HOUSTON, June 14, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- The Port of Houston Authority (PHA) salutes the late Fentress Bracewell as a port maverick. The longest-serving Chairman of the PHA Commission, Bracewell died June 13 at the age of 85.
A photo accompanying this release is available at http://media.primezone.com/poha/pages/exec.html
Bracewell was the last living founder of the Bracewell and Patterson (now Bracewell and Giuliani) law firm. Born in the old town of Harrisburg on the shores of the Houston Ship Channel, "he had a lifelong love of Houston and its commerce," said his son, Brad Bracewell. His father, J.S. Bracewell, also served as Chairman of the Port Commission in the 1950s.
Bracewell served the Port of Houston Authority from 1970 to 1985 and played a vital role in building Houston into a world-class port. The Fentress Bracewell Barbours Cut Terminal carries his name in recognition of the foresight he held and conveyed to his fellow commissioners that carrying cargo in containers was a trend the shipping industry would embrace. It was a radical idea at the time that has proven to be the industry standard.
PHA Commission Chairman Emeritus Ned S. Holmes said, "Fentress Bracewell was a true example of integrity, vision and wisdom. Fentress, as Chairman of the Port of Houston Commission, set the Port of Houston Authority on the course of becoming the dominant container port in the Gulf of Mexico. We all owe Fentress a debt of gratitude."
Current PHA Commission Chairman James T. Edmonds said, "I had the pleasure of knowing Fentress Bracewell personally. He provided great leadership to the Port of Houston. He was a visionary. The Port of Houston took a gamble in starting the container business at Barbours Cut and his vision proved to be the right way to move cargo."
PHA Executive Director H. Thomas Kornegay said, "Fentress Bracewell was truly a great man and it was a great honor to work for and with him. The achievements made under his long tenure changed forever the course of the Port of Houston and positioned it to be the world-class port of today."
While a risky undertaking for the Port, which then had no long-term contracts in serving container vessels, Bracewell's belief in preparing a facility for modular shipping resulted in vast increases in trade. In recalling that time in a profile in the January/February 2000 Port of Houston magazine, Bracewell said, "There is no question about it - Barbours Cut was quite a risky thing as far as the Port Commission was concerned. We were sticking our neck out because we had no commitments at the time and no long-term contracts. But somehow we had a feeling that it was what we needed."
Earlier this year, PHA celebrated the 30th anniversary of Barbours Cut, which is the reason why the Port of Houston Authority now handles 73 percent of all the containerized cargo in the U.S. Gulf and 94 percent of the containers moving through Texas.
During Bracewell's tenure, an Act of the Legislature changed Houston into a full-fledged Port Authority with expanded powers for fire, safety and navigation control of the ship channel. In addition, a Foreign Trade Zone was created, and foreign tonnage nearly tripled in 1984. The Port Authority's financial standing stabilized and then soared during Bracewell's time from a deficit in 1970 to a net income of $8,606,588 in 1984. To recognize this achievement, then Vice-President George H. W. Bush presented the Houston Port the "E" Award in 1981 for outstanding contributions promoting world trade exports. Also formed under Bracewell's leadership, the Port Development Corporation issued $1.5 billion in revenue bonds to build, expand or modernize facilities along the channel.
Bracewell initiated public awareness programs to bring government, civic and community leaders an appreciation of the Port and its significance to the area economy. Countless trips aboard the M/V Sam Houston hosting local and visiting groups from around the world on channel inspection tours became a signature of his chairmanship.
The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 53-mile-long industrial complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, more than 7,000 vessels call at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage, second in overall total tonnage, and 10th largest in the world. The Port Authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee "C" futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange. For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com
To access the port's web site photo gallery, please visit http://www.portofhouston.com/publicrelations/publicrelations.html and click the link for PHA Photo Gallery.
The Port of Houston Authority logo is available at http://www.primenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=720
Photo is also available via AP PhotoExpress.
