Lindsey Graham

But for the most part, he remained defensive about his actions leading up to the storm.

He claimed that he hurried from one end of the beach to the other on the morning of the hurricane, personally warning thousands about the approaching threat, and asserted some 6,000 lives were saved by my advice and warnings.

However, no eyewitnesses corroborated this account, and limited transportation options out of the city make the evacuation of that many people unlikely.

Still, for Isaac, Joseph, and all the other survivors of the horrors of September 8, 1900, the Galveston Hurricane became the defining event of their lives.

Years later, at the age of 79, survivor P.G.

Tipp reflected on what he experienced during the storm, writing, "...I will never forget those days.

I roamed around for 61 years after that, never able to sit down.

That old hurricane didn't even have a name, but she packed a mighty punch."

In the aftermath of the storm and in the face of overwhelming loss, the people of Galveston displayed remarkable resilience and ingenuity.

They rose from the rubble to reshape Galveston's politics and even its geography, driven by bold vision and a boundless faith in the island cities that they called home.

From Audible Originals, this is episode three of our three-part series on the 1900 Galveston Hurricane for American History Tellers.

In the next episode, I speak with historian Patricia Bixle, co-author of Galveston and the 1900 Storm, Catastrophe and Catalyst.

We'll discuss the dramatic aftermath of the hurricane and the audacious steps the city took to achieve one of the most remarkable rebuilds in American history.

Follow American History Tellers on the Audible app or wherever you get your podcasts.

You can listen to all episodes of American History Tellers ad-free by joining Audible.

And to find out more about me and my other projects, including my live stage show coming to a theater near you, go to NotThatLindsayGraham.com.

That's NotThatLindsayGraham.com.

American History Tellers is hosted, edited, and produced by me, Lindsey Graham, for Airship.

This episode is written by Ellie Stanton, edited by Dorian Marino.

Senior producers are Alida Rozanski and Andy Beckerman.