in 1840, Aransas City was deserted by 1846. But Lamar soon met a similar fate, after being burnt to the ground during the American Civil War. The city of Aransas, which was founded on San Jose Island around the same time as Lamar, was also destroyed in the fighting. During the war, the bay was a strategically significant waterway for the transfer of freight, due to its protection from Gulf seas by barrier islands. As a result of the destruction from the war, the new ports of Fulton and Rockport were developed in the later 1860s. At first, Rockport was intended as a deep-water port, but after a series of mishaps, Aransas Pass was selected when deepening was approved in 1879. By 1912, a 100 feet wide and 8½ feet deep channel was operational. After hurricanes ransacked the port in 1916 and 1919, the United States Army Corps of Engineers chose Corpus Christi as the preferred deepwater port for the lower Gulf Coast. Later twentieth-century development has been based on the area's natural beauty. In the 1960s, the affluent resort of Key Allegro, located between Rockport and Fulton, was founded. By 2000, 24,615 people lived in the surrounding Aransas County, including the cities of Rockport, Fulton, Aransas Pass and the unincorporated Key Allegro, Holiday Beach and Estes. The outer Refugio County located on the shore of Copano Bay, had 7,828 residents. Features On average, the Aransas Bay system is 3 meters deep, and covers approximately 539 square kilometers. The system is made up of the bay itself and its extensions. The main extensions include: Saint Charles Bay, to the east of the Lamar peninsula; Copano Bay, to the west of both the Live Oak and Lamar peninsulas, Mesquite Bay to the bay's northeast, and Redfish Bay to the southwest. Redfish Bay is sometimes considered an extension of Corpus Christi Bay. Together with its extensions, Aransas Bay forms one of seven major estuaries along the Gulf Coast of Texas, receiving the discharge from the Mission River and the Aransas River, as well as smaller streams such as Copano Creek. Every second, approximately 28 cubic meters of water flows into the bay. Water exchange with the Gulf of Mexico occurs at Cedar Bayou and Aransas Pass. As a result of the seawater exchange, the bay's salinity is 15 parts per thousand, compared to the seawater average of 35 ppt. Fresh water flows