Heights Neighborhood Library, Public library in Heights District, Houston, United States
Heights Neighborhood Library at 1302 Heights Boulevard is a branch of the Houston Public Library system serving local residents with books, digital resources, and learning materials. The building features workspaces, computer terminals, and rooms designed for various activities open to all.
The facility began in 1909 as Baptist Temple Library and moved to Heights High School in 1918 before receiving its current status in 1926. These relocations show how the library adapted to serve the neighborhood's changing needs over time.
The library's name comes from the Houston Heights neighborhood it has served since 1925. From 1931 to 1964 head librarian Jimmie May Hicks, an Irish American from Georgia, assembled a collection of documents and photographs about the Houston Heights that visitors can consult today. The building also appears in the 1974 blaxploitation film Sugar Hill, where it stands in for the "Voodoo Museum of Natural History."
The library stands at 1302 Heights Boulevard, in Heights block 170, and is a protected City of Houston landmark. A renovation begun in early 2002 brought the building to Americans with Disabilities Act standards, so step-free access is available. The 1977–1980 north addition, which added about 3,000 square feet, does not follow the original Italian Renaissance style, so expect a plainer finish on that side.
The 1974 blaxploitation film Sugar Hill used the library as the setting for its "Voodoo Museum of Natural History", a detail visitors rarely connect with the building on Heights Boulevard.
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