Coordinates: 55°52′01″N 4°33′07″W / 55.86697°N 4.55207°W / 55.86697; -4.55207
Houston is a village in Renfrewshire, lying within the Gryffe Valley 6 miles (9.7 km) north-west of Paisley in the west-Central Lowlands of Scotland. Houston is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Houston and Killellan, which covers the neighbouring village of Crosslee and a number of smaller settlements in the villages' rural hinterland.
Based around a 16th century castle and parish church dedicated to St Peter, which gave the area its former name of Kilpeter (" Cille Pheadair " in Scottish Gaelic), the present old village of Houston dates back to the 18th century and was designated a conservation area in 1968. A larger area of more modern settlement has grown up around the village mainly in the mid to late 20th century, such as at Craigends, serving mainly as as a dormitory settlement for nearby Glasgow and Paisley and expanding the population considerably.
History
Toponymy
Houston's origins are found in the transfer of the Barony of Kilpeter from Baldwin of Biggar, the Sheriff of Lanark, to Hugo De Padvinan in the 11th century. Kilpeter took its name from the dedication of its church - no longer in existence - to St Peter.
Hugo De Padvinan, a Norman Knight Templar who followed Walter Fitzalan the High Steward of Scotland and progenitor of the Royal House of Stewart, gave his name to the village established around his home, creating the concatenation 'Houston' from 'Hugh's Town'.
Early history
Houston had long been a site of human settlement. In the 1970s, a Bronze Age burial site was found at South Mound on the western edge of the village. To the north-east lies Barochan Hill, the site of a Roman fort.
The first village in Houston was constructed around the parish Church of St Peter and Houston Castle, now respectively the parish church and Houston House - largely 19th century buildings. Houston House and the castle which is partially incorporated within its structure date back to the time of Hugo De Padvinan and remained in the possession of his family who later became the Houstons of Houston. The Castle stayed in the ownership of the family until 1740
With the 18th century change in ownership of the land, the 'old village' was cleared from around the castle by the Laird. A new village of some thirty five cottages constructed to the west in 1781 from the stone of the Castle, which was later to evolve into a country house. This new village - which forms the basis of the modern village - was a planned community based around two main streets: North Street and South Street and is an example of the 18th century Planned Village Movement. The layout, straddling the Houston Burn, provided washing facilities accessible to all local people. This 'new village' is designated by the Renfrewshire authorities as a conservation village.
A notable remnant of this move is the village's mercat cross, which incorporates parts dating back to the 14th century. Due to the move from an original position on Kirk Road, and the fact that it incorporates a large sundial, it has been placed at an unusual angle at the centre of the 'new' village. The mercat cross has become used as a symbol for the village.
Modern history
Both railway stations (on separate lines) built within the parish in the 19th century - Houston and Crosslee Station and Georgetown station (both now closed) - bypassed the village itself. As a consequence, Houston did not experience the railway boom of nearby villages like Bridge of Weir and Kilmacolm, expanding slowly until the later half of the 20th century when it became a popular commuter settlement.
The main industry of the Houston between the 17th and 19th century was weaving. The River Gryffe later provided a cotton spinning industry with the creation of the Crosslee cotton mill with other small manufacturing concerns, such as embroidery, later opening in the village.
In July 2007, Houston was featured prominently in news reports around the United Kingdom after it was discovered that inhabitants of a house in the village were linked to the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack of 30 June. The Houston Community Council observed that "it is a sobering thought that such a situation could happen on our very doorstep and that even in a quiet, rural setting such as ours there can be people intent on disrupting the natural balance of things by violent means."
Governance
Local government
The ecclesiastical parish of Houston formed a union with the nearby rural parish and hamlet of Killellan (subject to a number of different spellings) in 1771, creating an effectively united parish centred upon one church in Houston. The ruins of the former Killellan church dedicated to St Fillan lie around four miles from the centre of Houston on the High Road to Kilmacolm. The civil parish of Houston and Killellan which resulted spreads over a wide area, including a number of nearby settlements, the most significant being Crosslee, Craigends and Barochan.
With the decline of significance of the civil parish, this area has largely become part of the Houston Community Council area . The community council is chiefly a consultative body, forming a focus for local views, and has no statutory powers of its own.
Houston and its parish form part of the Renfrewshire council area. For the 2007 local authority elections in Scotland, Houston was entered into a new four-councillor ward, Ward 9, alongside Crosslee and the town of Linwood (Ward 9).
Places of interest
The Old Village
The old village centre in Houston, being located to its north-west, is a designated conservation area. The area is home to the main village pubs, one or two shops and the village's Post Office. The buildings are all traditional local cottages for a good length of South Street and North Street bordered by two large but undeveloped parks. The old village was a planned community of houses largely built around the Houston Burn, which gave communal access to washing facilities. The older parts of it date back to the later half of the 18th century.
Churches
The parish church, which is part of the Church of Scotland, is Houston and Kilellan Church, often known as 'the Kirk' at the end of North Street in the grounds of Houston House. The Kirk was constructed in the 1870s, replacing a church on the same site constructed in 1775, and dedicated to the memory of Alexander Archibald Spiers of Elderslie (former Member of Parliament for West Renfrewshire by his mother who provided its building costs.
As a united parish, the formation of Houston and Kilellan left the former Kilellan parish church (known as the Church of St Fillan - from which the name 'Kilellan' derives) redundant. The ruin, dated 1635 but believed to have originated in the 10th or 11th century, still stands some four miles west of the centre of Houston on the Barochan Cross Road after having been abandoned around the time of the unification of the parishes in 1771. The church is now held by the Kilallan Kirk Preservation Trust following its donation by Elderslie Estates in 2005 and is a scheduled historic monument. An annual evening service is held amongst the ruins in July by the congregation of the united parish. The church's manse, which is immediately adjacent to it, also finds continued use as a private residence and is thought to be the oldest existing dwellinghouse in Renfrewshire.
The Houston and Kilellan church hall on Main Street was built immediately following the Disruption of 1843 as a separate congregation forming part of the Free Church of Scotland, and later the United Free Church of Scotland being known during this time as the West Kirk. Following the reunification of the United Free Church and the established Church of Scotland in 1929, the West Kirk existed as a second Church of Scotland congregation in the village until a fire destroyed much of the building in March 1941. The lack of a building caused the two congregations to again worship in the same parish church. The West Kirk building was fully restored by 1953, taking its place as the church hall it remains to this day.
St. Fillan's Roman Catholic Church, also on Main Street, was established in 1841 on a property called "Four Windings" now remembered in the name of an adjacent street.
Economy
Agricultural Show and Carnival
During the summer, the village hosts its own agricultural show in Houston Public Park. The Kirk also organises an annual Carnival, located around
Residence Inn Houston: Houston Suites Hotel by Residence Inn ...
Residence Inn Houston is a free shuttle ride to Minute Maid Park, Convention Center & Theaters
Residence Inn Houston by The Galleria: Spacious suites and amenities ...
Residence Inn Houston by The Galleria: Spacious suites with comfort that feels like home in Houston.
Residence Inn Houston West University - HotelGuide Profile of ...
Residence Inn Houston West University: This is HotelGuide.Network's Profile of Residence Inn Houston West University. You Can Read and Write Reviews About the Property or Contact ...
Residence Inn Houston Northwest/Willowbrook cheap Houston Hotel ...
Residence Inn Houston Northwest/Willowbrook in Houston Texas TX. Reserve Residence Inn Houston Northwest/Willowbrook at cheapest Group Rates
Residence Inn Houston-West University Houston Texas
Residence Inn Houston-West University hotel reservations in Houston, Texas
Residence Inn Houston Medical Center Reliant Park - HotelGuide Profile ...
Residence Inn Houston Medical Center Reliant Park: This is HotelGuide.Network's Profile of Residence Inn Houston Medical Center Reliant Park. You Can Read and Write Reviews About ...
Residence Inn Houston Downtown/Convention Center cheap Houston Hotel ...
Residence Inn Houston Downtown/Convention Center in Houston Texas TX. Reserve Residence Inn Houston Downtown/Convention Center at cheapest Group Rates
Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Sugar Land, Stafford Hotels ...
$110. Check Rates. Hotel Class: 12703 Southwest Frwy Stafford, TX 77477. The Residence Inn Houston Sugarland is situated approximately 25 miles from William P. Hobby Airport and 35 ...
Hotels.com: Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Clear Lake, Houston, TX
Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Clear Lake, Houston, TX : Find great deals, read guest reviews and see photos for Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Clear Lake: guest rating 4.4 ...
Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Medical Center-Reliant Park, Houston ...
$109. Check Rates. Hotel Class: 7710 Main Houston, TX 77030. The Residence Inn Houston - Medical Center/Reliant Park is located within13.5 miles from the Houston/William P Hobby ...