Beaumont, Texas February 16-17

We arrived at the Gulf Coast RV Resort ($25.50/night) in Beaumont, population 119,000, around 1:30 PM on the 16th. We quickly set up and went over to the Babe Didrikson Museum.

The Didrikson Museum was small and had double duty as the Visitors Center, remember I said to always visit the Visitor Centers. For those of you who don’t remember, Mildred Ella Didrikson, known as Babe, was a fabulous athlete. She excelled at 20 sports including: golf, basketball, baseball and track and field and won two gold medals in track and field at the 1932 Summer Olympics. She then turned to professional golf and won 10 LPGA championships. She is still thought of as the greatest female athlete of all time. She died at 45 after battling colon cancer.

The museum has film footage of her performances and many of her awards and personal items. Babe’s legacy is The Babe Didrikson Zaharias Foundation, which gives scholarships to outstanding female athletes at Lamar College. More information on Babe: https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00014147.html Check it out! Sorry, no pictures.

Next on our list was Saint Anthony’s Basilica Cathedral, built 1901-1909. This is a must see if you are in the area. We stopped in shortly before the 4 PM mass and it was truly a marvel inside and out. The inside design is breathtaking and will move those who are not particularly religious. I was in awe of the craftsmanship and the appointments. Wonderful.

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We headed back to the campground to relax. This was a quick layover on our way to San Antonio and we were leaving around 7 AM the next day. Beaumont was a great little town and we enjoyed poking around!