Above: Workers at Farley Boat Works in Port Aransas build a yacht and speedboat for Gail Borden Munsill. This photo is believed to have been shot in the early 1930s. Above right: Gail Borden Munsill is seen at left in this photo shot in the late 1920s or early ‘30s at the south jetty.
Well kids, we talked earlier this year about the terrible hurricane of 1919 and how it destroyed most of the buildings in our community as well as all the infrastructure such as electric power and telephone service. Today, let’s look at the man who saved Port Aransas from the Great Depression and set us on a course to be the town we are today.
Gail Borden was a prolific inventor and famous for developing condensed milk and founding the Borden Milk Company. He was very generous to those around him and as he became wealthy he increased his generosity. Gail Borden Munsill was the great-grandson of Gail Borden. In a twist of fate, the history of Port Aransas and the life of Gail Borden Munsill became intertwined.
Great-grandson Gail was born in 1905 in Hartford, Connecticut, to a very wealthy family. He loved sports and the outdoors. What he did not like was the constraints of a very Victorian family in the roaring twenties.
He left home when he was 19 or 20 and ended up in Corpus Christi. Probably because it was very far away from Connecticut and there were lots of sporting activities in a town on a nearby island. He met a young woman by the name of Billie Peebles who was bright, very attractive, charming, enjoyed similar activities and also loved the town on that island – Port Aransas.
Courtesy photos from PAPHA
Like many young men, Gail always wanted to go fast. In Port Aransas, that included boats. He had the Farley Boat Works build one speedboat after another as well as a yacht for pleasure cruises.
Deeds for property in Port Aransas often refer to an original owner or developer. Often, they mention the Aransas Holding Company, Gail’s company.
Billie and Gail did not marry, as his parents were very much against it. Nevertheless, Gail was very much like his great grandfather in having a creative and philanthropic nature. Beginning in 1925 Gail and his friend Billie set about putting Port Aransas on a solid footing after the terrible destruction of the 1919 storm.
Photographed in the early 1930s, a new building for retail stores is seen at 10th Street and Avenue C in Port Aransas. An identical structure was built on the other side of the street. Both buildings went away after being hit by a hurricane some years later.
He built an electric generating plant and the infrastructure to carry the electric to the few homes on the island. To also use the electric poles, he created a telephone company. The original phone office and switch is just east of the telephone office on Avenue C.
Gail built an ice plant and our first shopping district. The location was on 10th Street, just south of Avenue C.
His vision for Port Aransas went way beyond just the island. By 1928, the first ferry was in business. Its name was Mitzi, and it was a paddle wheeler. The original one was built for Munsill in Galveston. It burned to the waterline after arriving. He ordered another the next day.
The train trestles and railroad right of way that extended from Aransas Pass to Harbor Island were purchased by Munsill. Initially, he had automobiles transported by flatcars to the ferry, but as soon as possible, made troughs on the train trestle that allowed autos to drive to the ferry.
Mark Creighton is a longtime researcher of Port Aransas history. With J. Guthrie Ford, Creighton is the co-author of “Port Aransas,” a photographic history book on the town of Port Aransas. Creighton can be reached at markwcreighton@gmail.com.
Interestingly, he joined forces with another visionary from Port Isabel and promoted the Famous 150 Mile Beach Drive from Port Isabel to Port Aransas via the Gulf Beach. Munsill planned a grand beachfront hotel in Port Aransas – adjacent to the Gulf Beach Drive.
Reflecting on the times, it was providential that such a generous and visionary man would make improvements to the community. Having come through a devastating storm and facing a depression his support for the community gave others the confidence to invest also. Homes were constructed, new businesses grew, folks came back to fish for tarpon and enjoy the weather and location.
Gail’s family relented, and Gail and Billie were finally married in 1934. They planned a honeymoon trip through Europe.
Gail went home to Connecticut to handle business. Billie stayed in Port Aransas so that her sister, Lenoree Walker, a noted seamstress, could fill her trunks with the latest fashions for Europe.
It was not to be. Gail died at 29 years old in 1934 from influenza.
In 1939, Billie married Tom McNamara, a politician from San Antonio. Tom and Billie had two children: Tom and Pat.
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