History
Named after Richmond, England, the town is rich with Texas history as it was among the 19 cities first incorporated by the short-lived Republic of Texas, in 1837. Early residents of the city include many prominent figures in Texas lore such as Jane Long, Deaf Smith (who is buried in Richmond), and Mirabeau Lamar. On 16 August 1889, the town was the site of the Battle of Richmond, an armed fight culminating the Jaybird-Woodpecker War, a violent feud over post-Reconstruction political control of Fort Bend County.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 11,081 people, 3,413 households, and 2,628 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,975.4 people per square mile (1,150.1/km²). There were 3,595 housing units at an average density of 965.3/sq mi (373.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 51.20% White, 10.55% African American, 0.63% Native American, 3.53% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 31.00% from other races, and 3.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 58.71% of the population.

There were 3,413 households out of which 39.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.0% were non-families. 18.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.16 and the average family size was 3.60.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.6% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 98.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $44,888, and the median income for a family was $45,801. Males had a median income of $37,457 versus $32,723 for females. The per capita income for the city was $25,195.

Economy
Many residents of Missouri City commute to nearby Houston for work. Houston's energy industry is recognized worldwide—particularly for oil—and biomedical research, aeronautics, and the ship channel are also large parts of its economic base. The area is a leading center for building oilfield equipment. Much of Houston's success as a petrochemical complex is due to its busy man-made ship channel, the Port of Houston. The port ranks first in the United States in international commerce, and is the tenth-largest port in the world. Unlike most places, where high oil and gasoline prices are seen as harmful to the economy, they are generally seen as beneficial for Houston as many are employed in the energy industry.

The Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown MSA's Gross Area Product (GAP) in 2006 was $325.5 billion, slightly larger than Austria’s, Poland’s or Saudi Arabia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). When comparing Houston's economy to a national economy, only 21 countries other than the United States have a gross domestic product exceeding Houston's regional gross area product. Mining, which in Houston is almost entirely exploration and production of oil and gas, accounts for 11% of Houston's GAP; this is down from 21% in 1985. The reduced role of oil and gas in Houston's GAP reflects the rapid growth of other sectors, such as engineering services, health services, and manufacturing.

Houston ranks second in employment growth rate and fourth in nominal employment growth among the 10 most populous metro areas in the U.S. In 2006, the Houston metropolitan area ranked first in Texas and third in the U.S. within the category of "Best Places for Business and Careers" by Forbes magazine. Forty foreign governments maintain trade and commercial offices here and the city has 23 active foreign chambers of commerce and trade associations. Twenty foreign banks representing 10 nations operate in Houston, providing financial assistance to the international community.

Attractions
Residents of Sealy enjoy the many attractions of Houston. Houston is a multicultural city with a large and growing international community. The Houston MSA is home to an estimated 1.1 million (21.4 percent) residents that were born outside the United States, with nearly two-thirds of the Houston MSA foreign-born population are from south of the US-Mexico border. More than one in five foreign born Houstonians are from Asia. The city is home to the nation’s third largest concentration of consular offices representing 86 nations. Houston is designated as a gamma world city by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network. Houston received the official nickname of "Space City" in 1967 because it is home to NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Other nicknames include "H-Town," "Screwston," "The Big Heart," "Bayou City," "Clutch City," "Hustletown," and "Magnolia City." The city is home to Lakewood Church, the largest church in America with over 50,000 members attending each week.

Houston has an active visual and performing arts scene. The Theater District is located downtown and is home to nine major performing arts organizations and six performance halls. It is the second largest concentration of theater seats in a downtown area in the United States. Houston is one of only five United States cities with permanent, professional, resident companies in all major performing arts disciplines: opera (Houston Grand Opera), ballet (Houston Ballet), music (Houston Symphony Orchestra), and theater (The Alley Theatre). Houston is also home to many local folk artists, art groups and various smaller progressive arts organizations. Houston attracts many touring Broadway acts, concerts, shows, and exhibitions for a variety of interests.

Houston is home to the Bayou City Art Festival, which is considered to be one of the top five art festivals in the United States.

The Museum District is home to many popular cultural institutions and exhibits, attracting more than 7 million visitors a year. Notable facilities located in the district include The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Holocaust Museum Houston, and the Houston Zoo. Located in the nearby Montrose area are The Menil Collection and Rothko Chapel.

Many venues scattered across Houston regularly host local and touring rock, blues, country, hip hop and Tejano musical acts. Unfortunately, there has never been a widely renowned music scene in Houston. Artists seem to relocate to other parts of the United States once attaining some level of success. A notable exception to the rule is Houston hip-hop, which celebrates the unique southern flavor and attitude of its roots. This has given rise to a strong, independent hip-hop music scene, influencing and influenced by the larger Southern hip hop and gangsta rap communities. Many Houstonian hip-hop artists have attained commercial success.

Many annual events celebrate the diverse cultures of Houston. The largest and longest running is the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, held over 20 days from late February to early March. Another large celebration is the annual night-time Houston Pride Parade, held at the end of June. Other annual events include the Houston Greek Festival, Art Car Parade, the Houston Auto Show and the Houston International Festival.Space Center Houston is the official visitors’ center of NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Here one will find many interactive exhibits including moon rocks, a shuttle simulator, and presentations about the history of NASA's manned space flight program.

The Theater District is a 17-block area in the center of downtown Houston that is home to the Bayou Place entertainment complex, restaurants, movies, plazas, and parks. Bayou Place is a large multilevel building containing full-service restaurants, bars, live music, billiards, and art house films. The Houston Verizon Wireless Theater stages live concerts, stage plays, and stand-up comedy; and the Angelika Film Center presents the latest in art and foreign and independent films.

Houston is home to many parks including Hermann Park, which houses the Houston Zoo and the Houston Museum of Natural Science, Lake Houston Park, Memorial Park, Tranquility Park, Sesquicentennial Park and Sam Houston Park which contains restored and reconstructed homes which were originally built between 1823 and 1905). The city has 337 city parks and over 200 green spaces—totaling over 19,600 acres (79 km²) that are managed by the city—including the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center. The Houston Civic Center was replaced by the George R. Brown Convention Center—one of the nation's largest—and the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, home of the Houston Symphony Orchestra and Society for the Performing Arts. The Sam Houston Coliseum and Music Hall have been replaced by the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.

Other tourist attractions include the Galleria (Texas's largest shopping mall located in the Uptown District), Old Market Square, the Downtown Aquarium, SplashTown and Sam Houston Race Park. The San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site where the decisive battle of the Texas Revolution was fought is located on the Houston Ship channel east of the city; the park is also the location of the museum battleship USS Texas (BB-35).

Education
Richmond is served by Lamar Consolidated Independent School District.

Five elementary schools—Austin, Long, Pink, Seguin, and Smith—are located in and serve Richmond.

Wessendorff Middle School, Lamar Junior High School, and Lamar Consolidated High School serve Richmond. The three schools are in Rosenberg.

Various schools operated by LCISD and neighboring Fort Bend Independent School District bear Richmond addresses, but do not serve the city of Richmond. Foster High School and Briscoe Junior High in LCISD and Travis High School and Bush High School in the FBISD bear "Richmond, Texas" addressed but do not serve the city of Richmond and are not located in or near the city of Richmond.

YES Southwest, a charter 6-8 middle school, is located within the City of Richmond.

Transportation
Houston’s freeway system is made up of 575.5 miles (926.2 km) of freeways and expressways in a 10-county metro area. Its highway system uses a hub-and-spoke freeway structure serviced by multiple loops. The innermost loop is Interstate 610, which encircles downtown, the medical center, and many core neighborhoods with around a 10 mile (16 km) diameter. Beltway 8 and its freeway core, the Sam Houston Tollway, form the middle loop at a diameter of roughly 25 miles (40 km). A proposed highway project, State Highway 99 (The Grand Parkway), would form a third loop outside of Houston. Currently, the completed portion of State Highway 99 runs from just north of Interstate 10, west of Houston, to U.S. Highway 59 in Sugar Land, southwest of Houston, and was completed in 1994.

Houston also lies along the route of the proposed Interstate 69 NAFTA superhighway that would link Canada, the U.S. industrial Midwest, Texas, and Mexico. Other spoke freeways either planned or under construction include the Fort Bend Parkway, Hardy Toll Road, Crosby Freeway, and the future Alvin Freeway.

The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas, or METRO, provides public transportation in the form of buses, light rail, and lift vans. METRO's various forms of public transportation still do not connect many of the suburbs to the greater city, causing Houstonians to rely on the automobile as a primary source of transportation.

Amtrak, the national rail passenger system, provides service to Houston via the Sunset Limited (Los Angeles–New Orleans), which stops at a train station on the north side of the downtown area. The station saw 10,855 boardings and alightings in fiscal year 2006.

Houston is served by two commercial airports. The larger is George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), the ninth-busiest in the United States for total passengers, and seventeenth-busiest worldwide. Bush Intercontinental currently ranks third in the United States for non-stop domestic and international service with 182 destinations. In 2006, the United States Department of Transportation named George Bush Intercontinental Airport the fastest-growing of the top ten airports in the United States. Houston is the headquarters of Continental Airlines and Bush Intercontinental is Continental Airlines' largest hub. The airline offers more than 700 daily departures from Houston. In early 2007, Bush Intercontinental Airport was named a model "port of entry" for international travelers by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The second-largest commercial airport in Houston is William P. Hobby Airport (named Houston International Airport until 1967). The airport operates primarily small to medium-haul flights and is the only airport in Houston served by Southwest Airlines and JetBlue Airways. Houston's aviation history is showcased in the 1940 Air Terminal Museum located in the old terminal building on the west side of Hobby Airport.

The third-largest airport is Ellington Field, a former U.S. Air Force base, used by military, commercial, government and general aviation sectors.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the state of Texas selected the "Houston Airport System as Airport of the Year" for 2005, largely because of its multi-year, $3.1 billion airport improvement program for both major airports in Houston.