ORIGIN OF THE
TEXAS SPORTS HALL OF FAME

Thad Johnson
Courtesy of The Beaumont Enterprise

Thad Johnson was the sports editor at The Beaumont Enterprise for 28 years from 1943-1971. During the 1949 Texas High School Coaches Association All Star Games in Beaumont, Johnson addressed a meeting of the Texas Sportswriters Association at the Beaumont Hotel and suggested that they start a Texas Sports Hall of Fame. Johnson’s idea met with unanimous approval. With the 1951 selection of baseball great Tris Speaker as its inaugural inductee, Texas became the very first state to honor its athletes with a hall of fame.

Tris Speaker
Inaugural Inductee - 1951