Houston’s “Running Mecca” Memorial Park Gets A Facelift Full of History

Do you really know Houston’s most famous place to run, Memorial Park and why it’s called Memorial Park?  

Houston runners know it as the 2.87-mile loop (now 3.0 miles with the addition of the Eastern Glades). For many of us runners in this city, it would be hard to count how many miles and gallons of sweat we have logged along it’s more kind, crushed granite trails.

A closer look going back to Houston’s history shows a land mass twice the size of New York City’s Central Park with more daily usage and runners than New York’s famous park.  Going back in time Memorial Park has been home to Native Americans, an orchard, grazing land, a logging operation and a military base for 34,000 soldiers who served in WW1 and made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Camp Logan used a huge portion of what we now run and play golf on as a training ground for soldiers before they headed off to war in Europe, many bravely dying while fighting for our country. And there lies the rest of the story and the “Memorial” that Memorial Park is named after. 

New breathtaking plans will breath new life into the park and remind Houstonians of it’s rich history.  For a rundown of future park developments and what the newly designed park will look like, check out this Houston Chronicle article or view the 18-minute video above. The future looks bright with even more miles to run and bike on.

Jan 2021 Update: If you have run at the park lately you have seen things really moving with this project. The Eastern Glades & Hines Lake project is now completed with work starting on the next “living bridge” project.  The landscape is changing almost daily with much of the next phase targeted for completion by 2022.