House, Thomas William

(March 4, 1814 - January 17, 1880) A native of Stoke St. Gregory in Somersetshire, England, T. W. House emigrated to the United States in May 1835. A baker by trade, he soon was employed by the St. Charles Hotel in New Orleans. By 1838 he had moved to Houston and established the company of House and Loveridge, Bakers and Confectioners. Destined to become one of Houston's most influential citizens, House soon expanded his business interests to include general merchandise, cotton brokerage, and banking. He helped organize the Houston and Galveston Navigation Company; promoted the city's first street railway; organized the Houston Gas Light Company; and was a director and stockholder in several railroad companies, including the Houston and Texas Central. House was elected a city alderman in 1857 and 1861, and in 1862 became mayor of Houston. Eventually, his business empire grew to include properties in at least 63 Texas counties, the most notable being his sugar plantation near Arcola in Fort Bend County. Married to Mary Elizabeth Shearn (1822-1870), House was the father of eight children, including Edward Mandell House (1858-1938), principal advisor to President Woodrow Wilson during World War I. Thomas William House is buried in Houston's Glenwood Cemetery.

House, Thomas William is a historical marker in Houston, Harris County, dedicated in 1991. It is one of 422 historical markers documented in Harris County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 849 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 29.7612, -95.3681 near Houston. The nearest cataloged historic site is Mandell, Edward (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Democratic National Convention, 1928, Houston Public Library, and Houston City, Republic of Texas.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5201010689. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.