Exploring the city's past through a wide range of perspectives — from art and architecture to education and government to medicine and transportation — the Houston History Crawl on Saturday covers quite a bit of historical terrain.

Part of the ongoing "Houston 175" celebration, the free self-guided tour takes visitors to nine curated exhibits throughout downtown, the Texas Medical Center, and two locations off Allen Parkway (named after real estate tycoons John and Augustus Allen, who founded the city in 1836).

“We have to constantly remind ourselves of Houston’s history,” said Architecture Center Houston curator Barrie Scardino, one of the History Crawl’s key organizers. “The city wasn’t just built by oil companies in the last few decades.”

“There have been so many waves of economic success in Houston’s past,” she noted. “The city’s had the financial freedom to continuously rebuild itself again and again. As a result, many of its older buildings are gone. Sometime's it's easy to overlook the city's history.”

Below is a quick rundown of the nine exhibitions on the History Crawl, which runs from noon to 5 p.m.

PEOPLE AND PLACES: Architecture, Art, and Photography

Architecture Center Houston (315 Capitol) presents hundreds of photographs to help unravel the multi-layered history of the city's built environment. See Portrait of Houston: 1900–2011 at the space125gallery (3201 Allen Parkway), featuring the work of Houston-based artists exploring various sides of life in the city.

Fotofest and the Houston Center for Photography offer a photographic exploration of the cultures and sub-cultures that make up the intricate and diverse fabric (One and Two Allen Center).

INSTITUTIONAL PILLARS: Education, Government, and Medicine

At the Willow Street Pump Station (811 North San Jacinto), Educating Houston: 1836–2011 examines the city's earliest institutions of learning. Trace the city's governmental history at City Hall (901 Bagby) with a collection of images and historical documentation.

At the John P. McGovern Commons (6550 Bertner), follow the rise of the Texas Medical Center from its land purchase from the city to the first buildings of Hermann Hospital and the Baylor College of Medicine.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Sports, Transportation, and Commerce

Catch the sporting life in Hall E at the George R. Brown (1001 Avenida de las Americas) with a presentation of Houston's early bicycle and fishing clubs, amateur teams, professional teams and college teams.

At Houston Public Library's central building (500 McKinney), the exhibition From Draft Horse to NASA examines how various mean of transportation shaped the city's neighborhoods, infrastructure, and economy — a topic covered in detail at the Museum of Printing History's exhibit on Houston commerce (1324 West Clay).

A 68-page commemorative publication titled Houston 175: Celebrate! will be available for $10 at each exhibit site on Saturday's History Crawl, running from noon until 5 p.m. Click here for further details and a map of the tour.

For those interested in delving deeper in the city's past, the University of Houston will offer the Houston History Conference. The event Saturday costs $50 and includes a luncheon with former Houston mayor Bill White. The Buffalo Bayou Partnership celebrates the city's 175th this Saturday with a family-friendly events from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kids Day on Buffalo Bayou.

And for those who need a little more history, don't miss the Cemetery Crawl on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. — perfect for the Halloween weekend.