Texas' First Rice Mill

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna give it to you straight with a little extra Texas on top. We're talking about the Beaumont Rice Mill, sitting right there in Jefferson County, and this story starts earlier than you might think. The first commercial planting of rice in Texas goes all the way back to 1863.

Now, those early crops, they were entirely at the mercy of the sky. No irrigation, no guarantees. Just plant it, pray over it, and wait.

Folks had a name for that kind of farming. They called it Providence Rice. Which tells you everything you need to know about how certain they were of a harvest.

You were leaving it in higher hands. Then along comes J. E.

Broussard. Pioneer grower. Pioneer irrigator.

A man who apparently decided that Providence was a fine partner but a slow one. In 1892, Broussard founded the Beaumont Rice Mill, and that was not the end of his ambitions. He went on to become co-founder of the Rice Millers' Association.

His efforts, the marker says plainly, caused factories to spring up in nearby counties. That's the kind of ripple that starts with one determined man and ends up reshaping a whole region's economy. The present building at the mill was erected in 1907, and here's the part that'll make you set down your coffee.

That firm is still operated by his descendants. A family business rooted in 1892, still standing, still runnin'. Some legacies you build out of stone.

Some you build out of rice.

What the marker says

Beaumont Rice Mill, founded 1892 by J. E. Broussard, was developed after first commercial planting of rice in Texas in 1863. Earlier crops, due to dependence on rain, were dubbed "Providence Rice." Broussard, pioneer grower and irrigator, was also co-founder of Rice Millers' Association. His efforts caused factories to spring up in nearby counties. Firm is still operated by his descendants. Present building was erected in 1907. (1968)