Port O’Connor Roundhouse

The old rail line that ran from Bloomington through Long Mott and Seadrift to Port O’Connor was originally a part of the St. Louis, Brownsville & Mexican Railway(SLB&M). This particular branch to Port O’Connor was called the Port O’Connor, Rio Grande & Northern section.

The Port O’Connor, Rio Grande & Northern section was built in 1909-1910. There were depots in Long Mott, Seadrift and Port O’Connor. Port O’Connor also had a roundhouse. Originally there was leg off this track in Seadrift that ran down to the bay front and out over the water on a wharf, but the 1919 storm put an end to that waterfront section.

Originally the line provided passenger service as well as freight shipping. It served the fishing, shrimping and oystering industries as well as the agricultural industries including livestock, grain and cotton. Regular passenger service was discontinued after the 1919 storm, but freight service continued on for many years to come.

In 1911 the St. Louis, Brownsville & Mexican Railway and all its branches, including the Port O’Connor, Rio Grande & Northern, all became a part of the Gulf Coast Lines. Then in 1925 it all became a part of the Missouri Pacific system, and remained that up until 1997, when it all became a part of the Union Pacific Railroad Co.

The section from Seadrift to Port O’Connor was discontinued in 1933, but the part from Bloomington to Seadrift continued to operate on up until as late as 1969-the year the section from Long Mott to Seadrift was abandoned.

In 1997, what was left of this line (from Bloomington to Long Mott) became a part of Union Pacific Railroad, and continues to serve industries along its route today(2016).

Seadrift Depot