San Jacinto Monument
San Jacinto Battlefield | |
The San Jacinto Monument in 2007 | |
Location of San Jacinto Monument in Texas | |
| Location | Harris County, Texas, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Nearest city | Deer Park, Texas, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 29°45′00″N 95°04′51″W / 29.7499°N 95.0807°W |
| Area | 455 acres (184 ha) |
| Built | 1939 |
| Part of | San Jacinto Battlefield (ID66000815) |
| Designated NHLDCP | 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, about 16 miles due east of downtown Houston. The octagonal Art Deco spire is topped with a 34-foot (10 m) , 220-ton Lone Star – the symbol of Texas. The memorial commemorates the site of the Battle of San Jacinto, the decisive engagement of the Texas Revolution.
Part of the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site, it was constructed between 1936 and 1939 and dedicated on April 21, 1939. The world's tallest masonry column, it is 12 feet taller than the 554.612-foot (169.046 m) tall Washington Monument, the tallest stone monument in the world. Visitors can take an elevator to the monument's observation deck for a view of Houston and the San Jacinto battlefield.
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.