The McFaddin-Ward House

Historic House Museum in Beaumont, Texas

Our House is Your House: 35th Anniversary Picnic Giveaway

The McFaddin-Ward family tradition of sharing their home with the community will be celebrated on March 15th, the museum’s 35th anniversary.

The 35th Anniversary Picnic Giveaway includes:

  • A picnic on the McFaddin-Ward lawn for up to 6 people on March 27th from 5 – 7 p.m. (Rainout date is April 10th.)
  • A picnic dinner consisting of fried chicken, coleslaw, and potato salad. Bring your own favorite beverages. We’ll provide the picnic ground cloths and lawn games.

To enter the giveaway:

  • Send us your favorite photo of the McFaddin-Ward House exterior via email to: mcfaddinwardhouse@gmail.com by March 14th at 5 p.m. Be sure to include your phone number. (Only one entry per person please.)

The winner will be announced on March 15th.

Submitted photo entries and the winner may be posted on social media.

The Roaring Twenties: Looking Back

The year 2020 marks the centennial of several major historical events, including the women’s suffrage movement and the “Spanish Flu” pandemic. A new display in our Visitor Center exemplifies how Mamie McFaddin Ward and Ida Caldwell McFaddin embraced these events in history.

In 1917, Ida went to New York City for training in bandage-making, writing home that she would “have to study” because “they require lots.” That criterion was later applied to the bandage-making classes she taught in Beaumont. Mamie not yet married but driving her own car, had the job of delivering bolts of muslin fabric to neighborhood groups, and then picking up the finished bandages for inspection.

Ida and Mamie gave long hours of service to the Red Cross in both World Wars.

Texas women took advantage of their right to vote on July 27th, 1918 as Governor William Hobby signed a bill into law four month prior to vote in the primary election. Before the Democratic primary on July 27th, more than 386,000 women registered to vote. Ida and Mamie considered it an important part of their civic duty to vote. The McFaddin women were among those who voted as Mamie noted, “Mama & I went down to vote.” — Mamie’s diary, July 27, 1918

China painting was a popular art form in America from the 1870s through the 1920s. Mamie’s china painting project was a tea set in pastel blue and yellow, with raised gold accents in a simple Art Nouveau design.

Mamie’s hand-painted tea cup + saucer

To learn more about how the McFaddins occupied themselves in the 1920s, come and explore the display at our Visitor Center.

Holiday Photo Shoot at MWH

Join us for the McFaddin-Ward House Annual Photo Shoot on Sunday, December 6th to have your holiday photo taken on the front porch of the museum.

Photo reservation appointments will be available from noon – 3 p.m. A limited number of appointments are available so make your reservations early!

A professional photographer will take three photos of you and your loved ones. Your photos will be emailed to you on Monday, Dec. 7th.

To reserve your spot, call 409.832.1906.

We will strictly follow COVID-19 protection guidelines.

*In the event of inclement weather, the holiday photo shoot will be cancelled.*

Our House is Your House: Key Hunt

Key Dates

  • Contest begins Monday, November 9th at 8 a.m.
  • Contest ends Friday, November 13that 4 p.m.
  • Grand Prize awarded on Saturday, November 14th at 11 a.m.

    Key Prize Retrievals: November 9th – 13th, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Keys to Participation

  • 10 brass skeleton keys will be hidden at community locations.
  • Clues will be given on Facebook for the 10 hidden keys.
  • Each of the 10 key finders will receive a prize when the discovered key is presented at the McFaddin-Ward House.
  • Each of the 10 key finders will be entered into the grand prize drawing.

Keys to Entering

  • You must “Like” the MWH on Facebook or “Follow” the MWH on Instagram.
  • Any participant must be willing to have their photo posted on social media.
  • Keys will be in plain sight. No digging or moving of objects need to occur to find the keys.
  • Only one key prize per family.
  • No employees nor volunteers with the partner entity may hunt for a key at the entity where they are employed or volunteer.  They may hunt at other entities where they are not involved as an employee or volunteer.
  • No substitutions for any prizes will be made.
  • The lucky sleuth will be given the prize that corresponds to the found key & the winner’s photo will be posted on the MWH’s social media.

    Once a key is found, it should be brought to the McFaddin-Ward Administration Building at 725 Third Street for prize retrieval and to be entered into the Grand Prize drawing.

    The grand prize winner will  be announced on November 14th from a random drawing & his/her name and photo will be posted on social media.

Key Treasure

  10 Key Prizes value @ approximately $50.00 each prize

  1  Grand Prize value @ approximately $550.00

  •  Neches River Adventures Ivory Bill Boat Tour tickets
  • Gator Country Adventure Park tickets
  • Gift Card to JWilson’s Restaurant
  • Gift Card to Katharine & Company Restaurant
  • Two Main Street Market tickets and Gift Card to Rao’s Bakery
  • Gift Card to 5Under Golf Center and 2 quarts of St. Mark’s Chili
  • Gift Card to Neches River Wheel House Seafood Restaurant
  • Gift Card to Carmela’s Mexican Restaurant
  • Gift Card to Tokyo Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar
  • Gift Card to Avenue Axe (Axe Throwing)

  Grand Prize:  Family Gathering Basket: Gift Card to HEB for the holidays, an outdoor movie projector & outdoor movie screen.

Questions:  409-832-1906

Reopening Plans

The museum is looking forward to welcoming visitors back for tours in September 2020.

Self-guided audio tours including the carriage house and gardens will comprise the first phase of the museum’s reopening plan with docent led tours beginning in Phase 2 later in the year.  Please visit the website for tour updates.

Board Update

The McFaddin-Ward House welcomes new board members.

Leslie Wilson, President
Ida McFaddin Pyle, Vice President
James Potter, Second Vice President
Martha Hicks, Secretary
Roy Steinhagen, Treasurer
Judy Black
Lane Wilson

Lane Wilson

New Staff Members

Bel Morian, Interim Director
Emily Fischer, Collections Assistant

The McFaddin-Ward House Museum welcomes new staff members to the team:

Bel Morian, Interim Director
Emily Fischer, Collections Assistant

Neches River Festival

72nd Neches River Festival held on the grounds of the McFaddin-Ward House
celebrating youth of our community.

Will You Be Our Next Intern?

2020 Summer Internship Opportunity at the McFaddin-Ward House Museum

The McFaddin-Ward House Museum, a historic house museum in Beaumont, Texas, is offering a paid summer internship in its collections department. Built 1905-1906, the Beaux-Arts Colonial mansion was the home of Mamie McFaddin Ward, who left it as a historic house museum in 1982. The museum, which opened in 1986, ranges over three city blocks and includes the main house, carriage house, visitor center, administrative office, facilities building, and collections office building.

Position Summary:  The intern will work primarily in the museum’s collections, while also gaining general experience in archival and educational operations of a historic house museum.

Collections Duties: Responsibilities include the cataloging and digitization of archives, oral interviews, and artifacts into the museum’s collections database. Additionally, the intern will assist with inventory, object photography, collections storage, and the research of collections as required.

Qualifications:  Applicant must have a strong interest in any or all aspects of the museum field, including work in museum collections, archives, interpretation, and education. The intern must possess excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to perform detail-oriented tasks. Knowledge of proper artifact handling and experience with collections management software preferred. A bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in museum studies, museum education, history, art history or art education is preferred. Interns must provide their own housing and their own transportation.

Employment Period:  Ten (10) weeks at 40 hours per week, with a $2,900 stipend (taxes will be withheld). Flexible work dates between May and September. Office staff is willing to assist with necessary paperwork for interns to obtain course credit.

Deadline for Submission:  Friday, March 20, 2020

How to apply:  Submit a cover letter and current resume, along with contact information for three references, by mail, email, or FAX to:

Ashley Thornton

McFaddin-Ward House

725 Third Street

Beaumont, Texas 77701

Phone: (409) 832-1906

FAX: (409) 832-3483

Email: athornton@mcfaddin-ward.org

Glitz, Gleam, and Glass

Now on display at our Visitor Center is a selection of brilliant glass pieces from the McFaddin-Ward House collection.

The collection contains hundreds of glass objects that belonged to Ida Caldwell McFaddin and Mamie McFaddin Ward. Over 200 of these pieces hail from the Blenko Glass Company in West Virginia and Steuben Glass Works in New York.

The McFaddins and Wards collected many beautiful Blenko Glass pieces

Englishman William J. Blenko, highly skilled in the craft of making mold-blown, stained glass windows, came to the United States in 1893. He founded the Eureka Art Glass Company in 1921, which later morphed into the Blenko Glass Company. Blenko began producing tableware and gained a reputation for good design and brilliant color.

Blenko Glass was favored by both Mamie and her mother, Ida

The Steuben Glass Works company was founded in Corning, New York in 1903 and soon rivaled the Tiffany Company in the design quality and color of its art glass. During World War I, the company suffered financially and in 1918 was sold to Corning Glass Works. Blenko glass is still produced today at its West Virginia location, while Corning Incorporated oversees the production of Steuben art glass.

Holiday Tour Times

The McFaddin-Ward House is open for Christmas tours! Awaken your holiday spirit with a look inside the past. Book your tour appointment with a docent today by calling 409-832-2134

So that our employees may enjoy special time with their families, we are closed Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, and New Years Day.

The Museum is closed on Mondays throughout the year.

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