The Junior Historian, Volume 8, Number 4, January 1948 Page: 21
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T HE JUNIOR HISTORIAN
EARLY DEVELOPMENT OF GALVESTON
COUNTY
by ANNA Ru'i MARSALIS
Texas City High SchoolII 1 study( of the place names of
:lny county will reveal much of
thie history an(d legend of that
area. Galveston County is no exception.
One has only to delve into the mysteries
sulrroundling the names of the numerous
communities that dlot this region to
prove the truth of that statement. Many
such things as religion, location, and
famous men affected the naming of the
towns and communities of Galveston
County.
Galveston, which is the county seat
of Galveston County, was named after
Counit Bernardo (de GAlvez, the leader
of anl expedition stationed in Galveston.
(;Galveston, with a population of 60,862,
is located on an island off the southeast-
ern coast of Texas and is connected to
the mainland by two modern causeways.
Galveston's island position and lanld-
locked )ayv have been recognized since
the (lays of Luis Aury and Jean Lafitte,
pri\vateers, who were the first to sail their
vessels from this port. Galveston is an
export point for cotton, vegetable and
animal products, wheat and flour, crude
sulphur, ores, and many other com-
modities. It does an extensive coastwise
as well as foreign business. Galveston
is well known for its magnificent beach
which attracts tourist trade.
Thirteen miles north of Galveston is
'T'exas City, with a population of 9,500.
It is a deepwater port on the mainland
with a large export of cotton, oil, sul-
phur, and grain. It is called the "Port
of Opportunity." Industries include
petroleum refineries, chemicals, cotton
bagging manufacture, and rubber
plants; and in recent years the largest
and most completely equipped tin
smelter in the world was built. The
promoters dreamed of its becoming alarge city, and so they gave it the name
of "'T.xas City to uphold the name of
el'xa,,.
'L'h land upon which League City
now stands was first owned by a man
nanmed1 Michael Muldoon. J. C. League
took over these holdings, and the town,
although it was first called Clear Creek
after the stream on which it is located,
was later changed to League City. Gal-
veston County Park, with lovely trees
encircling the recreation hall and with
Clear Creek running through the park,
is loc.ited in League City.
A group of Quakers, or Friends as
they were sometimes called, found life
on th.e plains intolerable; so in a beauti-
ful xooded section of northern Galves-
ton County they located a desirable site.
They organized meetings and later
started the Church of Friends. They
became more prosperous and decided to
settle there, building a city. Later they
began their fig industry; now, there
are t ousands of acres of land planted
in figs. The canning factory also con-
tribtt:es much to the friendly little city
called Friendswood.
I.a Marque, three miles west of Texas
City', was originally known as H igh-
lands. The name La Marque was
adopted by the Mainland Company in
the late 189o's because there was an-
other small village of the same name
on the mainland. Many residents of La
Marque work at the different plants in
"['exas City.
Algoa was named for a shipwreck.
When the boat AIgoa was wrecked near
the town of Hughes in an early storm,
residents decided the community's name
shou'd be changed. People farm here
extensively, and some work in near-by
cities.21
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Texas State Historical Association. The Junior Historian, Volume 8, Number 4, January 1948, periodical, January 1948; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth391365/m1/23/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Texas State Historical Association.