 |
|
|
Beaumont
801 Main Street
Beaumont, Texas 77701
Phone: 409-980-8311 |
|
|
| Beaumont is a city in and the
county seat of Jefferson County, within the
Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical
Area. Located in Southeast Texas on the Neches
River about 85 miles east of Houston (city
center to city center), Beaumont had a
population of 118,296 at the time of the 2010
census, making it the 30th most populous city in
the state of Texas. |
|
|
| Beaumont was founded in 1835. The pioneer
settlement had an economy based on the development of
lumber, farming, and port industries. In 1892, Joseph Eloi
Broussard opened the first commercially successful rice mill
in Texas, stimulating development of rice farming in the
area; he also started an irrigation company (since 1933
established as the Lower Neches Valley Authority) to support
rice culture. Rice became an important commodity crop in
Texas and is now cultivated in 23 counties. |
|
|
|
A big change occurred in 1901 with the Spindletop gusher,
which demonstrated that a huge oil field lay underneath and
adjacent to the city. With Spindletop, several energy
companies developed in Beaumont, and some remain. The area
rapidly developed as one of the country's major petro-chemical
refining areas. Along with Port Arthur and Orange, Beaumont
forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the
Texas Gulf Coast. |
|
|
| Beaumont is home to Lamar University, a
national Carnegie Doctoral Research university with 14,966
students, including undergraduates and postgraduates. Over
the years, several corporations have been based in this
city, including Gulf States Utilities, which had its
headquarters in Beaumont until its takeover by Entergy
Corporation in 1994. GSU's Edison Plaza headquarters remains
the tallest building in Beaumont. |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Downtown |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Lucas Gusher |
|
|
 |
|
Port of Beaumont with view of refinery and also see
Jefferson County Courthouse |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
McFaddin-Ward House |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
John Jay French Museum |
|
|
|
Go To Top
Of Page! |
|
|
