The Gulf Coast Archive and Museum of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender History estimates that it was the site of more than three hundred funeral services and remains the final resting place of an unknown number of people’s ashes.įrom 1970 to 2009, this space was part of the legendary Houston gay bar Mary’s…Naturally!, which fostered such a close community that some regulars chose to have their funerals there. But this seemingly ordinary Houston plot is also a burial ground. In the mornings, the paved portion serves as parking for Blacksmith in the evenings, from Tuesday through Sunday, it’s a valet lot for upscale steakhouse Georgia James. The empty lot-half paved, half gravel and weeds-is owned by private real-estate investment company MLB Capital Partners. Now, mid-rise developments are going up, and most homes sell for more than half a million. Historically known among locals as the Gayborhood, Montrose used to be where the weirdos were.
Inside, patrons can order from Blacksmith’s familiar cafe menu of “barista-made drinks, home-baked goods, and light fare in an industrial space.” To the east of the coffee shop, to the west of a brand-new Shake Shack, and just a few doors down from a Sweetgreen, is an empty lot. On the corner of Westheimer and Waugh in Houston’s Montrose neighborhood, there’s a quaint brick building.
