SpaceCity Posted August 31, 2004 Share Posted August 31, 2004 The Seawall The famous Galveston seawall can be seen in this undivided back postcard from around 1903. In an earlier version of this page, I reported that this card may be an artist's conception of the Seawall since I was not familiar with the curve shown in this picture. Other postcard collectors have told me that they think they've seen the same image used for postcards of other places. More recently, however, I have been told that indeed an early version of the Seawall featured this curve. The Seawall curved off the beach down Sixth Street, and left to Eighth Street. Although later this portion was filled in by the Army Corps of Engineers, you can reportedly still see the remains of this structure on Sixth Street. The other card pictured here is a "real photo" card from the 1940s. Notice how the sandy beach is missing in the photo. Although the photograph of this scene might have been taken during a storm with an extremely high tide, beach erosion has long been a problem on the Texas gulf coast. Galveston Hotels Indicative of the influence of tourism on Galveston's urban landscape, rows of glamorous hotels have been built along the beach. Among these, is the Hotel Buccaneer, built in 1928 at the corner of 23rd and Seawall by Shearn Moody. The hotel was populated by news reporters in 1961 during Hurricane Carla. Hurricane Carla packed winds of up to 117 miles per hour in Galveston. It struck the coast near the site of Indianola, which had already been wiped off the map by an earlier storm in 1886. It is estimated that Carla produced winds of nearly 175 mph near its center. The storm is largely responsible for the launch of KHOU news director, Dan Rather, to national recognition. The structure weathered the storm well, but was considered "dowdy" by some when it was donated to the Methodist Church a few months after Carla. The Church turned it into a residence for the elderly called "Moody House". It has since been renamed the "Edgewater Methodist Retirement Center." [Note: Since this page was posted, the Buccaneer has been demolished. It now only lives in our memories and in postcards and photographs.] If there is a single hotel that has continuously been symbolic of the luxurious tourist industry of Galveston is the Hotel Galvez. Costing $1 million at the time of its construction, the hotel was re-vitalized and renovated in the 1980s, at a cost several times that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted November 17, 2004 Share Posted November 17, 2004 Wonderful pictures. Thanks for sharing them. I always love looking at old pictures of places. it is fun to see how much places have changed over the years. And not always for the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plumber2 Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 <span style='color:purple'><span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>Wonderful pictures. Thanks for sharing them. I always love looking at old pictures of places. it is fun to see how much places have changed over the years. And not always for the better.</span></span> The Mayflower got demolished this week. Sad ending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted January 31, 2007 Share Posted January 31, 2007 That is sad. It was such a nice place at one time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.S.O.N. Posted January 31, 2007 Share Posted January 31, 2007 The Mayflower got demolished this week. Sad ending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A.S.O.N. Posted February 2, 2007 Share Posted February 2, 2007 Galveston Hotels [Note: Since this page was posted, the Buccaneer has been demolished. It now only lives in our memories and in postcards and photographs.] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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