Florida, and Havana, Cuba. The Home catastrophe forced a reorganization of the partnership, with the new company shifting its emphasis to the Gulf trade, and Columbia sailed out of the port of New Orleans for Galveston on November 18, 1837, about five weeks after the Home wreck. Allaire and several investors divested themselves from the New York and Charleston Steam Packet Company, leaving Morgan and John Haggerty as the sole partners: thus the Morgan Line was born and Columbia was its first ship, committed to the New OrleansGalveston route. During this era, New Orleans was the main port for Gulf traffic, and the newly formed Republic of Texas attracted many immigrants and demand for trade goods. On June 8, 1838, the owners of Columbia and the owners of the steamship Cuba formed a cartel known as the New Orleans and Texas Line, which included coordination of rates and scheduling of shipping between New Orleans and Galveston. The New Orleans and Texas Line dominated transportation in the two cities after the last half of 1838. Gulf trade experienced seasonal cycles. June marked the beginning of the slack season, which lasted throughout the summer and part of the fall, and business picked up again in early October. Morgan would remove some of his ships from service during slack times and send them to New York for refitting and repairs. He continued to maintain New York City as his residence and the main location for shipbuilding and repair, even though his main shipping market was located on the Gulf coast. He sold the last of his sailing vessels in 1846, while he increased his investment in T. F. Secor & Company, a builder of marine steam engines. Mexican War During the Mexican War, Morgan accepted various contracts to move U.S. troops, deploying New York and Galveston for military transport, and collecting nearly $80,000 in less than six months in 1846. This compromised packet service, including its contract for carrying the U.S. mail. Morgan had won a contract to transport mail for the Republic of Texas, which he continued after Texas received statehood and the U.S. Mail Service took over in 1846.Morgan lost the New York in a hurricane in September 1846, and he required a larger steamship fleet to meet the demands of passenger service, civilian trade, mail service, and military transportation. He acquired five steamers in 1847, the first of which was