Houston City Hall, Art Deco government building in Downtown Houston, United States
Houston City Hall is an eleven-story Art Deco building of Texas Cordova limestone, completed in 1939 to Joseph Finger's design. A central tower with a clock face and flagpole rises above lower wings, and the base holds a recessed entrance behind a shallow reflecting pool. Herring Coe and Raoul Josset carved the sculpture above the lobby entrance, showing two men taming a wild horse.
Houston's municipal government met at Old Market Square from 1841 until this building opened. In 1927 the city began issuing bonds to fund a new hall, and after the Great Depression stalled planning, a Works Progress Administration grant was approved on 8 August 1937. Joseph Finger's design was chosen in October 1937 over Mayor R. H. Fonville's objections; Bates Construction built it from 7 March 1938 to July 1939, and the cornerstone was laid on 1 October 1938.
The main entrance displays medallions of historical lawmakers like Thomas Jefferson and Julius Caesar, reflecting principles of governance and justice. These images show how the building's design expresses values about law and authority.
Houston City Council meets in its chamber on Tuesdays at 1:30pm and Wednesdays at 9:00am, and all meetings are open to the public. The front of the building steps down to Hermann Square, reached by paved terraces and stairs around the reflecting pool. The Mayor and City Controller have offices here, while Council Members work across the street at the City Hall Annex.
The lobby ceiling carries a plaster relief of the western hemisphere ringed by the twelve zodiac signs, with the five-pointed star of Houston's city flag at its centre. The elevator cars are panelled in walnut, and the interior doorknobs still bear an outdated city seal.
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