USS Flagship Hotel

The USS Flagship Hotel was a hotel, located in Galveston in the U.S. state of Texas. It was built on the historic Pleasure Pier structure entirely over the Gulf of Mexico, albeit very close to shore. It was a popular destination in Galveston that withstood many storms.

History

The hotel was built in 1965 by Houston banker James Lyon who leased the pier for the construction. The lease rate was US$185,000 annually (US$1.29 million in today's terms) for forty years.^[1][2]

The structure was severely damaged by Hurricane Ike.^[3] As of 2009^[update] the owner, Landry's Restaurants, was considering various possibilities for the site's future ranging from demolishing and replacing the structure, to repairing and re-opening the hotel.^[4]

In October 2010, local news sources reported that Landry's will demolish the hotel rather than repairing the dilapidated structure at a cost of $15 million. In its place, an amusement park will grace the 1,000 foot long Pleasure Pier. Coincidentally, the Flagship Hotel replaced an amusement park that was severely damaged during Hurricane Carla in September 1961. Demolition began February 17, 2011.

See also

• Hotel Galvez

Notes

References

• McComb, David G. (1986). Galveston: a history. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-72053-4. http://books.google.com/?id=u34YtRj_G_4C. 
• Miller, Ray (1993). Ray Miller's Galveston (2nd ed.). Gulf Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0884150916. http://books.google.com/?id=KB0SAQAAIAAJ. 

External links

• Galveston Tourism: Flagship Hotel