McFaddin-Ward House Museum

06/01/2026

We are pleased to announce an update to the McFaddin-Ward House Museum’s operating hours, tour times, and admission-free tour offerings this June. 🎉

Beginning next Tuesday, June 9, the Museum will be open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and on Sunday from 12-2:30 p.m.

Two options for guided, admission-free tours will be available during operating hours:
• McFaddin-Ward House Tours (includes three floors of the Historic Home, Carriage House, and Gardens): Tuesday through Saturday at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and on Sunday at 1 p.m. only. Open to ages eight and up.
• Carriage House and Garden Tour (does not include Historic Home): Tuesday through Saturday at 9 a.m. and 12 p.m. and on Sunday at 12 p.m. only. Open to all ages.

Booking tours online at mcfaddin-ward.org is recommended. Walk-ins will be accommodated with reserved tours as available. The last daily tour time will be 2 p.m.

More info in our website news story:
https://mcfaddin-ward.org/mcfaddin-ward-house-museum-announces-new-tour-offerings-hours/

The McFaddin-Ward House Museum is pleased to announce an update to the Museum’s operating hours, tour times, and admission-free tour offerings this June.

06/01/2026

**PLEASE NOTE CLOSING THIS WEEK FOR SUMMER CAMP**

The McFaddin-Ward House Museum will be closed to the public on Wednesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 4 during our Ranching Roundup Summer Camp.

Normal hours resume on Friday, June 5.

05/29/2026

✨ It’s – where we highlight the Museum’s collection of more than 35,000 original objects ✨

We can’t wait for our June 11 lecture on the grand era of luxury ocean liners, so we’re taking a closer look at menus from the McFaddin ladies’ 1938 trip aboard the legendary Cunard White Star flagship, The Queen Mary. 🛳️

The Queen Mary embarked on her maiden voyage on May 27, 1936. At the time, the magnificent luxury liner was considered the grandest ocean liner in the world, carrying celebrities, royalty, and important dignitaries. She was decked out with five dining areas and lounges, two cocktail bars and swimming pools, a grand ballroom, a squash court, and small hospital.

In the summer of 1938, Mamie McFaddin Ward and her mother Ida embarked on a transatlantic voyage aboard The Queen Mary, experiencing her marvels firsthand. Menus from their time aboard The Queen Mary are preserved in the Museum Collection.

Don’t miss our admission-free lecture – The Golden Age of Ocean Liners: A Short History from 1897 to the Present by historian Brian Dudley on Thursday, June 11 at 6:30 p.m.

Lecture – The Golden Age of Ocean Liners: A Short History from 1897 to the Present

05/28/2026

Congratulations, Class of 2026! 🎉

Caldwell McFaddin, the youngest of the three McFaddin children, graduated from Beaumont High School in 1917. He was recognized as the valedictorian of his graduating class and went on to attend Rice Institute (later University) and Harvard Law School, graduating from Harvard in 1924.

Caldwell’s high school yearbook said of him, “If there’s anything you are in doubt about, just ask him—knowledge runs through his veins as well as blood.”

Share your graduation best wishes or memories in the comments!

📷: Caldwell McFaddin graduation portrait from Rice Institute, 1921. (Museum Collection)

05/27/2026

🤔 Remember rotary phones, foot-powered sewing machines, and typewriters? These are a few examples of early/mid 1900s technology in the historic McFaddin-Ward House.

05/27/2026

🏛️ McFaddin-Ward House Museum 40th Anniversary | 40 Milestones & Memories in 40 Weeks

☑️ Number 10: Board of Directors

The McFaddin-Ward House Museum Board of Directors has served as the Museum’s governing authority since its inception. The Board is responsible for establishing policies, maintaining operational continuity, and safeguarding institutional standards.

We recognize and thank those who have served (in alphabetical order): Judith Black, Brock Brentlinger, Tony Chauveaux, Gerry Cordts, J. C. Crager, Edwin Gorham, Jr., John Gray, Martha Hicks, Don Kelly, Bel Lamb, Gene Ann Liese, Barbara Moor, James Potter, Jr., Ida McFaddin Pyle, Mitch Smith, Roy Steinhagen, Lorraine Thomas, Peter Wells, Lane Wilson, Leslie Wilson, and Rosine McFaddin Wilson.

📷: Members of the first Board of Directors (Rosine McFaddin Wilson, president; Ida McFaddin Pyle, vice president; Lorice Thomas, second vice president; Betty Leaf, secretary; John Gray, treasurer; and J. C. Crager, second vice president) are photographed with area dignitaries during the ribbon cutting ceremony marking the opening of the McFaddin-Ward House Museum on March 15, 1986.

05/26/2026

🚢 Historian Brian Dudley will navigate titanic tales of the illustrious ocean liners that once traversed the North Atlantic during his free public lecture, “The Golden Age of Ocean Liners: A Short History from 1897 to the Present,” on Thursday, June 11.

Dudley’s lecture will trace the technological, architectural, and decorative evolution of transatlantic ocean liners and explore how these impressive ships shaped world events and impacted history in the 20th century.

Full details in our website news story:

Historian Brian Dudley will navigate titanic tales of the illustrious ocean liners that once traversed the North Atlantic during his free public lecture, “The Golden Age of Ocean Liners: A Short History from 1897 to the Present,” presented by the McFaddin-Ward House Museum on Thursday, June 11, ...

05/25/2026

This Memorial Day, we pause to remember and honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice defending our country. Their service will never be forgotten. 🙏

05/22/2026

THANK YOU Beaumont Independent School District! 💚

Over the past four weeks, it has been our absolute pleasure to host end-of-year field trips for BISD 7th graders, teachers, and administrators from across the district.

We loved their curious questions, their appreciation for the history within the McFaddin-Ward House, and their laughter as they had fun learning to line dance and rope steer. We’re truly honored they can find something “cool” about their time at the Museum.

Field trip days are some of the most rewarding for our team, but our greatest joy is when the students come back with their families.

As always, we are grateful to BISD administration and faculty for the opportunity to ignite curiosity in your outstanding students. We look forward to seeing you all next spring!

05/21/2026

in 1919, Mamie McFaddin married Carroll Ward at 8 o’clock in the evening in the Pink Parlor of the McFaddin home in a “brilliant social affair” of “statewide interest”. 💍

The couple said their vows surrounded by a large gathering of family and friends. The wedding party included seven attendants in gold gowns for Mamie, 10 attendants for Carroll, 12 little flower girls who lined the bridal path from the grand staircase to the Pink Parlor, and a young boy who carried the 15-foot train of Mamie’s “magnificent” wedding dress. The celebration was led by a Master of Ceremonies, and a six-piece orchestra played “exquisitely beautiful” live music.

Both local papers were effusive in praise of the young bride with the Beaumont Enterprise writing, “The bride, a handsome young woman of striking brunette type, was never lovelier than in her wedding gown of ivory satin exquisitely draped and embroidered with pearls.”

Image: Mamie McFaddin Ward poses in her wedding gown, ca. 1919. (Museum Collection)