Historical Markers in Jefferson County
Texas·96 places·Page 1 of 4
Architecture
Arceneaux House
Typical "daubed" house in which lower walls are plastered with moss, mud and sassafras strips. Built by Moise Broussard about 1856 when he brought to it his bride, Mary Gadrac Arceneaux, great-great-graddaughter of Louis Arceneaux, the "Gabriel" of Longfellow's poem "Evangeline." 1880 -- house passed to brother, Athenas Arceneaux, area pioneer in rice planting, and his heirs.
History
Arthur Edward Stilwell
Son of Charles H. and Mary Stilwell, was born on October 21, 1859, in Rochester, New York. Young Arthur was greatly influenced by his grandfather, railroad builder Hamlin Stilwell, and according to family tradition vowed to be a railroad builder himself one day. He married Virginian Jennie A.
History
Beach Road
The Beach Road is the coastal section of the Texas Highway 87 system. Stretching along the Gulf of Mexico from Sabine Pass through Chambers County to Port Bolivar in Galveston County, it follows a historic route that proved vital to the early development of Jefferson County. Native Americans, early settlers, traders, cattlemen and Republic of Texas mail carriers all used the road.
History
Beaumont
County seat of Jefferson County. Settled in 1825 as Tevis Bluff; incorporated as Beaumont Dec. 16, 1838. Early trading post, riverboat port, lumber, rice and ranching center. Near site of Spindletop gusher, where oil became an industry, ushering in the modern port and shipyards, and a vast industrial and chemical complex.
History
Beaumont Enterprise
Near this site on November 6, 1880, the first "Beaumont Enterprise" came off the press. The newspaper, founded by John W. Leonard, is one of southeast Texas' oldest continuing business institutions. Over the years, "The Enterprise" has had a number of outstanding editors and publishers, including William P. Hobby, who came to "The Enterprise" in 1907 and later became governor of Texas.
History
Benjamin Johnson
(1815-1872) Born in Louisiana; settled in Texas in 1832. Fought in victorious Texas Army at Bexar, Dec. 1835; in Capt. James Gillaspie's company, 2nd Regiment, Battle of San Jacinto, April 21, 1836. Married (1) 1838, Rachel Garner, who died 1856; (2) 1861, Matilda Myers. Esteemed and respected, he was a farmer, stockman, patriarch.
History
Birthplace of Babe Didrikson Zaharias
(June 26, 1911 - September 27, 1956) One of seven children, Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson was the daughter of Norwegian immigrants Hannah Marie (d. 1945) and Ole Didrikson (d. 1943). For the first several years of her life, the family occupied a frame house at this location. Later they moved to Beaumont. The Didriksons encouraged their children to develop their natural athletic abilities.
History
Blind Willie Johnson
Willie Johnson was born near Independence, Texas, in 1897 to Willie and Mary (Fields) Johnson. His family moved to Marlin when Johnson was a young boy, and it was there that he first learned gospel songs at church; his first guitar was said to be made from a cigar box. Johnson lost his sight as a child, possibly as the result of an accident at home.
Architecture
Boudreaux House
Built by A. Mobray for Sevan Broussard, 1859. Occupied continuously by family. "Dog-trot" style, typical of period.
Military
Capture of the USS Morning Light and USS Velocity
After Texas seceded from the Union at the onset of the Civil War, the state's ports were included in a Union blockade of the South. The proximity of Sabine Pass to Galveston made it a strategic point for both the Union and Confederacy. In January 1863, Gen. John B.
Architecture
Central Fire Station
This structure was built in 1927 to house the Beaumont fire Department. Organized in 1881. Designed by the architectural firm of Livesay and Wiedemann, the building was constructed on the site of two earlier fire stations.
History
City of Beaumont
City of Beaumont, Named in Honor of Mary Dewleigh Borlace Warren Beaumont by Her Husband, Henry Millard Who Laid Out the Town in 1835 on a Site Known as Tevis's Bluff, Incorporated 1838
History
City of Nederland
Settled by Dutch immigrants in 1897; named for their native Netherlands, which in the 1890s suffered overcrowding, wornout soil, and scant hope for prosperity. Thus when the Port Arthur Land Company (joined by Dutch businessmen) advertised the abundance of America, many families eagerly moved to this region.
History
City of Sabine and Sabine Pass
The first known settlers in this area were John McGaffey and Thomas Courts, who arrived in 1832. Sam Houston assisted Manuel de los Santos Coy in acquiring a land grant here in 1833. Two years later Houston and two partners purchased Coy's property holdings. On January 19, 1839, Gen. sam Houston signed the charter that established the city of Sabine.
Architecture
Clubhouse of the Federated Women's Clubs of Port Arthur
In 1923, twenty-five years after their founding, the Port Arthur Federated Women's Clubs began planning for construction of their own clubhouse. Mrs. C. L. Wignall chaired the planning committee, and her husband, local architect C. L. Wignall, designed the structure. His plans included a decorative window motif repeated in the porch balustrade. An open house on Feb.
Civic & Local
Community Retirement Home
In 1944, a group of citizens discussed establishment of a retirement home in Port Arthur. Federated Mission Society members from several churches served on the board of directors. Incorporated as the Community Retirement Home on August 28, 1944, the board purchased the model apartment building on Procter Street for residents.
History
Congregation Temple Emanuel
The first recorded Jewish worship services in Beaumont were held on Yom Kippur in September 1887. The congregation's first synagogue was built at the corner of Broadway and willow streets in 1901. In 1923, under the leadership of Rabbi Samuel Rosinger, a new temple was built at this site. Designed by Chicago architect Albert s. Gottlieb, the structure soon became a noted local landmark.
History
Dr. Charles F. L. N. Graham
(1889-1943) Born in British Guiana (Guyana), Charles Frank Luckett Nordman Graham attended college in Alabama, Ohio, and Iowa. He came to Beaumont in 1918 on behalf of the American Missionary Association and founded Graham Congregational Church and the Barnwell Community Center. The Rev. Dr. Graham organized recreational and health services for the city's Negro citizens.
History
Early Oil Tanker Service
Part of the huge transportation complex that moves petroleum to world markets. Traffic in oil tankers and barges in Texas mushroomed two months after the state's first oil gusher, "Spindletop," roared in. On March 11, 1901, the first boat to transport the Spindletop product, "The Atlas," left Sabine Pass with about 3,000 barrels of crude oil.
History
Early Texas Oil Pipelines
This marks route of Texas' first oil pipelines to tidewater, constructed 1901 to transport oil from famed Spindletop gusher (7 mi. north), which came in on Jan. 10, and flowed at rate of 75,000 barrels a day. A group later to become the Gulf Pipeline Company laid 11 miles of line to the railroad in two weeks' time, extending the line in 1902 to Port Arthur; by 1904 the area had 513.
Architecture
Ellwood-Craig House
(Pompeiian Villa) Built in 1900 as the winter home of Isaac L. Ellwood (1833-1910), principal developer of barbed wire. Architects G. C. Nimmons and W. K. Fellows, of Chicago, designed the house in a classic revival style with a raised Roman Doric portico. The name was derived from a planned, but unrendered, series of courtyard frescoes of Bacchanalian motif, reminiscent of ancient Pompeii.
History
Federal Fatalities at the Battle of Sabine Pass
Federal Fatalities at the Battle of Sabine Pass The battle at Sabine Pass on September 8, 1863 was a victory for Lieutenant Richard W. Dowling and his troops, which numbered fewer than 50. Dowling and his Davis guards kept Union gunboats from advancing up the pass. The U.S.S. Clifton and the U.S.S. Arizona ran aground early in the battle. The Clifton and the U.S.S.
Civic & Local
Federated Women's Clubs of Port Arthur
The Federated Women's Clubs of Port Arthur is a league of sixteen individual clubs which represent a variety of interests and public service projects. Together, through the organization, they combine their efforts for the betterment of the community. The Federation developed from the Women's Self-improvement Club which was organized with nine charter members in February 1898 at the home of Mrs. W.
Architecture
First National Bank Building
Founded on April 9, 1889, the First National Bank of Beaumont enjoyed an economic revitalization in the 1930s after the area's second major oil boom. A special meeting of the bank's board of directors was held on January 16, 1935, to discuss plans to erect a new building. Present at the meeting were board members W. C. Gilbert, P. B. Doty, E. E. Plumly, C. H. Cambers, T. F. Rothwell, J. S.
History
First Security National Bank
Oldest bank between Houston and the Louisiana border. Organized on April 9, 1889, with capital of $100,000, as First National Bank of Beaumont, it was granted National Bank Charter No. 4017. First president was Valentine Wiess, a lumber man. Directors were W. A. Fletcher, John N. Gilbert, John L. Keith, L. P. Ogden, H. Solinsky, V. Wiess and W. Wiess. Fletcher was vice-president, J. P.
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