The automobile is so dwarfed by the giant gantry crane unloadingit that it seems almost to be a Christmas toy. The picture wasmade at Public Dock 17.

This gantry crane comes in mighty handy at the Port of Houston.

When the automobiles from Europe were unloaded the crane loadedaboard the SS SKAUGUM the heavy, boxed oil field equipmentshown at the right. The oil field equipment went to the Mid East.

The year of 1959 was a record year for the Port of Houston-a record year in cargo handled and in new facilities completed,including three new public docks, two with trans,t sheds.

During 1959, the commissioners of the Harris County HoustonShip Channel Navigation District set in motion a $12.5 millionimprovement program, including a bulk materials handling plant,two new docks, and a foreign trade center, to be financed outof port revenue bonds.

WE OFFER YOU:¯ Southwest’s best inland transportation

network ¯ ,Six trunk-llne railroads

¯ 35 common carrier truck lines¯ 119 steamship services ¯ 28 barge lines;

90 tanker lines ° Marginal tracks atshlpslde ¯ Heavy llft equipment¯ Prompt, efficient service

Port of Houston Offices AreAs Near as Your Telephone!HOUSTON

GEORGE W. ALTVATERGener?~l Sales ManagerJOHN R. WEtLERDistrjct Sales Representative1519Capitol Ave., P. O. Box 2562Telephone CA 5-0671

NEW YORK CITYJOHN A. LALAFRANK WARD, AssistantRoom 442, 25 BroadwayTelephone BOwling Green 9-7747

KANSAS CITYCHARLES A. BARROWSBoard of Trade BuildingTelephone Victor 2-573"2

CHICAGOHUME HENDERSONBoard of Trade Building

t~~l~ay~ Sp~cify~, vi~

H

TelephoneWEbster9-6228

PORT OF OUSTONAnd Always Use the Public Dock Facilities of its Navigation District

Executive Offices: 1519 Capitol Avenue, Telephone CA 5-0671--P. O. Box 2562, Houston 1, Texas

2 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

Manchester Terminal offers the convenience and economy of

"ship-side" warehousing at the Port of Houston. With complete water-rail-

truck handling of cotton and general cargo, Manchester’s one-stop service

helps shippers save time and money.

Manchester’s modem convenient facilities include:

¯ Concrete wharves

¯ Two-story transit sheds

¯ High.density cotton compresses

¯ Automatic sprinkler system

¯ Large outdoor storage area

¯ Rapid truck loading and unloading

¯ Modern handling methods and equipment

For complete cargo handling service, use Manchester Terminal.

Manchester Terminal CorporationP. O. Box 2576 General Office: CA 7-3296Houston 1, Texas Wharf Office: WA 6-9631

JANUARY, 1960

SHIP SUPPLIESAll of your shipboard requirements are imme-diately available from Texas Marine & Indus-trial Supply Co. Special departments for Deckand Engine, Electrical, Fire Protection, Provi-sions and Steward’s Sundries guarantees fill-ing your needs with one call.

HUMBLE

MARINEPRODUCTS

at Texas Ports

¯ Bunker fuels*¯ Essomarine Deep Draft lubricants¯ HumbleLube HD

(High speed diesel engine oil)¯ Marine paints and solvents

*Readily available at shipside at Houston, Baytown,Galveston and Harbor Island.

4 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

Official Publication

of the Harris County Houston Ship Channel Navigation District

Volume 2 Number 1JANUARY, 1960

DirectoryOf Officials

FOR THE

Port of HoustonNew Manager of Engineering and Planning Named .................. 7

Freight Forwarders Can Ease Shipping Troubles ...................... 8

PORT COMMISSIONERS

HOWARD TELLEPSEN, ChairmanW. N. BLANTON, Vice ChairmanJOHN G. TUNNEYR. VERNON WHITESIDE

J. P. HAMRLEN

EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTJ. P. TURNEn, General ManagerVERNON BAILEY, Assistant General ManagerJ. L. LOCKETT, JR., CounselSAMUEL S. BRUCE, AuditorTRAVlS SM1TH, Engineer and Planning ManagerEDITH HANNER, Executive AssistantNORMAN E. HUENI, Chief EngineerROBERT W. ROBINSON, Business Office ManagerT. E. WHATLEY, Administrative AssistantVINCENT D. WILLIAMS, Administrative Assistant

PUBLIC RELATIONS DEPARTMENT

LLOYD GREGORY, Director o/InformationTED SUMERLI1W, Editor o/MagazineVAUGHN M. BRYAIqT, Director o/

International Relations

Plans Completed for Houston’s World Trade Center ................... 9

Oil Rigs Shipped From Houston To Patagonia ....................... 10

Bluebonnet Bowl Teams See Port of Houston ........................ 12

The News In Views ............................................ 14

Gulf Coast Railroad Men Meet In Houston ......................... 15

Visitors On The Sam Houston ................................. 16

Ideal Cement Grows With the Southwest ........................... 18

Japan Opens Consulate In Houston .............................. 20

Port of Houston Directory ....................................... 31

SALES DEPARTMENT

GEORGE W. ALTVATER, General Sales ManagerJOHN A. LALA, District Sales ManagerFRANK WARD, Assistant

25 Broadway, New York, N. Y.HUME HENDERSON, District Sales Manager

Board of Trade Building, Chicago, Ill.CHARLES A. BARROWS, District Sales Manager

Board of Trade Building, Kansas City, Mo.JOHN R. WEILER, District Sales Manager

1519 Capitol, Houston

OPERATIONS DEPARTMENT

C. E. BULLOCK, Operations ManagerW. F. LAND, Terminal ManagerT. H. SHERWOOD, Manager of Grain ElevatorD. M. FnAZlOR, Maintenance Manager

EXECUTIVE OFFICES

1519 Capitol Avenue at Crawford StreetTelephone CApitol 5-0671

P. O. Box 2562, Houston 1, Texas

Sailing Schedules .............................................. 32

THE COVER

Snake-like, the Houston Ship Channel starts an "S" curve at the Ideal

Cement Company’s plant in this month’s cover photo. For a close-up view ofthis up-to-date plant see Pages 1 8 and 19.

THE PORT OF HOUSTON Magazine is pub-lished monthly and distributed free to marl-time, industrial and transportation interests inthe United States and foreign countries. Itspurpose is to inform shippers and others inter-ested in the Port of Houston of its develop-ment, facilities, plans and accomplishments.

This publication is not copyrighted and per-

mission is given for the reproduction or useof any material, provided credit is given to thePort of Houston.

Additional information or extra copies ofthis magazine may be obtained by writing ThePort of Houston Magazine, Post Office Box6278, Houston 6, Texas.

JANUARY, 1960 5

Royal Netherlands Steamship Company25 Broadway, New York 4, N. Y.

Regular Sailings from

Mobile, Houston and New Orleans

WEEKLYto La Guaira, Pto. Cabello, Guanta and Trinidad

Separate WEEKLY SailingsTo MARACAIBO and CURACAO

EVERY TWO WEEKSTo Aruba, Pto. Sucre, Carupano,

Georgetown and Paramaribo

Agents

STRACHANSHIPPING COMPANYNew Orleans--Houston--Mobile Chicago--St. Louis

CincinnatimDallas--Kansas City--Memphis--Atlanta

FUNCH, EDYE & CO., INC.New York-- Detroit

[heBANK LINE Ltd.

Regular Service from

U. S. Gulf Ports to

Australiaa.d

New Zealand¯ Brisbane

¯ Melbourne

¯ Auckland

¯ Lyttleton

¯ Sydney

¯ Adelaide

¯ Wellington

¯ Dunedin

m m m

General Agents

BOYD, WEIR and

SEWELL, Inc.

New York

mmm

Gulf Agents

STRACHANSHIPPING CO.

Houston - Galveston - Mobile

Memphis - New Orleans - Dallas

Chicago - Atlanta - St. Louis

Kansas City - Cincinnati

6 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

Travis L. Smith, III, accepted thenewly created position of manager ofengineering and planning for the Portof Houston "because it represents achallenge to continue serving the peopleof Houston and Harris County."

Mr. Smith resigned as the publicworks director of the City of Houston,

a job he held for two years. He pre-viously had served 13 years as assistantdirector under John G. Turney, who isnow a port commissioner, and JimmyNagle.

Norman E. Hueni continues as chiefengineer of the Port.

"The Port is most fortunate to obtain

Meet Travis Smith

ENGINEERING AND

PLANNING MANAGER

IS NAMED BY PORT

LOOKING OVER PLANS FOR 1960--Travis L. Smith, III, left,talks with General Manager J. P. Turner (center), and Norman Hueni. Mr. Smith resigned as public works director of the City ofHouston to become manager of engineering and planning for the Portof Houston.

the services of Mr. Smith, who has sucha splendid engineering background inHouston," Chairman Howard Tellepsenof the Harris County Houston ShipChannel Navigation District said.

"Mr. Smith and Mr. Hueni will makean outstanding team," General ManagerJ. P. Turner of the Port commented.

"Trav" Smith is accustomed to chal-lenges. For two years he lived in thejungle as he kept open the famed BurmaRoad, lifeline of China’s resistance tothe Japanese war-lords.

The Burma Road started at Kummingin Central China, extended west intoBurma, north of Bahmo, and then southto the railhead near Rangoon.

At first, Captain Smith was chargedwith keeping the roadbed in repair.After the Japs cut the Burma Road atBahmo and Lungling, it was Smith’s jobto build a 150-mile road, by-passing theJapanese positions, and connecting theLedo Road with the Burma Road. Thejob was accomplished by a force of8,000 Chinese laborers.

For his great engineering feat, Mr.Smith twice was decorated by the Chi-nese government, and received theBronze Star from the United States.

Travis Logan Smith was born inEagle Lake, the son of Mr. and Mrs.T. L. Smith, Jr. His father is still activein the oil business, and an ardent boost-er of the Texas Aggies.

"Tray" Smith was graduated as a civilengineer with honors from Texas A. &M. in 1930. In Aggieland, he was amember of the famed Ross Volunteers.His first job was as a rodman forMoody-Seagraves on a pipeline job be-tween Bloomington and Edna. He thenworked in the Wharton County engi-neer’s office. He first started work forthe City of Houston in 1937.

Mr. Smith, soft-spoken, always cour-teous and studious, will have charge of a$12.5 million expansion program chart-ed to be well under way in 1960. In-cluded in the program are a bulk ma-terials handling plant, a foreign tradecenter and two docks.

Mrs. Smith is the former Laura Hous-worth of Wharton. They have onedaughter, Mrs. Donald Simpson.

The Smiths, who live at 3825 OlympiaDrive, are members of St. Martin’s Epis-copal Church.

JANUARY, 1960 7

No. 3: Men Who Make The Port of Houston Hum

FREIGHT FORWARDERS CANEASE SHIPPING TROUBLES

By LLOYD GREGORY

JOE P. HARLE of Houston, president

of the Texas Ocean Freight ForwardersAssociation, believes the freight for-warder performs a most valuable func-tion.

"The freight forwarder brings to-gether all parties involved in ocean ship-ping," Mr. Harle explains.

Fourteen forwarding firms, engagedin ocean shipping from Beaumont toBrownsville, make up the Texas OceanFreight Forwarders Association. Mr.Harle estimates association members areinvolved in about 90 per cent of theocean-going general cargo moving outfrom Texas ports.

Members of the Texas Ocean FreightForwarders Association are:

Bartz Forwarding Company, Browns-ville.

Beaumont Shippers, Inc.John W. Blumstein, Beaumont.T. J. Hanson, Beaumont.F. J. Herbelin, Bay Transfer Service,

Inc., Galveston and Houston.J..P. Harle~ Forwarding Company,

Houston.A. L. Rankin, Corpus Christi.H. E. Schurig & Company, Galveston,

Houston.

Southports Forwarding Company,Houston.

The Stone Forwarding Company,Houston, Galveston, Corpus Christi.

R. W. Smith & Company, Houston.C. J. Thibodeaux and Company, Hous-

ton.W. R. Zanes & Company, Houston,

Galveston.H. L. Ziegler, Inc., Houston, Galves-

ton, Corpus Christi.Jim Britian of Bartz Forwarding is

vice president of the association; BobDebner of F. J. Herbelin, Bay TransferService, Inc., is secretary-treasurer ; Mrs.Martha Munhausen of C. J. Thibodeauxand Company is assistant secretary-treasurer.

It is interesting to note the definitionof an independent foreign freight for-warder given by Martin A. Kerner,president, and Benjamin M. Altschuler,counsel for the Customs Brokers & For-warders Association of America, Inc.,New York, in hearings before the spe-cial subcommittee on freight forwardersand brokers of the Committee on Mer-chant Marine and Fisheries, House ofl~epresenlatives :

"An independent foreign freight for-

JOE P. HARLE

warder is any person engaged in thebusiness of dispatching shipments on be-half of other persons, for a considera-tion, by ocean-going vessels in com-merce from the United States, its ter-ritories, or possessions to foreign coun-tries, or between such territories andpossessions; and of handling the for-malities incident to such shipments; butwho is not a shipper or consignee or aseller of purchaser or common carrierby water of such shipments, nor has anybeneficial interest therein, nor directlyor indirectly controls or is controlled bylhe shipper or consignee, common car-rier by water, or by any person havinga beneficial interest in such shipments."

Mr. Harle was born in Pt. ArthurNov. 12, 1919, and finished high schoolthere. He is a graduate of the far-famed

¯ CONTINUED ON PAGE 29

BOUND FOR ARGENTINA One of the largest shipments of oil field machinery ever to leave the Port of Houston was loaded aboard theWorld Jonquil. The material, 10,970 tons in all, is shown on City Docks 15-16. It was assigned to the Southeastern Drilling Company, Argentina.The J. P. Harle Forwarding Company, 1220 Texas, Houston, was the freight forwarder.

MODEL OF NEW WORLD TRADE CENTER IS DISPLAYED

Final plans for Houston’s proposed $21/2 million World Trade Centerhave been drawn and submitted to the Navigation and Canal Commis-sioners for approval which, if forthcoming, will allow bids to be takenon the project and construction started immediately. Drawn by the firmof Wilson, Morris, Crain and Anderson, AIA, the plans and specifica-tions were accompanied by the detailed model, here seen with NancyMaywald, executive secretary at the Port. The new building would bebuilt by the Port Authority and have an eleven-story glass tower, a club

facility on the top floor of the front, four-story section, and will beopen on the ground floor with glassed-in exhibit space and a 120-personauditorium and lecture hall. The building would provide office spacefor any foreign trade interests in Houston desiring it, including foreignconsulates, and contain approximately 150,000 square feet of floor spaceincluding basement and first floor court, exhibit space and lecture halT.Estimated completion would be approximately eighteen months fromstart of construction.

JANUARY, 1960 9

All loaded and ready to go, the Elderfields prepares to leave City Dock 16 with her completecargo of oil well machinery, equiplnent, trucks, housing units and spare parts.

IT’S A LONG, long way to Tipperary,

but it’s a whole lot farther to Patagonia--and that’s where tens of thousands oftons of oilwell machinery and equip-ment have been going from the Port ofHouston’s busy docks for more than ayear.

Roughly the distance to Moscow orTokyo, the bleak, windswept lands ofPatagonia in deep southern Argentinaare oil-rich but present a tough trans-portation problem for the companiesdrilling there.

Typical of scores of shipments movingto the land of Tierra del Fuego and thearea just north of it is this tremendouscargo shipped by Loffland BrothersDrilling Company of Tulsa, Oklahoma.It was part of three shipments totalling25,000 tons valued at $10 million for

A veritable caravan made the overland trek from Tulsa to Houston in Assembled in Houston, the cargo was so large that two packing con-phase one of the massive movement, tractors were required to do the crating and packing.

Utility units to provide electricity for air compressors and lights wereincluded. Here the Port of Houston’s heavy lift crane is moving a unitaboard.

Down the Houston Ship Channel, headed for the open Gulf andPuerto Deseado, sails the M.V. Elderjields, her holds and decks bulgingwith cargo.

10 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

HOUSTON TO PATAGONIAPan American International Oil Co. ofNew York, which has a contract with theArgentine government to develop oil re-sources in the Comodoro Rivadavia sec-tor of Patagonia.

Three 10,000-ton freighters handledthe Pan American movement and thescenes here show how it was done onone of them, the M.V. Elder/ields, fromthe time the equipment left Tulsa untilits final destination on the barren Pata-gonian plain where the first hole wasspudded in.

There were logistics problems aplentyin this Loffland shitlment--at the timethe largest fleet of mobile drilling rigsever assembled under the operation ofone contractor. They were problemswhich have been met and are still being

met as more and more equipment movesout of Houston to the fields not only ofPatagonia and Tierra del Fuego, butalso to the isolated Gran Chaco area ofBolivia and the Middle East.

Destination point was Puerto Deseadofar below the 42nd southern parallel.1,000 miles south of Buenos Aires, andupriver about ten miles to protect it fromthe violent winds which sweep Pata-gonia, sometimes at 100 mph velocity.Puerto Deseado’s dock was only 261 feetlong, less than half the length of any ofthe three vessels. Stevedores there hadhandled only woolen shipments, had notools for uncrating, and there was no liftcrane capable of handling the (:argo.which was unloaded by ship’s tackle, in-stead.

The entire town turned out for the bigevents, school children and all, and peo-ple came from as far as 100 miles awayto see the huge shipments of trucks.equipment, housing units, spare parts--everything needed for the complete drill-ing operation far inland over rough androcky roads.

Besides Pan American, Union Oil.Shell and a combination headed by theLoeb interests of Boston have Argentineleases to develop oil and contracts todrill as many as 1,000 wells per year.each. The tremendous develok’ment is re-flected in Port of tfouston tonnage fig-tires showing annual movements of rigs,trucks and machinery of more than 100thousand tons valued at $175 million.

Journey’s end, 9,000 miles and more than three weeks later, at theshort (261 foot) single dock of Puerto Deseado. The house trailerswere much cominented on by local observers when unloaded.

Although it was mid-summer in Patagonia (January), stevedores werestill bundled against the cold. The sun rose between 3 and 4 a.m. andset between 10 and 11 p.m. in latitudes as far south as Quebec liesnorth.

The caravan again, lint instead of from Tulsa to Houston, it is nowfrom Puerto Deseado to the point 250 miles inland where drilling is tobegin. The bleak Patagonia country until now has produced only wool.

The completed drilling community with operations well underway--9,000 miles from home in a strange and barren land.

JANUARY, 1960 11

BLUEBONNET BOWL FOOTBALL PLAYERS

TCU players with wives and sweethearts, gather on the outer-bridgeof the Sam Houston for a hetter view of the Ship Channel. Left to rightJane Joyce, Ted Crenwelge, tackle; Gerald Cmnpton, eenter; [)onJackson, taekle: Sharon Thompson, and Dale Glasseock, emt, with Mrs.Glasseock.

THE BLUEBONNET BOWL Houston’s big ~enture intothe post-season bowl picture wound up an unqualified suc-cess last month after a smashing game between Clemson Col-lege of South Carolina and Texas Christian University of FortWorth before 55,000 spectators and a gala program of enter-tainment, tours and banquet.

Clemson won, 23-7.The day following the game, players, coaches and other

members of the official parties of both schools were guestsaboard the Port of Houston’s inspection vessel Sam Houstonfor a Iour on lhe Ship Channel and luncheon at the SanJacinto Battlegrounds given by the Bluebonnet Bowl Associa-tion.

The TCU group made the run down-channel to the Battle-ground, terminus of the inspection tours and site of the battlewhere Sam Houston and his army won Texas independencefrom Mexico on April 21, 1836. After the luncheon reunionwith both groups, the Clemson delegation took the Sam Hous-ton back to the Turning Basin.

Scenes on these pages are of the day’s outing.

Joe Moffett, guard; Max Hibbits, eenter, and Merlin Priddy, full-back, were interested TCU visitors on the Sam Houston.

Howard Tellepsen, second from left, Houston Port Commission (’hair-man, chats in the forward lounge of the Sam Houston with Abe Martin,right, head eoaeh of TCU, and newsmen Dick Moore, left, of the FortWorth Star-Telegram and Jim Brock, sports publicity director for TCU.

On the fantail of the Sam Houston TCU players are, front left toright, Arvie Martin, center; Ronald Wilkinson, guard; Jimmy Todd,halfbaek; Aubrey Linne, end; R. E. Dodson, fullback, and John Bon-net, quarterhack.

12

Part of the crowd of some 200 in the official parties of TCU andClemson, and Bluebonnet Bowl members, lunching at historic San Ja-einto Inn on the San Jacinto Battlegrounds.

PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

PORT FROM THE "SAM HOUSTON"

Some of the TCU foothallers--as many as could erovcd onto the for-~ard deck of the Sam Houston snapped as they neared the San,/acinto Battleground at the end of their tour of Houston Ship Channel.

Some of the Clemson team gathered on the how of tile Sam ftoustonas the inspection vessel starts her trip hack to the Turning Basin withthe South Carolina visitors aboard.

Guard l)ave Olson of Clemson took the wheel of the Sam ltoustonmuch to the delight of teammates Bob Coleman, right half; RonAndreo, center, and Tommy Gue, guard.

The Sam Houston wheelhouse was a popular rendezvous for theClemson players. Here are Skipper Roy Faulkner, amt Port Commis-sion Chairman Howard Tellepsen with Bob Chatlin, left half: MorrisKeller, tackle, and Dave Lynn, guard.

Looking mer the after-rail of the starboard bridge ~ing of the SamHouston are, left to right, Kenneth Rogers, end: Jimmy King, tackle;Johnnie MacGoff, quarterback and Paul Snyder, center.

Clemson’s top men, l)r. Robert C. Ed~ards, right, president of thesehool, and Head Coach Frank Hm~ard, next to him, shm~n with starquarterback Har~ey White anti startin~ end Sam Anderson.

JANUARY, 1960 13

Latest addition to the fleet of the Independ-ent Gulf Line, serving Houston and the portsof Northern Europe, is the 11,000 ton M.S.Hilversum, seen here at City Dock 15 duringher maiden voyage last month. Ti~e 543 footvessel has a speed of 17 knots. It is the thirdship to ])ear the same name for the Vinkeshipping interests.

hnporters and exporters were entertained ata reception on hoard the Independent GulfLine’s new M.S. Hih:ersum during her maidenvoyage. Left to right are George Horner, man-ager of the Amerind Shipping Company illHouston: J. J. G. Boot, mayor of the city ofHilversum; Captain J. Krab, and G. Wander-ink Vinke, partner in the firm of Vinke & Co.of Amsterdam, owners.

THE NEWS IN VIEWS AT THE PORT OF HOUSTONA gigantic vacuum tower for Bay Petrolemn

Company, a subsidiary of Tennessee Gas Trans-mission Company, was transported by truckand barge from Houston through the Intra-coastal Canal to Chalmette, La., where it wasinstalled in the refinery. Too large for safemovement over the highway, the vessel waseasily moved by barge. The tower was manu-factured by Wyatt Metal and Boiler Works inHouston.

A huge cargo of 815,000 bushels of grainsorghum was exported by Continental GrainCompany on this converted ore ship, the M.V.World ChaUenger. The cargo moved to theAntwerp-Rotterdam range.

14 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

Gulf Coast Railroad Men Meet In HoustonRate representatives of thirty railroads serving the Gulf

Coast area met in Houston in early December for their reg-ular, three-day monthly meeting at the invitation of the Hous-

ton Port Bureau and Houston Port interests in general.

The group had a full program with a busy three-clay busi-

ness session at the Rice Hotel and their visit was capped with

a reception aboard the Port of Houston inspection boat Sam

ttouston, trip down the Ship Channel and a dinner at San

Jacinto Inn, on the site of Texas’ victory over Mexico in 1836

establishing the Republic.

Chairman of the rate men, organized as the Southern Ports

Foreign Freight Commiltee, is H. M. Engdahl of Chicago, andsecrelary is E. E. Honath, also of Chicago. Greg B. Perry,

general manager of the Houston Port Bureau, extended theinvitation to the group to visit Houston at one of its earlier

meetings, and was official host for the visit.

James Branard, vice president of the Gulf-Atlantic Warehouse Corp.(Long Reach Docks), left, chats with Jerry P. Turner, general managerof the Port of Houston and H. W. Thompson, right, of the Gulf, Mobileand Ohio Railroad out of Mobile. At far right is V. A. Gordon, vicepresident in Houston of the Missouri Pacific Railroad.

James T. Alexander, left, president of the Houston Belt & TerminalRailroad, chats with Norvan L. Cullum, Houston agent for the Chicago& Eastern Illinois Railroad during the Channel trip.

Two southeastern railroad representatives, H. L. Davis, left, of theAtlantic Coast Line and H. G. Stotesbury of the Seaboard Airline Rail-road, center, chat with A. G. Horsfall of Houston, representing theTexas-New Orleans Railroad.

Three Santa Fe friends get together in the Sam Houston’s after-lounge, with Clark Davis, left, of La Marque; F. H. Hemphill, center,of Galveston and G. J. Steinmiller of the Chicago office.

Greg B. Perry, Houston Port Bureau general manager, left, chatswith officials of the Southern Ports Foreign Freight Committee. H. M.Engdahl, center, colnmittee chairman and E. E. Honatb, secretary, bothof Chicago.

JANUARY, 1960 15

From Around The World . . .

Barry L. Bishop, right, longtime Texas newspaperman and presentlypublic affairs officer of the United States Embassy in LaPaz, Bolivia,~isited the Ship Channel last month with Vaughn M. Bryant, direc-tor of International Relations for the Port of Houston and news-paper friend for more than two decades. Bishop formerly ~as pressattache in both Mexico City and Buenos Aires before takinz the lmPazassignment.

Officials of the National Association of State Licensed WarehouseI)epartments held their annual convention in Houston early in I)eeem-her and took a trip on the .’;(zm Houston as part of their program. Herethe Association’s officers are gathered by the vessel’s stack on theupper deck, left to right, Georgell l)ouglass, president, from Kansas:Walter R. Sanderson, vice president, from Missouri, and E. PrestonBailey, secretary-treasurer and Everett W. Green, assistant secretary-treasurer, both from Nebraska.

!i!i!~iii!i~i~iiiiiiiiii!~i~iiiiiiiii~iiiiiii!!!i!!i!i!i!i!i!!!:!!!!:!i!i!:

In front of the Battleship Texas at the turn around point of the Samttou,ston’s channel trips is K. K. I)ugga], public relations officer of theUnited States Information Office in New Delhi, India. Mr. l)uggal ~astraxel]ing the United States on a State l)epartment grant to gather in-formation for better publicizing the country ~hen he returns to hishomeland.

Southern Pacific Railroad men get together at the coffee bar in theSam ttouston for~ard salon to enjoy a joke during a recent channeltrip. Left to right are C. 11. Nelson, supervisor of the bureau of sta-tistics: B. F. Straughan, inspector of port operations: A. J. Bordelon,freight traftic supervisor: W. F. Elder, assistant supervisor of special-ized operations and .]ohn Rhodes, assistant supervisor of the bureau ofstatistics.

16 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE

Visitors See The

Port of Houston

ABOARD THE SAM HOUSTON M. Rene Walton, head of the Walton Manufacturing (~ompany ~en-gineering and pressure equipmentl of Bordeaux, France, ~ith Mr,.Walton were in [louston recently on a trade promotion trip ,’o~eringthe United States, Central and South America. Here they are seen inthe ~heelhouse nf the Sam Houston ~hile touring the Ship (:hanm’l.

The Port’s inspection vessel Sam Houston is a meeting place for ~is-itors frmn all corners of the globe as the ahme photo graphically il-lustrates. The Port’s William E. Moffett, Jr., left, talks about the Portof Houston in the for~ard salon of the ~essel to Hideo Tokoro, agricul-tural attache from the Japanese Embassy in Washington: Julio Navarro,,’ity editor of the newspaper "Ultimas 7qoticias" of Caracas, Venezuela,and Shigeaki Yamashita, (:onsuI of Japan in Houston.

Another interested ohserver of the Port of Houston’s grain handlingfacilities was Theodore F. Fiedler, ttolyoke, Colorado, uho is the Euro-pean representative of the Great Plains Wheat Market l)e~elopmentAssociation. Mr. Fiedler, left, shown with Thurman Sher~oo,l, (’,rainElevator manager, also toured the Port’s facilities and the Ship (ihanm’lahoard the Sam ttouston.

Members of the State of Kansas Wheat Commission recently visitedHouston’s busy (;rain Elevator, which shattered all previous records ingrain movements in 1958-59, and later toured the port aboard the b’amHouston. Here, in the for~ard salon are, left to right, Dean l)ieken,Scott City: (iarl Allam, Hutchinson: Norman Whitehair, Extension De-partment of Kansas State University at Manhattan, and Melvin Mustoe,Norton, Kansas.

Interested spectators from the wheelhouse of the 5am llouston on aShip Channel inspection trip recently ~ere, left to right, Jim Parker,sales manager of Lee Cylinders, Cambridge, Indiana: Charles P. Kelsev.president of International Gas and Equipment Co., in Cleveland, Ohi~-~.and Charles C. Wight, president of Liquilux (;as Services. [no.. ofHouston.

JANUARY, 1960 17

IDEAL

Cement silos have a capacity of 216,000 barrels.

Fifth In A Series Saluting Industry At The Port of Houston

THE NATION was feeling its way outof the depression in 1937-38 when agroup of men bought a cement plant inOklahoma, dismantled it and moved itpiece by piece to Galena Park on theship channel of suburban Houston whereit was rebuilt. They began operating theplant as the Gulf Portland Cement Com-pany in March, 1938.

Today an entirely new plant--of good-looking concrete construction--is nextdoor to the original. The new plant isone of the most modern and best situ-ated of plants of Ideal Cement Com-pany, one of the largest manufacturersof portland cement in the U. S.

Keen foresight of those cement menwith an eye on Houston has been real-ized many times. For the area has grownastoundingly: its gigantic spider-web ofrail extends even farther; its improvedport reaches ever closer to the rest ofthe Gulf Southland, Latin America andEurope. But Houston’s growth has beenmatched stride for stride by expansionof Ideal’s Houston plant.

Gulf Portland operated the plant until1940 when Ideal Cement Company madethe purchase. Houston was then theeighth plant to be operated by Ideal.Today it is one of Ideal’s 17 plants, fromTennessee to Washington State.

Under Gulf Portland, original capac-ity was 900 barrels daily. (A barrel isequivalent to 376 pounds or four 94-pound sacks.) Immediately followingthe purchase, Ideal boosted capacity to2,100 barrels daily.

Ideal’s main product is portland ce-ment, that material which when mixedwith the proper amounts of water, sandand gravel makes concrete. Masonry ce.ment, the binding material in brick con-struction, is also produced.

As demand for cement increased, ca-pacity of the plant also was increasedover the years. The latest expansion re-suited in the new $16 million plantwhich began one-kiln operation in Feb-ruary, 1958. The second kiln was startedin May, 1958.

To understand efficiency of the newplant, it is necessary to understand theprocess. Calcium carbonate, the majorchemical constituent in cement, is ob-tained from oyster shells. The shells aredredged by contract from Galveston Bayand are delivered in barges containingapproximately 2,500 tons each. As re-ceived, the shell contains 95-97 per centcalcium carbonate.

The shells are unloaded by a crawlercrane with a four-yard bucket anddumped into hoppers for transportation

Modern Plant KeepsIndustrial and Re.

to the raw mill feed bins or to a storagearea.

The clayey constituent also is deliveredfrom nearby on barges and is unloadedinto a basin and mixed with water toform a "clay slip." The same crane thatunloads the oyster shells farther downthe dock also unloads the clay.

Oyster shells, clay slip and other rawmaterials--such as silica sand and ironore--are apportioned to yield propermix containing approximately 77 percent calcium carbonate. With water, themixture is fed into one of two raw millsmeasuring 11 feet in diameter by 32feet. These mills are powered by 2,000-horsepower motors and contain 117 tonsof steel balls ranging in size from 11~to 3 inches. These balls pulverize themixture of raw materials through therevolving action of the mills. This "slur-ry" is ground to such fineness that 85per cent will pass through a 200-meshscreen--a screen with 40,000 openingsper square inch.

The Houston Ship Channel, in the bacpany’s plant.

18 PORT OF HOUSTON MAGAZINE