Since 1866, wharves and piers have been a part of Rockport's shores. The first wharf, constructed to ship cattle, was at Rocky Point. Other wharves handled commercial shipping and passenger traffic. Sorenson's Wharf extended into the bay behind the Sorenson & Hooper mercantile and ship's chandlery store (1406 South Austin Street), which was established in 1887. Cargo was carried to and from ships on carts that rolled on rails on the wharf.
When the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railroad came to Rockport in July 1888, it constructed a wharf at the end of North Street so that boxcars could be rolled directly to the ships. Reportedly, passengers would fish from the train as they waited for cargo to be loaded.
In the 1890s, the Bailey Pavilion was built on the end of a wharf extending into Aransas Bay. Located in front of the Aransas Hotel (later the Del Mar), the Pavilion became the social and cultural center of the community. During the day, bathers splashed in its shaded waters and, for fifteen cents, could rent a private changing room. In the evenings, the Pavilion's stage hosted traveling theatrical troupes, minstrels, and medicine shows. Rockport's first graduating class (six students) held commencement there on May 17, 1907. The Bailey Pavilion was destroyed in the 1919 hurricane.
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