Cyrus, Ben C. and Jenetter, House

The Ben C. and Jenetter Cyrus House (c. 1915) is typical of the housing for many of the middle-class residents of Independence Heights. Ben Cyrus operated a jitney service in downtown Houston from about 1915 to the early 1920s. Jitneys provided a basic form of mass transportation in a number of major cities during this period and competed with electric streetcars. Black jitneys served a special role for the African American population as an alternative to other segregated forms of transportation. The City of Houston banned by ordinance all black owned jitneys in 1922-24 at the insistence of the Houston Electric Company, operators of the streetcar line and developing motor bus transportation. The property is eligible under Criterion A in the area of Ethnic Heritage (black).

The Ben C. and Jenetter Cyrus House was constructed about 1915 near the center of the platted Independence Heights. Although modest in detailing, the house is typical of forms constructed in the city in the mid 1910s. The Cyrus House served as a domestic space for the family but also a headquarters for his jitney service in Houston.

Jitneys are defined in a City of Houston ordinance of 1915 as "regular transportation... that travel up and down the streets soliciting patronage and for a certain fee demanded by those in charge... persons are carried to and from destinations and over routes designated and fixed by owners, managers and drivers of such vehicles.” Most jitneys were modified automobiles that provided quick and convenient service at the same price as the streetcars. By 1915, many cities experienced a large number of independent and corporate jitney operations with wide variation in service and passenger accommodations. The increasing competition with established streetcar companies led to political efforts to license or ban jitney service in many cities.

Jitneys proved especially popular for African American patrons as they allowed unrestricted service and an alternative to segregated public transportation. A number of jitneys operated in and around the City of Houston with nine company lines supporting approximately 200 drivers in 1923-24. This number is a decrease from the estimated 300 jitneys on the streets in 1918. Black-owned jitney services typically catered to an all black clientele and provided an necessary service. As is common with black owned businesses, jitneys required small capital investments and could function profitably as a small business. At the same time, jitneys were highly visible within the African American as well as white communities. Thus, on some occasions, black leaders encouraged jitney owners to improve their appearance and operations.

Black jitneys grew popular with the community and competed effectively with the dominate streetcar lines of the period. This popularity, however, led the Houston Electric Company to agitate for regulations on jitneys. By the early 1920s, the City of Houston voted to restrict jitney service, primarily black-owned lines. Gradually, city officers passed more and more restrictive measures before eliminating the lines about 1922-23. In January 1923, the City of Houston abolished all black-owned jitneys and continued efforts to eliminate all other jitney lines. At the same time, the agreement allowed more motor buses to be added to handle the African American local transportation needs. These, however, were slow to come and came only with strong segregated restrictions.

Ben Cyrus participated as a jitney operator during the height of the jitney-streetcar conflict. His business, as did other jitney drivers, suffered from the increasing urbanization of Houston, improved vehicular transportation, and complex race relations that characterize the period.