'''Fannett, Texas''' is an Unincorporated town in Jefferson_County,_Texas, about 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Beaumont,_Texas. The community is named after B. J. Fannett, a local landowner who opened a general store there in the 1890s. When Japanese immigrants brought Rice farming to the area, Fannett grew to meet the farmers' needs. Although oil has been discovered near Fannett, the town's population has remained small. Official 2000 census estimates place its population at 105. In 1961, the Fannett Independent School District was combined with that of neighboring Hamshire, forming the Hamshire-Fannett_Independent_School_District. In 1993 and again in 2004, Fannett was the center of a controversy over the naming of Jap Road (now Boondocks_Road). The road had been named in the early 20th_century to honor immigrant rice farmer Yoshio_Mayumi. However, the meaning of the word "Jap" had changed over time, transforming an honor into an ethnic slur. Fannett is home to the Clifton_Steamboat_Museum, which features a large exhibit on Lieutenant Commander Harry_Brinkley_Bass (after whom the USS Brinkley Bass was named). ==External links== * {{Handbook of Texas|id=FF/hlf5|name=Fannett, Texas}} Category:Beaumont-Port_Arthur_metropolitan_area Category:Jefferson_County,_Texas Category:Unincorporated_communities_in_Texas