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Strategically located on a peninsula surrounded by Galveston, Trinity and Dickinson bays, San Leon has a rich and varied history. Amos Edwards and his family were the first to settle on the peninsula after the Mexican government opened the Texas tidelands to Anglo colonization in 1828. In 1837, William Gaines and Amos Edwards' son, Monroe, platted a townsite they named San Leon and invited investors to build and develop the town. Little is known of this Republic of Texas-era San Leon, which by the 1880s had reverted to open range. As part of their strategy to retain Galveston's status as Texas' major port and develop it as a major rail shipping point, Galveston businessmen joined with Minnesota investors to develop the town of North Galveston on the peninsula in 1892. They founded the North Galveston, Houston & Kansas City Railroad and laid out streets in a pattern much like the city of Galveston's. Excursion trains brought residents from the Midwest to settle in the burgeoning industrial town until the devastating 1900 storm wiped out North Galveston and ended dreams of Galveston's longevity as a major seaport. In 1910 Houston lawyer Joe Eagle purchased the townsite and returned the San Leon name to the community, advertising it as a bayside resort. Although the 1915 storm did additional damage to the town, Eagle worked to rebuild until the San Leon Hotel burned in 1921. In the decades between the two world wars, the San Leon area was known primarily for its fig and citrus orchards, and at the dawn of the 21st century its economy was based on the commercial seafood and sports fishing industry. (2001) |
