Galveston might have been today the industrial heavyweight, instead of its neighbor, Houston, if not for the infamous hurricane in 1900. After beginning as a seaport haven for the pirate Jean Lafitte, Galveston was one of the South’s most significant cities by the end of the 19th century.
The French-born Jean Lafitte and his brother, Pierre, were already legendary smugglers in nearby New Orleans, when, in 1817, they founded a town called Campeachy on Galveston Island. Their fort, Maison Rouge, attracted a “navy” of over 1,000 men, who continually disrupted Spanish shipping in the Gulf of Mexico. Lafitte’s pirate “den”, as it has been called, was a wicked place: slaving, gaming, drunkenness and whoring abounded. He sold all the blacks of Galveston, including freed slaves, in New Orleans. To some a romantic figure, Lafitte was the last of the pirates on the Gulf – until the US Navy forced him out of the area in the early 1820s. He sailed away to Mujeres Island off Yucatan.
Galveston was then developed as a seaport during the Republic, and soon became the state’s largest city. Blockaded during the Civil War, the city remained in Confederate hands, except for a few months in 1862. The Union Navy entered the harbor in October, landed on Christmas morning and was expelled on New Year’s Day 1863. They were back on June 19, 1865, to take over the city and proclaim the freedom of the slaves. “Juneteenth” has been celebrated by blacks in Texas ever since.
Galveston continued to grow, but its population was eventually surpassed by San Antonio and Houston. Much of Texas’ cotton was exported through the city – ancient cotton warehouses and grain elevators survive today – and the water of the bay is still yellow from the shipping of sulfur. A hub of commercial activity between the 1870s and 1900, Galveston had Texas’ first telegraph, electric lights, brewery and medical college. Splendid mansions were erected, paid for with the profits from all the city’s commerce.
The 1900 hurricane on September 8 and 9 dimmed Galveston’s glow in a matter of hours. Winds sometimes in excess of 100 mph (160 km/h) swept tides of 4-6 ft (1-2 meters) across the island to produce one of the nation’s worst natural disasters. There was nothing to break the hurricane’s force: Galveston’s highest elevation was a mere 8 ft (2.5 meters). At one point the water rose 4 ft (just over a meter) in four seconds: 1,500 acres (600 hectares) of houses were completely destroyed. Death estimates have ranged from 5,000 to 8,000.
This lead to the construction of the mighty seawall that has protected Galveston ever-since, including the most recent hurricane Ike, which devastated the surrounding areas. After the 1900 storms, the people resurrected their homes and constructed a 17-ft (5-meter) seawall, protection against future ravaging by the waters of the Gulf. The present seawall is 10 miles (16 km) long, 16 ft (5 meters) wide at its base and 5 ft (1.5 meters) wide at the top.
Meanwhile, its big rival, Houston, with more people and better rail connections, seized its opportunity and, with Federal money, began dredging a ship channel in the Buffalo Bayou to the San Jacinto river and, from there, into the Gulf. So, Houston – 50 miles (80 km) inland – became a port city while Galveston, although remaining a port, became less important and was frequently referred to as “that island city south of Houston”.
Primary access to the island city is via I-45, a freeway which stretches from Dallas, through Houston, and over a bridge into Galveston. Once on the island, it becomes Broadway, Galveston’s main street, which carries you through the oldest part of the city to Stewart Beach. A right turn on to 61st Street, before I-45 becomes Broadway, bypasses the central city and takes you to the island’s most popular beach district, West Beach, on the south shore.
In Galveston, all other roads seem to lead eventually to Seawall Boulevard, a broad avenue along the waterline above the city’s dramatic seawall, with an array of shops, restaurants, motels, bicycle rentals, arcades and other amusements lining one side, and the Gulf of Mexico pleasantly filling the horizon on the other. The tourist office is at 2027 61st Street (tel: 888-425-4753). Popular seafood restaurants on Seawall include Gaido’s, founded in 1911, and the adjoining Casey’s. The Flagship Hotel is built on a pier out over the Gulf. The Boulevard has several fishing piers where visitors can rent equipment and try their luck at catching redfish, trout and other Gulf game fish, depending on the season.
Visitors should start with a walk in The Strand, a 12-block area that parallels Broadway between 20th and 25th streets, which was once part of the city’s warehouse district. The solid, iron-fronted Victorian structures have been refurbished with more than 90 shops and restaurants. An old-style trolley (tel: 409-797-3900 for schedule) operates around here.
Some highlights in the area include Colonel Bubbie’s Surplus Store, possible the world’s best army-navy surplus center, stocking more than 10,000 items from 100 different countries; La King’s Confectionery, home of old-fashioned ice-cream; Hendley Market (Victorian clothing, antique postcards); and the restored square-rigged tall ship Elissa at the Texas Seaport Museum (Pier 21; daily 10am-5pm; entrance fee; tel: 409-763-1877).
The museum also offers harbor tours with dolphin watching, a documentary of the 1900 hurricane, and a database of immigrants who debarked in Galveston between 1846 and 1948. On board the Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig and Museum (10am-5pm; Pier 21; entrance fee; tel: 409-766-7827) three decks of equipment, exhibits and interactive displays detail offshore oil and gas exploration, drilling and production. Housed in a retired jackup drilling rig, the museum offers the rare opportunity to explore the rig floor and pipe deck of a massive, sea-going structure.
Another historic structure is the spectacular Grand 1894 Opera Home (Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; 2020 Postoffice; entrance fee; tel: 409-763-7173) where contemporary Broadway musicals are performed.
The Stand’s ambiance is reminiscent of New Orleans’ Bourbon Street and, like that colorful Louisiana city, Galveston makes a big thing of the Mardi Gras. The entire city turns out for the parade that marks Fat Tuesday. Beads and token coins fill the air as the Strand celebrates and rejoices. The Mardi Gras Museum is devoted to the subject (Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 10am-6pm;
The Strand at 23rd Street; tel: 409-765-5930), with audiovisual displays and a collection of 35 old rail cars, is situated in the wonderfully resorted Santa Fe Railroad Depot on Shearn Moody Plaza. Sculptured life-like figures sit optimistically in the waiting room.
The Galveston County Historical Museum (summer Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; winter Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; 2219 Market Street; donation; tel: 409-766-2340) contains exhibits about Jean Lafitte, the 1900 hurricane and other important local events and characters. More history is exhibited at the Rosenberg Library (closed Sun; 23rd and Sealy streets), opened in 1902 as the first library in the state.
Historic homes
The city is rich in old mansions and these include the pink granite Bishop’s Palace (1402 Broadway; open daily; Sun pm only; entrance fee), the only building in Texas on the American Institute of Architecture’s list of 100 outstanding structures. Owned since 1923 by the Galveston-Houston diocese of the Roman Catholic Church, it served as the bishop’s official residence. The 148-year-old Ashton Villa (Broadway at 24th Street; summer Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; winter daily noon-4pm; entrance fee), with its wide wrought-iron balcony, is now a museum containing 19th-century treasures, as is the Moody Mansion (2618 Broadway; daily, summer Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm, winter daily noon-rpm; entrance fee).
The oldest mansion is the Michael B. Menard Home (1605 33rd Street; Fri-Sun noon-4pm; entrance fee; tel: 409-762-3933), built in 1838. Michael B. Menard was the founder of Galveston in the time of the Republic of Texas. His mansion has now been restored and houses remarkable period furnishings and other antiques.
Between Galveston and Houston is the Kemah-Seabrook area, a region where visitors are certain to find a real mixture of Texas coastal dwellers, ranging from space scientists on their day off from NASA to old seadogs and fishermen swapping yarns at popular hangouts like Jimmy Walker’s and Maribelle’s.
In the west, Galveston County Beach Pocket Park and Galveston Island State Park provide beach access with parking, for picnics, swimming and sunbathing. Out here, just south of I-45, you will also find the Moody Gardens (open daily; various entrance fees; tel: 800-582-4673), Galveston’s major tourist attraction. Among highlights is a 10-story glass rainforest pyramid packed with exotic flora and fauna, which thrive among waterfalls, cliffs, caverns and forests.
There’s also a Bat Cave, an IMAX 3-D theater, an authentic reproduction of any 1800s paddlewheel, which offers cruises along the bayou, and an aquarium. Other attractions are a discovery pyramid and an IMAX Ride film theater, developed in conjunction with NASA’s Johnson Space Center. There is also a 300-room convention hotel. Not far from Moody Gardens, at Galveston International Airport, is the Lone Star Flight Museum (2002 Terminal Drive; daily 9am-5pm; entrance fee; tel: 409-740-7722), a magnet for fans of vintage aircraft, with more than 40 restored planes on display.