Dark Water Rising

Content Warning: The novel refers to Black people as “colored,” but this guide will use the term Black to follow the example set by Black scholars, writers, and journalists. The novel contains graphic descriptions of the aftermath of a natural disaster, including loss of life. It references ecological disasters and their devastating effects. The book references and depicts sexism and intense racism and oppression toward Black and Latinx people.

Galveston is a city on Galveston Island, a small island just off the coast of Texas. The island separates the Gulf of Mexico from the North Bay and has an elevation of only seven feet above sea level. The city adopted a charter and was recognized by The Republic of Texas in 1839. Galveston attracted a flood of new residents, among them formerly enslaved Black people from rural areas. In 1870, the city had a Black population of 3,000, which was 25% of the city’s total population of 13,000. By 1900, though, Galveston had a population of 37,000, nearly tripling in size. It was Texas’s largest city and was sometimes called the “Queen City of the Gulf.”

Before the storm, Galveston was the third richest city in the United States. Its main business center, The Strand, was known as the “Wall Street of the South.” The city’s natural deep-water channel made it the most important seaport in Texas. It was such an important seaport that more than 70% of the country’s cotton crop passed through it. It was the first city in the state of Texas to get electricity and telephones as well as the first city to have a post office, a naval base, an insurance company, and gas lights. It attracted trade, visitors, and residents because of its location and opportunities. The warm, shallow Gulf waters made it a popular destination, and, at the time, swimming in the waters was considered to be health-promoting and therapeutic. This vibrant reputation and the very real opportunities to be had in the young city are what drew Seth’s family to move there.

On September 8, 1900, Galveston Island was struck by a devastating and unexpected hurricane and flood. The storm surge raised the water levels by eight to 12 feet. The storm still holds the record for the United States’ deadliest natural disaster, with an estimated death count of 6,000-12,000 people; the death count is most often reported as 8,000. In addition to the deaths, the storm destroyed 7,000 buildings and left approximately 10,000 people without homes. National media reported on the sorrow, suffering, and grief of the city.

The disaster ended what was called the “Golden Era of Galveston,” because potential investors in the city were scared off by the damage and turned their attention to nearby Houston instead. In the aftermath of the storm, the city built a 10-mile-long, 17-foot-high seawall to protect itself from floods and hurricane storm surges. Despite this, the city never returned to its former level of prosperity. The seawall itself caused passive erosion, which shrank the beach, leaving only a narrow strip of sand and a rocky barrier. While Galveston was still trying to rebuild, they were struck by another hurricane in August 1915. The city’s new seawall spared the island the worst of the flooding, but over 400 people died, and the damages totaled what would now be $903 billion. The hardships saw Galveston transformed from a prosperous center of wealth to a tragic story of what could have been.