Houston Railroad History - Pierce Junction
The first railroad junction in Texas was formed nearby in 1856 when the Houston Tap Railway (north-south) met the Buffalo Bayou Brazos and Colorado Railway (east-west) in October of 1856. The BBB&C, which was the first railroad in Texas, connected to Harrisburg but did not serve Houston. Consequently, the City of Houston built the tap railway to avoid being bypassed. The tap line extended north and east from Pierce Junction eventually following San Jacinto Street to a point near the intersection of Polk and San Jacinto.
The Tap railroad was purchased in 1858 by private interests and extended southward to East Columbia under the name Houston Tap and Brazoria Railroad (aka Columbia Tap). It served the sugar plantations south of Houston including one owned by Thomas W. Peirce (He actually used the ei spelling). When a small settlement arose around the railroad junction it became known as Pierce Junction. Some portions of the Tap line are still in service.
A second line to the north from Pierce Junction was constructed by The Galveston Harrisburg and San Antonio Railroad in 1880 (The BBB&C was reconstituted as the GH&SA in 1870). Since the original BBB&C yards and shops in Harrisburg had been lost to fire, the GH&SA needed access to a rail yard. The company opted to build its own line from Pierce Junction across Houston to the Texas & New Orleans rail yard on the north side of Buffalo Bayou. The tracks initially paralleled the Houston Tap line and then angled to cross north across the Montrose area. The portion of the line that crossed the Montrose area was abandoned around 1918 at the request of citizens and land developers in the area. At that time the cross town connection was replaced by North-South tracks farther to the west that presently run through Bellaire.