Gulf Coast Setting
Galveston is a resort city and port on the Texas Gulf Coast, located at the southern end of the Greater Houston metropolitan area. The city occupies Galveston Island and Pelican Island, about 45 miles southeast of downtown Houston, with the Gulf of Mexico to the east and south, West Bay to the west, and Galveston Bay to the north.
Galveston Island is a barrier island made mostly of sand-sized particles, with smaller amounts of finer mud and larger gravel sediments. Water and weather affect the island, and erosion can shift its boundaries.
Port City Roots
Galveston was named for Bernardo de Gálvez, an 18th-century Spanish military and political leader. Permanent European settlement began around 1816, when Louis-Michel Aury built settlements to support Mexico’s rebellion against Spain. Jean Lafitte later occupied the island and organized a pirate settlement he called Campeche before the United States Navy forced him away in 1821.
The Congress of Mexico established the Port of Galveston in 1825, and the city later served as the main port for the Texas Navy during the Texas Revolution. In 1836, the interim government of the Republic of Texas was moved to Galveston for a time.
Juneteenth and the 1900 Storm
On June 19, 1865, General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and announced to enslaved African Americans that slavery was no longer legal. The event is commemorated by Juneteenth, a federal holiday.
Galveston was struck by a devastating hurricane in 1900. The storm brought flooding and storm surge that nearly destroyed the town, and it remains ranked as the deadliest natural disaster in United States history.
Historic Districts and Architecture
Galveston has six historic districts and more than 60 structures listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its collection of 19th-century buildings includes the Strand, a downtown district near the wharf where Victorian-era buildings have been adapted for restaurants, antique stores, museums, art galleries, and historical exhibits.
Ashton Villa is tied to the Juneteenth announcement, when General Granger read General Order No. 3 from its balcony.
Tourism, Shipping, and Island Features
Galveston’s economy is centered in tourism, health care, shipping, and finance. The Port of Galveston handles cargo and also serves as a cruise terminal, while the University of Texas Medical Branch campus is a major economic force in the city.
Tourist features include the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier, Moody Gardens, the Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig & Museum, the Galveston Railroad Museum, the Strand, historic mansions, and beachfront areas. Galveston is also known as the Oleander City because of its long history of cultivating oleander shrubs, which grow in gardens, parks, and along streets.
What it is like
Galveston is on the upper Texas coast of the Gulf of Mexico, occupying virtually all of a 32-mile-long island about 2 miles off the Texas mainland and 50 miles southeast of Houston.
Sources: Galveston, Texas (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA); galvestontx.gov