The city of Houston, officially nicknamed “Space City”, was founded by land investors on August 30, 1836. Houston was incorporated on June 5, 1837. Houston is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas, fourth-most populous city in the United States, most populous city in the Southern United States, as well as the sixth-most populous in North America, with an estimated population of over 2,300,000.
Houston is named after former General Sam Houston, who was president of the Republic of Texas prior to becoming part of the United States. Its the southeast anchor of the greater megaregion known as the Texas Triangle.
Houston is the home to the Texas Medical Center—the world’s largest concentration of healthcare and research institutions—and NASA’s Johnson Space Center, home to the Mission Control Center.