Gulf Coast - Texas Map

Texas' largest city is Houston. A name that conjures up images of oil wells, cowboy boots and Cadillac convertibles replete with bull-horn hood ornament. Located in the southeast corner of..

City is major deep-water port and one of Texas' most popular seacoast playgrounds. First European to have visited area is believed to have been Spanish explorer Alonzo de Piñeda in..

When first explored by Europeans, the island was an Akokisa Indian site. The Karankawa Indians used the island for hunting and fishing. Pirate Jean Laffite established a settlement in..

Brownsville's roots are as deep as Texas is big. The southernmost city in the state, Brownsville offers the history, culture, traditions, language and people of two great countries all in..

Established in 1824 by Michael Gouldrich, one of Stephen F. Austin's original 300 colonists, when he received a Mexican land grant. In 1898, the Texas & New Orleans Railroad extended..

Small, picturesque village on Laguna Madre, the body of water between the Texas mainland and Padre Island. Seaside atmosphere with accommodations, RV parks, restaurants and shopping. The..

Incorporated in 1973, small resort town is on southern tip of storied Padre Island just across Laguna Madre, the bay separating island from mainland. Access via free causeway on Texas..

This all-American hometown, just south of Houston, is quietly nestled in the endless miles of prairie-like frontier in Brazoria County. The city has grown from a prairie town to a rice and..

Seat of Brazoria County, Angleton was founded in 1890 primarily to provide for a connecting railroad track to southern locations in the county. Faustino Kiber and Lewis Bryan bought land in..

This charming waterfront region is ideally located midway between the big-city allure of Houston and the beaches of Galveston. Encompassing six distinctive cities, the region touches more..

Established 1894; seat of Matagorda County. Matagorda County has a history of ranching, as well as rice, sorghum, corn and cotton production. The county's tourism attractions include..

Grew from small sawmill and store settlement in 1824. This coastal oasis is steeped in rich history as it shares its bay with the San Jacinto Monument and battlegrounds—the birthplace..

"The Museum Capital of Texas." Settlement began when early French and Spanish trappers and explorers established trading post in early 1800s. Beaumont dates from 1824 when it was known as..

Nestled on the banks of the Brazos River, city was founded in 1828 by Stephen F. Austin as one of his original settlements in Texas. Brazoria derives its name from the Spanish word Abrazar..

A community of eight cities situated at the mouth of the Brazos River, each separate, but joined in similar outlook and destiny. Brazosport communities are Clute, Freeport, Jones Creek..

In southern Orange County, town was originally called Prairie View for its location on the coastal prairie. When the Rainbow Bridge was completed in 1938 over the Neches River linking..

City's rich history began at the junction of the old Calvet and Eagle Island plantations. In 1881, the name Clute was adopted when both plantations were bought by Solomon J. Clute, who..

Crystal Beach, originally known as Patton, stretches about seven miles along Texas 87 on Bolivar Peninsula. Patton was a railroad stop until the trains stopped operation in the early 1940s...

Founded in 1892 by Simon West, was named for privately owned area park for deer. Railroad station established in 1892, and post office established 1893. Population of 100 in 1940 grew..

Located at the edge of the Galveston metropolitan area, Dickinson began in 1824 when John Dickinson âÄî for whom the town was named âÄî received a land..

Railroad reached area in 1880s, and Mexican cowboys who brought cattle herds to railhead called the site "el campo" (the camp). When the cowboys bedded down they could see the lights of a..

Harlingen is home to everything tropical, from the red-crowned parrots to the palm trees and bougainvilleas that dominate the landscape. Aloe vera farms and citrus groves surround the..

County seat of Waller County. Established in 1856 as railroad town when Hempstead Town Company offered lots and blocks to Houston and Texas Central Railroad as inducement for line to run..

In the 1840s, German colonists landed, led by Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels (see New Braunfels). In the 1850s, an army depot supplied the frontier forts of all Texas. Here, two shiploads..

First settled in 1872, the town square was laid out in 1895. The city was named for the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railroad. William Eule introduced rice farming to the dry-land farmers in..

Located in the Wild Horse Desert, just west of the Gulf of Mexico, and the birthplace of the American ranching industry. Originated as a town along the railroad built by the St. Louis..

City was originally known as Highlands, probably for its location near Highland Creek, and it was renamed in the 1890s when residents learned of another mainland community of the same..

On the south shore of Clear Lake along I-45 and just 20 miles south of Houston near NASA's Johnson Space Center, this is a dynamic, ever-expanding city. League City offers visitors..

Located in south central Cameron County, the town was named for the fresnos (ash) trees scattered in the woods and along streams. In 1912, Lon C. Hill, an early land owner, formed a..

Located on a salt dome in Chambers County, the community was established in 1849 as Barbers Hill. Postal authorities suggested a name change to Mont Belvieu to avoid confusion with other..

In the late 1800s, Arthur Stillwell, owner of the Port Arthur Townsite Company, constructed a railroad from Kansas City to Lake Sabine and gave many of the towns along the way Dutch names..

Texas' easternmost city on the Sabine River boundary with Louisiana; established 1836, the year of Texas' independence. Named for landmark of wild orange groves on banks of the Sabine, as..

Founded 1903, in area named by shipwrecked Spaniards who supposedly saw a vision of tres palacios (three palaces) as they swam to shore. Fishing is dominant industry, both sport and..

Name is Spanish for "Land of Flowers," chosen for blooming meadows along Vince's Bayou. Bayou figured prominently in Battle of San Jacinto. Now a residential community closely tied to the..

City had its beginnings in 1882 when the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railroad built a sliding switch in northern Brazoria County. It was named Mark Belt when the settlement got a post..

On Mustang Island, reached by causeway and 24-hour free ferry service; one of the most popular tourist destinations on the Gulf Coast. English settler built ranch house on site in 1855;..

On northwest shore of Sabine Lake nine miles from Gulf of Mexico, site of settlement known as Aurora in 1840. City named after Arthur E. Stilwell, Kansas City financier, who was..

Until 1948, the little-used highway from Raymondville to point on Laguna Madre called Redfish Bay was traveled by occasional fishermen going to deserted beaches. No community marked the..

Willacy County seat is commercial center for grain sorghum, cotton, citrus, vegetables and corn. Favorable summers and winters allow 300-day growing season. Recreation includes municipal..

Fort Bend County seat on the Brazos River southwest of Houston. Earliest settlement in 1822 by members of Old Three Hundred (Stephen F. Austin's colony). City established in 1837 by Robert..

Although separate municipalities, towns share heritage, business and recreational areas. Abundant access to saltwater recreational opportunities; on peninsula between Copano Bay and Aransas..

Located 35 miles southwest of Houston, Rosenberg was founded on a site in the original Mexican land grant of early settler Henry Scott, where a small, nameless shipping point existed on the..

Nestled in the tip of South Texas near the center of the lower Rio Grande Valley, flanked by Mexico to its southwest and the Gulf of Mexico just 25 miles to its east. A picturesque..

Growing community in the heart of Galveston County, was incorporated in 1978, merging the early towns of Alta Loma and Arcadia. Named for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad that..

Established in 1904 when the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico Railroad laid tracks on its way to the Rio Grande Valley, it served as the headquarters of the Kenedy Ranch and Kenedy Pasture..

Town built around sugar industry on land granted to Samuel M. Williams in 1828. Williams' brother, Nathaniel, purchased the land in 1838 and with a third brother, Matthew, operated Oakland..

Growing city in northwest Harris County named for Thomas H. Ball, prominent Houston attorney and U.S. Congressman from Texas at turn of the century. On May 27, 1933, an oil gusher erupted..

The Republic of Texas was born here on Oct. 3, 1836, with the inauguration of Sam Houston as the Republic's first President, Stephen F. Austin as Secretary of State, and the swearing in of..

Organized in 1846, it is nestled on the banks of the scenic Colorado River and southwest of downtown Houston on Hwy. 59. The downtown area is known for its quaint antique and gift shops..

The first thing that comes to mind about the Gulf Coast region is precisely that; the coast along the Gulf of Mexico. And no wonder, since there are more than 1,004 km (624 miles) of..