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Coordinates: 29°51′43″N 95°26′46″W / 29.8619°N 95.4460°W   Acres Homes is a wooded urban/inner-city community in northwest Houston, Texas, United States north of the 610 loop. The community is also referred to as The 44, because of the "Acres Homes Limited" METRO bus route #44. Located in the northwest portion of the city, the area is loosely bound by Pinemont Drive to the south, North Shepherd Drive to the East, Gulf Bank to the north, and Antoine to the west.
[edit] History
Acres Homes was established during World War I, when Houston landowners began selling homesites in the area that were large enough to contain small gardens and raise chickens or farm animals. These large areas were often divided by the acre and not by the plot, hence the name "Acres Homes". The farm capabilities of the home sites attracted many rural settlers, who dug their own wells, and built small, sanitary houses.[citation needed] As time went on, the conditions began declining due to several decades of neglect. As the rural settlers moved out of their dilapidated homes, realtors began marketing the area, largely to African Americans, as a suburban area which was not far from the city. In reality, it was a heavily-wooded, sparsely-settled slum without adequate transportation or educational facilities. The area did not even receive sewer lines until it was annexed by the city in the 1970s.[citation needed] Before it was annexed by the city of Houston, Acres Homes was considered to be the largest unincorporated African American community in the Southern United States. The area's location close to Garden Oaks - a primarily working-class white neighborhood in the 1960s and 1970s- birthed racial tensions in north Houston during the racial equality movement of the time. The community now includes a combination of large areas of pine forests with a scattering of homes: small tract homes built in standard suburban subdivisions, and large comfortable homes on well-maintained wooded lots. There is little commercial or industrial development. It covers 5,733 acres (23.20 km2).[citation needed] On August 30, 2007, the Houston Chronicle published an article about a syphilis outbreak in Houston. Marlene McNeese-Ward, the Houston Health Department chief of HIV/STD and Viral Hepatitis Prevention, stated "We're really looking at Acres Homes especially, and Sunnyside, but there's not too many ZIP codes... where we're not seeing any (cases)."[1] [edit] Government and infrastructure 
The city operates the Acres Homes Multi-Service Center at 6719 West Montgomery Road.[2] The city multi-service centers provide several services such as child care, programs for elderly residents, and rental space.[3] Acres Homes is served by many METRO bus routes, most notably bus route #44 ("Acres Homes Limited"). [edit] Demographics
[edit] Education[edit] Primary and secondary schools 
[edit] Houston Independent School DistrictThe eastern part of the community is located in the Houston Independent School District (HISD). The HISD portion is divided by Highland Heights, Wesley, and Osborne Elementary schools. All HISD Acres Homes residents are zoned to Williams Middle School in Acres Homes.[5] All HISD area residents are served by Booker T. Washington High School in the Independence Heights community.[6] Prior to Houston ISD's 2005 reorganization,[7] the Acres homes Administrative Division, headquartered in Wesley Elementary School, helped manage the area elementary and middle schools.[5] [edit] Aldine Independent School DistrictThe western part of Acres Homes is in the Aldine Independent School District. A portion of the Aldine ISD section of Acres Homes is zoned to Carver High School, while the other portion is served by Eisenhower High School.[8] [edit] Klein Independent School DistrictA small portion of the northern part of Acres Homes is within the Klein Independent School District and is served by Klein Forest High School.[9] [edit] Public libraries The area is served by the Acres Homes Neighborhood Library of the Houston Public Library.[10] [edit] Notable ResidentsTexas House of Representatives member and Chairman of Budget and Oversight of the Regulated Industries Committee Sylvester Turner grew up in Acres Homes and attended Klein High. Also many Houston rap artists come from Acres Homes. [11][12] [edit] Gallery
[edit] See also[edit] References
[edit] External links
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