Milroy, John A.

The Houston Heights was created in 1891 by O. M. Carter, soon thereafter founder of the Omaha and South Texas Land Company. Within two years, residences and businesses were being constructed in the area. Carter had a business acquaintance with a real estate agent in the Pacific Northwest, and in 1893 he convinced John A. Milroy to move to Houston and help operate the real estate in the new city of Houston Heights.

John Milroy moved with his family to 1102 Heights Boulevard, sometime between 1896 and 1898, into a home originally built for H. F. MacGregor. He and his wife, Nellie, had three children: Margaret Adair Milroy, William Hamilton Milroy, and Helen Douglas Milroy. Margaret Milroy Crites, after her marriage, moved to Hawaii; W. Hamilton Milroy moved to New England, where the family had some roots; Helen Milroy was the only one to remain in Houston her entire life. John Milroy was the second Mayor of Houston Heights, reelected seven times. He served as superintendent of the Houston Heights Real Estate Office before opening his own real estate company in 1917. He was also active in social affairs; he served with C. A. McKinney on the board of the Harvard School and took part in local religious activities. John A. Milroy died on August 9, 1918, and his daughter Helen took over the business. Never marrying, she occasionally took in lodgers, but spent much of her time with her good friend Kate Bacon McKinney.

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