In 1900 the port city of Galveston, Texas was the 3rd largest city in Texas, boasting a population of 38,000 people, and they were doing so well with business that they had earned the nickname "the Wall Street of the South". Located as they were on a 25 mile strip of sand with Galveston Bay to the north and The Gulf of Mexico to the south, and being mostly at sea level- they were a prime target for a big storm. Some had hit but scored little damage- and the leaders of the city became over confident, refusing to invest tax dollars in a seawall to protect against the worst. When the worst hit them on September 8th, in the form of a Cat 4 hurricane with winds estimated at 140mph, 1900, between 6,000 and 12,000 people died. The storm has its stories, and we share them here in parts one and two, the most famous being the nuns in the orphanage who tried to protect the children in their care. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices