Hockley, Texas

Description

The community serves as the main hub for railway traffic serving Houston, Austin, and many parts of Central Texas. The Southern Pacific (now known as Union Pacific) rail line is one of the community's major employers. The community is surrounded by grain farms and cattle ranches. The ZIP Code for Hockley is 77447.

History

George Washington Hockley established Hockley in 1835. In 1906, a salt dome was discovered near Hockley and mined, especially for salt.

Economy

In September 2008, Hewlett-Packard (HP) acquired 97 acre of land near Hockley in a proposed 389 acre industrial park planned by John Beeson of Beeson Properties and Monzer Hourani of Medistar Corp. It paid an undisclosed sum to Beeson and Hourani, the land's previous owners. HP's proposed $250 million facility would be near the intersection of Betka Road and U.S. Highway 290, in close proximity to the Harris County-Waller County line, 18 mi from HP's main greater Houston offices, and northwest of the city of Houston.

Infrastructure and government

Hockley is located in Harris County Precinct 4; as of 2023, Lesley Briones serves as the commissioner of the precinct.

The United States Postal Service operates the Hockley Post Office at 17210 Warren Ranch Road.

Parks and recreation

The county operates the Hockley Community Center at 28515 Old Washington Road. In 1982, the county bought 24 acre of land for a maintenance center and a community center. Bob Eckels, then the commissioner of Precinct 3, got a grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Hermes Reed Hindman – Architects, Inc. developed the building and AIA Engineers and Contractors, Inc. served as the contractor. Construction ended in 1986.

The county operates Hockley Park at 28515 Old Washington Road at the community center site.

Education

Hockley is within the Waller Independent School District.

Schools serving Hockley include:

• Waller High School (unincorporated Harris County)
• Waller Junior High School (Waller) and Wayne C. Schultz Junior High (Unincorporated Harris County) are the two junior high schools of the district. They take sections of the surrounding area.
• Elementary schools with Hockley addresses (unincorporated areas) include Roberts Road Elementary School, and Evelyn Turlington Elementary School, and which each take portions of the area.

Portions of Harris County in Waller ISD are assigned to Blinn College. Blinn operates the Waller-Harris County Campus.

Rosehill Christian School now located in the Rose Hill area, was first founded in Hockley in 1989.

Notable people

• Hockley was the home to eight-time world-champion calf roper Fred Whitfield for several years. He is the first African American to win the world championship and was also named the PRCA All-Around Champion in 1999. It is also the location of racing legend A. J. Foyt's ranch. Foyt is the first 4-time winner of the Indy 500 and a Daytona 500 champion. A. J. Foyt IV also calls Hockley home. A. J. Foyt the IV is a 6-time starter in the Indianapolis 500 and an NFL Scout for the Indianapolis Colts.

References

References

1. {{Handbook of Texas
2. Viggiano, Brooke. (2021-04-21). "5 Must Do Things Around Hockley".
3. (2022). "Hockley ZIP Code". zipdatamaps.com.
4. Canada, W. R.. (1962). "Typical Oil and Gas Fields of Southeast Texas". Houston Geological Society.
5. Dawson, Jennifer. "[http://www.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2008/10/27/story4.html HP heads to Hockley with land deal]." ''[[Houston Business Journal]]''. Sunday October 26, 2008. Retrieved on February 14, 2011.
6. "[http://www.pct3.com/community-centers/hockley-community-center/ Community Centers : Hockley]." ''Harris County''. Accessed October 14, 2008.
7. "[https://archive.today/20120718210848/http://usps.whitepages.com/service/post_office/16736?p=1&s=TX&service_name=post_office&z=Hockley Post Office Location - HOCKLEY]." ''[[United States Postal Service]]''. Retrieved on December 4, 2008.
8. "[http://www.pct3.com/ Hockley : History]." ''Harris County''. Accessed October 14, 2008.
9. "[http://www.pct3.com/parks/hockley-park/ Hockley Recreational Complex]." ''Harris County Precinct Three''. Accessed October 27, 2008.
10. "Junior High Schools Attendance Zone Map". [[Waller Independent School District]].
11. "Home". Roberts Road Elementary School.
12. "Home". Evelyn Turlington Elementary School.
13. "2024-2025 Elementary School Attendance Zones Map (Detail View)". [[Waller Independent School District]].
14. [https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ED/htm/ED.130.htm Texas Education Code Sec. 130.168. BLINN JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICT SERVICE AREA.]
15. "Waller-Harris County". [[Blinn College]].
16. Santana, Tamra. (2017-01-10). "Tomball-area prep schools continue building for growth". [[The Potpourri]] (Tomball edition) at the [[Houston Chronicle]].
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