Beaumont is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Butler County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the community and nearby areas was 36.

History

The surrounding area is farm land, settled by ranchers and farmers after the Civil War. Homesteaders from Missouri, Iowa, Tennessee, and other eastern states came because of an abundance of cheap land. The town site was first a stop on the stagecoach route between Fredonia and Wichita. In 1879 Edwin and Emma Russell built the Summit Hotel, later renamed as the Beaumont Hotel. In 1885 the St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad, better known as the Frisco, established Beaumont as a railroad town. One line of tracks ran east and west, connecting St. Louis with Wichita. A spur was added later going south from Beaumont though Latham and on to the Oklahoma border. A roundhouse was built in 1890 across from the Summit Hotel, and employed 90 people. The water tower, built in 1885, stands across from the hotel and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Because of the rich bluestem grass, the area was used as staging area to ship cattle back east. The railroad supported several businesses in Beaumont. These included a hardware store and lumber yard, as well as a pharmacy owned by the town's only physician and surgeon, Dr. William James Phillips. The population of Beaumont has never been large. In 1910 the population was 200. Today, fewer than 50 people live there. A post office was opened in Beaumont on June 3, 1880, and remained in operation until it was discontinued on August 16, 1997. The Beaumont St. Louis and San Francisco Railroad Water Tank in Beaumont is on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. Beaumont maintains a private airfield directly next to the town. The Beaumont Cafe and Hotel is a popular place to eat and stay for locals as well as pilots on their way through. There is a taxiway and parking area for small planes directly next to the restaurant itself. The community is featured in the storyline of the 1998 film ''"The Long Way Home"'' starring

Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001) was an American actor. Considered equally proficient in both dramatic and comic roles, Lemmon was known for his anxious, middle-class everyman screen persona in dramedy pictures, leadi ...

. However, the actual locations filmed were in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

and not in

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

Geography

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

system, Beaumont has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Beaumont, Kansas
/ref>

Demographics

For statistical purposes, the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...

has defined Beaumont as a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...

(CDP).

Education

The community is served by

Bluestem USD 205 Bluestem USD 205 is a public unified school district headquartered in Leon, Kansas, United States. The district includes the communities of Leon, Latham, Beaumont, Bois d'Arc, Haverhill, Keighley, Wingate, and nearby rural areas. Schools The ...

public school district.

References

External links

* Butler County maps
CurrentHistoric
KDOT {{Authority control Unincorporated communities in Butler County, Kansas Unincorporated communities in Kansas Wichita, KS Metropolitan Statistical Area Populated places established in 1880 1880 establishments in Kansas