When was galveston texas established

Railroad extensions connected Galveston to markets in the West and drew industrial imports from factories in the East and in Europe. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico offered service in the period. Scarcely a mile of unimproved highway remained in the county, though surfaces of dredged shell from the bottom of Galveston Bay continued to distinguish its highways.

The first paved highway to Houston was opened in , and the Bolivar Ferry began carrying cars from Galveston to Point Bolivar in In agriculture , county farmers propagated fruit and truck crops including berries and magnolia figs.

Dairying and cattle raising continued, though farming gradually replacing livestock except in grassy salt marshes ideal for grazing.

With the onset of the Great Depression , Galveston began a decline in relation to other Texas cities that lasted until the s. Though few Galveston County banks failed, cotton firms rapidly departed for Houston, and manufacturing firms dwindled from in to only ninety-seven in The port shipped grain for export; shipping, insurance, resorts, and seafood, including shrimp and oysters, dominated the county economy.

Sixty boats operated from the port. A truck and trailer company, an iron foundry, marine repair shops, and meatpacking, coffee-roasting, and broom and mattress factories hired local workers at Galveston. Nevertheless, four petrochemical plants built at Texas City accounted for half of all industrial employment in the county from to The county's chief wartime production came from the Todd Shipyard at Pelican Spit.

New residents drawn to employment at this and other wartime industry increased the population over the decade by almost 40 percent. An influx of Mexican farm laborers reached a total of 1, by , and by the war's end a majority of the population had been born outside the county. By mid-decade the overall population reached a high of ,, of which 78 percent were White and 22 percent Black. As Galveston continued to decline, longshoremen and shrimpers responded to low wages with strikes. Manufacturing firms continued to close, and by only sixty-six remained.

After the war, the city of Galveston purchased the port's existing facilities, which had been privately owned since their founding in , and began to modernize. Elsewhere in the county, prosperity increased as eight oilfields with oil wells produced more than 4. Tin smelting centered at Texas City, and coastwise shipping concentrated there. Outgoing products included sulfur, cotton, wheat, and metal, while incoming products included tin ore, sugar, tea, bananas, bagging, and steel products.

In rural parts of the county, settlement centered around small farms and ranches that produced rice, hay, pecans, figs, potatoes, strawberries, citrus fruits, and other fruit and truck crops, as well as dairy products and increasing numbers of beef cattle.

In beef cattle numbered 14,, largely Brahmans, and dairy farms owned 5, milk cows. By , rice culture occupied 16, acres. In the s the opening of the Gulf Freeway to Houston and the initiation of "Splash Day," an annual spring youth celebration at Galveston, drew tourists and vacationers to the coast, but the city continued to decline because of limited water supplies and a lack of space for new industry.

Gambling and crime increased, and houses fell into disrepair. By the end of the decade, however, these conditions initiated efforts by the state to clean up the city and develop Pelican Island.

Galveston dedicated its Mary Moody Northen Center for the Performing Arts, and the fortunes of the community began to improve. Domestic trade reached a postwar peak in at almost 1. In , foreign shipments, largely of cotton, sulfur, and grain, totaled 5. Manufacturing began to recover. Eighty-seven manufacturing establishments employed 24 percent of the workforce, primarily at oil refineries and chemical plants.

Wholesalers handled beer, glass, chemicals, foods, hardware, and ship supplies. Farming remained important in mainland communities, and farmland in the county increased between and , when farms occupied , acres of county land.

Of these, were commercial; and 12 percent of the farmers were tenants. Farm production in included beef cattle, dairy products, and , barrels of rice. In the s Galveston County again suffered from a major hurricane when Carla came ashore.

The late s and s were characterized, however, by industrial expansion and development projects that gave rise to new resort communities on the mainland and Galveston Island.

A group of Houston oilmen purchased Pelican Island, and other investors targeted Fort Crockett for development. Galveston constructed a bridge to the mainland across San Luis Pass , thus increasing its access to three causeways and six railroads, and completed a new county courthouse.

The population increased, primarily within a fifteen-mile radius of the port, and La Marque became a bedroom community for Texas City and Galveston. Mineral reserves formed the bulk of the tax base in five of the nine county school districts. Farmers continued to produce small amounts of fruits, vegetables, rice, beef cattle and dairy products, but farming was negligible and manufacturing was confined largely to ship repair and maintenance and eight petroleum plants, including Union Carbide, Wah Chang, Monsanto, Amoco Chemical, Marathon Oil, and Texas City Refining.

In Galveston shipped almost 1. New industry included Shell Oil facilities for servicing offshore operations, and development of the Lyndon B. League City, just across the lake, was incorporated in In the s preservation efforts were made to reclaim historical landmarks in Galveston, including the Strand , once known as the "Wall Street of the South. The county economy was divided chiefly into five sectors: waterborne commerce, petroleum and petrochemical products, medical services, financial services, and tourism.

Industry included oil and gas extraction, petroleum refining, shipbuilding, construction, and food packaging. Though Houston remained the more important regional import center, Galveston excelled in exports, chiefly container shipping and the export of grain and cotton to foreign countries.

The shrimpers, to strong, harvested eight million pounds of shrimp annually, while the coastal area grew further as a resort and recreation center for Houston residents and other tourists.

By the s, Galveston County was one of the most densely populated counties in the state. The population rose above , for the first time in ; residents included 36, Blacks and 23, Hispanics, along with others primarily of German, English, and Irish descent.

More than 65 percent of the population had graduated from high school, and more than 15 percent were college graduates. In , 38 percent of the land was in farms or ranches and 15 percent of the farmland was under cultivation. Livestock and livestock products accounted for 62 percent of agricultural production on the county's farms; the principal crops included rice, hay, soybeans, watermelons, oranges, and pecans. Tin smelting, oil refining, metal fabrication, and chemical production continued at Texas City; oil and gas, clay, and sulfur were produced at a variety of other locations.

Businesses in the county numbered 3, The area recovered from the effects of Hurricane Alicia in , and expansion of tourist facilities continued. The Homeport project initiated by the United States Navy was abandoned in , but the Galveston area remained a center for medical services and marine research.

Politically, Galveston County residents have voted consistently for Democratic candidates, with few exceptions. Eisenhower , Richard M. Nixon , and Ronald Reagan. In , 98, registered voters lived in the county. As of , , people lived in the county; about The Galveston County Fair is held annually in May. Maggie Abercrombie, Sketch of Galveston County Pat Daniels, Bolivar! Joseph O. Bradley R. Jessie O. Webb, The History of Galveston to M. The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style , 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this entry.

Diana J. All copyrighted materials included within the Handbook of Texas Online are in accordance with Title 17 U. The grade raising was so successful that when another hurricane as ferocious as the storm swept down on Galveston in , the city was safe and only eight people were killed.

However, Galveston never returned to being the city it once was. Prosperous because of its port, Galveston commerce was eclipsed when Houston dug its Ship Channel in Starting with Prohibition-era bootlegging, Galveston evolved into a gambling and drinking resort town. However, this era came to a dead halt on June 10, when the Texas Rangers raided the city — serving injunctions against the gambling joints and yes, taking axes to the slot machines — ending gambling in Galveston for good.

The Island languished for years. Galveston-born oilman, George Mitchell, led the revitalization effort, focusing first on overhauling and promoting the Historic Downtown District, which contains one of the largest and most well-preserved concentrations of Victorian iron-front commercial architecture in the country.

A dedicated team brought the Tall Ship ELISSA to Galveston and restored it to its glory days of full white sails and exquisite wooden cabinetry: the high-sailing old beauty became the symbol of the new Galveston.

The Galveston Historical Foundation went into high gear, encouraging preservation and restoration and currently more than 2, buildings in town are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. At 32 miles long and two-and-a-half miles wide, the island is surrounded with incredible history and unique beauty — and easy to get to and around. Coming to or leaving the Island? There are a number of limo and bus services, as well as the free, hour Galveston Island Ferry link to the Bolivar Peninsula.

History of Galveston T History of Galveston Galveston Island. Value Retail Sales. Physical Features : Partly island, partly coastal; flat, artificial drainage; sandy, loam, clay soils; broken by Galveston Bay, other bays. Economy : Port activities dominate economy; insurance and finance center, petrochemical plants, varied manufacturing, tourism, medical education, oceanographic research, ship building, commercial fishing.

History : Karankawa and other tribes roamed the area until French, Spanish, and American settlement began in and reached 1, by Vital Statistics, annual : Births, 4,; deaths, 2,; marriages, 1,; divorces, 1, Agriculture : Cattle, aquaculture, nursery crops, rice, hay, horses, soybeans, grain sorghum.

League City ,, part [1,] in Harris County residential community, commuters to Houston, hospital.