Thursday Thirteen #13

I am in the mood to reminisce a little, thinking about my birthplace and my hometown, where I have spent most of my life. I still live within a 45 minute drive of Humble, Texas, and my mom still lives there as do many of my friends. I miss living there, so here is a bit of historical trivia about my hometown.
1. Humble is located 18 miles northeast of Houston, Texas.
2. George Bush Intercontinental Airport is 5 minutes away.

3. Humble is named for Englishman Pleasant S. Humble, a San Jacinto River ferry operator whose family settled there before the (US) Civil War.
4. The “H” is silent (pronounced “umble” not “humble”).
5. Located on the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, later the Houston, East, and West Texas Railway.

6. The station was once known as “the rabbit” because railroad passengers shot rabbits when the train stopped on its way from Houston to Shreveport.
7. The First United Methodist Church of Humble was established in 1886. (Click on the link for an inside look at the historic chapel.) This is where both my sister and I were baptized, confirmed, and married.
8. The first school in Humble was established in 1890 and had 50 students, and I taught for the school district from 1993-2004.
9. Humble became a pioneer oil “boom town” in 1904 when oil was discovered in an area known as Moonshine Hill (figure that one out).
10. In 1905, Humble had the largest producing oilfield in Texas.

11. Ross Sterling (later, a governor of Texas) founded the Humble Oil and Refining Company in 1911.
12. Humble Oil became known as Exxon over two decades ago.
13. In 1912, during a drill, what was supposed to be oil turned out to be a free-flowing artesian well which later provided water to the bath houses and private homes. It is still flowing today and is located across the street and half a block from the Church.


Historical Information about Humble, TX can be found here and here and here.
I hope you enjoyed my brief history lesson!