Horse Week

Horse Week is celebrated every year on the last week of March.

Each year, on the last week of March, on Galveston Island, we celebrate the survival of two brave and remarkable horses. During the Great Storm of 1900, two noble equines climbed upstairs in a Broadway mansion and viewed the wreckage from one of the windows. After the storm, they refused to come down, but the family fed them, cared for them, and they lived out their days in plush opulence. This story, purely fictional, makes a cameo in Storms of Malhado, a historical novel set on Galveston Island written by Maria Elena Sandovici. Storms of Malhado was published in 2020, during lockdown, and the last week of March. Horse Week actually celebrates the anniversary of the book. In choosing to focus on the two horses, and in calling this celebration Horse Week, we are choosing to underscore the idea that lies at the very core of the book: The novel is a love letter to Galveston Island itself, an ode to its resilience, its survival, but also its mystery and unique combination of glamorous and scrappy.

During Horse Week readers encourage each other to read the book or listen to it on audio. They also seek out some of the locations in the book, walking along the east end historical district. There is speculation as to which home inspired the mansion in the book. Some think it’s the League Kempner House, so this might be a good time to visit. Will you maybe hear hoofbeats?

A special dinner is held each year at Blackbird Cottage, the author’s Island home. Invites are elusive but not impossible to obtain. Readers who reach out are generally remembered and included in special events.

It is also customary to wish people a happy Horse Week at this time of year. Some local businesses display flyers in their windows. Happy Horse Week! Giddy Up!