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Chronicling America
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Newspaper The Beaumont Enterprise (Beaumont, Tex.) 1904-Current Sunday enterprise / Beaumont Sunday enterprise journal / Beaumont enterprise journal

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About The Beaumont Enterprise (Beaumont, Tex.) 1904-Current

ohn W. Leonard started the Beaumont Enterprise as a Saturday weekly in 1880. In 1897, the Beaumont Enterprise Publishing Company added a daily edition with the same name. Renamed the Beaumont Daily Enterprise in 1898, the paper sometimes appeared as the Sunday Enterprise. The title became The Daily Enterprise during 1898-1902, then reverted back to being the Beaumont Daily Enterprise, which it still retains. In 1903, the weekly edition ceased publication.

The paper featured national and local news, notices of local events, classifieds, agriculture tips, sports news, and editorials. Mort L. Bixer edited the paper from 1898 to 1904. A single issue cost ten cents and a year’s subscription cost five dollars. In 1904, the paper was eight pages long, had a size of 17 x 22 inches, and enjoyed a circulation of 2,500.

The Enterprise was known for its Democratic leanings. In 1904, Bixer endorsed Democratic nominee Alton B. Parker for president, while condemning Republican vice-presidential candidate–and Beaumont resident–George W. Carroll. He also backed future governor Oscar Branch Colquitt in state politics, opposed prohibition, and ran editorials publicly criticizing the Beaumont City Council. Walter A. Myrick, the head of a construction and business supply company, bought part interest in the paper in 1904. He had large contracts with Jefferson County and the city of Beaumont and was subsequently elected to the Texas House of Representatives as a Democrat.

On January 10, 1901, the Spindletop Oilfield was discovered in a salt dome just south of Beaumont, marking the beginning of the Texas oil rush. Thousands of people moved to Beaumont to take advantage of the new industry, spurring the city’s growth. The news covered by the Enterprise reflected this, with every front-page story for months after the discovery mentioning oil. An article published on January 25 lamented the sudden spike in land prices, saying “we know of one good tract of land leased yesterday for one eighth, which could not have been touched last week for less than 50 per cent.” The oil dried out at Spindletop around 1904, but in 1925 more oil was discovered in surrounding domes, starting a new era of speculation. After the first oil rush, future Texas governor William P. Hobby started managing the Enterprise, soon becoming part owner. He left in 1914 after his election as Lieutenant Governor, but returned in 1921 after completing his term as Governor. He continued to run the Enterprise for a decade.

The Enterprise is still published today with a circulation over 70,000. Having run for a continuous 132 years, the paper is recognized as the oldest business in Southeast Texas.

Provided By: University of North Texas; Denton, TX

About this Newspaper

Title

  • The Beaumont Enterprise (Beaumont, Tex.) 1904-Current

Other Title

  • Sunday enterprise
  • Beaumont Sunday enterprise journal
  • Beaumont enterprise journal

Dates of Publication

  • 1904-current

Created / Published

  • Beaumont, Tex. : Beaumont Enterprise Pub. Co.

Headings

  • -  Beaumont (Tex.)--Newspapers
  • -  Jefferson County (Tex.)--Newspapers
  • -  Texas--Beaumont
  • -  Texas--Jefferson County
  • -  United States--Texas--Jefferson--Beaumont

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Daily
  • -  Began in 1904?
  • -  On Sunday issued as: Sunday enterprise; Beaumont Sunday enterprise-journal, and; Beaumont enterprise-journal.
  • -  Issue called: Texas Centennial Ed., May 31, 1936.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format as part of the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  Description based on: Vol. VIII, no. 127 (August 26, 1904).
  • -  Latest issue consulted: Vol. VIII, no. 176 (October 14, 1904).

Medium

  • volumes

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn86071101

OCLC Number

  • 13163142

ISSN Number

  • 2333-4789

Preceding Titles

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

The NEH awardee responsible for producing each digital object is presented in the Chronicling America page display, below the page image – e.g. Image produced by the Library of Congress. For more information on current NDNP awardees, see https://aj.sunback.homes/ndnp/listawardees.html.

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Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

The Beaumont Enterprise Beaumont, Tex. -Current. (Beaumont, TX), Jan. 1 1904. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86071101/.

APA citation style:

(1904, January 1) The Beaumont Enterprise Beaumont, Tex. -Current. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86071101/.

MLA citation style:

The Beaumont Enterprise Beaumont, Tex. -Current. (Beaumont, TX) 1 Jan. 1904. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn86071101/.