VISITORS GUIDE: CALHOUN COUNTY

Natural Attractions

Calhoun County has more than 600 miles of shoreline and it is the only county in Texas - and perhaps the nation - to have not one but two lighthouses.

The Matagorda Island lighthouse is on a barrier island accessible only by a passenger ferry that departs from Port O'Connor or private boat. There is no causeway to the island that is a naturalist's paradise. History, birding, and wildflower tours are offered during the spring and summer months. Phone for details on the tours and the ferry schedule.

For a shorter trip you can view the Half Moon Reef Lighthouse on State Highway 35 in Port Lavaca that also serves as a visitors center.

The boardwalk over the wetlands near the Half Moon Reef Lighthouse offers visitors a self-guided tour to observe wetland birds and wildlife.

During spring migration seek warblers on your birding list along the roadways between the Old Town Cemetery and the Lower Indianola Cemetery. Birding lists (400+ species) and maps are available at the Port Lavaca Chamber of Commerce.

La Salle Odyssey

Pass Cavallo at the northern tip of Matagorda Island is also where French explorer Robert Cavalier Sieur de La Salle lost one of this three ships - the L'Aimable while seeking to establish a colony on the Mississippi River. He was lost.

The L'Aimable has not been found, but the wreckage of his smaller ship, La Belle, was discovered in Matagorda Bay in 1995.

The Calhoun County Museum in Port Lavaca is one of seven museums that will soon tell the story of the La Salle Odyssey with artifacts recovered from the La Belle. A statute of La Salle erected in 1938 can be seen at Magnolia Beach.

German

The bay beach between Magnolia Beach and Powderhorn Lake is the location of Indianola, a seaport that rivaled Galveston until it was destroyed by two hurricanes in 1875 and 1886. A large pink granite stone on the beach marks the location of the old courthouse that is now underwater about 300 feet from the shoreline.

Thousands of German were landed at Indianola by Prince Carl Solms Braunfels who promised them land grants in the Texas Hill Country.

At the Calhoun County Museum you can view a diorama of Indianola, photos taken after the 1886 storm, a bed hand-crafted by William Allen, an Indianola resident; a milk pitcher used by German immigrant Theresa Wedig to sell milk to her neighbors, household items salvaged after the 1875 storm, and records from the Indianola Settlers Association.

Other

The Calhoun County Museum in Port Lavaca has a small collection of arrow points and other relics used by the Karankawas who lived along the Texas Gulf Coast between Galveston and Corpus Christi bays. .... An African-American history exhibit at the museum each February honors Alice O. Wilkins, a teacher and principal of Wilkens School. ... at Seadrift, view the murals that depict the community's link to the seafood industry. Group birding tours by boat are offered by Capt. Robbie Gregory. Phone for details.

For six consecutive years more bird species have been recorded in Calhoun County than in any other county in the nation during the North America Migratory Count conducted annually in May.