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is a census-designated place (CDP) within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Houston in northern Harris County, Texas, United States, north of Downtown Houston. The population was 36,385 at the 2000 census.
The area now known as Spring was originally inhabited by the Orcoquiza Native Americans. In 1836 the Texas General Council of the Provisional Government placed what is now Spring in the Harrisburg municipality. In 1838 William Pierpont placed a trading post on Spring Creek. In 1840 Spring had 153 residents. By the mid-1840s many German immigrants, including Carl Wunsche, moved to the area and began farming. People from Louisiana and the post-United States Civil War Southern U.S. settled in Spring. The main cash crops in Spring were sugar cane and cotton; area residents also grew vegetables.
In 1871 the International and Great Northern Railroad, built through Spring, opened. This caused Spring to expand. In 1873 Spring received a post office. By 1884 Spring had 150 residents, two steam saw and grist mills, two cotton gins, three churches, and several schools. In 1901-1903 the International-Great Northern Railroad opened, connecting Spring to Fort Worth. Spring, now with a roundhouse, became a switchyard with 200 rail workers and fourteen trackyards. The population increased to 1,200 by 1910. The Spring State Bank opened in 1912. In 1923 the roundhouse relocated to Houston, causing Spring to enter a decline. By 1931 Spring had 300 people. The bank was robbed several times in the 1930s; false rumors stated that Bonnie and Clyde robbed the bank once. The bank consolidated with Tomball Bank in 1935.
By 1947 Spring had 700 residents. Starting in 1969 the Goodyear airship
was based in Spring. In the 1970s Houston's suburbs began to expand to the north. More subdivisions and residential areas opened in the Spring area. Some older houses in Spring received restorations and housed shops. The Old Town Spring Association opened in 1980 to promote the Old Town Spring shopping area, which consists of the restored houses. In 1984 and 1989 Spring had 15,000 residents. By 1989 Old Town Spring became a tourist area. In 1990 Spring had 33,111 residents. In 1992 Goodyear moved