The Texas Department of Transportation ( TxDOT) has discovered more than 150,000
artifacts near downtown Houston. Excavations at Frost Town near Minute Maid Park were initiated in 2016 in association with the planned replacement of aging 1950’s bridge structure, the Elysian Street Viaduct, TxDOT’s Jason W. Barrett, PhD. told Chron.com.
Although the excavations were delayed through 2017, waiting for the bridge to be
demolished, it was resumed and completed in 2018, Barrett said. As well, a smaller project at Frost Town was completed in early 2019, in association with the North Houston Highway Improvement Project (NHHIP) , which involves evaluation
of the I-45 North corridor, according to the NHHIP website.
Among the artifacts discovered in the area were several intact features including house
foundations, cisterns, brick sidewalks, animal burials, and yard decorations, Barrett said. These findings will assist archaeologists in learning more about Frost Town.
The area dates back to 1836 when Jonathan Benson Frost, a veteran of the Republic of
Texas Army, built a house and a blacksmith shop on a small parcel of land adjacent to
Buffalo Bayou, Barrett said.
In 1838, Jonathan’s brother Samuel Frost laid out an 8-block area that became the Frost Town subdivision, with some of its earliest residents being immigrants, mainly from Germany, according to Barrett.