2011, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2018, All articles with vague or ambiguous time, Articles needing additional references from December 2020, All articles needing additional references, Pages using Sister project links with hidden wikidata, Pages using Sister project links with default search, Articles with WorldCat Entities identifiers, Articles with MusicBrainz area identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, Source 1: NOAA (relative humidity and dew point 19691990, sun 19611990), This page was last edited on 9 July 2023, at 21:17. According to Los Angeles Times and NPR in 2017 and 2013, Houston has been described as the most diverse place in the United States. The most populous city in Florida is also one of its most religious cities, and while very diverse religiously, still has a large majority which at least identifies with one religion. [210] Also in 2013, Houston again appeared on Forbes' list of "Best Places for Business and Careers". In the U.S. state of Texas, Houston is the largest city by both population and area. [84] It has music, food, and art programs. Montrose historically has been the center of the LGBT community in Houston. Anderson Foundation formed the Texas Medical Center. [307] With hospital locations nationwide and headquarters in Houston, the Triumph Healthcare hospital system was the third largest long term acute care provider nationally in 2005. Combined, those churches have an average weekly attendance of more than 640,000, or roughly the population of Nashville, according to that database. Historically, Houstonians tend to pronounce Southern English with the drawl typical of the Lower South. Located near the Museum District are The Menil Collection, Rothko Chapel, the Moody Center for the Arts and the Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum. In terms of religious preferences among the current residents of the state, 77% are affiliated with a Christian based faith, 4% are affiliated with non-Christian based faiths, and 18% report no affiliation with any religion in particular. The city's fiscal year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30. The increased production of the expanded shipbuilding industry during World War II spurred Houston's growth,[42] as did the establishment in 1961 of NASA's "Manned Spacecraft Center" (renamed the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in 1973). In addition to Interstate 610, two additional loop highways encircle the city: Beltway 8, with a radius of approximately 10 miles (16km) from Downtown, and State Highway 99 (the Grand Parkway), with a radius of 25 miles (40km). The Houston Dynamo is a Major League Soccer franchise that has been based in Houston since 2006, winning two MLS Cup titles in 2006 and 2007. [351] In 2022 Hobby Airport was certified as the first 5-Star Airport in North America by Skytrax. Pixabay . Historically in the mid-nineteenth century, Southern Anglo settlers primarily from the southeastern United States crossed the Mississippi River, migrating to Texas. The University of Houston Law Center and Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University are public, ABA-accredited law schools, while the South Texas College of Law, in Downtown, serves as a private, independent alternative. Surrounding counties have percentages similar to that of Harris County. Three loop freeways provide northsouth and eastwest connectivity between Greater Houston's radial highways. [54] According to the Migration Policy Institute, 2018 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau state that 40,000 Houston residents were of recent Nigerian origins. The 2020 U.S. census determined Houston had a population of 2,304,580. [65] John Major, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, attended the school's official opening. [188], The Houston area is a leading center for building oilfield equipment. The town suffered another setback that year when a yellow fever epidemic claimed about one life for every eight residents, yet it persisted as a commercial center, forming a symbiosis with its Gulf Coast port, Galveston. [11][66] The city owns surface water rights for 1.20billion US gallons (4.5Gl) of water a day in addition to 150million US gallons (570Ml) a day of groundwater. That's way more than any other city. Greater Houston's freeway system is monitored by Houston TranStar, a partnership of four government agencies which is responsible for providing transportation and emergency management services to the region.[324]. Texas Demographic Center They worked as manual laborers, as they did not speak English. With the advent of colonialism, its American Indian or Native American population has declined substantially. Houston's fastest-growing demographic groups - Axios Houston [322] Arterial roads handle an additional 40% of daily VMT, while toll roads, of which Greater Houston has 180 miles (290km), handle nearly 10%.[322]. [219][220], Houston is highly regarded for its diverse food and restaurant culture. Furthermore, Jankowski stated that "more than 100 foreign-owned companies relocated, expanded or started new businesses in Houston" between 2008 and 2010, and this openness to external business boosted job creation during a period when domestic demand was problematically low. "[106] According to Badr, from 1990 to 2000 many Arabs began to found their own mosques and Islamic schools separate from the ISGH. [196], The University of Houston System's annual impact on the Houston area's economy equates to that of a major corporation: $1.1 billion in new funds attracted annually to the Houston area, $3.13 billion in total economic benefit, and 24,000 local jobs generated. The City of Houston Health Department also operates four clinics. Lakewood Church has approximately 45,000 adult attendees attending services and activities every week. [11] They successfully lobbied the Republic of Texas Congress to designate Houston as the temporary capital, agreeing to provide the new government with a state capitol building. [163] In 2020, the Association of Religion Data Archives determined the Catholic Church numbered 1,299,901 for the metropolitan area; the second-largest single Christian denomination (Southern Baptists) numbered 800,688; following, non-denominational Protestant churches represented the third-largest Christian cohort at 666,548. [78] In 2018 it hosted five to six of the aforementioned clubs. Houston's population grows by nearly 10%, census data shows