Meyerland is a community in southwest Houston, Texas , outside of the 610 Loop and inside Beltway 8 . The neighborhood is named after the Meyer family, who bought and owned 6,000 acres (24 km) of land in southwest Houston.
106-490: Meyerland is the center of Houston's Jewish community ; the Meyerland area is the home of Houston's Jewish Community Center, Congregation Beth Israel , Congregation Beth Yeshurun , and several smaller synagogues. The area is also home to Meyerland Plaza , a large outdoor shopping center. Meyerland is partially located within the 100-year floodplain , and houses were prone to flooding during heavy rain events. Meyerland
212-678: A Chabad-Lubavitch , was established by Yossi Zaklikofsky in January 2011. It was the first Chabad-Lubavitch center in the city of Bellaire. Congregation Or Ami is located in Westchase , in west Houston, in proximity to Greater Katy . As of 2018 the rabbi is Gideon Estes. There are two Jewish places of worship in The Woodlands , Congregation Beth Shalom, established circa 1984. As of 2004 it had about 130 families, and it belongs to Reform Judaism . Its affiliated organizations are
318-593: A Rice University sociology professor, stated that as Meyerland became wealthier, the class structure increasingly was "rigidified." At the same time, it was reported in 2006 in Texas Monthly that drugs were "plentiful" in Meyerland. On Memorial Day , 2015, water from the Brays Bayou flooded Meyerland. Meyerland resident Chris Bell called for an outside investigation on why anti-flooding infrastructure improvements were not completed on time; he argued that
424-522: A 2.5-acre (1.0 ha) plot of land in Westbury. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) operates public transportation. Around 1988 METRO proposed having Beechnut Street widened. Residents of Meyerland, Maplewood , and Robindell appeared before the METRO board and protested the plans, stating that they would result in increased traffic. METRO dropped the plans. The neighborhood
530-534: A community park. The Godwin Community Center, on the same lot, has an outdoor pavilion, a playground, and a lighted sports field. The sports facilities include a baseball diamond, a soccer field, and a covered basketball court. Godwin Park, adjacent to Kolter Elementary, is about one city block large. Many mothers and children gather at the park on weekends. Mimi Swartz of the Texas Monthly said "[t]he grass
636-527: A day early on April 25, 1866, gathered together at Friendship Cemetery to decorate the graves of the Confederate soldiers. They also felt moved to honor the Union soldiers buried there, and to note the grief of their families, by decorating their graves as well. The story of their gesture of humanity and reconciliation is held by some writers as the inspiration of the original Memorial Day. According to
742-658: A division of the Department of Veterans Affairs , and scholars attribute the beginning of a Memorial Day practice in the South to a group of women of Columbus, Georgia . The women were the Ladies Memorial Association of Columbus. They were represented by Mary Ann Williams (Mrs. Charles J. Williams) who as association secretary wrote an open letter to the press on March 11, 1866 asking for assistance in establishing an annual holiday to decorate
848-484: A footnote to a story about her brother, Mrs. Sophie (Keller) Hall described how she and Emma Hunter decorated the grave of Emma's father, Reuben Hunter, and then the graves of all soldiers in the cemetery. The original story did not account for Reuben Hunter's death occurring two months later on September 19, 1864. It also did not mention Mrs. Elizabeth Myers as one of the original participants. A bronze statue of all three women gazing upon Reuben Hunter's grave now stands near
954-633: A former house that had been converted to a synagogue. By 1860 the number of Jewish adults grew to 68, and that year there were 40 Jewish children. In the 19th Century the Jewish population moved into the First and Second wards and later settled in the Third Ward . Congregation Beth Israel was first established in a frame building on LaBranch Street near the Third Ward settlement. In the 19th Century
1060-705: A growth of Jewish populations in the 2010s. As of 1987 there were over 20 synagogues in Greater Houston . As of 2016 there were over 40 synagogues in Greater Houston. As of 1987, Congregation Beth Yeshurun , a Conservative Judaism temple, and the Reform Judaism congregations Beth Israel and Emanu-El are the largest synagogues in Houston. The Orthodox Judaism community includes several congregations: Chabad Lubavitch Center of Houston,
1166-401: A key role in using Memorial Day rituals to preserve Confederate culture. Various dates ranging from April 25 to mid-June were adopted in different Southern states. Across the South, associations were founded, many by women, to establish and care for permanent cemeteries for the Confederate dead, organize commemorative ceremonies, and sponsor appropriate monuments as a permanent way of remembering
SECTION 10
#17327980907621272-488: A living memorial to Capt. Gary L. Herod for his heroism. The tree and a stone marker are located near Meyerland Plaza shopping center on Beechnut Street. On February 16, 1967, the Meyerland State Bank (now a BBVA Compass ) was robbed. The bank initially believed it lost $ 62,211, which would have made it the most severe bank robbery in Houston at the time. The bank staff later realized that $ 13,000 of that
1378-1001: A main location on South Braeswood Boulevard and a Memorial -area west Houston branch. Within the Fondren area it operates the Bertha Alyce Early Childhood Center. The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston has its offices adjacent to the main JCC building. The Seven Acres Jewish Geriatric Center serves elderly populations. The Houston Holocaust Museum opened in 1993. Other institutions and organizations include Jewish Family Service, Hebrew Free Loan Association, Chabad Lubavitch Center, Hillel Foundation of Greater Houston, Seven Acres Jewish Geriatric Center, and multiple Jewish day schools. Roselyn Bell wrote that synagogues and other major Jewish institutions in Houston "are built Texas-style; big, spread out, commodious, and pleasant to look at". Rice University established
1484-549: A parade of 10,000 people to honor 257 dead Union soldiers. The soldiers had been buried in a mass grave at the Washington Race Course, having died at the Confederate prison camp located there. After the city fell, the freed Black population unearthed and properly buried the soldiers, placing flowers at their graves. The event was reported contemporaneously in the Charleston Daily Courier and
1590-619: A sacred charge upon a Nation's gratitude—the soldiers' and sailors' widow and orphan. — John A. Logan , May 5, 1868 On May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan issued a proclamation calling for "Decoration Day" to be observed annually and nationwide; he was commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), an organization of and for Union Civil War veterans founded in Decatur, Illinois . With his proclamation, Logan adopted
1696-460: A sacred event. With the Civil War, a new theme of death, sacrifice, and rebirth enters the civil religion. Memorial Day gave ritual expression to these themes, integrating the local community into a sense of nationalism. The American civil religion, in contrast to that of France, was never anticlerical or militantly secular; in contrast to Britain, it was not tied to a specific denomination, such as
1802-524: A scattered Jewish populace and not a large enough population of Jews to dominate any single neighborhood" and that the city's "hub of Jewish life" is the Meyerland community. Bell wrote that Southwest Houston is the "Jewish core of town, if not exactly an ethnic stronghold" and that synagogues had opened in Clear Lake City , Kingwood , and The Woodlands . Clear Lake City has also experienced
1908-646: A school setting during a pandemic, as opposed to via the internet, often preferred schools that continued offering such. Effective 2023, Dr. Shannon Walker Neighborhood Library of the Houston Public Library (HPL), located in Westbury , is the library location for Meyerland. Its namesake is Shannon Walker . The HPL formerly operated the George B. Meyer, Sr. Neighborhood Library, which was near Meyerland at 5005 West Bellfort; it opened in 1962. In 1994
2014-631: Is a Modern Orthodox primary and secondary school. The school, previously named Hebrew Academy, is an independent Jewish school. Roselyn Bell, author of the "Houston" entry in The Jewish Traveler: Hadassah Magazine's Guide to the World's Jewish Communities and Sights , wrote that the Hebrew Academy had " Orthodox leanings". Because of the large number of Jewish students, Bellaire High School historically had
2120-721: Is in Texas's 7th congressional district . Harris Health System (formerly Harris County Hospital District) designated Valbona Health Center (formerly People's Health Center) in Greater Sharpstown for ZIP code 77096. The nearest public hospital is Ben Taub General Hospital in the Texas Medical Center . The Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center, Congregation Beth Israel , Congregation Beth Yeshurun , and several small synagogues are in
2226-458: Is located in Section 2. The portion of the neighborhood south of the Brays Bayou is zoned to Kolter Elementary School. The portion of the neighborhood on the west (section 10, which has a western edge boundary of Hillcroft Avenue) is zoned to Herod Elementary School. Herod is located on the edge of Section 10. Lovett was named a National Blue Ribbon School in 2016. Almost all of the neighborhood
SECTION 20
#17327980907622332-543: Is one of the federal holidays in the United States for honoring and mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces . It is observed on the last Monday of May. Memorial Day is also considered the unofficial beginning of summer in the United States. It is a day for visiting cemeteries and memorials to mourn the military personnel who died in
2438-586: Is shorn and green, the playground equipment freshly painted and sturdy. The park is shaded by benevolent oaks that are about the same age as the homes that surround it[...]" In the early years of Meyerland's existence, eight garden clubs formed. Little league baseball was first organized in Meyerland in 1957, with games occurring at Meyerland Park. By 1958 the Meyerland Teen Club and the Meyerland Civic Club opened. On May 24, 1958,
2544-584: Is the William S. Malev School at Beth Yeshurun . The Reform Judaism elementary school is the Irvin M. Shlenker School at Beth Israel. Chabad Lubavitch sponsors the Torah Day School of Houston . Emery/Weiner School is a Jewish secondary school in Houston. Around 1987 Bell wrote that the school, at the time I. Weiner Jewish Secondary School, had a "centrist" viewpoint. The Robert M. Beren Academy
2650-497: Is the area regional newspaper. On Thursdays, residents receive the Bellaire / West U / River Oaks /Meyerland [2] local section. The Bellaire Examiner is a local newspaper distributed in the community. The Village News and Southwest News is also published in the community. The Meyerland Journal is an alternative weekly political paper that covers the Meyerland and Bellaire regions. The Bellaire Texan , which served
2756-558: Is within the Houston Police Department 's Southwest Patrol Division [1] . The homeowners association maintains a contract with Harris County Precinct 5 Constable for improved local security. Two city-operated parks are in Meyerland. Meyerland Park, located at 5151 Jason, is classified as a neighborhood park; it is in Meyerland Section 2. Herbert Godwin Park, located at 5101 Rutherglen, is classified as
2862-482: Is zoned to Fondren Middle School. Meyerland residents are zoned to Bellaire High School , which is also in the city of Bellaire. Meyerland is immediately south of Bellaire. Yushang Chang, the author of Newcomer's Handbook Neighborhood Guide: Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and Austin , wrote that since Meyerland is zoned to Bellaire one could buy a house and guarantee that one's child could go the school without paying City of Bellaire housing prices and property taxes. From
2968-505: Is zoned to Meyerland Performing and Visual Arts Middle School (changed from Johnston Middle school in 2016), also located in Meyerland. A small portion is zoned to Pershing Middle School . All students who are zoned to Pershing, Johnston, or Long have the option to apply for the regular program at Pin Oak Middle School in the city of Bellaire . Therefore, Pin Oak Middle School serves most of Meyerland. One section of Meyerland
3074-476: The New-York Tribune . Historian David Blight has called this commemoration the first Memorial Day. However, no direct link has been established between this event and General John Logan 's 1868 proclamation for a national holiday. . . . [W]e can keep alive the memory of debt we owe them by dedicating at least one day in the year, by embellishing their humble graves with flowers, therefore we beg
3180-534: The Association of Reformed Congregations and the Union of American Hebrew Congregations . Chabad of The Woodlands was established in 2011 by Rabbi Mendel and Leah Blecher. It is a branch of the worldwide Chabad Lubavitch movement, offering traditional-style services to contemporary Jewish families. Chabad of The Woodlands inaugurated and sponsors the annual Chanukah on Market Street celebration, and established
3286-496: The Church of England . The Americans borrowed from different religious traditions so that the average American saw no conflict between the two, and deep levels of personal motivation were aligned with attaining national goals. Since 1867, Brooklyn, New York, has held an annual Memorial Day parade which it claims to be the nation's oldest. Grafton, West Virginia , and Ironton, Ohio have also had an ongoing parade since 1868. However,
Meyerland, Houston - Misplaced Pages Continue
3392-611: The Grand Army of the Republic to honor the Union soldiers who had died in the American Civil War . This national observance followed many local observances which were inaugurated between the end of the Civil War and Logan's declaration. Many cities and people have claimed to be the first to observe it. However, the National Cemetery Administration , a division of the Department of Veterans Affairs , credits Mary Ann Williams with originating
3498-696: The Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains , sent many Jews to Houston. In 1903 a Zionist organization in Houston opened. In 1908 The Jewish Herald-Voice began publication. In 1915 a Jewish Workmen's Circle opened. In the 1920s Jews began to settle in the Washington Terrace and later the Riverside Terrace areas in the current Third Ward area. Many Jewish institutions such as synagogues remained there until
3604-563: The Sephardic Beth Rambam Congregation, Young Israel of Houston, Meyerland Minyan, and the Sephardic synagogue Torah Vachesed. The United Orthodox Synagogues congregation formed in 1961 as a consolidation of three synagogues. It occupied the same building near Meyerland since its groundbreaking that year. The building flooded during Memorial Day in 2015 and Tax Day in 2016. After Hurricane Harvey damaged
3710-528: The Uniform Monday Holiday Act , which moved four holidays, including Memorial Day, from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create a convenient three-day weekend. The change moved Memorial Day from its traditional May 30 date to the last Monday in May. The law took effect at the federal level in 1971. In 1913, an Indiana veteran complained that younger people born since
3816-535: The United States Library of Congress , "Southern women decorated the graves of soldiers even before the Civil War’s end. Records show that by 1865, Mississippi, Virginia, and South Carolina all had precedents for Memorial Day." The earliest Southern Memorial Day celebrations were simple, somber occasions for veterans and their families to honor the dead and tend to local cemeteries. In following years,
3922-551: The half-staff position, where it remains only until noon. It is then raised to full-staff for the remainder of the day. The National Memorial Day Concert takes place on the west lawn of the United States Capitol . Scholars, following the lead of sociologist Robert Bellah , often make the argument that the United States has a secular " civil religion "—one with no association with any religious denomination or viewpoint—that has incorporated Memorial Day as
4028-508: The "baptism of blood" on the battlefield. In the national capital in 1913 the four-day "Blue-Gray Reunion" featured parades, re-enactments, and speeches from a host of dignitaries, including President Woodrow Wilson , the first Southerner elected to the White House since the War. James Heflin of Alabama gave the main address. Heflin was a noted orator; his choice as Memorial Day speaker
4134-443: The "idea of strewing the graves of Civil War soldiers—Union and Confederate" with flowers. Official recognition as a holiday spread among the states, beginning with New York in 1873. By 1890, every Union state had adopted it. The world wars turned it into a day of remembrance for all members of the U.S. military who fought and died in service. In 1971, Congress standardized the holiday as "Memorial Day" and changed its observance to
4240-518: The 1800s. As of 2008, Jews lived in many Houston neighborhoods and Meyerland is the center of the Jewish community in the area. Until 1880 Houston had a smaller Jewish population than Galveston Island, then the cultural center of the state. In 1844, the first Jewish cemetery in Houston was established. In 1850, the Jewish community in Houston had 17 adults and in 1854, the Orthodox Beth Israel Congregation opened in
4346-603: The 1930s many Jewish refugees from Germany moved to Houston. In 1943 Temple Beth Israel announced that people who espoused Zionist ideals were not allowed to be members, so Emanu-El was formed by people who disagreed with the decision. After World War II , more Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe moved to Houston. By the 1950s many Jewish families moved to Southwest Houston and Jewish institutions relocated there. The first subdivisions to receive Jews were neighborhoods along North Braeswood and South Braeswood. Subsequently, Meyerland began receiving Jews. From 1955 to around 1987
Meyerland, Houston - Misplaced Pages Continue
4452-594: The Bellaire High attendance zone would not be altered. The current Herod Elementary building opened in mid-January 2011. The current Lovett building opened in August 2011. The rebuilds of Herod, Lovett, and Horn Elementary of Bellaire together had a cost of $ 49 million and were a part of a $ 1 billion bond program approved by HISD voters in 2007. Due to the effect of Hurricane Harvey on the Kolter campus in 2017, it
4558-694: The Confederate dead. The most important of these was the United Daughters of the Confederacy , which grew throughout the South. Changes in the ceremony's hymns and speeches reflect an evolution of the ritual into a symbol of cultural renewal and conservatism in the South. By 1913, David Blight argues, the theme of American nationalism shared equal time with the Confederate. By the 20th century, various Union memorial traditions, celebrated on different days, merged, and Memorial Day eventually extended to honor all Americans who fought and died while in
4664-608: The Franklin and Navigation area in the Fifth Ward and the area around Washington and Houston street in the Sixth Ward received Jewish settlers from Eastern Europe . As of around 1987 the areas in the historic Fifth and Sixth Wards no longer have significant Jewish populations. Roselyn Bell, author of the "Houston" entry in The Jewish Traveler: Hadassah Magazine's Guide to the World's Jewish Communities and Sights , wrote that
4770-624: The Harris County Flood Control District had assisted with the ReBuild Houston infrastructure program, approved in 2010 in the wake of the 2001 Tropical Storm Allison flooding, and therefore should not be trusted to make a neutral report on the flooding. In 2017 the Israeli government stated it would spend $ 1 million to help pay for repairs for damages from Hurricane Harvey sustained by institutions of
4876-636: The Houston Jewish History Archive circa 2017 to preserve Jewish history. Several items were archived and rescued after Hurricane Harvey hit Houston in 2017. As of 2018 Joshua Furman, the Stanford and Joan Alexander Postdoctoral Fellow in Jewish Studies of Rice U., and Rice centennial historian Melissa Kean were collecting items for the center. Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day )
4982-899: The Houston Jewish community was "much more shtetl -like than it is today". Beginning in 1880 many Eastern European Jews moved to Houston; they moved into wards two and three. They integrated with German Jews , differing from Eastern European Jews in the East Coast . Around that time the Russian-Polish Adath Yeshurun synagogue and the majority Galician Dorshe Tov synagogue, both Orthodox Jewish synagogues, had been founded. Adath Yeshurun merged into Congregation Adath Yeshurun in 1891. The Galveston Plan , an early 20th Century plan that called for sending Eastern European Jewish immigrants from heavily populated East Coast areas to less densely populated areas between
5088-510: The Houston city limits. After Joseph’s death in 1933, the land was divided among his three sons, George, Frank and Joseph Jr. It was not until 20 years after the father’s death that George Meyer decided to develop his share of the land. On September 24, 1954, the Meyerland Community Improvement Association, a Texas non-profit corporation, was formed. George Meyer developed 1,200 acres (5 km) of
5194-522: The Jewish community center, various Jewish private schools, and the Jewish senior home. In 2024 the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston criticized some of the proposed changes to Texas public elementary school curriculum, arguing that these changes biased towards Christianity and against Judaism. As of 1987, there were about 42,000 Jews in Greater Houston and about 2.5% of the City of Houston
5300-714: The Jewish community in Houston. Out of every thirteen Jewish families in Meyerland, one had its house flooded during Harvey. In 2006 Mimi Swartz of the Texas Monthly said that the houses around Godwin Park are "cozy ranch houses from the fifties and sixties in Tudor, colonial, and contemporary variations, comfortable but never showy, with gardens lovingly tended." In the City of Houston-defined Meyerland Super Neighborhood, there were 21,445 residents in 2015. 58% of them were non-Hispanic white, 16% were Hispanics, 13% were non-Hispanic Asians, 11% were non-Hispanic Blacks, and 2% were non-Hispanic others. In 2000 there were 19,841 residents of
5406-523: The Jewish population in Houston increased by 300%. By the 1970s Jews moved to Fondren Southwest in Southwest Houston and the Memorial and Spring Branch areas. By 1987 there were around 42,000 Jews in Greater Houston and Jews were located in many areas of Greater Houston. In 2017 Hurricane Harvey damaged the Meyerland area, along with the three synaoguges with the largest congregations,
SECTION 50
#17327980907625512-466: The Jews in the circa 1987 count were new to Houston. Roselyn Bell, author of the "Houston" entry in The Jewish Traveler: Hadassah Magazine's Guide to the World's Jewish Communities and Sights , wrote that this would make it, among other Jewish populations in the U.S., "medium-sized" and comparable to that of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . Philadelphia had a Jewish population more than five times larger than that of Houston, which had surpassed Philadelphia as
5618-444: The Ladies' Memorial Association and other groups increasingly focused rituals on preserving Confederate culture and the Lost Cause of the Confederacy narrative. The 1863 cemetery dedication at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania , included a ceremony of commemoration at the graves of dead soldiers. Some have therefore claimed that President Abraham Lincoln was the founder of Memorial Day. However, Chicago journalist Lloyd Lewis tried to make
5724-418: The Memorial Day parade in Rochester, Wisconsin , predates both the Doylestown and the Grafton parades by one year (1867). In 1915, following the Second Battle of Ypres , Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae , a physician with the Canadian Expeditionary Force , wrote the poem " In Flanders Fields ". Its opening lines refer to the fields of poppies that grew among the soldiers' graves in Flanders . Inspired by
5830-435: The Memorial Day practice that had begun in the Southern states two years earlier. The northern states quickly adopted the holiday. In 1868, memorial events were held in 183 cemeteries in 27 states, and 336 in 1869. One author claims that the date was chosen because it was not the anniversary of any particular battle. Logan's wife noted that the date was chosen because it was the optimal date for flowers to be in bloom in
5936-464: The Meyerland Club officially opened; families gathered at the club, which hosted a swim team. The club closed in 1996 and was sold to the Jewish Community Center, which redeveloped the facility into the Merfish Teen Center. The Weekley YMCA in Houston includes Meyerland in its service area. It opened in 1951 as the Southwest YMCA, in West University Place . The current facility in Braeswood Place , Houston broke ground in 2001. The Houston Chronicle
6042-568: The Meyerland area community in the mid-20th Century, was headquartered in Bellaire and published by the Texan Publishing Corporation. By 1975 it became known as the Bellaire & Southwestern Texan and was published by the Preston Publishing Company. It was then headquartered in Houston. See also: List of companies in Houston See: List of colleges and universities in Houston [REDACTED] Category [REDACTED] Texas portal Jewish people in Houston The Jewish community of Houston , Texas has grown and thrived since
6148-424: The Meyerland area. The Robert M. Beren Academy , Episcopal High School ( Bellaire ), Westbury Christian School (grades K-12) and Emery/Weiner School are near Meyerland. During the COVID-19 pandemic in Texas , as of 2022, more students attended Beth Yeshurun Day School and The Shlenker School than previously. An organization called Prizmah stated in a 2021 report that families with a preference for education in
6254-487: The North. In 1873, New York made Decoration Day an official state holiday and by 1890, every northern state had followed suit. There was no standard program for the ceremonies, but they were typically sponsored by the Women's Relief Corps , the women's auxiliary of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) , which had 100,000 members. By 1870, the remains of nearly 300,000 Union dead had been reinterred in 73 national cemeteries, located near major battlefields and thus mainly in
6360-484: The South. In some cities, mostly in Virginia, other dates in May and June were observed. General John Logan commented on the observances in a speech to veterans on July 4, 1866, in Salem, Illinois . After General Logan's General Order No. 11 to the Grand Army of the Republic to observe May 30, 1868, the earlier version of the holiday began to be referred to as Confederate Memorial Day . Following Mary William's call for assistance, four women of Columbus, Mississippi
6466-445: The South. The most famous are Gettysburg National Cemetery in Pennsylvania and Arlington National Cemetery , near Washington, D.C. On May 26, 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson designated an "official" birthplace of the holiday by signing the presidential proclamation naming Waterloo, New York , as the holder of the title. This action followed House Concurrent Resolution 587, in which the 89th Congress had officially recognized that
SECTION 60
#17327980907626572-409: The U.S. military service. Indiana from the 1860s to the 1920s saw numerous debates on how to expand the celebration. It was a favorite lobbying activity of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). An 1884 GAR handbook explained that Memorial Day was "the day of all days in the G.A.R. Calendar" in terms of mobilizing public support for pensions. It advised family members to "exercise great care" in keeping
6678-401: The Upland South argues for the age of the tradition, which was carried westward (and eastward to Africa) by nineteenth-century migration and has survived in essentially the same form till the present." While these customs may have inspired in part rituals to honor military dead like Memorial Day, numerous differences exist between Decoration Day customs and Memorial Day, including that the date
6784-430: The Youth Kibbutz Internship, which sends ten minority children to Israel during Summer periods. This was established to deepen relations between African-American and Jewish communities and to decrease anti-Israeli sentiment. The Jewish Herald-Voice is a Jewish community newspaper headquartered in Houston. The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston is headquartered in Houston . The Jewish Community Center (JCC) has
6890-429: The area schools as "sought-after". The neighborhood is served by several Houston Independent School District (HISD) schools. Coldwell Banker United real estate agent Teresa Lewis stated in a 2010 Houston Chronicle article that "Meyerland has long been recognized for its exemplary and recognized magnet schools ." The portion of the neighborhood north of the Brays Bayou is zoned to Lovett Elementary School; Lovett
6996-428: The area. Mimi Swartz of the Texas Monthly said "the neighborhood was a place where Jews could take care of their own and, they believed, could protect their children from negative influences while teaching them to follow religious tradition and embrace the values of family, education, achievement, and community." Every year the Jewish Book and Arts Fair is held in Meyerland. In 2022 the Houston Chronicle described
7102-584: The assistance of the press and the ladies throughout the South to help us in the effort to set apart a certain day to be observed, from the Potomac to the Rio Grande and be handed down through time as a religious custom of the country, to wreathe the graves of our martyred dead with flowers. . . Let the soldiers’ graves, for that day at least, be the Southern Mecca , to whose shrine her sorrowing women, like pilgrims, may annually bring their grateful hearts and floral offerings. . . — Mary Ann Williams , March 11, 1866 The National Cemetery Administration ,
7208-428: The big race to continue, so Governor Warren McCray vetoed the bill and the race went on. Memorial Day endures as a holiday which most businesses observe because it marks the unofficial beginning of summer. ( Labor Day is the unofficial end of summer.) The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) advocated returning to the original date. The VFW stated in 2002: Changing
7314-406: The buildings in 2017, in December of that year the congregation's board decided to have the sanctuary and school building demolished; it would use the Freedman Hall building as the center of worship for the time being. As of 2018 the congregation has 300 people. Congregation Emanu El Temple, using a Mid-Century Modern architectural style, was built in 1949. By 2011 the Shul of Bellaire ,
7420-426: The case that it was Lincoln's funeral that spurred the soldiers' grave decorating that followed. On July 4, 1864, ladies decorated soldiers' graves according to local historians in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania . Boalsburg promotes itself as the birthplace of Memorial Day. However, no published reference to this event has been found earlier than the printing of the History of the 148th Pennsylvania Volunteers in 1904. In
7526-520: The claims relate to documented events, occurring before or after the Civil War. Others may stem from general traditions of decorating soldiers' graves with flowers, rather than specific events leading to the national proclamation. Soldiers' graves were decorated in the U.S. before and during the American Civil War . Other claims may be less respectable, appearing to some researchers as taking credit without evidence, while erasing better-evidenced events or connections. On June 3, 1861, Warrenton, Virginia
7632-640: The community was in proximity to the 610 Loop and other major thoroughfares, providing easy avenues for escape. Morant said that he committed half of the robberies, while his accomplices, many of whom were young men originating from the Hiram Clarke area, committed the other half. Area residents used their funds to hire private patrols, causing crime rates to decrease. After families moved in, children who were caught speeding or with illegal substances told police that they were from Meyerland in an effort to get police to treat them more leniently. Stephen Klineberg,
7738-488: The date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed a lot to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day. In 2000, Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act, asking people to stop and remember at 3:00 pm. On Memorial Day, the flag of the United States is raised briskly to the top of the staff and then solemnly lowered to
7844-455: The district. The document, labeled as a "draft", illustrated Meyerland being moved into the attendance zone of Westbury High School . This caused panic in Meyerland as the community feared that moving to Westbury, which was less prestigious than Bellaire High, would cause a decrease in property values. On May 21, 1992, the HISD board adopted attendance boundary committee recommendations stating that
7950-644: The end of the 1950s. Temple Beth Israel moved to the Riverside Terrace area in 1925 and Temple Beth Yeshurun opened in the same area in 1945. Jewish families moved to Riverside Terrace in the 1930s since they were not allowed to settle in River Oaks . Allison Wollam of the Houston Business Journal stated that, at one point, Riverside Terrace "was once on the same affluent level as the swanky River Oaks area". During that period
8056-663: The entrance to the Boalsburg Cemetery. Although July 4, 1864, was a Monday, the town now claims that the original decoration was on one of the Sundays in October 1864. ... Let us then gather around their sacred remains and garland the passionless mounds above them with the choicest flowers of Springtime; let us raise above them the dear old flag they saved from dishonor; let us in this solemn presence renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left among us as
8162-409: The fields into the Meyerland subdivision in 1955. Vice President Richard Nixon was at the subdivision's ribbon-cutting ceremony. Meyerland was one of the first deed-restricted communities in the City of Houston. Many white residents were moving away from the Third Ward area, so many houses in Meyerland were sold prior to construction. On Memorial Day , May 30, 1961, the "Hero Tree" was dedicated as
8268-740: The first Jewish preschool in the area. Chabad Pearland Jewish Center is the first Jewish center of worship in Pearland , established by Yossi and Esty Zaklikofsky in 2009. In addition to Pearland, it also serves Alvin and Friendswood . Temple Beth Tikvah, the Jewish Center of Clear Lake, is in the Clear Lake area. There are also synagogues in Humble and Victoria . List of Synagogues: Houston has several Jewish elementary schools. The Conservative Judaism elementary school in Houston
8374-508: The fourth largest city in the U.S. Bell wrote that the smaller relative population results in a combination of "the close-knit feeling of a middle-sized town with big-city sophistication and large-scale institutions". As of 1987 Jews lived in many communities in Houston. In 2008 Irving N. Rothman, author of The Barber in Modern Jewish Culture: A Genre of People, Places, and Things, with Illustrations , wrote that Houston "has
8480-610: The graves of Confederate and Union soldiers according to her account. The first reference to this event however did not appear until many years later. Mention of the observance is inscribed on the southeast panel of the Confederate Monument in Jackson, erected in 1891. Vaughan's account is contradicted by contemporary sources. On May 1, 1865, in Charleston, South Carolina , the recently freed Black population held
8586-699: The graves of soldiers throughout the South. The letter was reprinted in several southern states and the plans were noted in newspapers in the North . The date of April 26 was chosen, which corresponded with the end date of the war with the surrender agreement between Generals Johnston and Sherman in 1865. The holiday was observed in Atlanta, Augusta, Macon, Columbus and elsewhere in Georgia as well as Montgomery, Alabama; Memphis, Tennessee; Louisville, Kentucky; New Orleans, Louisiana; Jackson, Mississippi, and across
8692-481: The label "Confederate" to their commemorations and claimed that Northerners had appropriated the holiday. The first official celebration of Confederate Memorial Day as a public holiday occurred in 1874, following a proclamation by the Georgia legislature. By 1916, ten states celebrated it, on June 3, the birthday of CSA President Jefferson Davis . Other states chose late April dates, or May 10, commemorating Davis' capture. The Ladies' Memorial Association played
8798-528: The last Monday in May. Two other days celebrate those who have served or are serving in the U.S. military: Armed Forces Day , which is earlier in May, an unofficial U.S. holiday for honoring those currently serving in the armed forces, and Veterans Day on November 11, which honors all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces. A variety of cities and people have claimed origination of Memorial Day. In some such cases,
8904-588: The leadership of women during the war, an increasingly formal practice of decorating graves had taken shape. In 1865, the federal government also began creating the United States National Cemetery System for the Union war dead. By the 1880s, ceremonies were becoming more consistent across geography as the GAR provided handbooks that presented specific procedures, poems, and Bible verses for local post commanders to utilize in planning
9010-458: The library received renovations to accommodate disabled people. By 2013 HPL planned to purchase land for a new Meyerland branch with $ 442,000. HPL spokesperson Sandra Fernandez stated that HPL wants to build a new facility in order to increase the size and parking capacity. There is a proposal to move the library to Westbury Square in Westbury , supported by the Westbury community but opposed by Meyerland residents. In 2015 various proposals on where
9116-557: The line of duty. Volunteers will place American flags on the graves of those military personnel in national cemeteries . Others such as family and friends will also come to lay flowers and grieve on the graves of those who died in the US military. The first national observance of Memorial Day occurred on May 30, 1868. Then known as Decoration Day and observed on May 30, the holiday was proclaimed by Commander in Chief John A. Logan of
9222-455: The local event. Historian Stuart McConnell reports: on the day itself, the post assembled and marched to the local cemetery to decorate the graves of the fallen, an enterprise meticulously organized months in advance to assure that none were missed. Finally came a simple and subdued graveyard service involving prayers, short patriotic speeches, and music ... and at the end perhaps a rifle salute. In 1868, some Southern public figures began adding
9328-402: The mid to late 1980s families who began moving into Meyerland and Bellaire began to tear down older homes and build new ones. A string of over twelve robberies affected Meyerland from April 23, 1989 until June 19, 1989. On June 20, 1989 a suspect, Timothy Dion Morant, had been arrested, and confessed to the crime spree. The group of robbers targeted Meyerland since the houses had valuables, and
9434-545: The military dead. Appalachian and Liberian cemetery decoration traditions pre-date the United States Memorial Day holiday. According to scholars Alan and Karen Jabbour, "the geographic spread ... from the Smokies to northeastern Texas and Liberia, offer strong evidence that the southern Decoration Day originated well back in the nineteenth century. The presence of the same cultural tradition throughout
9540-413: The neighborhood hosted the houses of the prominent Weingarten, Finger, and McGregor families. Around the 1874 Beth Israel became a Reform Judaism synagogue. Congregation Beth El was founded in 1924. It was the first Conservative Judaism synagogue founded in Houston. In 1925 it occupied the former Beth Israel building. Adath Yeshurun later merged with Beth El and became Congregation Beth Yeshurun . In
9646-448: The neighborhood is seeing strong new home construction. Luxury homes over $ 1m in value are being built several feet above the minimum base flood elevation. The subdivision was formerly rice fields. Joseph F. Meyer Sr. originally acquired the land in sections beginning around 1885. The land was unused for many years, although part of it was leased to farmers and cattlemen. Joseph Meyer was confident that one day his holdings would be within
9752-476: The nickname "Hebrew High". Around 1987 Roselyn Bell wrote that most Houston Jews work in professional industries, and that there was "a strong concentration in business, including direct retail and businesses supporting retail". Around 1987 Bell wrote that economic anti-Semitism and hiring discrimination against Jews existed in Greater Houston due to the fact that many businesses in the oil industry city do business with Arab countries . Mickey Leland founded
9858-518: The opening of the subdivision in 1955 until 1958, Meyerland residents attended Horn Elementary School in Bellaire. Bellaire High School opened in 1955. Lovett opened in September 1958. Johnston Junior High School opened in 1959. Kolter opened in 1960. Herod Elementary School opened in 1961. In December 1991, before Christmas, an HISD document was given to an attendance boundary committee convened by
9964-490: The patriotic tradition of observing Memorial Day had begun one hundred years prior in Waterloo, New York. The legitimacy of this claim has been called into question by several scholars. In April 1865, following Lincoln's assassination , commemorations were extensive. The more than 600,000 soldiers of both sides who fought and died in the Civil War meant that burial and memorialization took on new cultural significance. Under
10070-609: The poem, YWCA worker Moina Michael attended a YWCA Overseas War Secretaries' conference three years later wearing a silk poppy pinned to her coat and distributed over two dozen more to others present. The National American Legion adopted in 1920 the poppy as its official symbol of remembrance. Decoration Days in Southern Appalachia and Liberia are a tradition which arose by the 19th century. Decoration practices are localized and unique to individual families, cemeteries, and communities, but common elements that unify
10176-475: The replacement library should go were being debated. Prior to Hurricane Harvey in 2017, the Houston community considered the Meyer Branch to be the Houston library in the poorest state of maintenance. Hurricane Harvey gave the library moderate damage, and the city government closed it afterwards, with demolition scheduled. The new library, which will also replace HPL Express Frank, will be at 5505 Belrose on
10282-502: The super neighborhood. 77% were non-Hispanic White, 9% were Hispanic, 8% were non-Hispanic Asians, 4% were non-Hispanic Blacks, and 2% were non-Hispanic others. Meyerland is in Houston City Council District C. In the first 1991 Mayor of Houston election most Meyerland voters voted for Bob Lanier . During the 1997 Mayor of Houston election, about 29% of Meyerland voters voted for Lee P. Brown . Meyerland
10388-408: The various Decoration Day practices are thought to represent syncretism of predominantly Christian cultures in 19th century Southern Appalachia with pre-Christian influences from Scotland, Ireland, and African cultures. Appalachian and Liberian cemetery decoration traditions are thought to have more in common with one another than with United States Memorial Day traditions which are focused on honoring
10494-554: The veterans sober. Memorial Day speeches became an occasion for veterans, politicians, and ministers to commemorate the Civil War and, at first, to rehash the "atrocities" of the enemy. They mixed religion and celebratory nationalism, allowing Americans to make sense of their history in terms of sacrifice for a better nation. People of all religious beliefs joined, made that German and Irish soldiers – ethnic minorities that Anti-Irish sentiment#19th century faced Anti-German sentiment#United States – had become true Americans in
10600-585: The war had a "tendency ... to forget the purpose of Memorial Day and make it a day for games, races, and revelry, instead of a day of memory and tears". In 1911 the scheduling of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway car race, later named the Indianapolis 500 , was vehemently opposed by the increasingly elderly GAR. The state legislature in 1923 rejected holding the race on the holiday. But the new American Legion and local officials wanted
10706-410: Was Jewish. In 2001 the figure was 47,000 Jews in the Houston area. The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston made another population count in 2016, indicating that 51,000 Jews live in Greater Houston. Houston Jews had origins from throughout the United States, Israel , Mexico , Russia , and other places. Because the population of Jews in Houston rapidly increased between 1955 and circa 1987, many of
10812-420: Was criticized, as he was opposed for his support of segregation; however, his speech was moderate in tone and stressed national unity and goodwill, gaining him praise from newspapers. The name "Memorial Day", which was first attested in 1882, gradually became more common than "Decoration Day" after World War II but was not declared the official name by federal law until 1967. On June 28, 1968, Congress passed
10918-466: Was in the wrong location and was not in fact stolen, which meant it was Houston's second-most severe bank robbery. According to Chris Lane of the Houston Press , while many Houston neighborhoods that were considered desirable in 2014 had experienced a period of decline before being gentrified, Meyerland itself had never declined even though Meyerland Plaza had experienced turmoil in the 1980s. In
11024-482: Was inundated during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, and stories and images of the flooded community were prominent in media coverage of the natural disaster in Houston. Large scale flood mitigation projects are underway which will greatly benefit Meyerland. Chief amongst such projects is Project Brays , a $ 400m mega scale flood mitigation project which will remove several Meyerland homes from 100 year flood plain. Circa 2018 several new homes are being built in Meyerland and
11130-705: Was rebuilt and opened for students in 2020. Highlands Latin School , a private K-12 Christian School, is in Meyerland Section 3. The campus previously housed Pilgrim Lutheran School, a private K-8 Christian School, which later closed its K-8 section and now only has early childhood. Nearby Catholic schools, under the Roman Catholic Diocese of Galveston-Houston , include St. Vincent de Paul Catholic School (K-8), and Corpus Christi Catholic School. Several other private schools, including St. Thomas' Episcopal School and Beth Yeshurun Day School , are located in
11236-660: Was the location of the first Civil War soldier's grave to be decorated, according to an article in the Richmond Times-Dispatch in 1906. This decoration was for the funeral of the first soldier killed during the Civil War, John Quincy Marr , who died on June 1, 1861, during a skirmish at the Battle of Fairfax Courthouse in Virginia. On April 26, 1865, in Jackson, Mississippi , Sue Landon Vaughan decorated
#761238