Gulf Coast Deco

Inspired, as well as educated, by the fantastic Houston Deco website and armed with a Garmin, I have been able to locate the following examples of vintage, Art Deco architecture in Houston (and I hope to get more):


Humble Oil Filling Station No. 157, built in 1930
This is one of two Art Deco, Humble filling stations left in the city of Houston to date from the 1930s. The architect, John F. Staub, designed the prototype for all new Humble Oil stations in 1929. I'm always amazed this kind of thing is still around.

Originally a place called Albritton's Eats, this is from 1945, and the streamlined detailing is still intact:

Even with a GPS, this next place was tricky to find. I'd given up on it after the GPS sent me in a bizarre circular pattern, which I repeated, just for good measure. But I caught it peripherally as I drove past it and nearly slammed on my brakes.
Rettig's Heap-o-Cream, built in 1947
Rettig's was a local ice cream manufacturer. The company operated Heap-o-Cream confectioneries throughout Houston, including one in a Moderne building on Yale Street. Aside from having had its front windows and doors boarded, the Wayside Drive location remains largely unaltered.

I came across this Texaco by accident, and took both of these from my car:


Built in 1935, this endangered structure was the Sterling Laundry and Cleaning Co. Most people would easily recognize this as being "Art Deco." What a thrill it's still there!

Gulf Coast Deco II

Gulf Coast Deco III

Gulf Coast Deco IV

Gulf Coast Deco V

Gulf Coast Deco VI

Gulf Coast Deco VII

Gulf Coast Deco VIII

Gulf Coast Deco IX

Gulf Coast Deco X