The Gusher Marathon is an annual spring marathon held in Beaumont, Texas. [1] It was founded in 2010 [2] by the local nonprofit organization Sports Society for American Health and sponsored by Exygon Gym and Baptist Hospitals. [3] The Gusher in Gusher Marathon refers to the 1901 discovery of oil at the spindletop salt dome in Beaumont. The course is a flat, fast USATF Sanctioned and Certified, Boston Qualifier. The course begins at the Montagne Center of Lamar University and tours much of Downtown Beaumont before returning to Lamar University. The Gusher also offers 5K and half marathon distances in addition to the full marathon. The 2011 marathon was moved to mid March to take advantage of cooler weather.
Spindletop is an oil field located in the southern portion of Beaumont, Texas, in the United States. The Spindletop dome was derived from the Louann Salt evaporite layer of the Jurassic geologic period. On January 10, 1901, a well at Spindletop struck oil. The Spindletop gusher blew for 9 days at a rate estimated at 100,000 barrels (16,000 m3) of oil per day. Gulf Oil and Texaco, now part of Chevron Corporation, were formed to develop production at Spindletop. The Spindletop discovery led the United States into the oil age. Prior to Spindletop, oil was primarily used for lighting and as a lubricant. Because of the quantity of oil discovered, burning petroleum as a fuel for mass consumption suddenly became economically feasible.
Jefferson County is a county in the Coastal Plain or Gulf Prairie region of Southeast Texas. The Neches River forms its northeastern boundary. As of the 2020 census, the population was 256,526. The county seat is Beaumont. Jefferson County has the highest percentage of African Americans in the state of Texas.
Beaumont is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the seat of government of Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan statistical area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about 85 miles (137 km) east of Houston. With a population of 115,282 at the 2020 census, Beaumont is the largest municipality by population near the Louisiana border. Its metropolitan area was the 10th largest in Texas in 2020, and 130th in the United States.
Lamar University is a public university in Beaumont, Texas, United States. Lamar has been a member of the Texas State University System since 1995. It was the flagship institution of the former Lamar University System. As of the fall of 2024, the university enrollment was 17,771 students. Lamar University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and named for Mirabeau B. Lamar, the second president of the Republic of Texas.
Neches Federal Credit Union Arena at theMontagne Center, built in 1984, is a mixed-use event center that houses a 10,746-seat a multi-purpose arena and a variety of event spaces in Beaumont, Texas. The Montagne Center was designed especially for the basketball program with a wing designated for instructional purposes. The Montagne Center is currently home to the Lamar University Cardinals, the Lady Cardinals basketball teams, and the Lamar University Pathway Program, Lamar University's language program. The arena was previously the home of the Lady Cardinals volleyball team until renovations to McDonald Gym were completed in 2006–07. The Montagne's instructional area has been home to Lamar's language program since 2010 when the Lamar Language Institute (LLI) first moved there, then transitioned to TIEP at Lamar in 2011, and became the Lamar University Language Program (LUPP) in 2017.
The Beaumont Civic Center, in downtown Beaumont, Texas, is a 6,500-seat arena where concerts, conventions, trade shows and exhibitions are held. Banquet maximum capacity is 2,000. It has 29,300 square feet (2,720 m2) of ground-level exhibit space and 12,000 square feet (1,100 m2) space on the second level for a combined space of 41,300 square feet (3,840 m2). The building includes four dressing rooms with showers. 850 parking spots are onsite. The venue is part of the Beaumont Civic Center Complex. This complex includes the Civic Center, Julie Rogers Theater and the Jefferson Theatre.
Billy Duane Tubbs was an American men's college basketball coach. The Tulsa, Oklahoma native was the head coach of his alma mater Lamar University, the University of Oklahoma (1980–1994) and Texas Christian University (1994–2002). His first head coaching job — from 1971-72 through 1972-73 — was at Southwestern University, Georgetown, Texas, where his teams were 12–16 and 19–8. From there he went to the University of North Texas to serve as assistant coach under Gene Robbins and for one year under Bill Blakeley.
McDonald Gym, built in 1958, is located on the campus of Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. The building was completely renovated in 2006-07 as part of the $17.8-million, 126,000 sq ft Sheila Umphrey Recreational Center project. The gym's seating capacity was reduced from 4,200 to 500 as part of the renovation. McDonald Gym has been the home of the Lamar Lady Cardinals Volleyball Team since the renovation. The facility was named after the fourth president of Lamar Dr. F.L. McDonald. (1952–1967) The original construction cost estimate in 1957-1958 was $850,000. Chambers Construction Company of Houston, Texas was the main construction contractor. Allco, LLC was the main contractor for the 2006-07 renovation.
A blowout is the uncontrolled release of crude oil and/or natural gas from an oil well or gas well after pressure control systems have failed. Modern wells have blowout preventers intended to prevent such an occurrence. An accidental spark during a blowout can lead to a catastrophic oil or gas fire.
Beaumont Independent School District is a U.S. public school district serving Beaumont in Southeast Texas. The district originated in the annexation of the former Beaumont ISD by the South Park Independent School District after its trustees voted in 1983 to dissolve it as the culmination of a struggle over desegregation of both districts. The original Beaumont ISD had previously absorbed the smaller French ISD.
KVLU, is a public radio station and NPR affiliate broadcasting throughout southeast Texas. It is licensed to Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas with studios located on campus and a transmitter site located in Rose City, Texas. The broadcast area reaches to Jasper, Texas at the north, Lake Charles, Louisiana to the east, Bolivar, Texas to the south and Baytown, Texas to the west. Launched in 1974, the station operates independently and features a diverse 24/7 schedule of programs including NPR news morning, midday and afternoon as well as locally produced music programs, local features and radio documentaries, etc. The station is largely member supported with additional support coming from the university and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting as well as program underwriters.
The Lamar Cardinals and Lady Cardinals refers to the college athletics teams of Lamar University, in Beaumont, Texas. The Cardinals and Lady Cardinals teams compete in seventeen NCAA Division I sports as a member of the Southland Conference. The Cardinals rejoined the Southland after spending the 2021–22 athletic year in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).
The Illinois Marathon is a for-profit marathon which was held for the first time on April 11, 2009 in Champaign, Illinois. This was to be the first marathon ever held in Champaign. The course is very flat and it was expected to produce fast times, with only 85 feet (26 m) of elevation change. Race weekends have been held annually on the fourth weekend in April since 2009, with the only cancellation to date being the 2020 Race Weekend as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The races offered are:
Jim Gilligan is an American former head baseball coach, primarily for the Lamar Cardinals baseball program.
Downtown Beaumont is the central business district of Beaumont, Texas. It is where the city's highrise buildings are located, as well as being the center of government and business for the region. Downtown Beaumont is currently experiencing a renaissance, with streets, sidewalks and historic buildings receiving significant attention.
The Spindletop-Gladys City Boomtown Museum is located in Beaumont, Texas, to commemorate the discovery of oil at the Spindletop Hill salt dome in Beaumont on Jan. 10, 1901. The discovery sparked an oil boom in Texas that continues today. Along with a gift shop with commemorative gifts, the museum features historical, period reenactments by area performers. A replica of the wooden oil derricks that once dotted the landscape of Spindletop Hill in the early 1900s has been erected near the museum. For special occasions and anniversaries, the museum staff “blows the gusher” with a plume of water and provides a historical narrative and sound effects to simulate the discovery of oil at Spindletop.
John Ellis Gray was an educational administrator, businessman and university president at Lamar University. In 1972, Gray, along with Otho Plummer, H. C. Galloway, and Dr. Charles P. Turco founded the Lamar University Foundation to fund raise, manage, and administer private gifts in support of Lamar University programs.
Anthony Guillory was an American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) from 1965 through 1969. He attended the black Hebert High School in Beaumont, Texas, and played college football at the University of Nebraska and then at Lamar State College of Technology. Transferring from Nebraska to Lamar in 1962, Guillory became the first black athlete at Lamar. He was one of 16 pro footballers given the keys to the city of Beaumont in 1971.
The Texas Energy Museum is a museum in Beaumont, Texas in the United States. The museum was formed in 1987 to tell the story of oil through state of the art exhibits including talking robotic characters. The museum opened on January 10, 1990, the anniversary of the Spindletop gusher.
The Babe Didrikson Zaharias Museum & Visitor Center is a museum dedicated to Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias that is located in Beaumont, Texas. Fronting on Interstate 10, it is freely open to the public Monday through Saturday from 9 am to 5 pm. The museum consists largely of trophies and awards that Zaharias accumulated during her career, as well as memorabilia, newspaper clippings, and photographs. The museum also functions as a visitor center for Beaumont. Money raised by the museum helps fund scholarships for female students at Lamar University.