1919 Storm

On August 31, 1919, a tropical storm developed in the Caribbean Sea and, undetected for two weeks as it grew in intensity, moved into the Gulf of Mexico. By midnight on September 13, a hurricane was approaching the unsuspecting South Texas coast, and residents of Corpus Christi were not told to seek higher ground until 9:45 am on Sunday, September 14. By noon, water flowing into the city from the gulf had reached a depth of three feet. Although minor in wind velocity, the storm’s most devastating force was the tidal waves it generated, and the most powerful of these struck the city in the late afternoon. The tide rose to more than twelve feet in Corpus Christi and was higher at White Point. Debris and oil carried on the waves crashed onto North Beach and downtown Corpus Christi. Fourteen thousand bales of cotton were hurled onto the shoreline of Corpus Christi and Nueces Bays. Downtown houses and buildings, except the Nueces Hotel and the power plant, were devastated. On North Beach, three hundred to four hundred homes were destroyed, and by Monday morning only three buildings remained with more than rubble. Property damage was estimated at $20 million. Three hundred and fifty-seven people died in the surrounding area, including Port Aransas and Rockport, and 286 of the victims were from Corpus Christi. Rebuilding began immediately, starting with the deep water port and channel to the Gulf dedicated on September 14, 1926, the seventh anniversary of the storm, and Corpus Christi remained vulnerable to tidal waves and storms until a seawall was built in 1941.

Corpus Christi, Texas · United States