{"nrhp_refnum":"05000858","name":"Aviary at the Houston Zoo","other_names":["Flamingo Habitat at the Houston Zoo"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"1513 N. McGregor","address_restricted":false,"city":"Houston","county":"Harris County","state":"TX","lat":29.71673673600003,"lon":-95.39217729099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2005-08-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Art"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A c. 1926 aviary habitat at the Houston Zoo in Hermann Park, Houston, Texas, now the Chilean flamingo habitat. It holds concrete faux bois sculptures by Dionicio Rodriguez, including a fountain, tree trunks, ledges and a rock-bordered pond.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the aviary is the only known zoological setting with sculpture by Dionicio Rodriguez, and a unique work of art by a noted faux bois sculptor. The fountain is the largest Rodriguez built anywhere. The work is also one of the few Rodriguez commissions made for a municipality, and it survives intact in its original site.","narrative":"Concrete rocks, hollow tree trunks and a mountain-shaped fountain make up the flamingo habitat at the Houston Zoo in Hermann Park. It began as a bird aviary built around 1926, when sculptor Dionicio Rodriguez was probably hired by the City of Houston to create its naturalistic features. The fountain rises about 18 feet and drips cement stalactites into an oval pool. Faux rock ledges line the water, and two bare tree trunks with bark texture, holes and traces of original color stand nearby. The steel and wire cage was destroyed by Hurricane Carla in 1961, yet the sculptures remain in their original location in excellent condition. The site was listed for its artistic value. The nomination calls it the only known zoo setting with Rodriguez's work, and his largest fountain. It is also one of the few Rodriguez commissions made for a city government. Chilean flamingos now live there.","period_of_significance":"c.1926","architect_builder":"Rodriguez, Dionicio","architectural_style":"OTHER: Faux Bois Sculpture","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Still in use as a zoo exhibit (flamingo habitat). The wire cage was destroyed by Hurricane Carla in 1961, but the Rodriguez sculptures remain and are described as in excellent condition.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.15057-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/57/9694/40969457/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/05000858.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000858/4a0829e631-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000858/4a0829e631-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"etee","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Faux_concrete_trees_and_a_waterfall_created_Dionicio_Rodriguez_in_the_Houston_Zoo.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">etee</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Faux_concrete_trees_and_a_waterfall_created_Dionicio_Rodriguez_in_the_Houston_Zoo.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40969457","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aviary_at_the_Houston_Zoo","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q28153535"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/harris-county/aviary-at-the-houston-zoo-05000858/"}