San Jacinto Monument
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San Jacinto Battlefield
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The San Jacinto Monument
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 San Jacinto Monument
Location in Texas
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| Location | Harris County, Texas |
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| Nearest city | La Porte, Texas |
| Coordinates | 29°45′00″N 95°04′51″W / 29.7499°N 95.0807°WCoordinates: 29°45′00″N 95°04′51″W / 29.7499°N 95.0807°W |
| Area | 455 acres (184 ha) |
| Built | 1939 |
| NRHP Reference # | 66000815 |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
The San Jacinto Monument is a 567.31-foot-high (172.92-meter)column located on the Houston Ship Channel in unincorporated Harris County, Texas, United States, near the city of Houston. The monument is topped with a 220-ton star that commemorates the site of the Battle of San Jacinto, the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution. The monument, constructed between 1936 and 1939 and dedicated on April 21, 1939, is the world's tallest masonry column and is part of the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site. By comparison, the Washington Monument is 554.612 feet (169.046 m) tall, but remains the tallest stone monument in the world. The column is an octagonal shaft topped with a 34-foot (10 m) Lone Star – the symbol of Texas. Visitors can take an elevator to the monument's observation deck for a view of Houston and the Battleship Texas (see USS Texas).
The San Jacinto Museum of History is located inside the base of the monument, and focuses on the history of the Battle of San Jacinto and Texas culture and heritage.
The San Jacinto Battlefield, of which the monument is a part, was designated a National Historic Landmark on December 19, 1960, and is therefore also automatically listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designated a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1992.
In 1856, the Texas Veterans Association began lobbying the state legislature to create a memorial to the men who died during the Texas Revolution. The legislature made no efforts to commemorate the final battle of the revolution until the 1890s, when funds were finally appropriated to purchase the land where the Battle of San Jacinto took place. After a careful survey to determine the boundaries of the original battle site, land was purchased for a new state park east of Houston, in 1897. This became San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site.
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Wikipedia