I found it interesting to discover
the 400 yards symbolism.
This was not an accident, but rather proof
that George Mitchell had the sense to copy
his predecessor. Growing up in heyday of
Sam Maceo, I am convinced Mitchell
knew from personal experience the importance
of Tourism to Galveston's economy.
Tourism creates jobs. As a simple
example, Tourism helped pay Mitchell's way to
college. Those hungry tourists gave
Mitchell a reason to make frequent
fishing trips in Galveston Bay after school.
Helping resupply
the busy seafood restaurants such as Maceo's
Balinese Room, Mitchell paid his own way to
A&M.
No doubt George Mitchell was a student of
Galveston's
history. I suspect he was fully versed
in the legend of Galveston as the premier
deep-water port in the Gulf of Mexico.
But not any more. As things stood,
those empty docks were an open invitation
for Mitchell to pursue the cruise industry.
However, there was a major problem.
While Mitchell understood that Cruise-related
Tourism was the fastest way fill island
hotels to capacity, he knew
Galveston's best hotels were located on the
beach
side of the island two miles away.
Mitchell needed something close to the docks
on the opposite
industrial side.
Recalling Sam Maceo's
decision to locate the Balinese Room 400
hundred yards from the Hotel Galvez,
Mitchell needed a grand hotel within walking
distance of the
proposed cruise terminal. During his
efforts to revitalize the historic Strand
District, Mitchell selected Tremont House to
become
his "other side of the island"
substitute for Hotel Galvez.
Although there was no guarantee he could
persuade the cruise industry to come to
Galveston, Mitchell purchased the Tremont in 1981 for an undisclosed price (surely a
multi-million dollar transaction). Then he restored the ancient
building to mint condition at the cost of a
cool $20 million. This was George
Mitchell in action. He gambled a
fortune based strictly on his foresight.
Some might say that Mitchell knew all along
the cruise ships would come eventually.
I totally disagree. Starting in the
latter part of the 1970s, the Galveston Port
Authority began contacting Carnival Cruise
line. At the time Mitchell purchased
the Tremont House, so far Carnival had not
shown a bit of interest. However, I
will say the purchase of the Tremont House
gave Mitchell a very powerful reason to take
matters into his own hands. But even
then there was no guarantee. There was
a 20-year gap between his 1981 Tremont
purchase and the debut sailing of the first
cruise ship out of Galveston. It had to
be immensely satisfying to George Mitchell
to see his vision
finally come true.
I found
it very interesting how
quickly Galveston entrepreneurs caught on to
Mitchell's Renaissance. Shortly after
Mitchell got the ball rolling, Moody
Gardens, a fabulous nature preserve enclosed
within a giant pyramid, entered the scene.
Soon to follow were Schlitterbahn, a
terrific water park (2006). Then came the Pleasure
Pier amusement park complete with
rollercoaster (2012).
Further
developments included the emergence of the
trolley cars as a fun way to see the island.
Not to be outdone,
tours were offered to view the beautiful,
fully-restored Victorian architecture such
as the Moody Mansion built in 1895.
With a nod to Sam Maceo, there was a Mob
Tour. With a nod to the Great Storm,
there was a movie made that told the story
and could be viewed at Pier 21 on the Strand.
With a nod to Galveston's early days as a
pirate hangout, there was a Pirate Tour.
Then of course there was the popular Ghost
Tour. The beaches offered year-round
family entertainment and the restaurants
were exceptional. Throw in
popular events such as Mardi Gras and
Dickens on the Strand, people had all sorts
of reasons to flock to this pleasure mecca.
One tourist at a time, Galveston's
reputation grew. When someone visited
Galveston to take a cruise, they were
pleased to discover Galveston rivaled San Antonio as
the best place in Texas to visit in search
of fun.
The halcyon days of Sam Maceo once brought
great prosperity to Galveston. This
period lasted nearly thirty years, but then
things became very bleak over the next
quarter century. Fortunately, Maceo's
fondness for helping the less fortunate
would one day pay a giant dividend. Some would call
Maceo a sinner while others viewed his
benevolence as a blessing.
The point is that no matter what a
person's station in life might be, their willingness to
extend Kindness to others can make a huge difference.
$100 from the pocket of a wealthy man like Sam Maceo was a drop
in the bucket to him, but to a struggling George Mitchell, it was
the lifeline that allowed him to continue his cherished A&M
education.
Look what happened next. George
Mitchell went on to use that degree in geology and petroleum science to
free America from Arab oil dependence. As they say in
the business world, Sam Maceo got quite a return on
his
investment of $100.
However, this story goes much deeper than
that. In their day, Sam
Maceo and George Mitchell were both referred
to as "Mr. Galveston". They
were given this title out of respect and
gratitude for the steps they took to revive
Galveston from economic ruin. This
much many people know. People were
well aware of George Mitchell's role during
Galveston's return. In addition, the
story of how Sam Maceo assisted George
Mitchell has appeared in print several
times.
However, not once have I seen a single
article to suggest the two men might have
had a spiritual connection. Why
do you suppose that is? My guess is
that people familiar with George Mitchell's
life story may have thought it, but no one
had the courage to say so in print and risk
sounding foolish. Fortunately, I feel
no restraint. That is because
Mitchell's sister Maria told me the story of
Maceo's involvement in a deeply personal
way.
