The Cypress-Fairbanks of today is known more for its great school districts and growth of master-planned communities in the fastest-growing American city (ranked by Forbes). But take a journey back in time and see what else has happened in this great community.
In 1996, a group from Moore Archeological Consulting, Inc. discovered signs of early human civilization near Cypress Creek. They found San Patrice projectile points that dated back 9,500 years ago, to 7500 BC, during the Neolithic period of human history. That was also the time that cats were believed to be domesticated. That period of time was about 4,000 years before writing was even invented, and before history itself had even begun.
On March 22, 1836, a Texas Army led by General Sam Houston camped in Cy-Fair on their way to Harrisburg (today’s East Houston). They were just days away from the decisive Battle of San Jacinto in the fight for Texas’s independence in the Texas Revolution.
German immigrants began settling along Cypress Creek in the 1940s, and the land’s previous residents of Atakapan Indian tribes were overtaken. In the 1980s, many original settlers’ family names like Huffmeister, Matzke, were remembered in the streets and schools that bore their names. The first Cypress school was built in 1884, and from that one-room school the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District grew. It served the second largest area of the state’s school districts.
A hot artesian well, a well that pumps water naturally, was discovered a mile from Cypress. It created the idea for the Houston Hotwell Sanitarium and Hotel. Believing the well had healing powers, people visited the well through the hotel. The area is now the location for Hot Wells Shooting Range.
Cy-Fair is now a beautiful home for many Houstonians, and its history only adds more to the experience of living here. For more stories, check out the Texas State Historical Association and stop by the Cypress Historical Society.
