Boyds Untethered #14


Galveston is a working port with a long and rich history.

It was established in 1825 by proclamation from the Congress of Mexico.... as what is now Texas was still a part of Mexico then. 

That makes it the oldest port in the Gulf of Mexico, west of New Orleans. During the late 19th century the port was the busiest on the gulf coast and the 2nd busiest in the country, after New York.

The port is owned and operated by the City of Galveston and is completely self-sustaining, receiving no taxpayer funding.

It is equipped to handle all types of cargo including containers, dry and liquid bulk, refrigerated and more. One entire wharf is used by Del Monte for the importing of bananas and BMW has a new vehicle distribution center here. 

In 2000 a long quest to lure cruise ships was successful even though Galveston is unique in the world of cruise terminals as it can be affected by fog.... particularly in December, January and February. Today Galveston is the 4th busiest cruise terminal in the country and in the Top 10 worldwide.  An interesting twist on cruising Galveston style, is that 2/3 of the passengers who embark here drive to reach the port.... making parking a big source of revenue for the port. There are a number of warehouses along the water front that are now used for that purpose.

All those big ships (cargo and cruise) coming and going need a little help to get in and out.... and that’s the job of tugs like the one you see pictured here.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Boyds Untethered #59

Image
Our long time  friends  Jay and Sue gave us the wine glass for an anniversary. Our 2yr old friend, from the archery range, Annabelle picked the rose for us from her garden. I think they go pretty well together… and how lucky are we.
Read more

Boyds Untethered #51

Image
When the Galveston City Company laid out the city in 1838, it was done in a grid-like fashion, where all of the streets that ran north to south were assigned a number with 21st street being labeled as the "center" of the city and thus, it was also called Centre Street. North to south streets east of 21st decreased in their numbered assignment as one traveled east and increased in their numbered assignment as one traveled west.  When the Sandusky map of Galveston was drawn in 1845, the city stopped at 7th Street to the east and 57th Street to the west. Some of these names evolved, too, as 21st/ Centre street did, most notable 25th Street, also known as Bath Avenue (because it led to the bathhouses along the beach, and today it's Rosenberg, in honor of Henry Rosenberg) and 23rd Street, known as Tremont because of the original and second incarnation of the Tremont Hotel, both of which fronted 23rd Street. Contemporary re-branding of 21st, 22nd, and 24th Streets honor three l...
Read more

Boyds Untethered #26

Image
There aren’t many things about Galveston that we don’t like. We have the beachfront lifestyle we were looking for in a city big enough to have all we need. But at the same time we have a small town feel. If I did have a complaint it would be about the sunsets. The quality is fine but the beach is on the wrong side (east) of the island to get great ones, daily. Some say I should get up to see the sunrises.... but a sun event needs a beer and that still seems wrong for breakfast. But all that being said, this one’s not too bad.... so maybe more after dinner beach time is in order as the warm weather comes.
Read more