Every year La Porte, along with Texans everywhere, celebrate the most well known story – the story of Texas Independence. On April 21, 1836, Texas won its independence from Mexico at the Battle of San Jacinto. The stage for that epic battle was the land now known as the City of La Porte. The fighting took place just five miles from downtown Main Street. Today, the San Jacinto Monument towers over the hallowed grounds casting long shadows of remembrance over the thriving industrial businesses of the Houston Ship Channel. Visitors making the historical pilgrimage can immerse themselves in Texas history inside the Monument Museum, and ride an elevator the staggering four-hundred eighty feet to the top of the Monument.

The Historic La Porte Colored School, known as only the “schoolhouse” then, was established in 1909, when Blacks had no school building to call their own. This building deteriorated after the community no longer had a use for it and was reconstructed in 2018 using salvaged materials from the original building. The Historic La Porte Colored School and Museum is open to the public from 11 am - 4 pm on Saturdays and Sundays.

401 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive

La Porte was a major tourist destination in the early 20th century, known in many circles as the “Coney Island of the South” and a regular stop on the Moonlight Express train from Houston. The depot is now the Old Sylvan Beach Depot Museum, managed by The Heritage Society. Open to the public at no charge from 11 am -4 pm on weekends, the Museum is staffed by Society members who are a fantastic resource for all things historical.

604 Park St