< Previous20 COASTMONTHLY.COM | JANuArY 2022 CURRENTS | BOOKS PRETTY IN PINK Author regales readers with a rose-colored history of the Galvez story by CHRIS GRAY T he Hotel Galvez is, once again, pretty in pink. When Dallas-based hotelier Mark Wyant closed on the sentinel-like building on Seawall Boulevard in May, it lost its egg-white hue shortly thereafter. Some islanders were up in arms, per- haps unaware earlier eras of the hotel sported the same salmon coat. Pink, by the way, also is the color of The Beverly Hills Hotel, which Wyant and his wife, Lorenda, visited to get the precise hue they were seeking for the historic island property. Some test shades caused an uproar on the island and Wyant spent a lot of time assuring islanders he wasn’t planning on painting the hotel “like a Giant Taco Cabana,” he told reporters. In any case, the color the Wyants settled on suits author and historian Kathleen Maca just fine. “I think the one they settled on is really nice, she said.” Published in February 2021 by The History Press, Maca’s book “A History of the Hotel Galvez” is a breezy, entertaining chronicle of the hotel’s pre-Wy- ant days. The hotel is now the Grand Galvez Resort & Spa. The story begins well before its grand open- ing in June 1911: with the fire that claimed its precur- sor, the Nicholas Clayton-designed Beach Hotel; the catastrophic 1900 Storm, which killed thousands and left the prosperous port city in ruins; and the con- struction of the seawall. Once the city was up and running again, a handful of prominent local businessmen — some with now-fa- miliar names like Kempner and Sealy — each pledged $50,000 toward the construction of a new showpiece hotel. Tens of thousands more, in smaller amounts, poured in from their fellow Galvestonians. (Above) Hotel Galvez brochure circa 1911. (Opposite) Author Kathleen Maca’s most recent book is “A History of Hotel Galvez.” CO ur TESY COASTMONTHLY.COM | JANuArY 2022 21 JENNIFE r r EYNOLDS22 COASTMONTHLY.COM | JANuArY 2022 CURRENTS | BOOKS “They needed to create a statement that the world could see that Galveston was back,” Maca said. “They were ready for visi- tors, they were ready for entertainment, and to get that picture out of people’s head of all of the damaged buildings and the bodies and things they had seen in the news over the years.” Soon enough, the results spoke for themselves. “I think they were probably successful beyond what they would have imagined or hoped for, because it became the resort ho- tel to come to in the South,” Maca said. The Galvez saw some high times indeed. In the beginning, the wide promenade to the west of the lobby drew such a high vol- ume of nattily turned-out citizens it became known as “Peacock Alley.” A shindig during the hurricane of 1915, which proved the new hotel could take anything Mother Nature threw at it — is thought to be the very first hurricane party. Perhaps more than most, the Galvez has seen its fair share of interesting visitors. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s staff turned it into the “temporary White House” during a May 1937 fishing trip. A parade of mid-century celebrities went to the Galvez to be seen. And the U.S. Coast Guard turned it into barracks during World War II. “There were U-Boats right off of Galves- ton, so there was a big need for the de- fense,” Maca said. “Even the bridal suites had bunk beds in them.” Maca’s book is so packed with information it can be a dizzying read. Its 168 pages are liberally sprinkled with vintage photographs, marketing brochures and postcards, all of Entrance to the 21st Street fishing pier near the Hotel Galvez, circa 1920. CO ur TESY r OSENBE r G LIB r A r Y which handily whisk readers back to bygone eras. Some of the most humorous, and touching, stories came from “Mr. Bobby” Hil- ton, a waiter shortly after WWII who spent his retirement years back at the hotel as a de facto goodwill ambassador. As Maca plunged into the back pages of this “Queen of the Gulf” — a project that, on and off, took her six years — she kept com- ing back to how the hotel has functioned as a sort of “home base” for the island, she said. It has been that way for 110 years and counting now. “There are so many things that have been lost during different storms through the years, or fire, or demolition — we had a lot of demolition on the island in the ‘60s and ‘70s — but the Galvez is a constant,” Maca said. “She’s always there, and she’s always sitting on the seawall.” “There are so many things that have been lost during different storms through the years, or fire, or demolition – but the Galvez is a constant. She’s always there, and she’s always sitting on the seawall.” KATHLEEN MACA©2022 Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC. Better Homes and Gardens® is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation licensed to Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC. Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each Franchise is Independently Owned and Operated. If your property is currently listed with a real estate broker, please disregard. It is not our intention to solicit the offerings of other real estate brokers. 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Some working landmarks, like Galveston’s seawall, represent an undertaking only the most persistent and tenacious people would even consider. Some, including two island high schools, remind us of a time before public education was taken for granted and when communities persevered even under segregation. And some remind us that to endure is to change with the times. The island and mainland have no shortage of historic and enduring sites worth noting, so a comprehensive list is impossible. But here are some places and things that have lasted to remind locals of our past and our future. THE GALVESTON SEAWALL It’s hard to understate how important the Galveston sea- wall has been to the continued survival of the city it protects. Built after the 1900 Storm and its surge killed thousands of people, the 17-foot-high wall was erected to prevent another hurricane from destroying Galveston. After after the first section was completed in 1904 and extended three more times until it reached its current length A man stands on the first completed section of the seawall in 1904. r OSENBE r G LIB r A r Y COASTMONTHLY.COM | JANuArY 2022 29 Built after the 1900 Storm devastated the island, the Galveston Seawall stands as a testament to engineering. ST u A r T VILLAN u EVANext >