HOUSTON – Note: This information was provided to KPRC2 in a press release.
This fall, the Houston Ship Channel celebrates 100 years as a leading deep-water channel and one of Houston's most important assets. The road to deep water took enormous public support and perseverance, and the investment has paid off handsomely for Houston, Harris County, and Texas. The Houston Metropolitan area has now surpassed New York City to become the nation's top exporting metropolitan area.
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"No great thing is accomplished without partnership," stated Janiece M. Longoria, chairman of the Port Commission of the Port of Houston Authority. "The Houston Ship Channel, the marine highway that has created enormous opportunity and prosperity for this region, came into being because of great visionaries 100 years ago that had the bold idea to create an inland port 52 miles from the sea. That bold vision came to fruition through a public-private partnership between Houston citizens and the federal government that devised the "Houston Plan", a cost sharing model to dredge the channel. Because of that vision and partnership, the City of Houston has grown to be the fourth largest city in the nation, and is the leading metropolitan export region in the U.S."
The Houston Ship Channel and Port of Houston annually contribute more than 1 million jobs and $179 billion in economic impact in Texas alone. Nationally, 2.1 million jobs are generated and nearly $500 billion gained.
Celebrating a history as rich as its legacy
In the early days of Houston, the shallow draft of Buffalo Bayou to the foot of Main Street was a sufficient waterway. Large-ship cargo was offloaded near Galveston onto barges for the long and winding trip from the Gulf of Mexico, a costly compromise for Houston's lack of a deep-water channel.
Local business leaders sent a steady stream of evidence to their representatives in Washington to prove the financial necessity for a ship channel, highlighting the many international customers who depended on Texas cotton. U.S. Representative Tom Ball, for which the community north of Houston is named, spent countless hours trying to convince his congressional colleagues to support a deep-water ship channel for Houston. But maritime destiny was not evident until September 1900, when a devastating hurricane slammed into Galveston, creating one of the worst disasters in American history. More than 8,000 lost their lives and much of the island city and its businesses were swept away by the waves.
Ball's arguments for a protected ship channel 52 miles upstream from Galveston's exposed location took on greater meaning. Coupled with the discovery of oil at Spindletop in 1901 and crops, such as rice, beginning to rival the dominant export crop of cotton, Houston's need for a ship channel grew, demanding a waterway with the capacity to handle newer and larger vessels.
Tom Ball proposed a revolutionary concept that today is common practice. He suggested that Houston share the cost with the federal government for dredging a deep-water channel to Houston. Congressional Rivers and Harbors Committee Chairman, D.S. Alexander, and the other congressional committee members were amazed by the bold proposal from Houston. The congressmen voted unanimously to accept the idea, which became known as the Houston Plan.
The Harris County Houston Ship Channel Navigation District was formed and a campaign was launched to persuade voters to approve $1.25 million in bonds to pay for the District's share of the waterway. No campaign to date had ever been conducted more passionately and the voters carried the measure by a majority of 16 to one.
Despite voter enthusiasm, the bonds needed to be sold. Unlike today, such financial instruments were little known then by prospective buyers, and the banks and brokers weren't interested because of the small commissions they could earn.
Jesse H. Jones, who would be a major force in the ship channel's destiny, took it upon himself to ask each Houston bank to accept the bonds. In just 24 hours, he persuaded each bank to buy its share, proving to become an investment that has paid off many times over.
Work on the deep channel commenced in 1912. The laborers took a keen interest in similar precedent-setting maritime projects of the time, such as the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the 51-mile long Panama Canal.
On the morning of September 7, 1914, signaled by a whistle, the channel was complete. A celebration to match this long-sought accomplishment was planned. A parade was held downtown and 40 blocks were strung with a new invention: incandescent lights. A ceremony to open the channel was held Tuesday morning, November 10, 1914, with dignitaries gathered at the Turning Basin in great anticipation.
Thousands of people attended the ceremony, which was marked by a 21-gun salute. From his office in Washington, D.C., President Woodrow Wilson fired a cannon via remote control to officially mark the channel as open for operation.
A band played the National Anthem from a barge in the center of the Turning Basin, while Sue Campbell, daughter of then-Houston Mayor Ben Campbell, sprinkled white roses into the water from the top deck of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Windom.
Since then, the growth of Houston's Ship Channel has been phenomenal. The Houston Ship Channel is recognized as a feat of civil engineering. More importantly, it connects Houston to the world, with the port continually leading the nation in terms of foreign tonnage, ranking 2nd in overall tonnage.
Great promise for the next 100 years
The Panama Canal is undergoing an expansion to double its capacity, enabling the second time in 100 years for the Panama Canal and the Houston Ship Channel to come together in confluence. With its location on the Gulf Coast, and the sheer size and quality of its infrastructure, the Port of Houston is the gateway to the heartland of America for distributing consumer goods, including prolific container imports from Asia.