Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson, born June 26, 1911, was one of seven children of Norwegian immigrants Hannah Marie and Ole Didrikson, and for the first several years of her life the family lived at this location before later moving to Beaumont. Encouraged by her family to develop her natural athletic abilities, she was called "Baby" at home and later received the nickname "Babe" after Babe Ruth. She first showed her athletic skill as a high school basketball star, then trained in track and field and won two gold medals at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. An exceptionally versatile athlete, she also excelled in baseball, bowling, tennis, and other sports, before eventually concentrating on golf and winning many tournaments as both an amateur and a professional. The Associated Press named her the "Woman Athlete of the First Half of the 20th Century." In 1938 she married George Zaharias, and admired by sports fans for both her skill and personality, she also won respect during a long and courageous battle against cancer before dying in Galveston on September 27, 1956, and being buried in Beaumont.
