Crystal Beach, Texas facts for kids
Crystal Beach is a small community in Texas, United States. It's located on the Bolivar Peninsula in Galveston County. Sometimes, it was also called Patton. Crystal Beach stretches about 7 miles (10 km) along Texas State Highway 87. It sits right in the middle of the Bolivar Peninsula.
Crystal Beach is famous for its 27 miles of beautiful beach. Many people love to visit because you can go camping and have fires right on the sand! It's also a great spot for fishing. Some people fish in the ocean waves, while others try their luck near the rocks of the North Jetty. There used to be a place called Rollover Fish Pass, but it was filled in during 2020, so you can't fish there anymore. The pass got its name because, a long time ago, ship captains would "roll over" barrels of goods across that part of the peninsula to avoid customs.
The Bolivar Chamber of Commerce helps Crystal Beach. They share information about local businesses, fun things to do, and how the community is run.
Crystal Beach and the whole Bolivar Peninsula faced huge damage from Hurricane Ike in September 2008. A giant wall of water, over 20 feet high, crashed into the area. This storm surge, combined with high tide and big waves, caused a lot of destruction.
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History of Crystal Beach
The first recorded activity in this area was in a community called Patton. Patton Beach even had a post office from 1898 to 1900. Crystal Beach itself started to be settled in the early 1900s. Patton was once a train station. When the railroad stopped running in the early 1940s, the community's name changed to "Crystal Beach."
Crystal Beach officially became a town in 1971. However, it stopped being an official town in 1987. For a while, people argued about whether it should be a town or not. By 1990, Crystal Beach was still not an official town, but it had about 787 full-time residents. Some people thought there were as many as 1,600 full-time residents. At that time, Crystal Beach was the biggest community on the Bolivar Peninsula. Many of the property owners were people who came for vacations during holidays, summers, and weekends. In 1990, Crystal Beach had a bank, a hotel, a supermarket, and many real estate offices.
The community was badly damaged when Hurricane Ike hit in September 2008. Many vacation homes were completely destroyed.
Hurricane Ike's Impact
Crystal Beach and the entire Bolivar Peninsula suffered terrible damage from Hurricane Ike. The hurricane struck on the night of September 12–13, 2008. Most of the area was hit by a huge storm surge, which was over 20 feet high. This surge came during the morning high tide, making the water even higher, with big waves on top.
Many houses in Crystal Beach were vacation homes. It seemed that most of them were severely damaged. Almost every house south of Ridgeway was completely washed away.
After the hurricane, a rumor spread that a tiger was roaming the streets! This was because the storm had opened an exotic animal compound. However, police later found the tiger safely inside its compound.
For a while after Hurricane Ike, the United States Postal Service moved Crystal Beach's mail services to Winnie.
Education for Kids
Students living in Crystal Beach go to schools in the Galveston Independent School District.
Younger students attend Crenshaw Elementary and Middle School. This school teaches children from Kindergarten through 8th grade. The current Crenshaw school building opened in 2005. It was built on land that someone donated. The building is about 56,000 square feet and is located near Texas State Highway 87. The Crenshaw school was built high off the ground and can even be used as a hurricane shelter. It has a cafeteria with a stage and a gymnasium. The lobby of the school looks a bit like the wheelhouse of a ship! Before this new school opened, Crenshaw school was split into two different buildings. As of 2020, parents in Galveston ISD can apply to any school they want. However, only students living on the Bolivar Peninsula can get school bus service to Crenshaw K-8.
Older students from Crystal Beach attend Ball High School in Galveston.
Crystal Beach is also part of the Galveston College service area, which means students can attend this college.
Parks and Fun Places
Galveston County has a department that runs parks and services for older adults. They operate the Joe Faggert Community Center at 1760 State Highway 87. The county also has Gregory Park and Noble Carl Park, both located along State Highway 87.
Religion
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston has a church in Crystal Beach called Our Lady By The Sea Chapel and Catholic Center. This church serves the entire Bolivar Peninsula. It is part of the Holy Family Parish, which also has other churches on Galveston Island.
The spot where Our Lady by the Sea now stands used to have a mission called St. Theresa of Liseaux, built in 1994. It was damaged during Hurricane Ike in 2008 and had to be torn down.
Between Hurricane Ike and the opening of Our Lady by the Sea, people living on Bolivar Peninsula went to church in Galveston or Winnie. The new Our Lady church opened in 2010.
