A major business hub of the Southwest, Houston remains a frontier city some 150 years after its founding. Arriving by the airways instead of the cattle trails, new settlers come by the thousands seeking jobs. Some are just passing through, and others will stay a lifetime. Either way, Betty Trapp Chapman wants them to know Houston’s history.

Chapman is a teacher, writer, and historical preservationist who has lived in Houston for 40 years. She serves on the boards of the Greater Houston Preservation Alliance and the Heritage Society.

Since 1993 she has written a week- ly column, “Houston Heritages,” for the Houston Business Journal, many of which were reprinted in the popular 1996 book 2-Minute Histories of Houston.

When an expert writer was needed to pen Historic Houston, Chapman was naturally chosen. Graced by her colorful, precise writing, the pictorial coffee-table book features hundreds of new and archival photographs and a wealth of cultural information.

Chapman is now working on a history of women’s part in the development of her beloved city, “Houston Women: The Invisible Threads in the Tapestry.”

Millsaps Magazine  |  Millsaps | Last Edited August 31, 1999