Lone Star Canal
Anahuac, Chambers County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Berriman Richard Garland (1840-1918), a native of Indiana, saw the need for fresh water for rice crops in east Chambers County. Garland and A. L. Williams began in 1902 acquiring land and constructing this irrigation canal. It started at the mouth of Turtle Bay, now known as Lake Anahuac. In 1904, "Lone Star Canal Company" was incorporated. E. O. Emerson and Burt H. Collins directed the business in 1906. Sailing vessels anchored next to the warehouse carried the rice to market. In dry seasons, salt water backed into Turtle Bay and into the canal, killing the rice crops. To prevent the damage, the Trinity River Irrigation District formed in 1911 and built a dam and locks at the mouth of the bay. Thomas S. Ellis changed the name to "Anahuac Canal Company" in 1914. After the 1915 hurricane destroyed the dam, pumping plant, and warehouse, the company changed owners several times, closing from 1927-32. In 1932 four men purchased the canal, resumed the name "Lone Star Canal," and reopened operations. In 1947 the Chambers-Liberty Counties Navigation District purchased the canal. Water is available for industrial as well as agricultural use with the goal of improving the economy of the area.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In the early 1900s, east Chambers County was becoming rice country, but the crop needs a steady supply of fresh water. Beginning in 1902, Berriman Richard Garland and A. L. Williams dug this canal from the mouth of Turtle Bay to irrigate the fields, and by 1904 the Lone Star Canal Company was shipping rice out by sailing vessel. Salt water intruding during dry seasons repeatedly killed crops, prompting a dam, locks, and a river district to manage the water. Through hurricanes, closures, and changing owners the canal endured and still serves the region's farms and industry.
Why it matters
It shows how Gulf Coast Texas engineered its way into large-scale rice farming, turning coastal bayous into a lasting agricultural economy.
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Related people
- · Berriman Richard Garland
- · A. L. Williams
Themes & tags
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