Mangum Manor sits on historic land, site of colonial mansion

Mangum Manor is a near northwest Houston neighborhood, consisting of 415 homes with a park in the middle of the subdivision. It is conveniently situated near the major thoroughfares of U.S. 290, West 34th St. and West 43rd St. The official county boundaries show the neighborhood is bounded on the west by Antoine and on the east by Mangum and adjacent to the neighborhoods of Oak Forest and Forest Pines. The houses built in the late 1950's are mostly constructed of brick, with landscaped lawns and tree lined streets.

Mangum Manor was built by developer Gasper DeGeorge who purchased a 109 acre tract from the heirs of the Sauer family in 1954. The land was originally owned by Dutch settlers, who got the land under the Spanish Land Grant when Texas was a republic. When Mr. DeGeorge purchased the land, it was primarily ranch land, with 150 year old oak trees and prairie grass. On it stood an old manor house built by Reinhold C. Sauer in the early 1800's. Mr. Sauer had built the house himself from the natural resources on the land. A Houston Press article from Dec. 14, 1954 describes the house as it appeared at that time: "The old mansion is colonial in the truest sense of the word, with tall columns supporting the overhang on the wide veranda. Its steep roof is made of hand-split cedar shingles said to have been cut from wood selected in the surrounding woods. The house sits in a clump of ancient cedars, live oaks and pines facing a clearing for farming and grazing still marked with the smoldering remains of the primitively charred stumps from clearing." The house was torn down by the developer in 1955 when he put in paved streets and curbs over wagon-wheel lanes. Brickhouse Gully, which got its name from a type of house used for changing stagecoach horses, ran through the north side of the land and is still there today. The sale of the land in 1954 to the developer marked the first time the land changed hands since the Sauer family obtained it during the Texas Republic days. Mr. DeGeorge continued to develop the land, building homes in the $12,000 to $15,000 price range of that era, adding lights, sewers, and utilities to the subdivision. He also set aside a 6 acre tract for a city park located in the center of the new neighborhood.

Today, the neighborhood is the beneficiary of the development and amenities that have grown up around it. It is near an elementary and high school as well as a public library. Its location also offers its residents proximity to areas such as the Galleria, Northwest Mall, and Memorial Park and quick access to downtown freeways. Many residents are original homeowners who have maintained their homes for as long as forty years. The Mangum Manor Civic Club has also been active in keeping residents informed and involved in protecting the integrity of the neighborhood. The old mansion from the settler days is gone, but the neighborhood's well kept yards and homes show that the residents of Mangum Manner have the same appreciation of the area as those who lived there almost 200 years ago.

(Near Northwest Banner, August 1, 2006)