History of Galveston County (type galveston into the search box)
Galveston Historical Foundation
League City Historical Society

A Short History

compiled by Gina Heffernan

In 1783, José Antonio de Evia, a Spanish navigator, surveyed a large bay on the Texas coast and named it Galvezton for Viceroy Bernardo de Galvez who supported the United States in the Revolutionary War. Although it was considered a desired area by the Spanish and the Americans, settlers found it a difficult place to live. Surprisingly, the area was first settled by pirates. Louis-Michel Aury, was encouraged by the early Mexican government to base his operations there when they named him resident commissioner of Galveston Island in 1815. Aury established his base there in 1816 but left in 1817 to carry troops to Mexico. On his return, he found another pirate in residence. The island commune of Campeche was established and thriving by 1817. The town belonged to the infamous smuggler, pirate and privateer, Jean Lafitte, who had returned to his illicit activities after being pardoned because of his valiant efforts to save the city of New Orleans during the War of 1812. By 1821, Lafitte had razed his town and moved out of the range of the American military but the value of a port on the island had been proven.

Mexico designated Galveston a port of entry in 1825 and established a small customshouse in 1830. During the Texas Revolution the harbor served as the port for the Texas Navy and the last point of retreat of the Texas government. Following the war Michel B. Menard and a group of investors obtained ownership of 4,605 acres at the harbor to found a town. After platting the land in gridiron fashion and adopting the name "Galveston", Menard and his associates began selling town lots on April 20, 1838. The following year the Texas legislature granted incorporation to the city of Galveston with the power to elect town officers. [TSHA Handbook Online]

On May 15, 1838, Galveston County was formed from territory taken from Harrisburg, Liberty, and Brazoria counties, with governmental organization taking place in 1839. The island city of Galveston was by far the most important population center. The city of Galveston was the republic's largest city and its center of commerce and culture. Port Bolivar on the Bolivar Peninsula was a port of secondary importance. Other development in the area was initially mostly ranching interests and small farming communities. Texas soon joined the United States and Galveston's importance continued to grow as it came to dominate the worldwide cotton trade. As railroads between Galveston, Harrisburg, Houston and other towns were built during the 19th century, small communities grew up along the rail lines. Nevertheless, Galveston still dominated. At the end of the 19th century, a group of investors established Texas City directly across the West Bay from Galveston with the hope of making it a competing port city. The port began operations just before the start of the 20th century. [Wikipedia]

In 1891, while on a duck-hunting trip to the marshlands of a community known as Shoal Point in Galveston Bay, three brothers from Duluth, Minnesota - Jacob R, Henry and Benjamin F. Myers - saw that the area had potential as a major port. Other Duluth shippers joined the Myers brothers in buying 10,000 acres of Galveston Bay frontage, including Shoal Point, and renamed the area Texas City. On May 17, 1893, the "Texas City Improvement Company" filed the first townsite plat. The same year the post office was established. The population soon was 250, mostly from Minnesota and Michigan. In 1893 the federal government gave the Texas City Improvement Company permission to dredge an eight-foot Gulf channel to Texas City. [TSHA Handbook Online]

In September of 1900, an event changed the fate of Galveston and the Texas Gulf Coast. A massive hurricane pushing a 15 foot tidal surge swamped the 8 foot high island, destroying 3600 homes and businesses and killing about 6,000 island residents and visitors and approximately 6,000 on the mainland, too. This storm remains the worst natural disaster in the history of the USA and Galveston, as a port, never recovered. Investors moved to the new port in Texas City and to the thriving inland port at Houston.

A 25 foot channel to Texas City was completed in 1905, and the federal government opened a customs house there. The deepened channel, new railroad connections, and the expansion of warehouses and docks made Texas City an attractive port. Growth was rapid; the number of ships using the Texas City docks increased from twelve in 1904 to 239 in 1910. Increased port activity came in part from the building of the Texas City Refining Company. On September 16, 1911, the city incorporated under the commission form of government with William P. Tarpley, state representative for Galveston County in 1901, as mayor. H. M. Coats and Frank B. Davidson were the first commissioners. In 1913 the little coastal port was overwhelmed by the arrival of the Second Division of the United States Army, which was stationed there to guard American interests during the Mexican revolution. Along with 14,000 troops and 3,000 animals, the military units stationed at Texas City included the First Aero Squadron. The oil boom in Texas began in 1901 and soon pipelines and refineries were built in Texas City. Industrial growth blossomed, especially during World War II. [TSHA Handbook Online]

Galveston, traditionally an attractive tourist destination even before the storm, transformed itself into a major, nationally known destination. It appealed to the nouveau riche Texans who frequently traveled to Texas City for business. This trend reached its height with the rise of the "Maceo crime syndicate" which controlled Galveston establishing a business empire based on gambling, bootlegging, and prostitution. The island's entertainment business spread throughout the county with major casino districts in Kemah and Dickinson enabled by a lax attitude among law enforcement in the county. The county prospered as oil fueled Texas City's industrial growth and wealthy tourists flocked to Galveston and the other entertainment districts. Although the Maceos were shut down in 1950, the island has remained a top tourist attraction and its mainland constituents have prospered in its wake.

Because of the Great Depression, many of the businesses in Texas City closed, and those that remained struggled to survive. But the continued development of the oil industry contributed to economic recovery. In 1931 the "Republic Oil Refinery" opened to produce gasoline, chiefly from crude supplied by independent operators in the new East Texas oilfield. The business revival was quickened in 1934 when "Pan-America Refinery" (forerunner of Amoco), a subsidiary of Standard Oil of Indiana, started operations. The close proximity of the Texas City harbor to the Gulf of Mexico enabled Moore to outbid the Houston Ship Channel for the refinery. By 1939 the population of Texas City had increased to 5,200. The United States commitment to the war in 1941 furthered the boom in Texas City, propelling it into fourth position among Texas ports. Since the Axis threatened England and Holland, the only two sources of tin smelting in the world, the "Defense Plant Corporation" under Jesse H. Jones decided in 1940 to build a tin smelter in the United States. On a site donated by the "Texas City Terminal Railway Company", the "Tin Processing Corporation" began operation of the only smelter in the western hemisphere. The "Longhorn smelter" supplied all the industrial and military needs of the free world. The "M. W. Kellog pipe-bending plant" and "Monsanto Chemical Company" also came to Texas City as national defense industries. Monsanto built a pilot plant to manufacture styrene used in synthetic rubber. During the war, Texas City experienced remarkable growth. [TSHA Handbook Online]

Once again, fate stepped in and tried to change Galveston County. A great explosion shattered Texas City on April 16, 1947. A French ship, Grandecamp, loaded with ammonium nitrate fertilizer, exploded, causing a chain reaction of fires in the other industries along the harbor and the explosions of two United States ships. The disaster, which killed 576 people and injured more than 4,000, caused more than $67 million worth of property damage and is considered the worst industrial accident in the history of the United States as well as one of the largest non-nuclear, man-made explosions.

Fortunately Texans are resilient and the area bounced back. The community's expansion has been to the west, with ten major refining and petrochemical industries forming the base of the seaport. With "NASA's Space Center Houston" just to the north, League City has prospered in more recent years and has overtaken Galveston and Texas City in population. With its business and industry in the east, farming and ranching communities in the west and almost 400 miles of coastline, Galveston County surely has something for everyone.