Order a Signed Edition
By Geoffrey S. Connor
For readers and collectors alike, signed copies of The Rise of Houston as a Global City offer a personal connection to the author and his work. Each signature reflects Geoff Connor’s ongoing engagement with the people and places that shaped Houston’s story.
Signed editions are available at select bookstores and through author appearances and events. Customers placing online orders can request a signed copy by adding a note at checkout. Participating stores below have limited signed copies.
he Rise of Houston as a Global City by Geoffrey S. Connor offers a highly engaging exploration of how Houston evolved from its 1836 founding by the Allen Brothers into one of the most influential cities on the planet. Connor persuasively explains that Houston’s global position was built upon four main international pillars. The first pillar was International Trade originally based on agricultural goods before becoming every global commodity. The second pillar was Oil and Gas which rested upon the existing transportation and shipping capacity allowing Houston to develop refining, chemicals and plastics as well. Using wealth and international position, Houston created the third pillar of Medicine and Health Technology with the world’s largest and most advanced medical complex. Using wealth, global reach and technology, Houston lured the Manned Space Center as the fourth pillar with all the attendant spillover to computer and high technology businesses.
Upon these four pillars of global standing, Houston created a platform on which some of the most famous names of business, politics and society could exist. These international celebrities lured even more people and money to Houston in a continuing cycle of growth and expansion.
Once a fledgling port on Buffalo Bayou, Houston’s destiny changed after the Great Hurricane hit nearby Galveston in 1900 soon followed by the discovery of oil at Spindletop in 1901, setting in motion a wave of industrial and economic growth that redefined Texas. Connor explains how Houston’s wealth and political influence spurred the creation of the world-renowned Texas Medical Center, home to M.D. Anderson Cancer Hospital, and how its leadership in medicine and technology paved the way for the establishment of NASA’s Manned Spaceflight Center in 1961. Connor connects these milestones of international economic expansion with the rise of Houston’s business, political and social leadership producing some of the most famous names and faces of the world along with their astonishing stories of achievement.
Rich with historical insight, The Rise of Houston as a Global City reveals how ambition, ingenuity and opportunity combined to make Houston a dazzling hub of international achievement.