Bayou Bend
a.k.a. The Bayou Bend Collection of the Museum of Fine Arts,Houston
1 Westcott St., Houston, TXBayou Bend was built in 1928 as a residence for Texas philanthropist Miss Ima Hogg, her brother William C. Hogg, and their personal collection of 17th, 18th, and 19th century American interior furnishings. The estate, donated to The Museum of Fine Arts of Houston, expresses Neo-Classical combinations of English Regency and Louisiana Greek Revival styles. The outstanding collection of early American decorative arts, including furniture, glass, porcelain, silver, and paintings, is often considered the finest in the Southwest. Elaborate gardens utilize various period landscaping schemes to create a lush, fanciful setting. Approximately 15 acres of cultivated and native piney woods wilderness along the Buffalo Bayou are included in the estate, hence the name Bayou Bend. One of the earliest residences in the River Oaks development, Bayou Bend set a trend of grand architectural design for that exclusive section of Houston.
Local significance of the building:Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.