Port of Galveston to Celebrate 200th Anniversary in 2025

By Rodger Rees, Galveston Wharves Port Director and CEO

Spanning two centuries, the Port of Galveston's fascinating history could fill a book with tales of pirates, naval battles, riches, and resilience. The port will mark its remarkable 200^th anniversary in 2025 with public events, publication of a history book and more.

We're planning a full year of activities to share the port's history, spotlight the contributions of the port and its partners, and celebrate our past, present and future.

We invite the Galveston community and our port partners to join us in a year of celebrations. Activities include the following:

• National Maritime Day on May 22, 2025
• Party on the Pier public event on Oct. 17, 2025
• Bicentennial gala on Oct. 18, 2025
• Port history book published in October

The Galveston Wharves also is inviting community partners to present their own programs that describe the port's connection to Galveston's community, commercial and maritime histories.

Visit the port's bicentennial website, www.portofgalveston200.com, for more information about bicentennial events, sponsorship opportunities and port history. Email [email protected] for sponsorships and to sign up for port news, including bicentennial updates.

A long, rich history

The Port of Galveston is the oldest port west of New Orleans. It was established by a proclamation issued by the Congress of Mexico on October 17, 1825, while the land known as Texas still belonged to Mexico.

The port played a vital commercial and military role in the Texas Republic's battle for independence from Mexico. Its harbor was home to the Texas Navy, a squadron of four sailing vessels, which contributed to Sam Houston's success over General Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana at the Battle of San Jacinto in 1836.

As the natural harbor grew in prominence, the city of Galveston, founded in 1839, grew around the port. By the 1870s, the Port of Galveston was a major U.S. commercial center with far-reaching maritime and rail connections. This fact helped Galveston win $6.2 million in federal funding in 1890 to become a deepwater port. By 1899, the port was the world's foremost cotton port.

In 1940, the citizens of Galveston voted to buy the privately held port properties to become a self-sustaining city entity, which it remains today.

Since then, key milestones have included the federal harbor deepening from 36 feet to 40 feet in 1976, longtime tenant Wallenius Lines moving its cargo operations to the port in 1995, and the first sailing of the Carnival Celebration, the first cruise ship to homeport here, in 2000.

Today, the 840-acre port is a thriving commercial center with infrastructure and assets to serve growing cruise, cargo and commercial businesses. The port is the fourth most popular cruise home port in the U.S., hosting five major cruise lines and more than 1.5 million cruise passengers a year.

The port also leases and maintains a wide range of cargo facilities on the deep-water Galveston Harbor, which is ranked among the top 40 busiest U.S. cargo waterways.

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