The George and Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway is a set of causeways in Galveston, Texas, United States. Two of the routes carry the southbound and northbound traffic of Interstate 45, while the original causeway is restricted to rail traffic. It is the main roadway access point to Galveston Island. The second access point is Bolivar Ferry.
George and Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway
The old 1912 Galveston Causeway, now in use as a railroad bridge.
The causeway carries traffic over Galveston Bay and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The original causeway was built in 1912 and carried both rail and auto traffic. The auto traffic was transferred to new causeways built to the west in 1939, leaving the original bridge for rail traffic. The original route was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
New Galveston Causeway bridge under construction in 2007
Construction of replacement bridges for both auto routes began in 2003 with completion of the new northbound bridge in 2005. The construction of a new southbound bridge began in 2006, however Hurricane Ike delayed completion until November 2008.[2][3]
2008 hurricane damage
In September 2008, the causeway flooded badly before Hurricane Ike due to the tremendous storm surge created by the very wide storm. This is in contrast to a typical hurricane, which would cause the closure of the causeway due to wind before surge. As of the early afternoon on September 13, 12 hours after official landfall, the causeway was blocked by numerous watercraft.
Railroad drawbridge replacement
The old bascule bridge in its raised position.
A barge passing under the new lift span on the railroad causeway, with the 2008-opened new causeway for road vehicles visible at left.
The old bascule span now in Petaluma, California. It was repainted to match the theme color for the commuter train seen here. The taller bridge in the background is US 101.
The original drawspan was replaced in 1987 with a new, narrower bascule span that pivoted from the island side of instead of the mainland side as the original did. The new span did not include space for a roadway, and a new service building was built on the old roadway on the island side of the channel. In 2012, the bascule-type drawbridge on the railroad causeway was again replaced with a vertical-lift-type drawbridge, allowing the navigation channel through the draw span to be widened. In 2001, the U.S. Coast Guard had declared the old span's narrow passageway to be a hazard to navigation. It was only 105 feet (32 m) wide, whereas the replacement vertical-lift span allowed the channel to be widened to about 300 feet (91 m).[4] The old bridge was sold to Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit to be installed on the Northwestern Pacific Railroad in Petaluma, California to cross the Petaluma River.[5]
Re-dedication
The causeway was re-dedicated in honor of George Mitchell and his wife Cynthia Woods-Mitchell on Tuesday October 25, 2016, to honor their contributions to the island and City of Galveston.[6]
^Paschenko, Chris (October 21, 2008). "Causeway should be open by November". Galveston County Daily News. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
^Paschenko, Chris (November 6, 2008). "Still some delays after new causeway opens". Galveston County Daily News. Retrieved 2008-11-07.
^"Galveston Causeway Bridge replacement gains federal funding" (Press release). U.S. Representative Gene Green. June 19, 2008. Retrieved May 26, 2013.
^"SMART to buy a (draw)bridge". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. February 14, 2012.
^"George & Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway Dedication".
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Galveston Causeway.
City of Galveston Thoroughfare Plan - Transportation access to Galveston planning[permanent dead link]
Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. TX-37, "Galveston Causeway, Spanning Galveston Bay parallel to I-45, Galveston, Galveston County, TX", 6 photos, 4 data pages, 1 photo caption page
May 04, 2023
galveston, causeway, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, septem. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Galveston Causeway news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2008 Learn how and when to remove this template message The George and Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway is a set of causeways in Galveston Texas United States Two of the routes carry the southbound and northbound traffic of Interstate 45 while the original causeway is restricted to rail traffic It is the main roadway access point to Galveston Island The second access point is Bolivar Ferry George and Cynthia Mitchell Memorial CausewayThe old 1912 Galveston Causeway now in use as a railroad bridge Coordinates29 17 45 N 94 53 10 W 29 2957 N 94 8861 W 29 2957 94 8861 Coordinates 29 17 45 N 94 53 10 W 29 2957 N 94 8861 W 29 2957 94 8861CarriesRail old causeway I 45 new causeway CrossesGulf Intracoastal Waterway Galveston BayLocaleConnects Galveston Texas and Texas City Texas United StatesOfficial nameGeorge amp Cynthia Mitchell Memorial CausewayMaintained byTexas Department of TransportationHistoryEngineering design byConcrete Steel Engineering CompanyConstructed byPenn Bridge CompanyConstruction start1912 1912 Opened1912 1912 original causeway Galveston CausewayU S National Register of Historic PlacesTexas State Antiquities LandmarkArea39 acres 16 ha NRHP reference No 76002028 1 TSAL No 8200001369Significant datesAdded to NRHPDecember 12 1976Designated TSALJanuary 1 1981LocationThe causeway carries traffic over Galveston Bay and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway The original causeway was built in 1912 and carried both rail and auto traffic The auto traffic was transferred to new causeways built to the west in 1939 leaving the original bridge for rail traffic The original route was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 Contents 1 Rebuilding in 2003 2 2008 hurricane damage 3 Railroad drawbridge replacement 4 Re dedication 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksRebuilding in 2003 Edit New Galveston Causeway bridge under construction in 2007 Construction of replacement bridges for both auto routes began in 2003 with completion of the new northbound bridge in 2005 The construction of a new southbound bridge began in 2006 however Hurricane Ike delayed completion until November 2008 2 3 2008 hurricane damage EditIn September 2008 the causeway flooded badly before Hurricane Ike due to the tremendous storm surge created by the very wide storm This is in contrast to a typical hurricane which would cause the closure of the causeway due to wind before surge As of the early afternoon on September 13 12 hours after official landfall the causeway was blocked by numerous watercraft Railroad drawbridge replacement Edit The old bascule bridge in its raised position A barge passing under the new lift span on the railroad causeway with the 2008 opened new causeway for road vehicles visible at left The old bascule span now in Petaluma California It was repainted to match the theme color for the commuter train seen here The taller bridge in the background is US 101 The original drawspan was replaced in 1987 with a new narrower bascule span that pivoted from the island side of instead of the mainland side as the original did The new span did not include space for a roadway and a new service building was built on the old roadway on the island side of the channel In 2012 the bascule type drawbridge on the railroad causeway was again replaced with a vertical lift type drawbridge allowing the navigation channel through the draw span to be widened In 2001 the U S Coast Guard had declared the old span s narrow passageway to be a hazard to navigation It was only 105 feet 32 m wide whereas the replacement vertical lift span allowed the channel to be widened to about 300 feet 91 m 4 The old bridge was sold to Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit to be installed on the Northwestern Pacific Railroad in Petaluma California to cross the Petaluma River 5 Re dedication EditThe causeway was re dedicated in honor of George Mitchell and his wife Cynthia Woods Mitchell on Tuesday October 25 2016 to honor their contributions to the island and City of Galveston 6 See also Edit National Register of Historic Places portal Texas portalList of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Texas National Register of Historic Places listings in Galveston County TexasReferences Edit National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service November 2 2013 Paschenko Chris October 21 2008 Causeway should be open by November Galveston County Daily News Retrieved 2008 10 21 Paschenko Chris November 6 2008 Still some delays after new causeway opens Galveston County Daily News Retrieved 2008 11 07 Galveston Causeway Bridge replacement gains federal funding Press release U S Representative Gene Green June 19 2008 Retrieved May 26 2013 SMART to buy a draw bridge Santa Rosa Press Democrat February 14 2012 George amp Cynthia Mitchell Memorial Causeway Dedication External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Galveston Causeway City of Galveston Thoroughfare Plan Transportation access to Galveston planning permanent dead link Historic American Engineering Record HAER No TX 37 Galveston Causeway Spanning Galveston Bay parallel to I 45 Galveston Galveston County TX 6 photos 4 data pages 1 photo caption page Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Galveston Causeway amp oldid 1128187083, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
