Tres Palacios Bay facts for kids
Tres Palacios Bay is a part of Matagorda Bay located on the coast of Texas in Matagorda County. It gets its water from the Tres Palacios River. The city of Palacios sits right on its shores. A special channel has been dug through the bay. This channel connects Palacios to the Intracoastal Waterway, which is like a highway for boats along the coast.
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What's in a Name? The Story of Tres Palacios Bay
The name Tres Palacios is Spanish and means "Three Palaces." There are two interesting stories about how the bay got its name.
The Mystery of the Disappearing Palaces
One story tells of a Spanish ship that crashed in Matagorda Bay a long time ago. The people who survived the shipwreck were walking towards what is now Palacios. They looked up and saw three beautiful palaces on the shore. But when they finally reached the land, the palaces were mysteriously gone!
Named After a Governor
Another story says the bay was named after José Félix Trespalacios. He was a governor of Texas for a short time in the 1820s.
Early Settlements Around the Bay
Before the city of Palacios was founded in the early 1900s, several other towns were built near the bay.
Tres Palacios and Tidehaven
The town of Tres Palacios was started in the 1830s. It was also known as Tidehaven. This name came from its location on the outer parts of the bay where the tides reached. By the 1850s, the town had a blacksmith shop, two hotels, and a market. A post office opened there in 1856.
Palacios Point and Portsmouth
Palacios Point was founded in 1838. It was located where Matagorda Bay and Tres Palacios Bay meet. Before the American Civil War, people built houses, wharves (docks), and warehouses there. However, many of these buildings were taken down or left empty in the 1880s because of storms and legal problems. Later, in 1902, a town called Portsmouth was started in the same area when the railroad arrived. But Portsmouth never grew into a big settlement.
Collegeport's Story
Soon after Palacios was founded, Collegeport was established on the other side of the bay. The town got its name from the Gulf Coast University of Industrial Arts. This university was built there by the Hurd Land Company. Collegeport did well with cattle farming for a while. But in the late 1910s, a shortage of farmers and a bad ice storm caused many people to leave. The university closed in 1952. Collegeport still exists today. In the year 2000, about 85 people lived there.
Life in the Bay: Ecosystem and Wildlife
Tres Palacios Bay is a great place for fishing. Many people come here to catch shrimp and blue crab.
A Haven for Birds
The bay is also a fantastic spot for birdwatching. More than 300 different kinds of birds have been seen near the bay. From 2000 to 2002, the area around Tres Palacios Bay was number one in the country for the National Audubon Society's Annual Christmas bird count. This means more birds were counted here than anywhere else in the U.S. during those years!
