page_title: Galveston Bay Area
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Galveston Bay Area / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Trinity Bay, (above), and Galveston Bay, in southeast Texas. Houston Texas is the fourth largest city in the United States with a population of 2 million. This image is a clipped version of a satellite shot of the Houston area (clipping by M. Corazao)
context_page_description: The Galveston Bay Area, also known as Bay Area Houston or simply the Bay Area, is a region that surrounds the Galveston Bay estuary of Southeast Texas in the United States, within Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area. Normally the term refers to the mainland communities around the bay and excludes Galveston as well as most of Houston.
  Originally part of the pirate kingdom of Jean Lafitte, this area played a role in the early history of Texas having been the site of some early rebellions against Mexican rule and the site of the victory of the Texas army over the Mexican army during the Texas Revolution. Ranching interests became early economic drivers around the bay. As the nearby cities of Galveston and Houston developed as commercial centers, the Bay Area communities became part of a principal commercial corridor between the cities.
  The Bay Area is also the location of NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center which houses the Christopher C. Kraft Jr. Mission Control Center. The City of Houston's official nickname as "Space City" is derived from this. In addition, a large tourist attraction for area visitors is Space Center Houston.
context_section_description: The Galveston Bay Area is located on the gulf coastal plain, and its vegetation is classified as temperate grassland and marshes. The municipalities have been built on reclaimed marshes, swamps, and prairies, which are all still visible in undeveloped areas. Flatness of the local terrain and proximity to the Bay and the Gulf have made flooding a recurring problem for the area. The region once relied on groundwater for its needs, but land subsidence has forced much of the region to turn to ground-level water sources.
caption: A simulated-color image of Galveston Bay
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