History of Galveston, Texas 1825, establishing the Port of Galveston, and, in 1830, erected a customs house. During the Texas Revolution, Galveston served as the main port for the Texas Navy. Galveston also served as the capital of the Republic of Texas when, in 1836, interim president David G. Burnet relocated his government there. In 1836, Michel Branamour Menard, a native of Canada, along with several associates, purchased of land for $50,000 from the Austin Colony to found the town that would become the modern city of Galveston. The Congress of the Republic of Texas hired Robert C. Trimble and William Lindsey to survey
Free State of Galveston of the commission. Law enforcement at the county level, and to some degree at the state level, became notoriously tolerant of the illegal activities in Galveston, in no small part because of the prosperity they generated, and the bribery and influence peddled by the Maceos. The city police very early on became entirely complicit. Galveston County Sheriff Frank Biaggne served from 1933 to 1957 and was known for largely disregarding the mainstream illegal activities on the island. When a state committee investigating illegal activities on the island asked the sherriff about his reluctance to raid the Balinese Room, he replied