The 4th largest city within the United States, is the city of Houston, that is the main center of the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area (the sixth biggest metropolitan area within the United States with a population over 6 million) and is the seat of Harris County. It has a population of approximately 2 million during the year 2008, and its neighborhood consists of Uptown, Downtown, The Heights, Montrose, River Oaks, Rice Village Area, Chinatown, and Midtown.
John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen, who were both New York City real estate agents who obtained the area in hopes of founding a city. The city was named after the Sam Houston, who was a popular general in the Battle of San Jacinto and was chosen the president of Texas during 1836. Houston was incorporated by James Holman, who was the first mayor of the city. The latter part of the 1800's saw the city expand as a railroad and commercial hub for the export of cotton. It even became the headquarters for General John Bankhead Magruder through the American Civil War. The 1950's and 1960's saw the unincorporated areas joined into the city limits, that expanded the city's size. It likewise gave way for the local shipbuilding trade to expand during the World War II and the establishment of NASA's "Manned SpaceCraft Center."
The city of Houston has approximately twenty thousand exhibitions, plays, concerts, and arts programs, and it attracts over 11 million residents and visitors each year. Its nonprofit arts are a strong player within the city's economy too, generating approximately $70 million in government and state revenue. Its cultural events and exhibitions reportedly make about ten million annually. The city of Houston is the only one among few cities which have permanent resident companies within all the areas of the performing arts: The Houston Symphony Orchestra (music), Alley Theatre (theatre), Houston Grand Opera (opera) and the Houston ballet (ballet). The city's strongest area is the visual and performing arts scene, and among the more active names here is the Theater District situated downtown. It has six performance halls and nine performing arts organizations. The city likewise provides various concerts, Broadway acts, exhibitions, shows, art groups and local folk artists in smaller progressive arts organizations. Moreover, Houston is likewise home to several museums. The Museum District, a well-known cultural institution, is a well-known destination of around seven million people annually. Among the most popular ones likewise consist of: the Houston Zoo, Holocaust Museum, the Station Museum of Contemporary Art, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Houston Museum of Natural Science, and the Museum of Fine Arts. Bayou Bend, a facility of the Museum of Fine Arts, has one of America's best collections of decorative paintings, art and furniture.
The oil and natural gas business in Houston are internationally recognized. Furthermore, really strong within the area are the sectors of aeronautics and biomedical research. Houston has an emerging renewable energy resource sector which consists of both solar and wind energy. These areas are fast becoming a popular economic base in the city these days. Practically all of the supermajor companies have likewise made the city of Houston their operational base. They include: ExxonMobil, ConocoPhilips, BP and Shell Oil. Other companies which have made the city their head office consist of: Marathon Oil Corporation, Apache Corporation, Citgo, and Horizon Wind Energy.