Houston Baptist University

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1.2 The Civil War, Although Christopher Columbus was credited with the discovery of the Americas by Europeans the ships in his four voyages never reached the Gulf of Mexico Instead Columbus sailed into the Caribbean around Cuba and Hispaniola the first European exploration of the Gulf of Mexico was by Amerigo Vespucci in 1497 He followed the coastal land mass of Central America before returning to the Atlantic Ocean via the Straits of Florida between Florida and Cuba in his letters Vespucci described this trip and once Juan de la Cosa returned to Spain a famous world map depicting Cuba as an island was produced. Design and construction When World War II started tonnage levels at the port decreased and shipping activities were suspended; however the war did provide economic benefits for the city Petrochemical refineries and manufacturing plants were constructed along the ship channel because of the demand for petroleum and synthetic rubber products by the defense industry during the war. Ellington Field initially built during World War I was revitalized as an advanced training center for bombardiers and navigators the Brown Shipbuilding Company was founded in 1942 to build ships for the U.S Navy during World War II Due to the boom in defense jobs thousands of new workers migrated to the city both blacks and whites competing for the higher-paying jobs President Roosevelt had established a policy of nondiscrimination for defense contractors and blacks gained some opportunities especially in shipbuilding although not without resistance from whites and increasing social tensions that erupted into occasional violence Economic gains of blacks who entered defense industries continued in the postwar years. ; . Privately owned private use 148 Jessica Farrar Democratic 1994 North and Northwest Houston mainly within Loop 610 (including Houston Heights), 6 Further reading Sports The painting shows many men some on foot and some on horseback engaged in hand-to-hand combat One man carries the Mexican flag; another carries the flag of the Republic of Texas in the background are several tents; behind them is a body of water. . .