Fairbanks is a community along U.S. Highway 290 and the Southern Pacific Railroad

Southern Pacific Railroad

The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....

 in Western Houston, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. At one point it was a distinct unincorporated area

Unincorporated area

In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...

 within Harris County

Harris County, Texas

As of the 2010 Census, the population of the county was 4,092,459, White Americans made up 56.6% of Harris County's population; non-Hispanic whites represented 33.0% of the population. Black Americans made up 18.9% of the population. Native Americans made up 0.7% of Harris County's population...

.

History

The community, named after its founder, opened in 1893. In 1895 Fairbanks received its first post office. In 1914 Fairbanks had 75 residents, a general store and saloon, and a grocery store. The community had 25 people in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1942 the community had 800 residents and 35 businesses in the area. In the 1950s the population decreased to 350 people. Houston annexed Fairbanks in 1956. The community began to expand around that period; in the 1960s the Fairbanks area and some surrounding communities had 1,050 residents and 45 businesses. In 1980 and 1990 1,050 people lived in Fairbanks, while more people lived in the surrounding area.

Local government

Houston City Council

Houston City Council

The Houston City Council is a city council for the city of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas.Currently, there are fourteen members, nine elected from council districts and five at-large. The members of the Council are elected every two years, in odd-numbered years...

 District A serves Fairbanks. As of 2008 Toni Lawrence represents the district.

The Fairbanks area is served by the Houston Police Department

Houston Police Department

The Houston Police Department is the primary law enforcement agency serving the City of Houston, Texas, United States and some surrounding areas. Its headquarters are in 1200 Travis in Downtown Houston....

 Northwest Patrol Division , headquartered at 6000 Teague Road.

County, state, and federal representation

Fairbanks is within Harris County Precinct 4. As of 2008 Jerry Eversole heads the precinct.

Fairbanks is located in District 135 of the Texas House of Representatives

Texas House of Representatives

The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the Texas Legislature. The House is composed of 150 members elected from single-member districts across the state. The average district has about 150,000 people. Representatives are elected to two-year terms with no term limits...

. As of 2008, Gary Elkins

Gary Elkins

Gary Elkins was an English football player; most notable for the unusual statistic of his having started exactly 100 league games for both Fulham F.C. and Wimbledon F.C...

 represents the district. Fairbanks is within District 7

Texas Senate, District 7

District 7 of the Texas Senate is a senatorial district that serves a portion of Harris county in the U.S. state of Texas. The current Senator from District 7 is Dan Patrick.-2006:-2002:-2000:-1996:-1994:...

 of the Texas Senate

Texas Senate

The Texas Senate is the upper house of the Texas Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing 31 single-member districts across the state with populations of approximately 672,000 per constituency. There are no term limits, and each term is four years long. The Senate meets at the...

; as of 2008 Dan Patrick

Dan Patrick

Daniel Patrick Pugh , professionally known as Dan Patrick, is an American sportscaster, radio personality, and actor from Mason, Ohio...

 represents the district.

Fairbanks is in Texas's 7th congressional district

Texas's 7th congressional district

Texas District 7 of the United States House of Representatives is a Congressional district that serves a small area of western Harris County...

. As of 2008, John Culberson

John Culberson

John Abney Culberson is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party and the Tea Party caucus...

 represents the district. The United States Postal Service

United States Postal Service

The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...

 operates the Fairbanks Post Office at 7050 Brookhollow West Drive in an unincorporated area.

Education

Fairbanks is within the Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District

Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District

The Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District is a school district in northwest unincorporated Harris County, Texas, United States...

.

Lone Star College (originally the North Harris Montgomery Community College District) serves the community. The territory in Cypress-Fairbanks ISD joined the community college district in 2000. The system operates the Fairbanks Center in unincorporated Harris County; Fairbanks Center is a part of Lone Star College–CyFair.

Harris County Public Library

Harris County Public Library

Harris County Public Library is a public library system serving Harris County, Texas, United States. The county library system is headquartered at 8080 El Rio in Houston....

 operates the Fairbanks Branch Library at 7122 North Gessner Drive in an unincorporated area. The branch opened in 1970. Originally at 5000 square feet (464.5 m²), it received an expansion in 1990, making it 7247 square feet (673.3 m²).

Cypress Ridge High School

Cypress Ridge High School

Cypress Ridge High School is a secondary school located in unincorporated Harris County, Texas. It was established in 2002 as Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District High School #7.-Feeder patterns:Schools that feed into Cypress Ridge include:...

is a high school located at 7900 North Eldridge Parkway. The school opened in 2002 and currently holds 3000+ students.