The Lost Springs of Woodland Heights

Somewhere beneath the streets and lawns of Woodland Heights may lie the remnants of springs once prized by the early settlers of the land along White Oak Bayou. In 1838 Thomas D. Beauchamp, who had moved from Kentucky to Texas, learned of these springs from Bidai Indians he had befriended and recognized the potential attraction they would have to settlers. He purchased 54 acres of the land from the Allen brothers and established a community called Beauchampville near the springs. The main street was named Spring Street and the springs were called the Beauchamp Springs. Later, Spring Street was changed to Houston Avenue. Although the community of Beauchampville eventually faded, the Beauchamp name remained in the area up to the the development of Woodland Heights in 1907, as reflected in Beauchamp Ave. and the Beauchamp Springs Schoolhouse.

Germantown was the next community after Beauchampville to settle around the springs. It extended as far west as Spring St. (Houston Ave.) and as far south as Quitman and Boundry Streets. Later it encompassed the neighborhoods as far south as Euclid and as far west as Studewood. Because of the springs, the area was attractive to developers and other communities through the years.

The Beauchamp Springs area was used by armies for a campsite because it was a ready source of fresh water. Legend has it that the Texas army camped there the day before the battle of San Jacinto. General Sam Houston and his band of soldiers supposedly rested at the springs before they continued their journey to the San Jacinto River. Later, the Confederate cavalry located a campsite near Beauchamp Springs during the Civil War.

So exactly where were these historic springs located? Woodland Heights residents can only speculate. Some say the location of the springs is lost forever; others say it was along the gully that crosses Beauchamp St. Some say that it was located on the other side of Studewood. Supposedly, a neighborhood map has pinpointed it at the southern end of Beauchamp Ave. near White Oak Dr.

Whether or not the mystery of the springs can ever be solved, Woodland Heights residents know that their neighborhood sits on historic ground. The springs were a focal point for a way of life that depended on nature for its survival. They were an integral part of the growth of the area from farmland to the neighborhood as it is today. Woodland Heights is 100 years old, but a lot of history preceded it. Somewhere, on one street or another, under some tree, a farmer or soldier rested by a spring.

(Near Northwest Banner, March 5, 2007)