The official insignia of the society was adopted in 1949. At Phil Martyn's insistence, an emblem contest was started to provide the society with an official insignia. On January 29, 1949 the late Walter J. Osterhoudt was named the winner of the contest. The HGS emblem is best described in his own words.
"The oil derrick is firmly established upon the Gulf Coast plain overlooking Galveston Bay, through which passes much of the oil to the markets of the world. Beyond Galveston Bay is the Gulf of Mexico, a new province, which challenges geologists and geophysicists to almost unlimited new reserves. Under the oil derrick is a cross section of a typical Gulf Coast salt dome. The words 'Houston Geological Society' are arranged upon a circle which is symbolical of the world, because our geologists come from and travel to all places on the earth in search of oil and other minerals. The five points of the design are a pleasant reminder that we, the members of the Society, are privileged to live in Texas. The 1923 is the year in which the Society was organized."