This morning, April 8, 2009, Houston City Council designated Audubon Place as Houston’s 14th Historic District, reported Courtney R. Spillane, Planner with the Historic Preservation Office of the City of Houston.

The original Montrose Addition, which includes the area known as Audubon Place, was the city’s first large-scale, restricted planned suburban subdivision. It was platted in September, 1911 by the Houston Land Corporation, owned by one of Houston’s most prominent businessman, John Wiley Link. Link named the area “Montrose” after the historic town in Scotland which was mentioned in the writings of Sir Walter Scott. To design his new subdivision, John Link hired the engineering and construction firm of Stone & Webster. They are one of the oldest and largest U. S. engineering firms today, having been established in 1889.

The most important features of the Montrose Addition are the grand boulevards designed with esplanades, including Lovett, Montrose, Yoakum and Audubon Place Boulevards. The intent was for larger mansions of the most prominent citizens of Houston to be built along the beautiful esplanades in Montrose, including Link’s own home on Montrose Boulevard. Edward Teas, Sr., who later founded Teas Nursery, helped plan and landscape Montrose Place, as the area became known. With the City Beautiful movement sweeping the country, the area was commonly referred to as “Beautiful Montrose” which also became the title of the company’s sales brochure. While Montrose was originally platted as one neighborhood, over time sections of the large area, especially those centered around each of the four boulevard esplanades, have established an individual civic identity, including Audubon Place.

The neighborhood developed rapidly over the next ten years as Houston experienced increased growth. Some of Houston’s most prominent citizens built homes in and around the Audubon Place Boulevard in the architectural styles that were in vogue in Houston and across the country during its period of development. The styles of architecture found in Audubon Place include: Bungalow, Prairie, Mission Revival, Colonial Revival, Queen Anne, Cape Cod, and Art Deco as well as the Craftsman style, which is the most prevalent style. Several homes in Audubon Place are featured in the “Houston Architectural Guide,” while another one has been individually listed in the National Register of Historic Places as well as being designated as City of Houston Protected Landmark.