The McFaddin-Ward House

Historic House Museum in Beaumont, Texas

Sister, don't give up the land. They are not making land anymore.
W.P.H. McFaddin

Free Tours Announced

Junior Interpreters to Host Tours on June 30th

On Saturday, June 30, newly trained Junior Interpreters, along with veteran “J.I.s”, will give free tours of the McFaddin-Ward House and carriage house. Junior Interpreters are older teenagers who are fully trained docents. Junior Interpreter Day allows the new guides to become more proficient at interacting with guests of the museum. Beginning at 10 a.m., the group will be giving free tours to anyone who walks through the door, although it is best to secure a reservation. The teens will take a lunch break from 12 to 1 p.m. and begin afternoon tours after they eat. The last tour will start at 3:00. Feel free to drop by the museum or best, make your reservation today. J.I. Day is very popular with the public. The museum sees more than 100 people come for these free days.

Upcoming events at the museum

We’ve got several events coming up throughout the summer here at the McFaddin-Ward House.

First up is the kick-off of our summer movie nights. Next Thursday, June 12th, we’ll be featuring the movie musical classic Guys & Dolls! Starring Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Vivian Blaine, and Jean Simmons, this 1955 film tells the story of mobsters in 1930s New York City. Featuring classic songs like “Luck Be A Lady” and “A Woman in Love,” it’s one of the most enduring and popular musicals of all time.

On July 10th, we’ll show Desk Set (1957), the eighth movie featuring classic Hollywood pair Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. Hepburn plays the head of the research department at a TV network, while Tracy portrays the man who’s introducing computers into their workplace. It’s a plot straight from the 50s, with laughs that still translate today.

As always, both of these movie nights are free and open to the public. Each film begins at 6:30 pm at the Visitors Center, located at 1906 Calder Avenue in Beaumont. Doors open at 6 o’clock. Drinks and popcorn will also be available, absolutely free of charge.

Also this summer, we’ll be starting up our Junior Interpreter Training. If you’re 13 years or older and would like to give tours of the museum, sign up! It starts June 16th and runs every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday through the end of the month. Call 832-2134 for more information.

And our always popular summer camp is quickly filling up! This year, the theme revolves around food: Three Square Meals & Then Some! Enter the fascinating world of food with the McFaddin-Ward House! Food involves much more than meals, flavor, or nutrition—think of edible flowers, food customs around the world, and food-related songs (and even dances)! Campers will connect food customs of yesterday and today through lively hands-on activities; they’ll try their hand at easy-to-make recipes, learn how food has made history over the centuries, make their own cookbook, decorate with food, and end the three days of fun and education with a lunch and dance! It’s open to kids ages 8-12, and costs $20 per child. It’s July 29th-31st, 10 am-2 pm daily. Only 24 spots are available!

And finally, we’re continuing our 2014 Lecture Series with R.K. Sawyer.

Texas has long been home to a storied hunting culture, with limitless numbers of animals filling the bayous, lakes, fields, and skies of the Lone Star State.

The colorful history of hunting in Texas has deep roots right here in southeast Texas, and R.K. Sawyer has spent years researching it all.

Join us on Thursday, August 14th, as Sawyer presents his lecture “A Hundred Years of Texas Waterfowl Hunting.” He’ll talk about the hunting clubs, decoys, practices, equipment, and prolific hunters of decades past, and the unique ties it all has to the McFaddin family in particular.

As always, this lecture is free and open to the public. It begins at 6:30 pm, with doors opening at 6 o’clock.

Call (409) 832-1906 for more information on any of these events.

Come see us at the McFaddin-Ward House this summer!