Flooding in Galveston after 1915 hurricane. Wikipedia photo.

A hundred years ago, a major hurricane hit the United States, leaving between 275-400 dead and $50 million in property damage. Adjusted for inflation, this made the storm the fourth costliest in U.S. history. The storm brought winds and heavy rains to the Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, and Cuba. Like the deadly hurricane of 1900, it made landfall in Galveston, Texas. The 1900 hurricane had caused thousands of deaths, and some lessons had been learned. In particular, in the wake of the 1900 hurricane, Galveston saw construction of a seawall. The structure was only partially effective in 1915, but still limited the destruction and saved many lives. It did cause flooding, and the beach was eroded to the point where it became an offshore sandbar.

This was one of the first natural disasters in which radio played a role in relief efforts, as reported in the September 1915 issue of Wireless Age.  The magazine, published by the Marconi Company, reports that “in a tornado [sic] which blew continuously for eighteen hours in southeastern Texas, leaving death and destruction in its path, Marconi wireless telegraphy and Marconi men showed their worth by keeping the residents of Galveston in touch with the rest of the world when all other means of communication had failed.”

Port Arthur Marconi station, 1915.

The aerial mast of the Galveston Marconi station was destroyed, and some of the ground plates and mast anchors were swept away. But even though flood waters reached the station house, the equipment was undamaged. A Marconi superintendant in New Orleans came to Galveston to investigate, and arrived on August 19, three days after the winds had started their fury. By that time, an army transport had already established radio contact with Forst Sam Houston, 250 miles away, but with only limited success. A Marconi-equipped steamship, the Concho, was in port, and the Galveston Marconi operators reported for duty aboard that ship. On August 20, they established contact with the Marconi station at Port Arthur, Texas. This was the only reliable communications link between Galveston and the outside world, and many messages were handled for the steamship companies, the military, and the general public.

At some point, the mast at the Port Arthur station gave way, at which time messages were sent and received from another Marconi-equipped steamer, the Wild Duck.

After unleashing its fury on Texas, the storm turned toward the Ohio Valley, finally fading out on August 23.

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