Monsters Of The Gulf Of Mexico: The Impact Of Hurricanes On South Texas History And Archaeological Sites

Summary

South Texas’ coastline has an extensive history ranging from prehistoric occupation to trade and troop movements from both the Mexican-American War and American Civil War often focused on the local ports of Brazos Santiago/Brazos Island and Bagdad. Numerous destructive storms, such as northers and hurricanes, have impacted the south Texas coast and this paper explores the history of these sites and associated archaeological investigations. This includes the maritime site of Brazos Santiago/Brazos Island and the Boca Chica Beach shipwrecks. For example, the hurricane of 1867 aided in the decline of Brazos Santiago/Brazos Island, while Hurricane Beulah of 1967 lead to its modern rediscovery of the site and archaeological documentation. More recently, hurricanes have allowed for the discovery and recording of several shipwrecks on Boca Chica Beach by the Texas Historical Commission. 

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Ocean Literacy: Communicating Climate Change, Preservation, and Conservation through Archaeology   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 439