America’s Deadliest Disaster

The Richest City

The Richest City

A Changing World

Harry had a happy life in Galveston. He was close with his family. He had a lot of friends. He was good at sports. He lived in the biggest home on his street. Harry and his pals zipped through the city on streetcars.

In 1900, Galveston was the most important city in Texas. Many rich people lived there. It was filled with white sand beaches and big, fancy homes. The streets were paved with crushed oyster shells. This made the streets sparkle like they’d been sprinkled with diamonds.

But the city floods easily. It’s between the Gulf of Mexico and Galveston Bay.

During big storms, waves rose up from both bodies of water. It turned city streets into rushing streams. This is what was happening on the rainy and windy morning of September 8.

But no one was too worried. In fact, thousands of people went to the beach that day. They were cheering the crashing waves!

Nobody understood that the city would soon be slammed by a hurricane.

As a kid living in Galveston, Harry had every reason to feel blessed. He had a happy family and plenty of friends. He was an athletic kid, big and fast. He even had a summer job at the railroad station, which paid 16 cents an hour—not bad for 1900.

And what a time it was in America! New inventions and fresh ideas were transforming lives all across the country, especially in cities like Galveston.

The rooms of Harry’s family’s elegant house were lit by modern electric lights. Harry and his pals zipped through the city on clanging streetcars. Harry could borrow books from Galveston’s public library, the first in Texas.

Cities all across America were booming. But few had grown as quickly as Galveston. Perched on an island off the southern coast of Texas, Galveston had been founded in the 1830s. By 1900, it was Texas’s richest and most important city. Every day, ships loaded up with American cotton and wheat steamed from Galveston to countries around the world. Arriving ships were crowded with immigrants—people coming to America to start new lives.

And imagine what those newcomers saw as they came ashore. There were the white sand beaches and elegant mansions built by Galveston’s millionaires. Gardens spilled over with sweet-smelling flowered plants called oleanders. The streets, paved with crushed oyster shells, sparkled like they’d been sprinkled with diamonds.

True, this glittering city was prone to flooding. It was sandwiched between the Gulf of Mexico and Galveston Bay. During big storms, water rose up from both the Gulf and the Bay, turning city streets into rushing streams. This is what was happening on the rainy and windy morning of September 8, when Harry was heading to work at the railroad station.

But Harry wasn’t worried, and neither were most people in the city. As the winds grew stronger, thousands of people gathered excitedly on the beach to cheer the wildly crashing waves.

What nobody understood was that this was not just a regular storm. The city was about to be slammed by one of the most powerful forces of nature on Earth: a hurricane.

Within just hours, most of Galveston would be gone.

The Biggest Killer

The Biggest Killer

No Escape

Hurricanes form over oceans. Their winds can destroy buildings. They can lift trains off tracks. Trillions of gallons of rain can fall. These giant, swirling storms are deadly. They have killed more people in America than any other natural disaster.

Weather experts knew a bad storm was heading toward the U.S. But they didn’t know where it would hit. Back then, scientists didn’t have tools to help them track storms. So most of their predictions were wrong.

This is why no one in Galveston knew that a strong hurricane was heading toward their city—until it was too late.

The Raging Sea

The Raging Sea

A Raging Sea

The hours passed by. Hundreds of houses and buildings were destroyed. Harry’s house was filled with scared neighbors. His mother had invited in anyone who needed help.

Around 7:30 p.m., the winds changed. A 15-foot-high storm surge came rushing in from the Gulf. The entire city turned into a raging sea. Houses, schools, and churches fell to the ground.

By midnight, Harry’s home was the only one on his street still standing. “The house was so full, and there was so much worry,” Harry wrote. “There were people praying on their knees.”

Daring Rescue

The Rescue

Daring Rescue

Daring Rescue

When Harry went into his kitchen, he heard the woman outside calling for help. “I decided to get some good swimmers and go out and rescue her,” Harry wrote.

They followed the sound of the woman’s screaming voice. They finally found her standing on the roof of a house. Inside were 36 people, including 13 children and babies.

The house was floating in the water. The wind was ripping it to pieces. But over the next hour, Harry and his neighbors managed to lead everyone through the raging waters and back to Harry’s house. They made two trips back and forth until everyone was safe.

His mother welcomed all of them with hot coffee and fresh biscuits.

By 1:30 a.m., there were 140 people at Harry’s house. There were dogs, cats, and birds too. People sat together crying, praying, and waiting for the storm to end.

Harry and some neighbors followed the sound of the woman’s screaming voice. They finally found her. She was standing on the roof of a house. Inside were 36 people, including 13 children.

The house was floating in the water. The wind was ripping it to pieces. But Harry and his neighbors got everyone through the water and back to Harry’s house. His mother welcomed all of them with hot coffee and fresh biscuits.

By 1:30 a.m., there were 140 people at Harry’s house. There were dogs, cats, and birds too. People sat together crying, praying, and waiting for the storm to end.

When Harry went into his kitchen, he heard the woman outside calling for help. “I decided to get some good swimmers and go out and rescue her,” Harry wrote.

They followed the sound of the woman’s screaming voice. They finally found her. She was standing on the roof of a house. Inside the house were 36 people, including 13 children and babies.

The house was floating in the water. The wind was ripping it to pieces. But Harry and his neighbors helped everyone through the raging waters back to Harry’s house. They had to make two trips to get them all there safely.

His mother welcomed everyone with hot coffee and fresh biscuits. By 1:30 a.m., there were 140 people at Harry’s house. There were dogs, cats, and birds too.

People sat together crying, praying, and waiting for the storm to end.

Harry’s father told Harry to go into the kitchen, open the window a crack, and listen for voices of people needing help.

That’s when Harry heard the woman calling.

“Something had to be done,” Harry wrote. “I decided to get some good swimmers and go out and rescue her.”

He told his father his plan but not his mother—he didn’t want to worry her. And then he and a neighbor set out into the churning water. They floated on a downed telephone pole and rode the wild waves, following the sound of the woman’s screaming voice.

They finally found her standing on top of the roof of a house. Inside the house were 36 people, including 13 children and babies.

The house was floating in the water. The wind was ripping it to pieces. Soon it would be torn apart and carried away.

Over the next hour, Harry and his neighbor managed to lead these terrified survivors through the raging waters and back to Harry’s house. They made two trips, back and forth until everyone was safe.

His mother welcomed all of them with hot coffee and fresh biscuits.

By 1:30 a.m., there were 140 people at Harry’s house, plus dogs, cats, and birds. People huddled together, crying, praying, waiting for their city to be freed from the hurricane’s devouring jaws.

Lucky to Survive

Lucky to Survive

Lucky to Survive

Lucky to Survive

By Sunday morning, the sun was shining. But at least 8,000 people had been killed. The Great Galveston Hurricane is the deadliest natural disaster in the U.S.

It took more than a year to clean up the city. Today a huge wall protects it from storms. It is famous for its beaches. But it’s not Texas’s most important city.

Harry knew how lucky he and his family had been to survive. He grew up to have his own family. He lived to be 82. Harry’s grandson Peter says Harry was happy, but never forgot the 1900 hurricane. “He told his story every Thanksgiving,” Peter says.

“By Sunday morning, the sun was shining,” Harry wrote. “But the water was still three feet deep in the streets. What a wreck it left.” 

There was nothing but ruin. At least 8,000 people had been killed. The Great Galveston Hurricane is the deadliest natural disaster that has happened in the U.S.

It took more than a year for the storm wreckage to be cleared. Bit by bit, the city was rebuilt. A huge wall protects it from storms. It’s famous for its beaches.

But it is no longer the richest and most important city in Texas.

Harry knew how lucky he and his family had been to survive. He grew up to become a business leader. He had his own family. He lived to be 82.

Harry’s grandson Peter says his grandfather was happy. But he never forgot the 1900 hurricane.

“He told his story every Thanksgiving,” Peter says.

“By Sunday morning the sun was shining,” Harry wrote. “But the water was still three feet deep in the streets. What a wreck it left.”

Galveston had mostly disappeared. For miles around, there was nothing but ruin. Silence hung over the city as dazed survivors searched for their families and friends. Bodies were everywhere. At least 8,000 people were killed—out of a population of just 40,000.

Harry knew how lucky he and his family had been to survive.

It took more than a year for the storm wreckage to be cleared. Bit by bit, the city was rebuilt, and a huge wall was put up to protect it from future storms. Galveston slowly recovered. Today, it is a charming resort city, famous for its beaches. But it would never reclaim its place as the richest and most important city in Texas. The Great Galveston Hurricane, to this day, is the deadliest natural disaster in American history.

As for Harry, he grew up to become a business leader with a family of his own. He died in 1967, at the age of 82.

Harry’s grandson Peter says his grandfather led a happy and successful life. “He was very involved in the community and was a great believer in family,” Peter remembers. But Harry never forgot the 1900 hurricane. “He told his story every Thanksgiving,” Peter says.