San Jacinto Neighborhood & Lost Bayou Historic District

The San Jacinto neighborhood is an area of more than 150 square blocks of East End Galveston real estate contained in a triangle formed by 23rd Street, Broadway and Seawall Boulevard. Included is the Lost Bayou Historic District (bounded by 16th and 21st Streets and Avenues K and M 1/2, with an additional area on Avenue N 1/2 between 20th and 21st Streets).

The region includes mostly modest houses built in the late 1800s and early 1900s, though a few grand structures are scattered throughout. Greek Revival, Italianate, Arts & Crafts, and Folk Victorian architecture dominate this historic Galveston neighborhood.

Lost Bayou achieved locally designated historic district status in 1994 (expanded in 2004), and San Jacinto became a locally designated conservation district in 2010.

The “lost” bayou was originally Hitchcock’s Bayou north of the Gulf to Avenue L, from 20th to 23rd Streets. Hitchcock’s Bayou was filled in during the early 1900s, when the Galveston Seawall was built and the Island’s grade was raised behind it.

Of all Galveston neighborhoods, San Jacinto has one of the longest stretches of beach frontage, and historically was the heart of beach development and the tourist industry.  It bore the brunt of the 1900 Hurricane, and may have extended as many as four blocks further into the Gulf of Mexico than it does now. Buildings near the beach suffered the worst destruction, and it is said debris from them formed a breakwater that helped save the rest of the Island.

The area incorporates a wide variety of restaurants, museums, hotels and stores. Schools are nearby, as is the University of Texas Medical Branch campus. While the Galveston historic preservation movement has resulted in great strides in renovating homes in the area, there are still many “fixer-upper” opportunities here.

Houses for sale in Galveston’s San Jacinto Neighborhood and Lost Bayou range from the $150,000s to the $500,000s.

 

Map of Galveston Island Neighborhoods - San Jacinto Neighborhood and Lost Bayou Historic District