The Devastation of Dark Water Rising
Lauren Albrecht
3/25/13
6th hour
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“I looked and saw water rushing in from Galveston Bay on one side and from the gulf on
the other. The two seas met in the middle of Broadway, swirling over the wooden paving blocks,
and I couldn’t help but shudder at the sight. All of Galveston appeared to be under water” (Hale
73). The Galveston Storm of 1900 was an extremely destructive hurricane that devastated the
little island of Galveston, Texas. Thousands of people were killed and the lives of many others
were changed forever. Dark Water Rising, written by Marian Hale, is a breathtaking read that
very accurately represents the events of The Galveston Storm of 1900.
This book follows the life of Seth Braeden and takes place in Galveston, Texas in the
year 1900. The story begins when Seth moves with his family to Galveston in August 1900. He
has been forced to move because his dad was adamant that Galveston was the booming city of
the 20th century. When Seth and his family arrive, he thinks that the one thing he may actually
enjoy about Galveston is his new job as a carpenter. He is skeptical at first, but upon arriving on
his first day, he meets some great people that he would be working with to build a strip of new
houses along the bay. Things are starting to look up for Seth and he begins to realize that
Galveston may not be such a bad place after all. Unfortunately, a storm is coming that will
forever change the life of everyone it touches. Nobody has time to prepare for the storm and
when it starts, Seth is at work with his friend Josiah. The two realize that this storm is going to be
like no other, and they know they must find shelter immediately. They go to Seth’s Uncle Nate’s
house. When Seth realizes that his parents are not there, he and Josiah go to a neighbor’s house
to wait out the storm. They arrive safely before the storm reaches them. When they get inside,
they see many neighbors have also come to wait out the storm. As the gravity of the situation
begins to dawn on Seth and he realizes what this storm may mean for him and his family, he sits
down and a wave of queasiness hits him. “Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a small table slide a
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few feet across the floor. I stared at it, confused for a moment then felt the whole house rise and
rock like a ship at sea. Shocked cries sounded all around me. We were afloat” (Hale 88). This
terrifying moment didn’t last long and they soon hit the ground with a jaw shattering jolt. Water
began to rush into the house and everyone fled upstairs in a desperate attempt to stay above it.
With little else to do, everyone waited, hoping and praying that their lives may be spared. Seth
eventually fell asleep awaiting his fate. When he awoke, all was quiet. The winds had died down
and he could no longer hear the rushing water beneath him. The house was severely damaged but
miraculously, everybody survived. The storm was over but the real challenges lie ahead because
the storm has caused so much destruction. Thousands of people lay dead in the streets or tangled
in the rubble of the city. Seth and Josiah made it home but not without seeing the trauma this
storm had brought. They saw hundreds of bodies and people begging for information about loved
ones that never made it back home the previous night. When Seth and Josiah arrived home, they
saw that everyone had made it back; except Seth’s Uncle Nate and his cousin Ben. Fearing that
they have been killed, but hoping for the best, the family began searching for them, but with all
of the wreckage and little information of where they had been, their search was hopeless. Uncle
Nate and Ben were never seen again.
This storm had caused great loss, however with great loss there was great triumph and
life continued to go on. Wreckage was cleared out, some stores in town that were still standing
received power again, and the school year had a new start date. The death and destruction were
very great, but the people of Galveston learned to cope with it. The book ends on New Year’s
Eve with people gathered on the beach just months after the city was ravaged by the great storm.
The tragedy of this storm brought the survivors closer together. There were no fireworks that
year, but the people on the beach began to sing the chorus of “Auld Lang Syne”. It was very
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difficult for normal life to return, but with the unity of the survivors of the storm, life continued
on for Seth and his family. The victims of the storm would always be remembered by the city of
Galveston.
Dark Water Rising is based on The Galveston Storm Of 1900. This storm claimed
anywhere from 6,000-12,000 lives. The Island of Galveston, Texas was really nothing more than
a sandbar in the ocean. It could stand up to small storms, but with a storm as large as the 1900
storm the little island was doomed. One of the main reasons this storm was so bad was that there
was almost no warning. The storm flag had not gone up until earlier the day of the storm
(Frequently). Galveston had endured other storms with very little damage and the people did not
see why this one would be any different. Everyone on the island was forced to wait where they
were and see how things would turn out. However, this was not like other storms at all. The
rushing water drowned thousands and the loose debris took another couple thousand. By the end,
people lay dead in the streets and few buildings remained standing (Galveston). This storm
ravaged the city of Galveston and changed people’s lives forever.
Dark Water Rising shows a very accurate portrayal of events throughout the course of the
book by keeping the reader interested while also informing them of actual events and facts. For
example, when Seth and his family arrive in Galveston, his Uncle Nate says, “Galveston is fast
becoming the New York City of Texas” (Hale 3). The reason for this was mostly the shipping
industry which made Galveston the 3rd richest city in America. Galveston was right on the bay
and was a major port as twelve hundred ships loaded and unloaded cargo there every year
(Economist's). Another way Hale shows the accuracy of her book is through events and statistics
from after the storm. The death toll was high and the bodies had to be dealt with. There weren’t
many options and time was of the essence. After a few failed tries at body disposal, they found
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the one option that would work. Unfortunately, the survivors had to witness this method. In the
book, Seth says, “Workers dug trenches at first, but now they are just burning them where they
find them, just piling the wreckage on top of them and torching it. It’s a terrible sight.” (Hale
172). The bodies couldn’t be left in the streets and with the fear of disease, not much else could
be done (Frequently). Hale’s portrayal of the wreckage left by the storm in her book is very
accurate. The book says, “Houses and buildings lay tilted crazily, and many lay tumbled topsyturvy, kicked over like toy blocks.” (Hale 111). This quote is very true as most of Galveston was
completely flattened. Only a very few well built mansions and some other lucky buildings
survived this storm that was estimated at a strength of about a category 4 when it hit Galveston
(1900).
Although most of Marian Hale’s book is true, the ending of the book sacrifices the facts
for an interesting story. A very key moment occurs on page 214 when Seth and the rest of his
family go to the beach and watch the fireworks. When this is done everyone on the beach begins
to sing the chorus of Auld Lang Syne. This moment is when Seth begins to accept what has
happened and move on. He says, “It is time for goodbyes, time to let loose the storms bindings.”
(Hale 215). However, there is no evidence that this event actually happened. The author Marian
Hale most likely added it in for dramatic effect instead of for information about what actually
happened on New Year’s Eve in the year 1900.
The time period of this book influenced Seth because he had the misfortune of moving to
Galveston the year of the storm. Galveston’s elevation at that time was only 5 or 6 feet above the
mean low tide line. When the storm came in, the island was thoroughly ravaged and many homes
were ruined from water damage. If Seth lived in Galveston today, this would not have been the
case. The Galveston Seawall, now in use, stretches 10 miles along the oceanfront where it
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protects the island from future tropical storms. After the seawall was built, the island underwent
grade rising. This was an extensive construction project that lasted from 1903-1911, and
ultimately raised 500 city blocks using 16 million cubic yards of dredged sand which was placed
under jacked up homes, churches, and businesses. This project ended up raising the island to
about 17 feet above the mean low tide mark. If Seth were to live in Galveston now and this same
storm had hit, the damage would have been much less extensive and the death toll and
devastation to the island would have been much lower (Seawall).
Marian Hale’s book Dark Water Rising accurately displays the events of the Galveston
Storm of 1900. Many people today would find it hard to believe the reality of what occurred
during this storm. This book shows the reader the difficulties that the residents of Galveston
faced the day of the storm. It is incredibly terrifying to see what can happen when a natural
disaster strikes so close to home. This book shows the tragedy of the storm and informs the
reader of how lucky they are to live in a modern time with more advanced technology and more
intense precautions to protect them from the elements. While we still cannot completely prevent
storms such as these from damaging our cities and towns, we have greatly improved from where
we were in 1900 when the catastrophic storm took thousands of lives from the little island of
Galveston.
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Works Cited
"The 1900 Galveston Hurricane - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News
Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,
"Economist's View: The Galveston Hurricane." Economistsview.typepad.com. N.p., 22 Sept.
2005. Web. 7 Mar. 3013.
<economistsview.typepad.com/economistsview/2005/09/the_galveston_h.htmlhttp://>.
"Frequently asked questions about the 1900 storm." gthcenter.org. N.p., 25 Feb. 2003. Web. 17
Mar. 2013. <http://www.gthcenter.org/exhibits/storms
"The Galveston Hurricane of 1900." EyeWitness to History - history through the eyes of those
who lived it. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2013.
<http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/galveston.htm>.
Hale, Marian. Dark Water Rising. New York: Henry Holt, 2006. Print.
"Seawall and Grade Rising Of Galveston." American Society of Civil Engineers. N.p., n.d. Web.
18 Mar. 2013. <http://www.asce.org/PPLContentWide.aspx?id=9170>.
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