Celebrating Beaumont's First 100 Years

The Titanic sank in the North Atlantic, Houdini escaped his shackles and women marched for the right to vote.

It was 1912 and history was in the making. That same year, a small farming town in the Pass entered the history books too. On Nov. 18 that year, Beaumont officially became a city after townsfolk voted 155 to 115 to incorporate and give up county rule.

Reminiscing about Beaumont’s first century, Mayor Brian De Forge wants to honor the memory of those who came before us: Their sacrifices, their vision, their hopes and dreams—everything that made us the city that we are.

Now, it’s our turn to carry on that proud tradition as we prepare for Beaumont’s 100^th anniversary.

“This is a defining moment,” De Forge said. “It doesn’t matter whether you grew up in town or just moved here. Each of us has a role to play in making Beaumont a great place for families, businesses and visitors.”

Birth of a city

It was 1912 and the cityhood election was over. The task of governing began as city fathers pondered what lay ahead.

In their early meetings, the first City Council quickly tackled urgent needs and everyday responsibilities. They rented a typewriter for $2 a month. They bought a heavy metal box to hold account books. They agreed “horseless carriages” still needed lights at night.

These early civic pioneers, with their can-do attitudes, laid down a solid foundation for our city’s future. We salute them as we get ready to begin our Centennial Celebration. A year-long series of festivities will be fun for the whole family and shine the spotlight on our city’s history.

Let the festivities begin

Our Centennial Celebration will kick off this November and continue for a year with many special activities. The city’s 100th anniversary is on Nov. 18, 2012.

Come join us for the events of a century. Here are some of the many activities planned for the year:

• A photo contest with categories that include history, outdoors, community, innovation and vision and a special category for photographers 17 years old and younger.
• The planting of a stately deodar “Centennial Tree” just like the ones that now line Beaumont Avenue.
• A road rally and scavenger hunt that will take you all over town as you follow fascinating clues in search of historic treasures.
• An old-fashioned ice cream social just like Beaumont residents had in the early 1900s.
• Bronze plaques unveiled on the Centennial Memorial Bridge to pay tribute and honor those who helped create the city that we admire and love.

We’ll top everything off with a big celebration dinner on Nov. 17, 2012. Details will be announced, so stay tuned. This will be a very special time and will be followed on Nov. 18, 2012 with the burying of a time capsule for future generations.

A look back

As we prepare to celebrate Beaumont’s 100th anniversary, let’s take a few moments to reflect on our city’s history.

In the early 1900s, Beaumont was often called “Sleepy Hollow.” But starting more than a decade ago, a housing boom catapulted Beaumont into one of the fastest-growing cities in California and a rising star in the Inland Empire. Today, we’re a progressive community of 38,000 people with a small-town feel and one of California’s best-planned, most dynamic cities. With easy access to freeways and rail lines, we’re right at the “crossroads of commerce.”

But it was those early day entrepreneurs, land and water companies and hearty settlers and their families who saw the possibilities. They subdivided the town, graded streets, put in water lines, planted thousands of trees and fought for cityhood. It took three elections to make Beaumont a city.

By 1910, the town had about 1,100 people. It boasted a bank, two weekly newspapers, two dry goods stores, a hardware store, a bakery, a mill, a meat market, two churches, a library and a school. Horse and buggies shared dirt roads with a handful of automobiles. On Sunday mornings, many hopped aboard a train in Los Angeles, paid $1 and headed east. They enjoyed a day of adventure that included a horse and buggy ride around town and a barbecue in scenic Edgar Canyon.

In the early 1900s, Beaumont was being heavily promoted in Los Angeles. Newspaper advertisements proclaimed, “Beaumont apples will put you on easy street.” The rallying cry became “Five acres and independence!” It was hard to resist at a time when you could buy five acres for $750, including water.

Since those days, we’ve witnessed many big changes. Over the decades, we’ve seen the coming of Interstate 10 and the construction of a state pipeline to bring water to the region. But history always shows that our best days are ahead. As our 100th anniversary dawns, it is a moment of great civic pride that binds us together and lights the way to a shining future.