Audio Tour highlights History, Community in Deer Park

Following the City of Deer Park’s 125^th Anniversary Celebration where the Shell Experience walked through the site’s past, present and future, Shell employees have been looking into the site’s history with the goal of making it more accessible to the community.

“The site’s former newsletter, the Shellegram, ran from the 1930s through the 1980s and covers much of the site’s and City’s history,” said Jessica Blackmore, External Relations Advisor. “Our employees lived here in the community and wanted to see it prosper so they volunteered for a number of roles to ensure its success – all of this is highlighted in our newsletters and we’ve used some of that content to create a series of stops on the audio tour.”

The audio tour is now live on both the Apple and Google Play app stores. It can be downloaded by the links or by searching “Big Energy” in the Apple app store and on Google Play.

The Deer Park audio tour, a second installment on theBig Energy app, looks at how Shell and Deer Park have grown since 1929 when Shell first came to town. Stops include the early Texas settlers’ headstone in Dow Park which pre-dates the Battle of San Jacinto and was originally found on Shell’s property, and the Deer Park Prairie which was saved after a significant fundraising drive where many citizens and employees contributed to.

“Shell values the partnership with this community and the site’s top priority is operating in a safe and environmentally sound manner for the health and well being of the community and workers,” continued Blackmore. “Shell is thankful to the City of Deer Park and its citizens that have supported the site throughout the years and looks forward to continuing to power progress together in our community and for the world for years to come.”

Big Energy Audio Tour

Big Energy: A Texas Tale of People Powering Progress,a special exhibit at the San Jacinto Museum of History, has come to life in the form of an audio tour presented by the City of Deer Park, the San Jacinto Museum of History and Shell Deer Park, showcases the birthplace of Texas as an energy hub, powering progress globally. The exhibit explores this area’s rise and impact through the lens of the people, the city, and a company that call it home, and challenges visitors to discover their role in making the future. 

Narrated byLiz Appleby, former Curator of the San Jacinto Museum of History, Sherry Garrison, City of Deer Park Councilmember and Chair of the Deer Park Historic Committee and Amanda Accardo, External Relations Manager at Shell Deer Park, the audio tour gives visitors a complementary look into the history of Shell and Deer Park, the manufacturing process and petrochemicals in everyday life. 

The exhibit is open through 2019 at the San Jacinto Museum of History, located at 1 Monument Circle, La Porte, TX, 77571