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Houston Ship Channel
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Houston Ship Channel, Houston, Texas A barge travels along the Houston Ship Channel in front of a large oil refinery complex with storage tanks and industrial towers in the background.
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Houston Ship Channel, Houston, Texas
Houston Ship Channel, Houston, Texas The immense resources in the region have created a large concentration of industries along the channel.

Houston Ship Channel

waterway, United States
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•History

News •

Hundreds died in USS Houston in WWII. Indonesia will now preserve the shipwreck. • Oct. 25, 2026, 6:30 PM ET (Houston Chronicle)

Houston Ship Channel, waterway that connects Houston, Texas, with the Gulf of Mexico, passing through the former Buffalo Bayou and Galveston Bay. The channel, which was opened in 1914 and later improved, is 50.5 mi (81.3 km) long, 36 ft (11 m) deep, and has a minimum width of 300 ft (90 m). It requires no locks.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.