AHC: Make Corpus Christi, Texas have a half million people by 2018

As many of you probably know, Corpus Christi, Texas is my hometown. It has a population of over 325,000 (as of 2017), numerous tourist attractions (including the USS Lexington and the Selena museum and statue of Selena (1)), a minor-league baseball and hockey team, and is the fifth-largest port in the US, among other things...

Your challenge, with any PoD after 1852 (when it was incorporated) is to have Corpus Christi (the city itself, not the metro area) have a half a million people by 2018.

(1) Although Selena was born and spent some of childhood in Lake Jackson, her family settled in Corpus Christi in the 1980s after the 1980s oil glut bankrupted them, and Corpus Christi is considered her hometown (read @RySenkari's Player Two Start for one take on what might have happened had she lived)…
 
I know next to nothing about Corpus Christi, but it seems likely that earlier industrial development in San Antonio and Austin could have led to Corpus Christi growing larger as "their" seaport (like Galveston's relationship to Houston). If you can think of some sort of trade with a Caribbean or South American locale that would feed a major industry in San Antonio, that might get you there.

(Of course, if you do think of a good idea, my Fix Your Hometown timeline is still floating around here someplace, and you're welcome to post in it. :p)
 
Have the city build a major seawall before the 1919 hurricane. Not having the city destroyed would be a big plus. Then have them work on expanding the port to stay more competitive with Houston.

With a better port and avoiding the 1919 shutdown they lose less traffic to Houston (who will almost certainly still eclipse them). Much later their more southerly location, better port facilities than otl, slightly larger city, and the Naval Air Station encourages NASA to place more facilities there instead of the slightly more expensive Houston area.

Honestly I think 500k people is very easily doable with just some additional industry and fairly minor changes.
 
The Confederate States manage to eke out a costly victory in the Civil War by mid-1864 (perhaps through an absent or less successful Sherman), causing Lincoln to lose to McLellan in the following election. However, by this point, Union control over Vicksburg and New Orleans is still very solid. The CSA trade Tennessee and half of Virginia to reacquire these cities, alongside trading control of Texas west and south of the Brazos River for southern Florida. The Union economy's main exit point towards the Caribbean is now the Rio Grande, and they develop Corpus Christi accordingly to recoup the loss of New Orleans.
 
The CSA does win its independence, but only due to British and French intervention. The French price for entering the war is that Neuces and not the Rio Grande is the boundary between Texas and the Empire of Mexico. Mexico develops a major naval base at Corpus Christi, boosting its population.
 
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