Annette Finnigan (1873–1940) is remembered in Houston for her work as a suffragette as well as for being a philanthropist and a patron of the arts. Born in West Columbia, Texas, Finnigan moved to Houston when she was three years old. As an adult, she attended Wellesley College and Columbia University. In 1903, she helped establish the Texas Woman Suffrage Association, which was housed at her home, and from 1904 to 1906, she served as the organization’s president. In 1909 she organized the Woman’s Political Union, for which she was elected state president. She was also one of the original founders of the Houston Public Library and donated over 300 objects to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

George R. Brown (1898–1983) along with his brother, Herman, founded construction firm Brown & Root, at one point considered one of the largest construction firms in the world. Notable projects George R. Brown was involved with include Houston landmarks such as Rice Stadium, the Gulf Freeway, and the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center—he was instrumental in bringing the center to Houston, and even secured the gift of the land it is built on. The Browns also helped build up the early career of former president Lyndon B. Johnson. In 1951, the brothers founded the Brown Foundation, and by 2018 it had given away more than $1.6 billion in grants. The George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston is named in Brown’s honor.

William P. Hobby (1878–1964), the patriarch of Houston’s famous Hobby family, was a man of many firsts. In 1917, at the age of 39, he became the youngest person to serve as governor of the state of Texas. After losing re-election in 1924, he returned to journalism—his career prior to getting into politics—and became president of the Houston Post. By 1955, he had been named as the chairman of the board of the Houston Post Company, which by then had grown to include radio station KPRC and KPRC-TV. In 1967, just a few years after his death, William P. Hobby Airport was named in his honor.

Charlotte Baldwin Allen (1805–1895) is referred to as the “mother of Houston” for good reason. Allen, who was born in Onondaga County, New York, came to Texas in 1834 with her husband, Augustus Chapman Allen, and his brother, John Kirby Allen. In 1836, she used her inheritance to purchase the land along Buffalo Bayou that would become the city of Houston for a mere $5,000. She remained here for the next 45 years, and at one point had a home next door to Sam Houston, the first president of the Republic of Texas and the city’s namesake. Although she died in 1895 at the age of 90, her mark is still present in the city today—the C. Baldwin Hotel in downtown Houston, for example, is named in her honor.

This famous Houstonian doesn’t need much of an introduction. Roy Hofheinz (1912–1982), known by many in Houston as “The Judge,” was a politician who also built a network of radio and TV stations and brought Houston’s first Major League Baseball franchise to the city. That franchise, the Houston Colt, ended up turning into the Houston Astros. In the political sphere, Hofheinz served as Harris County Judge, a position he parlayed into two terms as mayor of Houston. His biggest claim to fame? He’s responsible for the construction of the Astrodome, a Houston wonder that once housed a notoriously gaudy, 24-room suite he built for himself that included a putting green, a bowling alley, a shooting range, and a host of other oddly conceived rooms.

There are few names in Houston as familiar as Hermann: it graces Hermann Park, Memorial Hermann, and Hermann Square, to name a few. There have also been few Houstonians as eccentric as the man who gave those landmarks their name. George Hermann (1843­–1914) was born in Houston and rose from working as a cattle driver to operating an expansive real estate portfolio. In 1904, the already wealthy Hermann came into even more money when oil was struck on a plot of land he owned in Humble. Despite his fortune, Hermann was an extremely frugal man who owned only two suits and counted every penny. During a visit to New York City, Hermann was awed by the size of Central Park. In order to bring a grand municipal park to Houston, he donated 285 acres to the city. That land now houses the 445-acre Hermann Park and the Houston Zoo. Toward the end of his life, he donated the land and the funds necessary to create the charity hospital now known as Memorial Hermann.

Howard Hughes (1905–1976) is perhaps the most famous of Glenwood Cemetery’s notable departed. A larger-than-life figure, Hughes made great contributions to aviation, filmmaking, and business. Although he lived most of his life elsewhere, Hughes was born in Houston and made a name for himself at a young age after inheriting his family’s wealth. As a pilot, he set numerous records. As an aviation industry businessman, he made record profits. He produced and directed films such as Two Arabian Nights, Everybody’s Acting, Hell’s Angels, and Scarface (the 1932 version). A 2004 film about Hughes’s life, The Aviator, starred Leonardo DiCaprio.

Sarah Emma Edmonds (1841–1898) was a Canadian woman who dressed as a man during the Civil War so she could serve as a male field nurse—and an alleged spy for the Union Army. She is one of few women known to have served during the Civil War. Although the United States government recognized her after the war for her service, some of her claims, like her time spent working as a spy, are disputed by historians. After the war, Edmonds, who went by the name Franklin Flint Thompson during her service, published an embellished book about her experiences that went on to become a bestseller.

Gene Tierney (1920–1991) was a renowned actress who rose to stardom in the 1940s and appeared in many films during the golden age of Hollywood. Known as a versatile performer, she had her big breakthrough with the 1944 classic film Laura, in which she played the titular character. She also appeared in romantic drama Leave Her to Heaven (a film that almost won her an Oscar) and film noir classics such as Whirlpool. Tierney was close friends with other Glenwood interred Howard Hughes, who paid for the medical expenses for her daughter, Daria, after she was born prematurely and disabled. Tierney also notably had a short-lived romance with John F. Kennedy before he got into politics.

Bob McNair (1937–2018) should already be known to most Houstonians since he was the proud owner of the Houston Texans, which he formed in 1999 a few years after the Oilers exited Houston to become the Tennessee Titans. In addition to his NFL work, McNair was a businessman and philanthropist and was on the boards of trustees of numerous Houston institutions, including Houston Grand Opera, the Museum of Fine Arts, Rice University, and the Baylor College of Medicine. McNair died in 2018 after a long battle with various cancers.