The Houston Building Atlas
The Houston Building Atlas is an interactive map Preservation Houston created to let you explore Houston’s built environment by seeing the age of structures on every property in the city. Using the Atlas’ intuitive interface, you can trace development patterns over time and compare the age of the building stock in different areas, offering valuable insights into the city’s evolution and historic resources.
Key features of the Atlas include:
Age of structures: Each property in Houston is color-coded based on the age of its structures, making it easy to visualize the evolution of the city's built environment.
Date sliders: Users can adjust date sliders to filter properties by their construction year, allowing for a detailed examination of how different areas have developed over specific time periods.
Decade-by-decade dropdown: A decade-by-decade dropdown menu lets users focus on particular eras, providing a clear view of architectural trends and growth spurts throughout Houston's history.
Historic districts and landmarks: Map layers include City of Houston historic district boundaries and City of Houston landmarks and protected landmarks, helping users understand which parts of the city enjoy preservation protections.
Interactive exploration: The map is fully interactive, encouraging users to click on individual properties and City of Houston landmarks for more detailed information.
The Houston Building Atlas is an invaluable resource for historians, urban planners, architects and residents alike, offering a visually engaging way to explore and appreciate the rich tapestry of Houston's built environment.
Where does this information come from?
The Atlas uses public data from Harris Central Appraisal District and the City of Houston.
Things to remember as you use the Atlas
Properties are color-coded based on the age of the structures located there. Darker colors indicate older structures. (When more than one structure is located on a property, the color of the property is based on the age of the oldest structure.)
Structure completion dates are based on Harris Central Appraisal District data and may not be accurate, but they should at least give a ballpark idea of building ages. In general, the older the property, the less precise the HCAD date may be.
Vacant parcels are shown in gray, along with certain non-taxed structures including some schools, hospitals and public buildings. That’s because of the nature of the data used in the Atlas — our color coding is based on tax records, so most non-taxed structures have no underlying data with Harris Central Appraisal District.
The list of City of Houston landmarks is largely complete, but recently designated landmarks may not yet be shown.
We want to hear from you!
The Houston Building Atlas is a work in progress! We’re refining the interface and thinking about what features to add as we go forward, and we’d love to hear about your experience using the map. Please take a moment to share your thoughts with us.