Seabrook, Texas

Seabrook is a city in Harris County in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 9,443 at the 2000 census and estimated to be 11,182 in 2006.

Seabrook is well-known among Houston metropolitan area residents for its fish markets on Waterfront Drive where resident shrimpers and fishermen bring in their catches daily. Besides bordering the bay, the city encompasses marshes though which runoff from inland fields drain to the bay. There are eight miles (13 km) of continuous trails from Hammer Street to Galveston Bay at Pine Gully Park, where the Lucky Trails Marathon is run in March. Seabrook is also host to the Texas Concours d'Elegance "Keels & Wheels" classic car and boat show held each year the first weekend in May at Lakewood Yacht Club.^{[citation needed]}

History

The piece of land was purchased by Seabrook W. Sydnor in 1895. In March 1903, the Seabrook Company of Houston created a layout of the proposed Seabrook Town site. The new town attracted fishermen, merchants and even a few residents. The historic downtown that was built then still stands today, with many locals running their businesses. Most are antique shops of bed and breakfast places.^[3]

The Galveston Hurricane of 1900 demolished the local school, but by 1905 it was restored and was run by three teachers who taught 100 students. The local schools became part of the Clear Creek Independent School District in 1947.

The population of Seabrook rose from 200 to 560 before the Great Depression, but fell to 200 in 1936, and remained at 400 from 1940 until 1947, when the Albert and Ernest Fay shipyard opened. It could handle 150 boats, and opened up jobs and is the main cause of the population increase. Despite damage from Hurricane Carla, a bridge linking^[4] Seabrook and Kemah was completed in 1961 and in addition to the opening of the Johnson Space Center (JSC), the population numbered approximately 6,000. Then in 1986, the decision was finally made to start the construction of a fixed-span bridge that was tall enough for sailboats to pass under. After this bridge was finished, Highway 146 was linked all the way from Galveston to Beltway 8. This highly increased the population of Seabrook, TX. Now the population is resting at around 13,000 people. Seabrook's residents have various ways to make a living. Some of the jobs include working in chemical plants, construction work and working in sales. There are plenty of working class citizens in Seabrook and there are also job's in NASA and business owners.

Geography

Seabrook is located on Galveston Bay at Clear Lake, southeast of Houston near Pasadena and La Porte.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.5 square miles (56 km²), of which 5.7 square miles (15 km²) is land and 15.8 square miles (41 km²), 73.36%, is water.

Damage from Hurricane Ike

The city of Seabrook was under mandatory evacuation for Hurricane Ike on the morning of September 13, 2008. Hurricane Ike was the 3rd most destructive hurricane to hit the United States. In Seabrook, the storm surge not only knocked out the streets as a means of transportation, but also knocked the power out for the entire city, along with many others. Because Seabrook is surrounded by water, the aftermath of debris and boats on the roads was phenomenal from all of the boat docks close to shore. Seabrook residents were left without power and running water for up to a month after Hurricane Ike made landfall.^{[citation needed]}

A month after the hurricane Seabrook was still dealing with people not being able the live in the conditions, even after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) came.

The students zoned to schools in the Clear Creek Independent School District (which are all the residents in Seabrook) missed almost three weeks of school due the evacuation and the damage to buildings and roads in the Seabrook and surrounding areas. Some buildings, such as the Public Library, are closed indefinitely due to the damage done by the hurricane.

Pelican Project

The goal of the Pelican Path Project has been to improve Seabrook’s identity as a community^[5] and to show the connectedness of the city by its many bed and breakfasts, close family values, available water attractions and its unique downtown of small businesses. Seabrook is in the center of the third largest boating community in the country, and with that comes many opportunities. Most businesses in Seabrook have bought a pelican from Pelican Project and had it customized to their needs in order to not only represent their business, but also the city of Seabrook. This project has not only attracted more people to Seabrook, but has also made Seabrook a lot closer as a city. Incredible artists from all over the state of Texas who have participated in this project have attracted future plans for more cultural art projects in Seabrook. Seabrook, a bird sanctuary on one of the largest migratory paths in North America, is home to both the brown and white pelicans.

Seabrook Trail System

The city features an extensive trail system built from crushed granite, which connects most of the city's parks, including Robinson and Pine Gully Parks. The trail system traverses habitats for a wide variety of wildlife.

In addition to the city being designated as a bird sanctuary, the city includes four sites on the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail.^[6] The only other site in the Clear Lake area on this Texas trail is the Armand Bayou Nature Center.

Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 9,443 people, 4,094 households, and 2,386 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,647.5 people per square mile (636.3/km²). There were 4,536 housing units at an average density of 791.4/sq mi (305.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 88.92% White, 2.11% African American, 0.51% Native American, 3.31% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.76% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.77% of the population.

There were 4,094 households out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.7% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 38.4% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 5.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 106.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $54,175, and the median income for a family was $66,815. Males had a median income of $50,322 versus $32,161 for females. The per capita income for the city was $29,534. About 2.8% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.

Government and infrastructure

The United States Postal Service Seabrook Post Office is located at 1600 2nd Street.^[7]

Transportation

Harris County Transit operates public transportation in Seabrook.^[8][9]

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Pupils in Seabrook attend schools in Clear Creek Independent School District. The community is within the Board of Trustee District 1,^[10] represented by Robert Allan Davee as of 2008.^[11]

Most Seabrook residents are zoned to Bay Elementary School (Seabrook) which was originally known as Seabrook Elementary back in 1930 but was changed in 1969 to Bay Elementary after the principal who had served for many years. Some are zoned to Ed White Elementary School (El Lago) which was built in 1965 and was named after Edward White II, the famous astronaut who died in the fire working on the Apollo mission.

All Seabrook residents are zoned to Seabrook Intermediate School (Seabrook). Seabrook Intermediate also houses the Science Magnet Program, which offers an enriched Science curriculum with many outside science activities. This program is an application-process program and the students accepted are gifted in the field of science. Seabrook Intermediate also houses the Living Materials Center, which is the home for over 60 species of animals. The Living Materials Center is available to all students in the school.^[12]

All Seabrook residents are zoned to Clear Lake High School (Houston). Clear Lake is a very competitive high school both academically and in the sports department. The Clear Lake Falcon football team and the Lady Falcon Volleyball team have high achievements. Clear Lake High School and Clear Creek High School have been rivals since the beginning of the district. Beat Creek and Beat Lake week are annual traditions for both schools to have. These weeks are just as important as Homecoming Week. Beginning with the 2010-2011 School Year, High School Freshmen and Sophomores in Seabrook will begin attending the new Clear Falls High School in League City ^[13], which is being constructed at an integrated Education Village, a single campus housing schools from K-12. Their mascot, announced in January 2010, will be the Knights, with the school colors of Green, Blue and Black.^[14]

Public libraries

The Harris County Public Library Evelyn Meador Branch serves the community. The Evelyn Meador Branch Library opened on June 26, 1988. The original planning of the library started in 1985 when five Seabrook residents met Harris County Commissioner Jim Fonteno. The library went from 4,500 square feet (420 m²) to 4,500 square feet (420 m²) after the Friends of the Evelyn Meador Library group campaigned for an expansion. As of December 6, 2008, the Harris County Public Library Evelyn Meador Branch is closed indefinitely due to Damage from Hurricane Ike.^[15]

See also

• Greater Houston
• Galveston Bay Area

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
3. ^ http://www.seabrooktourism.com/history.html
4. ^ Antrobus, Sally. Galveston Bay. Texas A&M University Press. 2005. 138-139.
5. ^ http://www.pelicanpathproject.com/html/mission_statement.html
6. ^ Antrobus, Sally (2005). Galveston Bay. Texas A&M University Press. p. 137. ISBN 1585444618. http://books.google.com/books?id=YkQ3G9DSVQIC.
7. ^ "Post Office Location - SEABROOK." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.
8. ^ "Routes / Maps." Harris County Transit. Retrieved on January 15, 2010.
9. ^ "Clear Lake/La Porte/Seabrook 5." Harris County Transit. Retrieved on January 15, 2010.
10. ^ District 1 Map. Clear Creek Independent School District. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.
11. ^ "School Board Members: Bios and Contact Information." Clear Creek Independent School District. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.
12. ^ http://www.ccisd.net/school/seabrook.html
13. ^ http://www2.ccisd.net/AboutCCISD/AttendanceZones/Boundaries.aspx
14. ^ http://www2.ccisd.net/OurSchools/ClearFalls.aspx
15. ^ "Evelyn Meador Branch Library." Harris County Public Library. Retrieved on December 6, 2008.

External links

• City of Seabrook's Official website
• Seabrook Tourism website
• Seabrook Pelican Path Project
• Texas Concours d'Elegance "Keels & Wheels" classic car and boat show
• Lucky Trails Marathon
• Seabrook, Texas from the Handbook of Texas Online
• South Seabrook Marine District Waterfront Redevelopment Study

Categories: Chambers County, Texas | Galveston County, Texas | Harris County, Texas | Cities in Texas | Galveston Bay Area | Greater Houston