Houston ( ; ), is a village in the council area of Renfrewshire and the larger historic county of the same name in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. Houston lies within the Gryffe Valley on the banks of the River Gryffe north-west of Paisley and is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Houston and Killellan, which covers the neighbouring village of Crosslee and a number of smaller settlements in the villages' rural hinterland. The village grew around a 16th-century castle and parish church dedicated to Saint Peter, which gave the area its former name of Kilpeter ("Cille Pheadair" in Scottish Gaelic). The present-day old village dates mainly back to the 18th century and was a planned community, replacing earlier buildings. Historically, the economy was based around agriculture and, in common with a number of other Renfrewshire villages, cotton weaving. The old village was designated as a conservation area in 1968. From the middle of the 20th century, a larger area of residential settlement expanded the village into nearby areas such as Craigends, removing the open country between Houston and Crosslee. These additions to the village have expanded its population considerably, changing its character chiefly to a dormitory settlement for nearby Glasgow and Paisley with a largely service-based economy. History Toponymy Houston was originally known as Kilpeter. In the mid 12th century, the fee of Kilpeter was granted by Baldwin of Biggar, Sheriff of Lanark, to Hugh of Pettinain. From Hugh, the lands eventually became known as Houston (meaning "Hugh's town or manor"). In a bull of Pope Honorius in 1225–7, the churches of Kilmacolm and Houston are mentioned as "ecclesiae de Kilmacolme et de Villa Hugonis". In a later bull of Pope Clement IV in 1265, the churches belonging to Paisley Abbey are listed including the church of "Howston". Early history Houston had long been a site of human settlement. In the 1970s, a Bronze Age burial site was found at South Mound on the western edge of the village. To the north-east lies Barochan Hill, the site of a Roman fort. A later Antonine era fort was found on a farm near Bishopton, less than 2 miles away. The first village in Houston was constructed around the parish Church of St Peter and Houston Castle, now respectively the parish church and Houston House – largely 19th century buildings. Houston House and the castle which is partially