The 1900 Galveston Hurricane | City of Doom | 3
American History Tellers
Audible
4.6 • 19K Ratings
🗓️ 22 April 2026
⏱️ 41 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On September 9, 1900, the residents of Galveston, Texas woke up to find their island in ruins. Entire neighborhoods had vanished overnight. Telegraph, telephone, and electrical lines were destroyed, as were the four bridges connecting Galveston to the mainland. Bloodied men, women, and children stumbled through the streets. And thousands of corpses were strewn amongst the wreckage, victims of what remains America’s deadliest natural disaster.
As the survivors reckoned with the challenge of rebuilding their lives, Clara Barton, the 78-year-old founder and president of the American Red Cross, rushed to Galveston to aid with relief.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hello, American history teller listeners. I have an exciting announcement. I'm going on tour and coming to a theater near you. |
| 0:06.8 | This live show is a thrilling evening of history, storytelling, and music with a full band accompanying me as we look back to explore the days that made America. |
| 0:15.4 | And they aren't the days that you might think. Sure, everyone knows July 4th, 1776. We'll be hearing a lot about that date this year, |
| 0:22.4 | but there are many other days that are maybe even more influential. So come out to see me |
| 0:26.9 | live. More shows to be announced soon. So for information on tickets and upcoming dates, |
| 0:31.8 | go to American History Live.com. That's American History Live.com. Come see my Days That Made America tour, live on stage. Go to |
| 0:40.5 | American History Live.com. Imagine it's the afternoon of Sunday, September 9th, 1900, somewhere |
| 0:53.2 | outside of League City, Texas. You and five other men |
| 0:56.7 | left Galveston on a boat this morning to begin a 50-mile journey to Houston in order to alert |
| 1:01.8 | the world about yesterday's devastating hurricane. Since reaching the mainland, you've been pumping |
| 1:07.3 | your way north in a small rail handcar. Your arms are sore from the work, |
| 1:12.3 | but the repetitive motion is a helpful distraction from your shock and grief. |
| 1:16.7 | Alright, keep going, boys. Just a few more miles. |
| 1:20.0 | At first, you think the sun is playing tricks on you, |
| 1:22.4 | but then you see a southbound passenger train rounding a bend ahead. |
| 1:26.7 | You straighten up and wave your arms. |
| 1:29.0 | Stop! Stop! We can't take stop! |
| 1:32.9 | The train manages to slow to a halt and you climb off the handcar. |
| 1:37.4 | The conductor flings open the door. |
| 1:39.5 | What the hell are you men doing? |
| 1:41.3 | We're from Galveston. |
| 1:42.5 | We're heading to Houston to wire the governor and the |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Audible, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Audible and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.