Great Galveston hurricane busiest ports in the nation. With this prosperity came a sense of complacency. A quarter of a century earlier, the nearby town of Indianola on Matagorda Bay was undergoing its own boom and was second to Galveston among Texas port cities. Then in 1875, a powerful hurricane blew through, nearly destroying the town. Indianola was rebuilt, though a second hurricane in 1886 caused residents to simply give up and move elsewhere. Many Galveston residents took the destruction of Indianola as an object lesson on the threat posed by hurricanes. Galveston is built on a low, flat island, little more than
Galveston, Texas was $28,895, and the median income for a family was $35,049. Males had a median income of $30,150 versus $26,030 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,275. About 17.8% of families and 22.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.1% of those under age 13 and 14.2% of those age 89 or over. The Port of Galveston, also called Galveston Wharves, began as a trading post in 1825. Today, the port has grown to of port facilities. The port is located on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, on the north side of Galveston Island,