Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston–Houston ""Mother Church of Texas"". The prefecture was elevated to a vicariate apostolic on July 10, 1841. On May 4, 1847, the vicariate became the Diocese of Galveston in the Province of New Orleans and St. Mary Cathedral Basilica was designated the cathedral. In 1926, the then-diocese was placed in the newly created Province of San Antonio. After the devastating Galveston Hurricane of 1900, Houston began to expand after the Port of Houston was completed. At the request of Wendelin J. Nold, fifth bishop of Galveston, Pope John XXIII authorised the construction of a co-cathedral of convenience in Houston, and on
Free State of Galveston perhaps the second most infamous red-light district in the early 20th century and most major cities in the state had significant vice activities at least until mid-century, though most went into decline before Galveston's did. During the Open Era Galveston's vice industries dominated, while most other areas of the state were at times forced to crack down on vice due to public pressure. The city's permissive attitude was not confined to gangs, politicians and elite businessmen. The citizenry in general took pride in the traditional Galveston approach to freedom. A notable example of this occurred at a political rally where