Avondale, a residential neighborhood in what is now the Montrose area, was part of the first wave of Houston’s southwestern suburban expansion in the early years of the 20th century. Fashionable residential development at the time was centered on Main Street, but new neighborhoods including Westmoreland, Courtlandt Place and Avondale were drawing upscale residents away from the old South End by 1910, beginning a trend toward the suburbs that would continue for decades.

Our 90-minute, docent-guided walking tour will explore the history of the neighborhood and the design of its homes, most of which date from the 1910s and ’20s. Some of the housing styles in Avondale no longer exist in other historic Houston neighborhoods, and some of the homes in the area are the city’s only surviving works by their architects and builders. We’ll discuss the design trends that influenced Avondale and will talk about the lives of some of its residents, who included leaders in finance, lumber, cotton and oil. As we walk the neighborhood, we will also learn about how Avondale changed over the years and the work that has been done to restore many of its outstanding historic homes.

Please note that this is an exterior architecture tour. The tour will not visit the interiors of any buildings. Public restrooms are not available on the tour route.

TICKETS

Tickets will go on sale at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, May 19, 2019, in front of 110 Avondale (on the southeast corner of Avondale and Helena). Admission is $10 for the general public ($7 for Preservation Houston members and students with valid ID). Those who walk, ride a bike or use public transit to get to the tour will receive a $2 discount. Children 11 years old and under are admitted free. Tickets may be charged to Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover. The last tour group will leave just after 2 p.m. Advance reservations are not required for this tour.