Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center

The Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center is a 312-acre preserve that includes two sites highlighting the region's history: the Akokisa Indian Village and the 1830s Redbud Hill Homestead. Akokisa Indian Village is a re-created group of dwellings that shows how the Akokisa tribe inhabited this land in the wintertime before moving to their annual summer grounds at Galveston. The Redbud Hill Homestead is a 19th-century pioneer home that reflects the daily lifestyle of a settler farming family. Jones Park & Nature Center is adjacent to Spring Creek, with eight miles of accessible trails through floodplain forests, wildflower meadows, pristine sandy beaches, and wetlands such as cypress bogs. Free programs are available to learn more about the history of indigenous and settler communities who resided here. This park was named for Jesse H. Jones, a 20th-century U.S. Democratic politician who helped the country navigate the Great Depression and whose work also helped to shape Houston into a major city.

Located along the winding Spring Creek to the northeast of Houston, the Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center was founded in 1982 as part of the Cypress Creek Project, a watershed restoration and preservation initiative. The park was named after Jesse H. Jones, the 20th-century U.S. Democratic politician who had a hand in shaping the future of Houston from a Gulf Coast backwater into a bustling commercial port and major transportation hub for the region. Jones also worked closely with the American Red Cross during World War I, served as U.S. Secretary of Commerce, headed the Reconstruction Finance Committee while navigating the Great Depression, and helped mobilize the country for World War II. He stated: "What we need most now, as always, is a fairness of attitude towards one another, a willingness to work together for the good of all." The park named after Jesse H. Jones is open free of charge to the public.

The park contains a range of Texas flora and fauna, with walking and cycling trails through various habitats. A raised wooden boardwalk extends into acres of swampland featuring ancient cypress trees, as well as through forests, meadows, and floodplains. Most trails are accessible for bicycles, wheelchairs, and strollers, although a few are rustic dirt paths. Throughout the year, educational programs, summer camps, and workshops are available on topics that range from "Texas Tortoises" to "Gardening for Wildlife." Although pets are permitted to enter the park, they are only allowed on the Spring Creek Greenway, the Jones Bender Trail, and the Judy Bell Trail. Dogs are expected to remain on leash so as to not cause excessive disturbance to the wildlife, such as birds who may be nesting. Each year, the park hosts a "Pioneer Day" on the second Saturday in November, "Homestead Heritage Day" on the second Saturday in February, and "NatureFest" on the first Saturday in March.

Located on site, the Akokisa Indian Village is a historically-accurate re-created group of dwellings similar to those built by the native Akokisa tribe. Structures include a council lodge, a lean-to, a chief's hut, a brush arbor, and a sweat lodge. As a sub-group of Atakapa-speaking Native Americans, the Akokisa lived for centuries in the coastal prairies of Southeast Texas. When French explorers arrived in the sixteenth century, they documented their interactions with the tribe. During the wintertime, the Akokisa traditionally inhabited the areas now known as Cypress and Spring, Texas. In the summers, they traveled south to Galveston and the Gulf Coast. Although European settlement displaced the Akokisa, some merged with other nearby tribes in East Texas. Members of the Akokisa continue to reside in the greater Houston area today, and they are working to obtain federal recognition of their tribe's continued existence in the area.

In addition to the indigenous history of this land, the Park also interprets the pioneering era in which European settlers established farms and homesteads such as the 1830 Rosebud Hill Homestead, a post-and-beam log cabin on view at the park. During the annual Pioneer Day festival, visitors can experience what life was like in the early 1800s. Living history demonstrations include woodworking, open-hearth cooking, blacksmithing, spinning, sewing, and other day-to-day activities Children can try their hand at farm chores such as churning butter, shelling and grinding corn, and washing clothes by hand using a washboard. Hayrides and folk songs from the 19th century also offer participants a chance to experience life and recreation from two hundred years ago. In conjunction with this event, the Nature Center hosts a native plant sale each year to promote awareness about ecological landscaping.

"Brother, can you spare a billion? The story of Jesse H. Jones", PBS. Accessed May 9th, 2023. https://www.pbs.org/jessejones/jesse_greatdepression_1.htm.

Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center, CEC Houston. Accessed May 9th, 2023. https://cechouston.org/resource-guide/environmental-directory/name/jesse-h-jones-park-and-nature-center/.

Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center - Kingwood Events, Kingwood. Accessed May 9th, 2023. https://www.kingwood.com/events/venue_details.php?event_venue_id=8.

Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center, Visit Houston. Accessed May 8th, 2023. https://www.visithoustontexas.com/listings/jesse-h-jones-park-%26-nature-center/20236/.

Smith, Taelor. "Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center," Precinct 3. Accessed May 9th, 2023. https://www.pct3.com/JJP.

"The Life & Legacy of Jesse H. Jones", Digital Projects. Accessed May 9th, 2023. https://digitalprojects.rice.edu/wrc/JesseHJones/exhibits/show/title/introduction.