Dickinson is a city in Galveston County, Texas, United States. The population was 17,093 at the 2000 census. Dickinson is part of the Houston Metropolitan Area.

History

Dickinson is located on a tract of land granted to John Dickinson in 1824, and named after him. A settlement had been established in this area on Dickinson Bayou before 1850. The Galveston, Houston, and Henderson Railroad was built directly through Dickinson. This line was used in the American Civil War to successfully retake Galveston.

The Dickinson Land and Improvement Association was organised in the 1890s by Fred M. Nichols and eight other businessmen....

Dickinson is a city in Galveston County, Texas, United States. The population was 17,093 at the 2000 census. Dickinson is part of the Houston Metropolitan Area.

History

Dickinson is located on a tract of land granted to John Dickinson in 1824, and named after him. A settlement had been established in this area on Dickinson Bayou before 1850. The Galveston, Houston, and Henderson Railroad was built directly through Dickinson. This line was used in the American Civil War to successfully retake Galveston.

The Dickinson Land and Improvement Association was organised in the 1890s by Fred M. Nichols and eight other businessmen. It marketed to potential farmers with claims of the soil's suitability for food crops, and socialites with the creation of the Dickinson Picnic Grounds and other attractions. By 1911, the Galveston and Houston Electric Railway had three stops in Dickinson, and the Oleander Country Club was a popular destination for prominent Galvestonians.

In 1905, Italian ambassador Baron Mayor des Planches convinced about a hundred fifty Italians from crowded eastern cities to move to Dickinson. They joined the dozens relocated there after flooding in Bryan, Texas forced them to seek new homes.

Dickinson continued to grow due to its proximity to Texas City, with its shipyards and wartime industries, and later its proximity to the Johnson Space Center.