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Bridge City Texas
Bridge City is located in Orange County in South East Texas on Texas Highway 87, between Orange and Port Arthur, near the Neches River and Cow Bayou.
The name of the city is derived from the fact that travelers have to cross a bridge to enter the city. All three major roads that enter Bridge City cross a body of water.
In 1938, the famous Port Arthur-Orange Bridge, now named the Rainbow Bridge, was completed over the Neches River. Due to concerns by the upstream city of Beaumont about the bridge posing a threat to ship navigation, the Rainbow Bridge was built with a 680-foot (210 m) main span. In addition, it has a vertical clearance of 177 ft. In 1990, a parallel, cable-stayed bridge was opened, the Veterans Memorial Bridge.
Vintage view of the Rainbow Bridge over the Neches River near Bridge City, Texas  |
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Bridge City Chamber of Commerce |
| Population | 9,546 residents in the 2020 Federal Census |
| Area Code | 409 |
| Zip Code | 77611 |
Interactive Map of Bridge City Texas (courtesy of Google)
Map of South East Texas Counties and Major Cities
Ben J. Rogers Regional Visitors Center
The Ben J. Rogers Regional Visitors Center provides information and assistance to travelers throughout the nine counties of Southeast Texas. It is located at 5055 Interstate Highway 10 South. Phone 409.842.0500 for opening hours and other information. (photo courtesy of Beaumont CVB)
Big Thicket National PreserveThe Big Thicket is an area of dense forest located north and northwest of Beaumont. This 97,000 acre National Preserve protects a unique environmental confluence of swamps, coastal prairier, piney woods, plant life and animals. For more information visit the Big Thicket website at NPS
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Blue Elbow Swamp & Tony Houseman WMAAccessible from the Texas Travel Information Center just west of the Sabine River at Orange, the wildlife management area features a 600-foot-long boardwalk into the surrounding wetlands. Visitors and nature lovers will see bald cypress and tupelo trees and watch bald eagles, ospreys, herons, egrets, kingfishers and other wildlife. |
More East Texas Attractions
While visiting the Bridge City area, you may want to take other interesting day trips in several directions:
- Livingston - Polk County Memorial Museum, Pedigo Park, Trade Days, Locomotive No. 5, Lake Livingston, Sam Rayburn Reservoir
- Coldspring - Davy Crockett National Forest, Sam Houston National Forest, Lake Livingston, Double Lake Recreational Area
- Groveton - Ratcliff Lake Recreation Area, Davy Crockett National Forest
- Crockett - Houston County Museum, Monroe-Cook House, Houston County Lake, Silsbee Drive-Thru Safari, Piney Woods Fine Arts Association
- Center - Toledo Bend Reservoir, Shelby County Museum, What-A-Melon Festival, bird watching
- Lumberton - Big Thicket National Preserve, Village Creek State Park
- Jasper - Toledo Bend Reservoir, Sandy Creek Park, Azalea Festival in March, Air Show in April, Jasper Lions Club Rodeo in May, a Fourth of July Celebration, and the Fall Festival in October.
- Woodville - Tyler County Dogwood Festival, Festival of the Arts and the Harvest Festival. Outdoor activities abound in the nearby Martin Dies Jr. State Park and the Big Thicket National Preserve.
- Newton - Toledo Ben Reservoir, Sam Rayburn Reservoir
- Hemphill - Recreational opportunities abound in the Hemphill area, with its closeness to the Sabine National Forest, Toledo Bend Reservoir, Sam Rayburn Reservoir and the Trail Between the Lakes. Also popular attractions are the Sabine County Jail Museum and Vergie Speights Memorial Library. In town is the Patricia Huffman Smith NASA "Remembering Columbia" Museum
- Port Arthur - Pompeiian Villa, Sea Rim State Park, Museum of the Gulf Coast, Sabine Pass Battleground State Historical Park, Dutch Windmill Museum and the French House
- Orange - Frances Lutcher Theater for the Performing Arts, Sangri La Botanical Gardens, W.H. Stark House, Stark Museum of Art, Blue Elbow Swamp & Tony Houseman WMA
- Nacogdoches - Spring azalea trails, Ruby Mize Azalea Garden, Mast Arboretum
- Rusk - Texas State Railroad, Cherokee Civic Theatre, Silsbee Drive Thru Safari
- Lufkin - Ellen Trout Zoo, Cotton Square Heritage Park, First Street Arts Center, Texas Forestry Museum
- Beaumont - Ben J. Rogers Regional Visitors Center, Beaumont Botanical Gardens, Crockett Street Entertainment District, McFaddin-Ward House and Museum, Texas Energy Museum, Fire Museum of Texas, Babe Didrikson Zaharias Memorial Museum, St. Anthony Cathedral Basilica, and the Big Thicket National Preserve
Lodging Options in nearby Port Arthur & Orange
Important Area Weather Resources |
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Official Weather Service OfficesNational Weather Service (NWS) |
Area Media OutletsKFDM-TV - Beaumont Weather Other Texas Weather Sources |