The Shary Heights historic district in Mission, Texas, (Hidalgo County) was recently listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Noted for its architectural and cultural significance to Post-World War II South Texas, the district joins other properties across the state with National Register status.
Developed primarily between 1945 and 1975, Shary Heights exemplifies the post-war suburban expansion that transformed the entire nation, including the Lower Rio Grande Valley.
Platted by John H. Shary (“the father of the Texas citrus industry”) shortly before his death in 1945, the neighborhood was designed as an elite residential enclave for Mission's upper-middle-income professionals and business owners.
Many of these residents were connected to the region's thriving citrus industry, and the subdivision's landscape was carefully planned with irrigation for lush gardens, palm-lined boulevard medians on Bougainvillea Drive, and conservation of native plants encouraged by organizations like the Mission Garden Club.
Encompassing approximately 21.65 acres north of Mission's historic downtown, the district is a cohesive collection of one-story California ranch houses showcasing distinctive regional characteristics: brick veneer constructed from mesquite-fired adobe brick by the local Valley Brick and Tile Company; homes rotated on their lots to capture the prevailing Gulf breeze, integrated two-car garages with servant quarters, and extensive landscaping featuring St. Augustine grass, native mesquite and Texas ebony trees, and ornamental bougainvillea and palm trees.
Notable architect Warren C. Suter designed several of the district's most distinctive homes, including an elaborate 1956 residence on Bougainvillea Drive with its indoor swimming pool and a stone-clad 1951 home on Miller Avenue overlooking the Shary Municipal Golf Course.
The subdivision itself retains its original 1945 brick entryway gate inscribed "Shary Heights" and exemplifies the architectural, landscape, and demographic characteristics widely shared among upper-income residential subdivisions throughout post-World War II Valley towns.
The National Register of Historic Places is the nation's official list of cultural resources deemed worthy of preservation. Authorized under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register is part of a federal program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect the country's historic and archeological resources. The National Register includes more than 3,300 listings in Texas. Listing affords properties access to technical expertise and grant funds to facilitate their restoration and preservation. Income-producing properties are also eligible for federal tax benefits for sympathetic rehabilitation work.
To learn more about the National Register of Historic Places, contact the THC's History Programs Division at 512-463-5853 or visit thc.texas.gov.