Spindletop/Gladys City Boomtown Museum

Beaumont rose to fame when the Lucas Gusher blew on a little hill in Beaumont affectionately called “Spindletop” on January 10, 1901.  The gusher spewed 100,00 barrels of oil for nine days straight, reaching a height of 100 feet. A boomtown sprang up overnight ushering in the energy age, giving rise to major petroleum companies. By 1902, there were more than 500 Texas corporations doing business in Beaumont. Many of the major oil companies were born at Spindletop or grew to major corporate size as a result of their involvement at Spindletop. The Texas Company (later Texaco), Gulf Oil Corporation, Sun Oil Company, Magnolia Petroleum Company, and Humble (later Exxon Company, U.S.A.) were a few of the major corporations.

The Spindletop/Gladys City Boomtown Museum gives visitors a chance to experience this remarkable chapter in history first-hand and learn about the industrial developments that followed. The boomtown replica captures the spirit of the Spindletop era with authentically based clapboard buildings and artifacts. 

Browse around the town - which includes a post office, saloon, general store, working print shop, photo shop, dentist office and more. There is a working replica gusher that spews water at 100 feet (same height as the original). On occasion, you can also see re-enactments of life during the oil boom at Spindletop-Gladys City Boomtown Museum. Capture the magic of this boomtown on a self-guided tour.