Jetty under Construction (Click for larger image) B/W Images courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration

.....Jetties are basically a wall of boulders in the water. The idea in Galveston was first used in the mid-1800's. Sandbars were

developing in the harbor entrance. Between Galveston and Bolivar, a hidden menace was lurking and growing. From 1843 to 1869, pilots noticed a decrease in the deptha across 'the bar' from 12 feet to 8 feet. This forced some ships to have to wait for high tide before they could enter the harbor.

.....A newly formed Board of Harbor Improvements approved a plan created by Captain Charles Fowler to sink a series of cedar piles to move the current so it would focus across the sandbar and wash it away. The plan was a success (in 1873 the depth was back to 12 feet) , and additional funding and assistance from the federal government was sought. In 1874, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began a project to build jetties from the Eastern tip of Galveston Island and the Western tip of Bolivar Peninsula out into the Gulf of Mexico.

.....The Corps put out large wicker cylinders filled with sand. The plan failed. They tried again in 1880 with pinebrush and cane mattresses and again were faced with failure. Galvestonians were disappointed and angry and felt that funds had been wasted. But a battle ensued over the next 10 years over continued federal funding, who would build the jetty, design and a host of other problems. Finally, in 1890, the U.S. Senate approved the Galveston Harbor Bill.

Jetty Train (Click for larger image) B/W Images courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration

.....The construction of the jetties took several years. First a railroad trestle was built over the water. Then the rail cars were taken out over the water and they dropped five-ton blocks of sandstone to form a wall. Finally when it reached the surface, they capped them with granite blocks.