Southeast Texas
Region
From top, left to right:Downtown Houston, DowntownGalveston, DowntownBeaumont, andPort Arthur
Southeast Texas counties in red
Country	United States
State	Texas
Largest city	Houston
Population  (2020)
• Total	7,662,325[1][2][3]

Southeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in theU.S. state ofTexas, borderingSouthwest Louisiana and its greaterAcadiana region to the east. Being a part ofEast Texas, the region is geographically centered on theGreater Houston andBeaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan statistical areas with a combined population of 7,662,325 according to the2020 U.S. census.^[4][5][6]

Southeast Texas includes part of the coast of theGulf of Mexico and most of the Texas portion of theIntracoastal Waterway.^[7] The area is also crossed by numerous rivers and streams, the largest three being theSabine River, theNeches River, and theTrinity River.

In Southeast Texas and the rest of theSouthern United States, small rivers and creeks collect into swamps called "bayous" and merge with the surrounding forest. The only large bodies of water in Southeast Texas areGalveston Bay andSabine Lake, but the largereservoirs of the remainder of East Texas are just to the north. The eastern portion of Southeast Texas is geographically and culturally attached to Southwest Louisiana, though western, southern and northern areas maintain their own distinctTexan cultural identities.

Near the coast, the land is low and extremely flat, and oftenmarshy. ThePiney Woods extend into the northern parts of Southeast Texas, reaching as far south as therice paddies and marshlands that lie between Houston and Beaumont.^[8] The highest point on the coast is atHigh Island, where asalt dome raises the elevation to around 40 feet (12 m) above sea level.

Away from the coast, the terrain begins to exhibit the rolling hills of Northeast andCentral Texas. Toward Central Texas, the mixed pine and hardwood forests give way to theEast Central Texas forests ofpost oak and grasslands.

The Golden Triangle is an area of extreme Southeast Texas near the Louisiana border.^[9] The "triangle" is formed byBeaumont,Port Arthur, andOrange, which are the largest cities in the area. "Golden" refers to the wealth that came from theSpindletop oil strike near Beaumont in 1901. In an attempt to distance the area from thepetrochemical industry, some area interests attempted to rename the Golden Triangle as the "Triplex." This name change did not catch on, and local residents still refer to it as the Golden Triangle. Some residents of the Golden Triangle do not consider the Greater Houston area to be part of Southeast Texas and place the western boundary of the region approximately at theTrinity River, which is roughly 30 miles from downtown Houston.^[10]

This area holds the annualSouth Texas State Fair in Beaumont.^[11]

TheBig Thicket is an area of dense forest located in the area just north and northwest of the city of Beaumont. There are many small towns in this area, includingWoodville andKountze.

The Big Thicket National Preserve protects part of the old thicket, highlighting the area's biological resources. The 97,000 acre (390 km²) preserve boasts a varied ecology of piney woods, swamps, andcoastal prairies. It includes extremely diverse range of plant species including orchids, cactus, cypress, and pine in close proximity to each other. Approximately 65,000 people visit this area each year.^[12]

Two historically important routes cross the Big Thicket: to the north lies the old cattle route or Beef Trail, that ran fromTyler County to Louisiana; to the south is the Spanish Trail or the Atascosito Road, that parallels modern Highway 90 and Interstate 10 from Liberty to Orange.

Galveston Bay is a largeestuary located alongTexas upper coast. The bay is fed by theTrinity River and theSan Jacinto River, numerous local bayous, and incoming tides from theGulf of Mexico. The bay covers approximately 600 square miles (1,500 km²), and is 30 miles (50 km) long and 17 miles (27 km) wide. Galveston Bay is on average 7–9 feet (2-3 m) deep.^[13] The bay has three inlets to the Gulf of Mexico: Bolivar Roads (the exit of theHouston Ship Channel) betweenGalveston Island and theBolivar Peninsula, San Luis Pass to the west, and Rollover Pass to the east.

The Houston Ship Channel, connecting thePort of Houston to the Gulf, passes through Galveston Bay.^[14] Houston is the largest city on the bay, while smaller ones include Galveston,Pasadena,Baytown, andTexas City. The bay provides nursery and spawning grounds for large amounts of marine life and is important for both commercial and recreationalfishing.

Compared to the rest of the state, Southeast Texas' climate is warmer in winter and cooler in summer. On average, the region receives more rain than other parts of the state, and it experiences awet season anddry season like thetropics. This can increase the humidity level in the region. The relatively mild and wet climate is largely due to the influence of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Southeast Texas region can be comparable to that ofSouthern Louisiana in climate. Average annual rainfall in the Golden Triangle is 60 inches (1,500 mm). Rainfall totals in other parts of Southeast Texas are lower, but still in excess of 40 inches (1,000 mm) per year. DuringTropical Storm Claudette in 1979, the city ofAlvin recorded an official 24-hour rainfall total of 42 inches (1,067 mm)—the highest one-day rainfall total ever measured in theUnited States.Nederland received 66 inches during Harvey.

Houston has been called the "Lightning Capital of Texas",^[15][16] as its density oflightning strikes is higher than it is in other parts of the state. This area of unusually high lightning activity stretches from Houston eastward into Southwest Louisiana. Much of this can be explained by the natural occurrence of thunderstorms in the region, which form almost daily during the wet season. However, the unusual clustering of lightning around the developed areas of Houston, the Golden Triangle, andLake Charles, Louisiana have led many researchers to believe that some combination ofurban heat islands andair pollution are responsible for increasing the number of lightning strikes beyond even the already-high natural levels.

Southeast Texas is vulnerable to hurricanes. Majorhurricanes that have severely affected the area in the 21st century includeHurricane Rita in 2005;Hurricane Ike, which passed over much of Houston and surrounding areas in 2008; andHurricane Harvey, which inundated Southeast Texas in 2017. Weaker storms strike the area routinely. Some, likeTropical Storm Allison andTropical Storm Claudette, have caused considerable damage.

The culture of Southeast Texas is closer toAcadiana inLouisiana or the Gulf Coast ofMississippi, than it is toWest Texas; among some of its population,Cajun andCreole identity has been preserved and can be seen during cultural celebrations such asMardi Gras.^[24] Much of contemporary Southeast Texas has its roots in traditions that go back generations; the region is consistent with much of northern and eastern Texas in that it is part of theBible Belt—an area in which many inhabitants have strongly traditionalProtestant Christian beliefs.^[25] Additionally, theCatholic Church in the United States has remained a prominent religious influence since Spanish colonization and missionary work.^[26][27][28] Among its largest cities in East Texas outside Houston, many still follow aruralSouthern way of life, especially in dialect, mannerisms, andcuisine.

In the urban areas of Southeast Texas,energy,healthcare,manufacturing andtechnology are prominent industries. Houston is the largest city and economic center of Southeast Texas, and it holds the third mostFortune 500 headquarters by concentration in the U.S. as of 2021.^[29] Major corporations in the region includeAPA Corporation,Chevron Corporation,HostGator,Jason's Deli,JPMorgan Chase, andSysco. Outside of the cities,agriculture,tourism andsmall business have always been major factors in the economy.

TheUniversity of Houston System is the largest and most prominent university system based in Southeast Texas, althoughTexas Southern University,Prairie View A&M University, theUniversity of Saint Thomas,Houston Christian University, and others are also notable subjects to the region's undergraduate and postgraduate systems.Rice University in Houston was ranked 15th in the nation byU.S. News & World Report as of 2022.^[30] In areas closer to Beaumont,Lamar University within theTexas State University System is the center of higher education.

Within Southeast Texas, the city of Houston and its metropolitan area has a rich sporting culture and area residents are active in many spectator and participant sports. Spectators attend events including teams from fourmajor professional sports teams andcollegiate sports; Beaumont is also the second principal location for collegiate sports. Participants enjoy activities from running inMemorial Park to sailing onGalveston Bay and Clear Lake. A number of other sports are also available, including nearly a dozen fencing clubs, ranging from recreational clubs to elite competitive organizations.^[31]

There are a variety of highways stretching between the Greater Houston and Beaumont metropolitan areas, connecting the communities to the remainder of theGulf Coast region of the United States, and theTexas Triangle. Among other modes of transportation, the largest airports operating in Southeast Texas are all stationed in the city of Houston.

Designation	Common name	Year of First FreewaySection[32]	Maximum width:mainlanes(HOV)[33]	Maximum Traffic Count,2001 (AADT)[34]	Maximum Traffic Count,2009 (AADT)[35]	Maximum Traffic Count,2012 (AADT)[35]
I-10	Baytown-East Freeway	1953	10	225,640	195,000	168,000
	Katy Freeway	1956	26(4)[36]	238,520	268,000	360,000
I-45	Gulf Freeway	1948	8(1)	269,570	266,000	245,000
	North Freeway	1959	10(1)	291,470	317,000	312,000
I-69 /US 59	Eastex Freeway	1953	10(1)	211,860	195,000	205,000
	Southwest Freeway	1961	13(1)	379,550	329,000	318,000
I-610	610 Loop	1952	10	293,460	288,000	292,000
Sam Houston Tollway	Beltway 8	1982	9	202,900	189,000	203,410**[1]
Fort Bend Tollway	Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road	2004	4		9,471**[2]
Hardy Toll Road		1987	6	59,220	61,000	63,000
Westpark Tollway		2004	4		119,385**[3]
US 90	Crosby Freeway	1991	6	31,090	46,000	40,000
US 290	Northwest Freeway	1975	8(1)	262,970	230,000	239,000
Spur 5	Spur 5	1988	6	54,240	37,000	33,000
Spur 330	Decker Drive	2001	6	32,890	37,000	47,000
Spur 527	The Downtown Split[37]	1961	6*	93,410	64,000	65,000
SH 99 /SH 99 Toll	Grand Parkway	1994	4	36,200	68,000	47,000
SH 146	Baytown Freeway	1996	8	74,670	73,000	76,000
SH 225	La Porte Freeway	1966	8	152,780	133,000	113,000
SH 249 /Tomball Tollway	Tomball Parkway	1990	8	119,780	142,000	151,000
SH 288	South Freeway	1980	8	178,490	172,000	163,000
FM 1764	Emmett F. Lowry Expressway		4	48,050	40,000	35,000
** For these toll roads, this represents the highest AADT as measured at a toll booth, but not necessarily the highest traffic at any point along the toll road.

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