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Seabrook is a city in Harris County,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, United States, with some water surface area located within Chambers County. The population was 13,618 at the 2020 U.S. census. Several fish markets line the city's waterfront, while
antique shop An antique shop (or antiques shop) is a retail store specializing in the selling of antiques. Antiques shops generally have a physical presence in a shop where the wares are stored and displayed, but some antique shops are online, with no phy ...
s and
bed and breakfast A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house. ''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...
establishments are found in the city's downtown area.


History

Seabrook is known 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 through which runoff from inland fields drain to the bay. The piece of land was purchased by Seabrook W. Sydnor, who was the son of Galveston mayor and slave trader John Seabrook 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 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 The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, 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 Hurricane Carla was the most intense tropical cyclone landfall in Texas in the 20th century. The third named storm of the 1961 Atlantic hurricane season, Carla developed from an area of squall, squally weather in the southwestern Caribbean Sea ...
, a bridge linking Seabrook and Kemah was completed in 1961. With the opening of the bridge and the
Johnson Space Center The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) is NASA's center for human spaceflight in Houston, Texas (originally named the Manned Spacecraft Center), where human spaceflight training, research, and flight controller, flight control are conducted. ...
(JSC) in Houston, Seabrook's population rose to approximately 6,000. In 1986, the decision was 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 Galveston ( ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal resort town, resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island (Texas), Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a pop ...
to
Texas State Highway 225 State Highway 225 (SH 225) is an east–west freeway in the Houston area between the Interstate 610 Loop in Houston and State Highway 146/future State Highway 99 in La Porte. It is identified as the La Porte Freeway over its entire ...
. This spurred a further increase in the population of Seabrook to its present level of nearly 12,000 people.


Geography

Seabrook is located on
Galveston Bay Galveston Bay ( ) is a bay in the western Gulf of Mexico along the upper coast of Texas. It is the seventh-largest estuary in the United States, and the largest of seven major estuaries along the Texas Gulf Coast. It is connected to the Gulf of ...
at Clear Lake, southeast of
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
near
Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...
and La Porte. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and , or 74.97%, is water.


Climate

Seabrook has an oceanic
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
, with consistent rainfall throughout the year, but usually with heavier amounts during the hot and humid summer months.


Demographics

The 2010 U.S. census reported Seabrook had a population of 11,952; in 2019 it increased to 14,149. The racial and ethnic makeup of the city was 71.6%
non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
, 5.1% Black and African American, 2.2% Asian, 1.9% multiracial, and 20.7% Hispanic and Latin American of any race at the 2019
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
. As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 13,618 people, 5,368 households, and 3,358 families residing in the city. There were 5,479 households in 2019 with an average of 2.54 people per household. The median gross rent in the city was $1,161 and the median cost of an owner-occupied housing unit without a mortgage was $753. Seabrook's population had a median household income of $89,817 from 2015 to 2019 and per capita income of $47,447. Of the population, an estimated 8.5% lived at or below the poverty line within the city limits. At the census of 2000, there were 9,443 people, 4,094 households, and 2,386 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,536 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 88.92%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 2.11%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.51% Native American, 3.31% Asian, 0.02%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 2.76% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
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 Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
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 Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $29,534. About 2.8% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 6.1% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over. The greater Seabrook postal area also includes the incorporated cities, both small suburban subdivisions organized as municipalities, of El Lago, Texas, and Taylor Lake Village.


Arts and culture

A historic downtown area was constructed in the early 20th century and it stands today, with many locals running their businesses. Most are antique shops or bed and breakfast places. Seabrook is 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. The Seabrook Festival of the Arts is held annually on the grounds of Seabrook City Hall and Community House at First Street, where artists exhibit paintings, sculpture, textiles, jewelry, wood works, photography and musical performances by Texas musicians. The festival is sponsored by the City of Seabrook in cooperation with the Art Consortium of the Texas Gulf Coast.


Pelican Path Project

The Pelican Path Project was established in March 2001 with seed money provided by the City of Seabrook's Hotel Occupancy Tax Funds and modeled after the CowParades in New York City and Chicago. The goals of the Pelican Path Project have been to attract customers to frequent local businesses, encourage walking and recreation, and to promote the local
ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of nature-oriented tourism intended to contribute to the Ecological conservation, conservation of the natural environment, generally defined as being minimally impactful, and including providing both contributions to conserv ...
industry, tying in to both the
brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing and painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors Orange (colour), orange and black. In the ...
and white pelicans that gathered along the banks of the bay and surrounding waterways. Many businesses in Seabrook have purchased a pelican from Pelican Path Project and have customized it to represent their type of business, as well as the city of Seabrook.


Parks and recreation


Seabrook trail system

There are of continuous trails from Hammer Street to
Galveston Bay Galveston Bay ( ) is a bay in the western Gulf of Mexico along the upper coast of Texas. It is the seventh-largest estuary in the United States, and the largest of seven major estuaries along the Texas Gulf Coast. It is connected to the Gulf of ...
at Pine Gully Park, where the Lucky Trails Marathon is run in March. The trail system was 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. The only other site in the Clear Lake area on this Texas trail is the Armand Bayou Nature Center.


Education


Primary and secondary schools

Pupils in Seabrook attend schools in Clear Creek Independent School District. The community is within the Board of Trustees District 1, represented by Robert Allan Davee as of 2008. CCISD was established in 1948, partly from the former Seabrook school district. The former Seabrook district served up to junior high school with high schoolers going to Webster. Most Seabrook residents are zoned to James F. Bay Elementary School, which was originally known as Seabrook Elementary but was renamed in 1969 to honor the principal who had served for many years. Some residents are zoned to Ed White Elementary School in El Lago, which was built in 1965 and was named after Ed White, the famous
astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...
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 Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
. 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 and throughout the district. All Seabrook residents are zoned to
Clear Falls High School Clear Falls High School is a public high school located in League City, Texas and is part of the Clear Creek Independent School District. The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, had its first graduating class in 2013. The school opened ...
in League City. Residents were previously zoned to Clear Lake High School in Clear Lake City, Houston.


Colleges and universities

The portion of Clear Creek ISD in Harris County (and therefore Seabrook) is assigned to San Jacinto College.


Infrastructure and services

The Harris County Public Library Evelyn Meador Branch serves the community. The 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 suffered enough damage from
Hurricane Ike Hurricane Ike () was a powerful tropical cyclone that swept through portions of the Greater Antilles and Northern America in September 2008, wreaking havoc on infrastructure and agriculture, particularly in Cuba and Texas. Ike took a sim ...
that it was completely rebuilt. The new, larger library reopened on June 28, 2011. Harris County Transit previously operated public transportation in Seabrook. The Seabrook
Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
is located at 1600 Second Street. The Seabrook Volunteer Fire Department (SVFD) provides fire protection and medical first responder services to the city. The FD operates out of two stations and also has a fire boat docked at a local boat marina. SVFD is staffed entirely by volunteer firefighters. Equipment operated by SVFD includes: *3 engines *1 tower truck *1 rescue truck *1 rehab truck *2 utility pick-up trucks *3 chief vehicles *1 fire boat *2 rescue boats Harris County Youth Village, a juvenile detention facility, is located in
Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...
, but has a Seabrook postal address. Harris Health System (formerly Harris County Hospital District) designated Strawberry Health Center in Pasadena for ZIP code 77586. The nearest public hospital is Ben Taub General Hospital in the
Texas Medical Center The Texas Medical Center (TMC) is a List of neighborhoods in Houston, neighborhood in south-central Houston, Texas, United States. It is immediately south of the Houston Museum District, Museum District and west of Texas State Highway 288. Over 6 ...
.


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 A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
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. A month after the hurricane, Seabrook was still dealing with people not being able to live in the conditions, even after the
Federal Emergency Management Agency The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
(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 to the evacuation and the damage to buildings and roads in the Seabrook and surrounding areas.


Sister cities

On June 19, 2002 the cities of Seabrook and Isla Santa Cruz,
Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
finalized a
sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...
status during a ceremony at Seabrook City Hall. As part of the agreements the City of Seabrook planned to build a $500,000 ($733,024 adjusted for inflation ), Ecuador visitors' center, which was to include a museum, a multimedia cultural center, and retail shops. Ecuador stated that it had secured $450,000 of the funds as of January 1, 2004. In May 2004 the city asked for an additional $150,000 in private funding and stated that the center may not be built if it does not get this funding.


See also

*
List of municipalities in Texas Texas is a U.S. state, state located in the Southern United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, 29,145,505 (93.14%) of the 31,290,831 residents of Texas lived in a Municipal corporation, municipality in the 2024 estimate. ...
*
Greater Houston Greater Houston, designated by the Office of Management and Budget, United States Office of Management and Budget as Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, is the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fifth-most populous metropolitan statistical ...
* Galveston Bay Area


Notes


References


External links

*
Seabrook Tourism
*
Seabrook Intermediate School

Bay Elementary School

South Seabrook Marine District Waterfront Redevelopment Study
{{authority control Cities in Chambers County, Texas Cities in Galveston County, Texas Cities in Harris County, Texas Cities in Texas Galveston Bay Area Greater Houston Populated coastal places in Texas