Street Files Photograph Collection

The Street Files Collection is an artificial collection gathered by staff of the Galveston and Texas History Center over the years. It consists of photographs of Galveston streetscapes, buildings, and houses. The photographs are arranged by street name. Lettered streets are followed by numbered streets, and named streets are filed at the end of the collection.

In 1838, the Galveston City Company laid out the city in a grid-like fashion, with all the roads running north to south being assigned numbers, and the roads running roughly east to west beginning with Avenue A in the north (near the harbor) and ending with Avenue U in the south. The original plan only plotted to Avenue Q, so Avenues R, S, T, and U had to be added as the city grew.  Avenue A, the closest Street to the Port of Galveston, was originally known as Water Street. It was essentially a bayside beach that would be inundated with water during extreme high tides. Today, this Street is known as Harborside Drive. For over a century and a half, this road has been the center of the island's shipping and maritime economy.  Other east-west streets with two names include: Avenue B/Strand - the next closest Street to the Port of Galveston, became the city's warehouse, banking, and economic hub, reminiscent of London's Strand Street, a banking center. "Strand" or "Strond" also means "along the water" or "riverbank."  Avenue C/Mechanic Street - The Street got its name in the 19th century when it was an essential hub for the island's shipping industry, located just two blocks from the wharf and where most mechanics/blacksmiths could be found.  Avenue D/Market Street - In 1846, a 260-foot long structure in the center of 20th Street between Mechanic (Avenue C) and Market (Avenue D) streets was built to serve both as a produce market and as the city hall, with the ground floor originally housing 34 meat, vegetable and coffee stalls, with the city offices, including the police department, and a large public meeting hall located on the second floor. The market house survived serious threats from fire in 1865 and again in 1885 and was replaced by a new three-story stone building in 1888. Market Street was named as the open market southernmost edge faced the Street.  Avenue E/Postoffice Street is where the post office was located within the 1861 Federal Court and Customs House. Avenue F/Church Street was home to First Presbyterian (1840) and St. Mary's Cathedral (1847), some of the oldest churches in the city. Winnie, Ball, and Sealy Streets were named after prominent Galveston city leaders and leading families. Avenue J/Broadway/State Highway 87 became the city's main thoroughfare and is strategically located on the highest ridge of the island. Avenue P / Bernardo de Galvez is named for Gálvez's contributions to the Spanish Empire and for "discovering" Galveston. Both Avenue P and Galveston Island itself are named in his honor.

North-south streets have numbers, but some also have names. 21st Street /  Moody Avenue was initially the center of the city, renamed in the contemporary era to honor the Moody family of Galveston. 22nd Street / Kempner Avenue honors the Kempner family for their contributions to Galveston Island. 24th Street / Mitchell Avenue honors George Mitchell for his contributions to Galveston Island. 23rd Street/Tremont Street is derived from the original and second incarnation of the Tremont Hotel, a luxury hotel that fronted 23rd Street. 25th Street/Bath Avenue/ Rosenberg Avenue  was originally named Bath Avenue as it was a direct thoroughfare to the bathhouses on the beach. The street was renamed Rosenberg in honor of Henry Rosenberg. Henry Rosenberg was a Galveston business leader and philanthropist who founded several important businesses in the Galveston area and left more than $600,000 to create a free public library in Galveston. 41st Street / Jack Johnson Blvd is named for Jack Johnson, a Galveston dock worker who became a boxer and the first black world heavyweight boxing champion in 1908-1915.