Route description

FM 1495, not to be confused with FM 1459

Farm to Market Road 1459

Farm to Market Road 1459 is a farm to market road in Brazoria County, Texas.-Route description:FM 1459 begins at a blinking light, at the intersection of in the heart of Sweeny. Traveling along Second Street, the highway makes two 90 degree curves: one to the northwest, passing Sweeny Community...

, which is in the same county, begins FM 523 south of the Dow Chemical plants. Taking a southeast-to-south route, the highway crosses the old Brazos River, passing the Storm Surge Lock to the west of the bridge. Becoming navigation Boulevard, FM 1495 continues through the East End of Freeport, passing the Port of Freeport and intersecting with SH 36 and SH 288 (the concurrent highways end at FM 1459). Then making a turn to the southeast, the highway crosses the Intracoastal Waterway, giving drivers a spectacular view of the beach and the Gulf of Mexico. The road's terminus is at the end of the bridge with a four-way stop at County Road 723, Quintana's main road. Continuing past the stop sign will take you onto Freeport/Bryan Beach.

History

FM 1495 was originally designated in 1949 from US 190

U.S. Route 190 in Texas

US 190 is a major east-west highway that starts in Texas. The highway begins at I-10 about 20 miles west of Iraan. The highway shares overlaps with Interstates 35 and 45. US 190 is a freeway from Fort Hood near Copperas Cove to I-35 in Belton. The freeway is known as Central Texas Expressway...

 west 2.2 miles to a road intersection. In 1954, FM 1495 was extended southwest to FM 580. In 1955, this route was cancelled and became an extension of FM 581. The current route was designated as State Highway 333 in 1939 from SH 36 southeast across the Intracoastal Waterway to Quintana Beach. This numbering was cancelled, at which time the route was redesignated as FM 1495 nineteen days after the previous route was cancelled. In 1961 the route was extended north around the eastern edge of Freeport to FM 523

Farm to Market Road 523

-Route description:Farm to Market Road 523 is a route in Brazoria County which loops to the east of Lake Jackson and Angleton, travelling through mainly rural areas. Beginning at SH 288 in Freeport, FM 523 follows an eastern path as Gulf Boulevard for around one mile...

, which is its current terminus.

Quintana Swing Bridge

FM 1495 once crossed the Intracoastal Waterway via a swing bridge

Swing bridge

A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its centre of gravity, about which the turning span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right...

. The bridge was recently replaced due to concerns of Hurricane Evacuation and Emergency Personnel.