Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1929-07-04
deep WATER
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local interests dredge and maintain
a s~ixteen-foot channel from said
Pass to a turning basin at the
wharf head at the end of the Rio
Grande Railway at Point Isabel,
furnish adequate terminal facilities,
and standardize the said railway.
While Brownsville citizens consid-
cred their original proposition the
more feasible and preferable Of the
two projects, they, in order to Sc
cure a port for the Valley, did not
hesitate to waive their own pref
erences and Join in supporting Mr..
O'Brien's project, and of the money
raised In the Valley for dredging
the inner channel from the Pass
to Point Isabel, for r~elovating the
railroad wharf at Point Isabel, and
TIN Standardizing said railroad. cit
i3aRs Of Brownsville contributed ap-
proximately eighty per cent as
against approximately twenty per
cent contributed by all the rest of
the Valley, including the county of
Cameron, Willacy. Hidalgo and
Starr.
In this connection it might not be
amiSs to digresS from a moment and
state that Brownsville has always
given its support to any project
having in view the securing Of
water transportation for the Valley
even in cases where the proposed
project would apparently inure to
the special benefit of a rival COM
munity as for instance it contrib
uted to a fund raised by Harrington,
a town in Cameron County. Texas,
for the purpose of ascertaining
whether or not it would be feasible
to dredge the Arroyo Colorado from
q point near Harlingen to a connec-
ton with the proposed i-nter-coastal
canal from Corpus Christi to the
mouth Of the Rio Grande river, al
though the effect and object of this
project was to build UP Harlingen
at the expense of Brownsville.
After the sums contributed by the
Valley had been expended it became
apparent that some other method
besides dredging channels would
have to be adopted ii order to Sc
cure deep water at BraZos Santiago
Pass the work on this project vas
temporarily suspended.
In 1927 this project was revived
and your board recommended the
building of jetties at Brazos Santi-
g Pass, the dredging Of an eight
een-foot channel through the Pass
and a sixteen-foot channel from
that point to a turning basin at the
wharf head at Point Isabel and a
fund for the maintenance Of these
channels; this recommendation was
conditional on local interests con-
tributing to the government the
sum of 100000 in cash and fur
nishing to the government the ends
of Brazos and Padre Islands and
furnishing adequate terminal IA
cilities.
A Valley-wide committee was
formed for the purpose Of providing
means of meeting the governments
requirements. The chairman and
acting secretary of this committee
were both. citizens of Brownsville.
This committee proposed a Valley
wide navigation district consisting
of the four counties heretofore men
toned.
During the latter part of the year
1928 it began to appear doubtful II
the Valley as a whole would give
financial air to this project. Browns
Vile. acting through its chamber OF
and the chairman Of the
Valley-wide port committee, called
a meeting of the committee and all
interested parties to meet IN
EAewnsville the first part of Sep
teHnber, 1923. At this meeting 1t not
only became apparent that the VAL
lev as a whole was not back Of this
proposition but that it was very
doubtful if any part except Browns
e lie and San Benito was Willing
to contribute any money TO TINS
project. The Brownsville Chamber
of Commerce, however, was still not
willing to abandon all hope of put
ting over this proposition, n 1t
and the chairman of the Valley
wide port appointed committees to
GET In touch with every community
in the Valley and to urge on them
the necessity Of supporting his prof.
ect. A meeting vas called and held
In Brownsville the latter part OF
September, 1928. to receive reports
of these committees. At this meet
ing every community reported, and
with the exception Of San Benito
they all reported that they could
not or that they would not assist in
meeting the government require
ments; San Benito reporting fav-
orably on the project as a whole
but leaving for future consideration
A. ~11C,aA ~ sec nccfcfnrn1 nF1I fhn
manner of rendering same, but was
emphatic in its position that what
ever method it adopted would be
in cooperation with Brownsville,
but that it would not join with
Brownsville in forming a navigation
district. The chairman of said port
committee also notified the Browns
vile Chamber of Commerce that
IN his opinion it would be impossible
TO secure the cooperation of the rest
ct the Valley in meeting the govern
ment requirements on this project.
In view of these facts Brownsville
citizens felt that they were justified
in abandoning this Point Isabel
project and ~reverting to their orig
inal idea Of dredging a direct chan
mel from Brazos Santiago Pass to
or near Brownsville. However, be-
fore taking any steps in furtherance
of this plan a committee of Browns
vile citizens consulted with Mr.. @. R.
Tyrrell, manager of the Point Isabel
companies and with Mr.. r. B.
Cseager, counsel for said COM
panies; said companies being the
owners of the Rio Grande railroad