DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about High Island, out on the Bolivar Peninsula. Now, most places in Texas got their name, and you just kind of accept it. But High Island — that one earns it.
This coastal community sits atop a salt dome at the east end of Bolivar Peninsula, and that dome pushes the land up about forty-five feet above sea level. Forty-five feet. Out here on the flat Gulf Coast, that is a hill.
And during storms and flooding, it was the only dry land you could see in any direction. Anglos settled the area in the early eighteen hundreds, mostly farmers working the land. Nearly all of High Island lies within the Martin Dunman Survey, granted in 1837.
So even from the very beginning, somebody drew a line around this little rise and said — this one matters. Now among those early residents, one man managed to make a name for himself in a way nobody else quite did. George E.
Smith gained fame from his patented bottled water — drawn from natural springs right there on his land. On the Gulf Coast. Bottled water.
The man was ahead of his time, and he knew it. The town got a real shot of energy in 1886 when the Gulf and Interstate Railroad began operations in the area. A depot went up, new businesses followed, and High Island started to look like somewhere.
Then in 1897, C. T. Cade constructed the Sea View Hotel on the hill overlooking the Gulf of Mexico.
A hotel with a view of the Gulf, sitting on the only high ground for miles around. And that positioning was about to matter in ways C. T.
Cade may or may not have fully reckoned with. In 1900, a hurricane struck the Texas Coast. Flooding rolled over the peninsula.
The Sea View Hotel became a place of refuge. Then in 1915, another hurricane, another surge, and again — that hotel on the hill was where people went to survive. Then came oil.
Successful drilling began on High Island in 1916. And then in 1931, petroleum deposits were found at the perimeter of the salt dome — and that started a full-on oil boom. Employment came to the region, and the little hill that had always been a lifesaver turned out to be sitting on a fortune.
But here's the thing about High Island today. It isn't the hotel or the oil or the bottled water that draws people from around the world now. It's birds.
Migratory birds, riding their ancient flyways down the Gulf Coast, find High Island and land. And word got out. Bird-watchers come annually, from across the country and internationally, to witness it.
A salt dome that saved lives in hurricanes, launched an oil boom, and became one of the most important migratory bird habitats on earth. Forty-five feet above sea level, and it just keeps rising.
What the marker says
The coastal community of High Island sits atop a salt dome at the east end of Bolivar Peninsula. It was named High Island because the hill sits about 45 feet above sea, the only dry land visible during storms and flooding. Settled by Anglos in the early 1800s, nearly all of High Island lies within the Martin Dunman Survey, granted in 1837. The pioneers were mostly farmers, though George E. Smith gained fame from his patented bottled water from natural springs on his land. The town expanded in 1886 when the Gulf and Interstate Railroad began operations in the area. A depot was built, along with many new businesses. In 1897 C. T. Cade constructed the Sea View Hotel on the hill overlooking the Gulf of Mexico. The hotel became a place of refuge in 1900 and 1915 when hurricanes struck the Texas Coast, causing flooding over the peninsula. Oil was discovered on High Island, with successful drilling beginning in 1916. Petroleum deposits found at the perimeter of the salt dome in 1931 started an oil boom, and provided employment for the region. High Island has become recognized internationally as an important habitat for migratory birds, bringing crowds of bird-watchers annually to the area.