Galveston often gets lumped together with Houston, the sprawling, somewhat brash, and more cosmopolitan city to the northeast. But with a population of nearly 50,000, Galveston’s residents are just a drop in the bucket compared to the number of Houstonians. Sitting on a 32-mile-long barrier island overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, Galveston is the kind of place where trips to the mainland are done only out of necessity and residents relish the slower speed of business and the mix of romantic southern charm, tropical leanings, and rugged hospitality of the American cowboy. It’s an ideal spot for beachgoers, with near constant sunshine, and for history buffs curious about not just Civil War sites but also opulent Victorian architecture that dates back to when the area was known as the Wall Street of the South.