Mosquito Fleet | Galveston, Texas
Galveston Unscripted | Free. Texas History. For All.
English - July 04, 2021 04:00 - 1 minute - 1.17 MBHistory Society & Culture Places & Travel galveston texas history audio tour free island education texas history historic Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
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Katies Seafood
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Transcript:
While exploring Pier 21, you may spot all of the shrimp boats docked between the Ocean Star and Katie's seafood. This area is known as the mosquito fleet. It's said that the name mosquito fleet comes from the shrimping boats, insect-like profiles.
This area was home to the 1838 Koons Warf, one of the first significant investments at the Port of Galveston and one of the first docks with deep water access. Before Galveston's first bridge connected to the mainland in 1860, the area around the mosquito fleet became the city's open market. Boats would arrive from the mainland, bringing produce, beef, and other goods to barter. Throughout the city's early years, the market eventually expanded southward along 20th Street between Avenue B, also known as Strand, and Avenue D, known as Market Street.
During the Civil War in late 1862 into 1863, the United States Navy occupied Galveston for a few months, and the USS Harriet Lane was docked at the end of Koons Wharf. The Confederacy took back Galveston Island and initiated what is now known as the Battle of Galveston. The area between the mosquito fleet along 20th Street to Strand, including the Hendley building, is a civil war battleground.
Today's mosquito fleet ties together Galveston's early market, the naming of Market Street, the Battle of Galveston during the civil war, and Koons Wharf, a significant pier for trade at the port of Galveston. Be sure to take a close look at some of those shrimp boats. If you've ever eaten shrimp in Galveston, chances are high they came from one of these boats.