Houston Lake is a small city in Platte County, Missouri. When the area was first settled, it consisted of pasture and farmland, with Jumping Branch Creek running through it. The land that includes Houston Lake was once owned by the Keller family, followed by the Brenner family. The Brenners built a dam across the creek in 1880, forming a farm pond. The dam washed out a few times and, in time, the Brenners had turned the creek into a twenty-acre lake, which was initially known as Lake Venetia. In 1928, Charles and Emma Houston bought the land from Alma Brenner Hauetter, developing it for recreational purposes, including cabin rentals to fishermen. In 1930, he hired an engineering firm to supervise the construction of a new dam, which exists today. Later, he decided to subdivide the property, forming the Venetian Gardens Home’s Association, to which he deeded his remaining property. In 1955, Venetian Gardens was incorporated as the Village of Houston Lake, which became a city in 1960, to avoid annexation by Kansas City. Houston Lake is located just southwest of Interstate Highway 29, which is also US Highway 71, and northwest of Interstate Highway 635. Breen Acres is southeast of Houston Lake, and Parkdale is to the southwest. The larger city of Kansas City is just over eight miles to the south.
Recommended Resources
Located in Platte County, the city was incorporated in 1960. The official municipal web site offers an overview of the city government and homes association, along with a schedule of meetings and events, a history of the community, and administrative contacts. Announcements are published to the site.
http://www.houstonlake.net/
Operated by a music producer and disc jockey, whose stage name is Mainondabeat, the business can help artists and groups to fine-tune their sound, as well as providing DJ services for parties and other events in the Houston Lake, Missouri region. His services are described in detail, and payments may be made through the site.
http://www.mainondabeatmusik.com/
WE0Z Amateur Radio and Weather Site
An APRS tracking system allows viewers to see the location of the WE0Z vehicle on a map of Houston Lake, Missouri, and location weather conditions are presented.
http://www.we0z.org/
