City (pop., 2000: 57,247) and port of entry, southeastern Texas, U.S. Located at the northeastern end of Galveston Island in the Gulf of Mexico, it was the pirate Jean Laffite 's headquarters (181721).
Settlement of the island then began, and the town of Galveston was laid out in 1834; during the Texas revolt against Mexico (183536), it briefly served as the capital. During the American Civil War it was an important Confederate supply port. Although the city suffered from several hurricanes in the 20th century, it remains a major deepwater port, with shipping and oil-refining facilities.