By Myra Lee Adams Goff

A Texas Historical Marker honoring Eiband & Fischer store is being cast at the foundry in San Antonio, soon to be installed at the site of the one-time famous mercantile store. You or your family may remember this store if you were in New Braunfels before 1959.

The big store on Main Plaza burned down in 1947 but limped along with what was left, trying to survive. When it was just a hole in the ground, Wurstfest inhabited it from 1963 to 1966. During that time it became a joyful place to be, with music and lights and fun. But it was an eyesore downtown the rest of the year. Finally the property was sold in 1969 to local investors and eventually to NBU.

At first a store owned by Gustavus Conrads was located on this spot on the Plaza and in 1864 he sold it to Ernst Sherff. Sherff enlarged the store, even adding a campground out back for those who came to town from the country. This store was bought by George Knoke and George Eiband and became Knoke & Eiband.

In 1907 the store was sold to Ernst Eiband (brother of George) and Emil Fischer. Eiband and Fischer opened a modern establishment in 1910. Their beautiful modern building sported a skylight in the middle of the roof and a grand staircase to the mezzanine. An interesting thing about the mezzanine is that gift items and fine clothing were located there. For some reason, the clientele would not go up the beautiful stairs for purchases. Soon after the opening, these gift items were moved to the basement. Apparently people would walk down but not up.

The fateful fire happened March 2, 1947. Beginning in the basement, the fire raged undetected during the night until the early morning hours when a salesman called on Naegelin’s Bakery next door and noticed smoke. But by this time the damage was done. The cause is still unknown but there was speculation of a defective small motor in the grocery department. The basement was also where hunting goods, guns, and ammunition were sold and when the fire reached this stash, there was quite a racket that could be heard for miles.

A small part of the store was spared because it was separated from the main building by an alley-way. This is the part of the store that became the “after fire store”. It managed to stay open until 1959.

For 16 years the hole gaped with only a wooden enclosure at ground level for safety reasons. In 1975 after the Wurstfest years (63-66), the city bought the remaining business building and the burned-out corner. San Antonio Public Service had their offices on the San Antonio St. corner since 1929. The basement was filled in and became a parking lot.

I remember the inside of the store before the fire. First, outside on the sidewalks were glass blocks embedded in concrete giving light to the basement. Enter the front door on Seguin St. to the main floor. There in the front of the store were women’s clothing and on the right side were men’s clothing and all shoes. In the back of this floor was the grocery store. On the mezzanine was the cashier’s office that controlled the “cash caddies” that carried cash up and down on wire cables. The basement held the china and crystal.

Behind this building was the annex housing a cotton exchange. Upstairs in the annex was a dance hall used for dance lessons and functions. The camp yard was in the back extending to Comal Street. Farm equipment and feed were sold there. There were outhouses, horse stalls, and places for farmers to park their wagons and spend the night. Way in the back of this area was a statue of J.I. Case eagle on top of the world, a logo of that tractor company. Some may remember this.

The Sophienburg has quite a few items from before the fire. One is a collection of books called the Eiband & Fischer Cookbooks. Written in German, recipes were thought to be by the Women’s Civic Improvement Club. The first edition was in 1915. Here’s a sample of some of the recipes: Roasted Flour Soup (good for the sick), Beer soup, Turtle Soup, Wine Soup with Snow Dumplings, Blood Sausage, Meat in Beer, and the old favorites, noodles, sweetbreads, Koch-Käse. Yum! Roll out the barrel.

Marijane Stafford has spent years researching Eiband & Fischer store. She is a direct descendant of the Fischer family. Her father was Carlo Fischer, the last family member to own the store. Placement of the historical marker will once again remind us of the mercantile store that it used to be.

In 1917 members of the New Braunfels Fire Dept. pose in front of the Eiband & Fischer store on Main Plaza. Thirty years later this building burned to the ground.

Eiband & Fischer Store

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

On May 8, 1914, the New Braunfels Herald’s front page story announced that “a model federal highway was to be built from Austin to San Antonio”. This Federal Post Road was a forerunner to IH 35. The same year that the road was completed in 1916, a young man from Ohio named Joe Sanders arrived in New Braunfels. He would have a huge impact not on the highways but on the backroads of Comal County.

State legislator S.V. Pfeuffer considered this new highway the most important project ever started anywhere in Texas. He believed it would inaugurate an era of road building that would never stop. The old Post Road from Austin to San Antonio had deteriorated badly over the years with some sections having no topping and some sections muddy.. Crossing over the Cibolo Creek was often flooded.

Joe Sanders’ story has to do with roads, automobiles, and tourism. Because of a bout with typhoid fever, a doctor suggested that he move south. Choosing New Braunfels, he brought with him a natural knowledge of the newly invented automobile. He took a job locally with Hippolyt Dittlinger, a local successful businessman.

Around the turn of the century the automobile had made its debut in New Braunfels.The first automobile dealership in town was Walter Gerlich Auto Co. opened in 1912. Gerlich sold Buicks and Model T Fords. By 1916 other auto dealers in town were: Hamilton Zipp selling Hudson and Dodge; Zoeller, Voigt & Bornemann, dealers selling Oakland High Speed Motor Cars; Baetge Auto Cycle Co. selling Willys-Knight autos; D. Stahl & Son selling Studebakers; Gruene Bros. Auto Agency at Goodwin selling Velie and Maxwell cars; C.H. Bruemmer Auto Shop selling Crow & Elkhart and Velie. Source: (Sesquecentennial Minutes, Nuhn and Skoog)

The touring car was the most popular car. It was an open car and the public had the idea that this car was safer. As a touring car, more could be seen on a tour from an open car. Of course, dust was a big problem because early roads were dirt. Traditionally drivers wore long coats and goggles to protect from the dust. They had to scramble to put up the top when it rained. The gas tank was under the front seat and had to be removed to fill the tank. Car lights operated with gas or carbide generators and sometimes kerosene oil lamps. The car had to be cranked to get it started. Flat tires were a big problem.

Now with the highways everyone had access to transportation. The Red Ball bus lines from San Antonio to Austin were nothing more than touring cars that could carry six passengers.

By the 1920s tourist courts popped up along the highways and served as rest stops .By 1927 Texas had 18,728 miles of highways with only 9,271 hard-surfaced. Source (Jasinski)

Back to Joe Sanders. When he arrived in NB in 1916, the circumstances were ripe for his abilities and interests. He loved the highways and roads, the mechanics of the new automobiles,the touring cars, the backroads and the Dittlinger family.

Hippolyt Dittlinger , a very successful businessman, hired Joe to work on all of his cars and be his chauffer. Dittlinger owned three Franklin cars, air-cooled with a wooden frame, the “Cadillac” of the time. Most cars in NB were Model T’s, much more affordable than the Franklin.

Sanders became acquainted with all the roads in Comal County by “touring” the back roads. He often came across motorists who were lost. He decided he would make road signs from wood painted white and lettered with black stencils.The Texas Highway Dept. posted state and federal route signs by 1929 but there were no signs for the backroads.

This was quite an undertaking on Joe’s part and when he was elected commander of the local American Legion, their members helped to install the signs. As if Joe wasn’t busy enough, he designed an illustrated map of these roads showing tourist destinations .This 1933 map listed every road and village and gave mileage between various points. 5,000 copies were made to give away. Other maps followed and he issued a series of editions until his last map in 1960.

With time, more and more roads were constructed in the County and a beautification program during the 1936 Texas Centennial (spearheaded by Mrs. H. Dittlinger) helped the local tourist industry and helped to establish historical markers.

Laurie Jasinski wrote the book “Hill Country Backroads” honoring the accomplishments of her grandfather, Joe Sanders. Her book which includes three maps can be purchased at Sophie’s Shop at the Sophienburg. Jasinski’s book contains much more information than I could ever put in this column. It’s a good read.

Joe Sanders and his road signs. (Laurie P. Sanders collection)

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

Immigrant Julius Voelcker arrived in New Braunfels in 1845 and at age 25 became one of the First Founders of the city. Before arriving, he had studied pharmacology and medicine at the University of Heidelberg in Germany. His profession in the 1850 census was listed as “farmer”. A majority of immigrants listed their profession in this way. They came for land and this was a way to survive. Ultimately Voelcker chose to be a pharmacist and opened his pharmacy next to his home on the north side of the plaza.

Julius Voelcker’s chosen field would spur on a family tradition, as six members would follow this profession in the next generations. He married Louise Karbach in 1857 who had emigrated to Texas with her family from Mecklinberg, Germany. Four sons and one daughter were born to this couple: Frank, Rudolf, Bruno, Emil and daughter, Emma. Emma’s life would bring the family much joy but also grief.

During the Civil War Julius Voelcker joined a company of State Troops, 31st Brigade as a 1^st Lieutenant. Norma Colley, granddaughter of Voelcker, in a paper written in 1990 told stories that her grandmother, Louise Voelcker, told of the family’s experiences during the war when Julius was away serving in the war. Her grandmother and the children moved to a hill over the Guadalupe River. Frank, the oldest son, was bitten by a water moccasin on the banks of the Guadalupe. His life was saved by his mother. Bruno fell from a cliff but survived. After the war when Julius returned, the family moved back to their home in town.

On July 22, 1874, a terrible tragedy befell the Voelcker family when 12 year-old Emma Voelcker was murdered in the Voelcker home by Wilhelm Faust of Seguin. Faust’s estranged wife, Helene, was spending the night at the Voelcker home as she had done before and she was sleeping in the same bed as Emma. During the night, Mrs. Faust moved to the floor and the assailant entered the home and attempted to kill his wife with an ax, thinking she was in the bed. In the dark he hit Emma instead, killing her. Mrs. Faust was blinded by a near-fatal blow. Faust escaped but was caught in November. It wasn’t until October of 1875 that he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Locally the populace was enraged by the sentence so he was moved to a jail in San Antonio. He was moved back to the Comal County Jail but a lynch mob attempted to assassinate him. He was then moved into the Comal County Courthouse. (Old courthouse where Chase Bank is located) On July 28, 1876, some unknown person shot Faust through the window of his cell and killed him.

Julius Voelcker was elected mayor in 1875 but died six weeks before his term expired in 1877. Louise lived 41 more years. When the New Braunfels Parks and Recreation Dept. conducted its “Soul Searching” program in November, the Voelcker gravesite was one of the sites featured in the Comal Cemetery.

Bruno Voelcker followed in his father Julius’ footsteps. His drugstore was located on the corner of San Antonio St. and Castell Ave. (Red Stag). Bruno’s two sons, Edwin and Julius were both pharmacists.

Julius’ youngest son, Emil, married Caroline Zuehl and they lived on the Karbach ranch for many years. Emil was also a pharmacist. Their children were Louise , Herbert, and Norma. In 1891 Emil purchased six lots in the Braunfels subdivision between Union and Washington Sts. in Comaltown. A small house was already on the corner of Union and South Sts. and added on to over the years. This house still belongs to descendants of the Voelcker family.

Louise Voelcker married Robert Wagenfuehr and both were very civic minded and active in New Braunfels. Their children were Esther May,(mother of Betty Kyle), Milton, and Harvey. The Voelcker pharmacy tradition continued in the family with Harvey Wagenfuehr becoming a pharmacist and eventually owning Peerless Pharmacy on San Antonio St.

Tracing the history of the Voelcker family is in many ways typical of other family histories of immigrants who made New Braunfels their home in the 1800s. But in many ways this family’s history is unique.

Twelve-year-old Emma Voelcker was the unintended victim of murder on July 22, 1874.

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

A flurry of activity and preparation is engulfing organizations that involve themselves with Wurstfest activities. The ten- day celebration is from Nov. 2nd through the 11th. One organization, the Conservation Society, located on Churchill Drive, utilizes their grounds to hold a major fundraiser during Wurstfest. Carrying out the theme of early historic New Braunfels, they operate a German Kaffee Haus for lunch from 10:30a.m. to 2:00 p.m. from November the 7th through the 11th. The place is Forke Store.

This year’s lunch includes German potato soup, Koch Kase, Wurst, homemade desserts and features a sauerkraut cake. It actually does contain sauerkraut and the recipe comes from Mrs. Ben Faust who gave it to the Conservation Society. They, in turn, submitted it to the Sophienburg to be included in their book, “Guten Appetit”. I made this cake once and it’s delicious, but I no longer want to spend half a day baking it; I’ll get it at Conservation Plaza.

For those of you who are not familiar with Conservation Plaza, you should come and familiarize yourself with their grounds. Entrance is free and there is much to see. The Kaffee Haus is once again at Forke Store. New Braunfels has held many events in this building over the years. They estimate that the building is rented close to 200 times a year.

Forke Store was moved from the corner of Seguin Ave. and Jahn St. out to Conservation Plaza when the Becker family bought the property in the ‘60s. They gave the building to the Conservation Society. Arno Becker remembers a ten-foot wide trail from Seguin Ave. to the Comal River known as the “water lane”. It had been the property of the city and was used by early emigrants to walk down to the Comal to get water. This water lane ran across the property that Becker purchased and the city deeded the lane to the property owners. Somewhere under Bluebonnet Motors is that water lane. Sorry, you’ll have to turn on a faucet to get water.

The construction of Forke Store is interesting. The framework is of the “fachwerk” or half-timber style which means that the spaces are filled with bricks, stone or mud. When the emigrants arrived in 1845, they noticed that the building method that had been used in Germany would be well suited locally. The materials were all here – limestone for the foundation, cedar for beams, and sun-dried adobe bricks which could easily be made in Texas. Adobe would be poured into a wooden mold and even children could do this. A shingle roof was installed and siding was attached. The bricks were covered with mud plaster mixed with straw. Fine mud was smeared over and then painted.

The Forke building was moved in two parts and put back together with the original floor and ceiling. Doors and window sashes are also original. The store was a mercantile store and objects within the store reflect that. Old display counters are from Henne Hardware and the original handmade Forke walnut desk is displayed.

Originally the property belonged to Victor Bracht, author of “Texas in 1848”. He belonged to the nobility in Germany, was highly educated and trained for a mercantile career. In 1846 the German Emigration Company sent him to New Braunfels to look after the emigrants. He stayed a year, went back to Germany, and in 1848 returned to New Braunfels. That same year he married Sibilla Shaefer. One lot was given to him by the Adelsverein and he purchased another next to it for $35.00.The first store building and house next door was built in 1852. Bracht was a merchant at this location from 1846 to 1855 after which he moved to San Antonio. The first building described by Bracht was later used by Jacob Ludwig Forke as a “feather house” where feathers were sold by the pound.

From 1855 there were several owners and in 1865 Jacob and Caroline Forke bought the property from Joseph Landa. They ran the mercantile store and raised 10 children. In 1902, the property was left to their youngest son, Louis, who continued the business until he died in 1966. The Becker family purchased the property from the Forke estate and this is when Forke Store moved to Conservation Plaza. Becker Motor Company was sold to Bluebonnet Motors in 2002.

Thanks to the Becker family and the Conservation Society, Forke Store lives on.

Louis and Hedwig Forke sit outside the Forke Store when it was located on Jahn St.and Seguin Ave. The store is on the right and the time is possibly in the late 1940s.

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

When I think of Botanists in New Braunfels, I immediately think of Ferdinand Lindheimer. Lindheimer was given property on the Comal for his botanical garden. No doubt his accomplishments were many, but there were others in the field who contributed much to the beauty of our town. One in particular helped make NB the “garden spot” of Texas and that was Otto Martin Locke, Jr. He was a third generation New Braunfelser and a third generation horticulturist. He died in 1994 so some of you may remember him.

Here’s his family story:

Johann Joseph Locke, hailing from Prussia, arrived in NB in 1852 and in four years bought two 10- acre plots of land on the Comal Creek, what is now Town Creek and running to the Landa Street area. It eventually also covered the area from the RR tracks to the hill. Seeing a need for ornamental trees, as well as fruit-bearing trees, he put his knowledge of horticulture to use and began the first nursery in New Braunfels.

For 30 years the business thrived and then was taken over by Johann’s oldest son, Otto Martin Locke, Sr., who named the nursery “Comal Springs Nursery”. He was responsible for developing and producing fruit and pecan trees, vegetables and ornamental shrubs. Large orders were shipped by train. One order of 50,000 peach trees was sent to Mexico.

Many pecan trees around town were grown and grafted by Locke. I grew up knowing that the 10 pecan trees in our yard, the soft-shelled Daisey Pecan, were developed by Locke.

In 1906 Locke planted 50 to 60 thousand roses and developed the Bonita Arbor Vitae, which is a variety of evergreens. Other plants developed by him were Heidemeyer apple, Strington apple, Ferguson fig, Comal cling peaches, Dixie peach, November peach, Daisey pecan, Fall City tomato, Germania rose, Locke’s pride pear, Perfection pear, Old-favorite pomegranate, McCarthy plum, and Guadalupe dewberry. Locke was granted the first state permit for irrigating using state waters (Comal Creek).

The Otto Lockes trained their four boys in the nursery business in NB, Poteet, and San Antonio. The boys were Emil, Herman, Walter and Otto, Jr. It was this youngest boy who made the biggest impact on the whole town of New Braunfels.

Otto Martin Locke, Jr. and his wife, Etelka Rose Locke, acquired property between W. San Antonio St. and Hwy 81 S. in 1928, after the death of his father. They began the Otto Martin Locke Nursery that they operated until Otto’s death in 1994. At the time that Otto and Etelka moved to their new property, Herman and Thekla Locke and their son Howard, formed the Locke Nursery and Floral on part of the old property in the area of present streets: Lockner (Locke Nursery),Howard (Howard Locke),and Floral (obvious).

When Otto and Etelka Locke bought the property on W. San Antonio, it was a cotton field. Etelka was famous for her gardens, once planting 5,000 tulip bulbs in the 1940’s. (For pictures of theses tulips, log on to Sophienburg.com and click on column). She planted the garden around the Lindheimer House on Comal Ave. and the McKenna Memorial Hospital. Otto planted a chestnut oak for the Arbor Day ceremony at the Landa Park office. They used no pesticides on their ten acres, using only chameleons, lizards and snakes to eat the bugs.

Otto Locke’s love of animals as a child grew into a business. He became famous nationally and internationally as a major importer and exporter of exotic native animals and birds for zoos around the world. Inquiries came for birds, snakes, and armadillos. He traded his stock for monkeys, exotic snakes, lion cubs, alligators, crocodiles and even kangaroos. Animals were shipped to many countries and continents- England, Mexico, Germany, Singapore, Australia, Africa, Calcutta, and India. He supplied many snakes for Hollywood. Locke Nursery provided the closest thing to a zoo that New Braunfels had, for these animals were all on display. Children’s trips to the nursery were a real treat.

Looking toward the old nursery from I.H. 35 S., you see the remnants of the old sign, “Locke Nursery”, and thousands of overgrown trees, helping us remember a thriving business for 138 years. But…

“We’ll never smile at a crocodile again”.

Etelka and Otto Martin Locke, Jr. Patricia S. Arnold, artist.

Original Locke Nursery

Locke Nursery between San Antonio Street and Interstate 35 access road around 1962

Locke Nursery between San Antonio Street and Interstate 35 access road around 1962

Locke Nursery between San Antonio Street and Interstate 35 access road around 1962

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

From Union St., turn onto Common and drive straight to the Guadalupe River. At the bridge and on the east side of the river, as far as you can see, look left and right. You are looking at Hortontown. Down river to the right of Hortontown was Neighborsville. These two areas are referred to by these names only historically. Beginning in 1846, when sickness was rampant on the coast and in New Braunfels, and emigrants were still arriving, Hortontown was settled to avoid going into the sickness- infested town. Neighborsville followed a few years later. Both areas were originally in Guadalupe County but were added to Comal County and also to the City of New Braunfels.

From the bridge, you will notice a gradual incline up to Loop 337. Turn right on the loop, and right before the railroad overpass, turn left on Church Hill Drive. Across the road from Conservation Plaza, a church was built in 1852. It was the St. Martin’s Evangelical Lutheran Church and next to it, in 1870, a school was built. The Church Hill School served the children of both Hortontown and Neighborsville.

Hortontown was named after Albert C. Horton who came to Texas from Alabama in 1835. He became an active supporter of the Texas Revolution. From 1836-38 he served as senator in the 1st and 2nd congress of the Republic of Texas. He became the first Lt. Gov. of the new state of Texas. Leopold Iwonski became the agent for Horton’s land grant.

The settlement of Neighborsville was laid out by Jacob de Cordoba who designated a lot for the establishment of the church and parochial school. In 1870 the church congregation decided to build a separate building for their school. And that school became the Church Hill School.

The Church Hill School was built of 18” thick hand- cut limestone blocks brought by wagon from a hill country quarry. The doors and floor are also original. The appointments are from other rural Comal County one-room schools.

Martha Rehler, Exec. Director of the Conservation Society, took me on a tour. There is nothing as empty as an empty classroom. Going into the abandoned school, that strange feeling returned. A classroom needs children.

There were wooden desks of all sizes with a hole in the top for an ink bottle. They still had those when I was in elementary school. Our fountain pens had a little bladder that had to be filled with ink. What a mess! In this old classroom the teacher sat in the back of the room by the door. I’m surprised she didn’t notice the initials carved in the older students’ desk, probably by a pocket knife which I’m told, was every boy’s toy. Slate boards were on each desk taking the place of paper. The large chalkboard (black, later green) had the lesson for the day in German script (Fraktur).

Other relics are a long table from the Ursaline Academy in San Antonio displaying photographs of groups of school children. Water was drawn out of a well or a cistern and put in a portable water fountain. There are two large bells. The smaller of the two at one time stood in front of the Guadalupe Hotel (Plaza) which was a stagecoach stop. The bell was used to welcome arrivals. The larger was a school bell to call students.

Rehler gave me a “Texas Public School’s Report Card from 1925 that parents had to fill out about their own child. It was for a 7th grade girl going into the 8th grade. I put myself in my mother’s shoes, evaluating her only chick on a scale of 1 to 100. Knowing that I was a “city girl” in New Braunfels, I would have failed miserably. I would have a “0” in canning, care of stock, care of poultry, cooking, gardening, general farm work, milking, providing fuel, sewing, and sweeping,. I would have done fairly well in dusting, washing dishes, obedience, neatness, reliability and special work. In my case, special work would have been socializing.

The St. Martin’s Church, originally adjoined to the old Church Hill School, was moved in 1968 next to the Hortontown Cemetery on Loop 337. The school remained and was eventually donated to the Conservation Society in 1975 to be used as a museum.

St. Martin's Lutheran Church with the Church Hill School as it originally stood on Church Hill Drive. (Source: Sophienburg Archives)

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

One of the more exciting stories concerning the early settlers of New Braunfels was that of Betty Holekamp charging across the Guadalupe on a horse after Prince Carl’s spectacular show of bravado. The story was probably somewhat embellished over the years, but nevertheless it’s a good one.

Prince Carl was of the highest class of aristocracy and I doubt seriously if he appreciated anyone trying to upstage him, much less a woman. He would not be leading the parade for women’s sufferage, but I think Betty would have.

Here’s the story: Georg and Elizabeth Holekamp had married in Germany on March 17, 1844. They set out for Texas to make a new life for themselves. They were on the brig Johann Dethart which was the first ship of the Adelsverein. They arrived in Galveston November 24, 1844.

Georg Holekamp, the son of the royal architect Daniel Holekamp, was educated at the University of Hanover and could speak German, English, French and also studied music and medicine. His father discouraged him from being a musician. He couldn’t have gone farther away from that career – a brick maker and a farmer. Music did become his hobby. For that matter it was while pursuing this hobby that Georg met Elizabeth Abbenthern. While playing the piano, Georg asked for a vocalist and Elizabeth (Betty) came forward. She was 10 years younger and he was impressed.

Betty’s father was the ministerial accountant in the royal court of the King of the state of Hannover. Betty was educated along with the king’s daughters to become a governess.  She had been around the aristocracy before so that may explain her willingness to challenge the prince.

Georg and Betty married and set out for the Republic of Texas. They arrived in Galveston on November 24, 1844. They made their way to New Braunfels and when they could, crossed the Guadalupe to get to the settlement.

Now Betty is the one that tradition says would not want to be outdone by Prince Carl. Supposedly he was riding a white horse and   plunged into the raging flood waters. This white horse story made me question the accuracy of the story. After all, “good” cowboys ride white horses. We don’t know what color Betty’s horse was but she followed suit in true pioneer fashion. Don’t you know Georg was impressed?

In New Braunfels they enrolled in the German Protestant Church. Their town lots bordered Garden St., from Comal St. to the Comal River.

When Texas became a state of the Union, Betty Holekamp sewed a 6 ft by 3 ft United States flag with the 13 red and white stripes and a lone star on a field of blue in the left corner. This earlier Texas flag was known as the Texas Lone Star and Stripes flag. Tradition says that the Holekamp flag was flown on the Plaza and believed to be the first American flag flown in town. Some think that the flying of this flag could have been a message to the aristocratic Prince Carl. What do you think?

Two years after arriving in New Braunfels, the Holekamps moved to Fredericksburg where they received property and Georg became an administrator in property settlement. They never gave up their properties in New Braunfels. Georg built a home and a saw and grist mill on the Comal River at the foot of Garza St. It was also a paper pulp mill and an ice plant. A flood nearly totally destroyed the mill in 1869. This property became Camp Landa and finally the property of Schlitterbahn.

In 1854 the Holekamps moved to Comfort as one of their first settlers. A small rock house is still preserved by the Comfort Historical Society. They also lived in Sisterdale and San Antonio. The Sisterdale house still stands also.

When the Civil War broke out, Georg enlisted in the Confederate army as a surgeon. His  small amount of medical training qualified him to do that. He was the company’s band director at the same time. Unfortunately he was killed in Brownsville in 1862 and neither the cause or burial site was revealed.

Betty Holekamp continued living in Comfort and raised her seven children alone. She outlived her husband by 40 years. What a woman!!

Mill at the end of Garza St. built in 1850 by Georg Holekamp. This 1890 photo shows L-R John Peter Nuhn and son, Ben, and possibly H. G. Koester who owned the mill at the time. (Source: Roger Nuhn)

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

The year 1898 was the year of the Comal County Courthouse and the year of the Spanish-American War. In 1998 Dr. Robert Govier translated the “Neu Braunfelser Zeitung” from German into English for the Sophienburg . The Govier and Adams families were old family friends. Before Bob died, he gave me a personal copy of many of his writings.

The war and the courthouse were the two most covered events of that year. Some of the trivia in the paper will give you an idea of how things stacked up here in 1898. The Zeitung was written in German, the editor was Eugene Kaiser and the once-a-week paper subscription was $2.50 a year and $3.00 if sent to Germany.

The original CC Courthouse was located on the corner of the plaza where the Chase Bank stands. Plans were presented by six architects from Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. The plans of architect J. Riely Gordon were chosen. Judge Ad. Giesecke voted against the plan, as did Commissioner Schulze, Jr. Commissioners Marbach, Startz, and Adams voted for Gordon’s plan. Contractors chosen were Fischer and Lambie. Fischer was a New Braunfels native.

In May, the cornerstone was laid. Bands played, and flag-waving school children marched from school to the plaza. City and County officials marched in step. The cornerstone was suspended over the southern corner of the completed ground floor. Historical items were placed in a metal box and with three ceremonial hammer strokes, the stone was consecrated by pouring corn, wine and oil on it from a silver chalice. (Incidentally, Schulze refused to have his name on the cornerstone)

After the ceremony the crowd made its way to Gottlieb Oberkampf’s garden where children were served lemonade and adults were served beer.

The other big headliner was the Spanish-American war between Spain and the United States. The US intervened in the Cuba Libra war against Spain for independence. Conflicts between Spain and its possession, Cuba, had been going on for years and American sentiment towards the Spanish atrocities had reached a high point by 1898.

Pres. McKinley sent the USS Maine to Havana to protect American citizens. The Maine suffered a massive explosion in Havana Harbor. The cause was unknown but with the death of 266 sailors, American opinion demanded retaliation against Spain. War was declared by the US on Spain in April of 1898.

After four months of conflict, the war was over. The US gained almost all of Spain’s colonies - Philippines, Guam and Puerto Rico. Cuba formed its own government and gained independence in 1902. During this war, Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders trained in San Antonio.

The paper was not without its trivia about this war. The Naval Dept. was acquiring 10,000 carrier pigeons. In Key West, a special building for three weeks of training was built. The birds would be trained until they were capable of covering points near Havana to Key West.

Local news reflects the social aspect of the town. In that year, all babies that were born were listed throughout the paper but in a different way than today. “The mayor Carl Jahn and his wife had a baby girl.” The father’s name was listed in that way, not giving any credit to the mother.

There was an abundance of entertainment, particularly in the form of masked balls-Thorn Hill, Orth’s Pasture, Vogel’s Valley, and Children’s Masked Ball. The shooting club was active and the Men’s Singing Clubs celebrated with the “clinking of glasses”. A famous diver named Felton, would perform at the garden by diving from the roof of the high building into a basin of water 3½ feet deep. For sports lovers, one can travel on the International train between NB and Austin for $1.25 round trip to attend the “Base Ball” game.

New downtown: Sylvester Simon built a two story handsome pub right next to the new courthouse. Hmm. Also downtown, a sidewalk was built in front of the Gruene building on San Antonio St. (Calahans) A night watchman was hired to ” get around by bicycle”. (Horses were the main means of transportation) The city purchased a water wagon to sprinkle the streets. I’m sure that was a big thing since the streets were not paved.

Here it is, 114 years later. We still have a lively downtown, war, pubs, entertainment but hallelujah we don’t have a water wagon!

The city's water wagon when the streets were not paved.

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

When the Faust St. Bridge received the prestigious Texas Historic Civil Engineering Landmark Award recently, all attention was on the bridge itself. But the Faust St. Bridge was more to New Braunfels than that; it was the way that hundreds of NB citizens got to the textile mill.

The bridge was the first high-water bridge in Comal County. On April 5, 1887, when the County took bids for the bridge, it was not in the city limits. The King Iron Bridge Mfg. Co. of Cleveland, Ohio, got the contract and the total cost including land for right-of-way and engineering costs was $33,269.The bridge built along the Camino Real provided an access across the Guadalupe on State Hwy. 2 from San Antonio to Austin. (Source: Comal County minutes and Oscar Haas)

In 1921 the trustees of Planters and Merchants Mill of San Antonio bought the land on the other side of the Guadalupe River located in the Esnaurizar Eleven League Grant from Louis and Bertha Meyer. A charter was granted two years later for the construction of a mill. The trustees built the local textile mill for the manufacture of fine cotton ginghams. Eventually the Planters and Merchants Mill became the New Braunfels Textile Mill, then the Mission Valley Mills s and then the West Point Pepperell.

The interest in textile mills flourished after WWI when materials became more plentiful. During the war, all textiles were devoted to the war effort. Major S.M. Ransopher set up the mill and brought with him R. B. Vickers and Howard McKenna with experience from textile mills in New England to help him run the mill. Both Vickers and McKenna became lifetime citizens of NB.

In 1929 Planters and Merchants declared bankruptcy and closed for about a month. In receivership, it was operated by Col. Ralph Durkee. The mill reorganized in August of 1931 under the name of New Braunfels Textile Mills. The William Iselin Co. of New York plus local citizens purchased stock in the plant. One of the new directors, Harry Wagenfuehr, sold stock locally. Reopening the mill was a real boost to New Braunfels.

In 1977 Herb Skoog from Radio Station KGNB-KNBT and the Sophienburg Reflections programs interviewed well-known business man in town, Haney Elliott Knox, about the history of the textile mill. Most of you know that Elliott Knox Blvd., which used to be Hwy. 81, was named after him. Active politically, Knox was elected mayor of NB in 1967. He and McKenna both served as chairmen of the McKenna Memorial Hospital.

H.E. Knox came to New Braunfels right after graduating from Texas Tech University in 1935 with a degree in textile chemistry. Knox said the primary reason for Tech’s offering this degree was the large cotton and wool crops in Texas at the time. Walter Dillard was running the mill and Howard McKenna was plant superintendent. Knox began as a laborer in the dye house at $12 a week.

In those early ’30s, patterns of the materials were determined by artists or customers. Styles changed rapidly and there was always a spring and fall line. There were about 300 employees. Over the life of the mill, thousands of families had textile mill connections.

After WWII the mill was expanded. They even started a retail operation about 1946. Bluebonnet Ginghams was the trade name and principal product. The operation moved into the Dacron business about 1955. Polyester, nylon and cotton blend changed the original product to a blend. Another change was Sanforizing ,the mechanical process of shrinking goods, thereby getting rid of the pre-wash of the past.

Big customers were Montgomery Ward, Sears, and J.C. Penney. In 1932 H. Dittlinger Roller Mills began sacking their flour in Bluebonnet Gingham. The sacks were in many colors that could be made into all sorts of articles of clothing. Because of the high quality of the cotton, these pieces of clothing made good “hand-me-downs”.

The bridge and the mill are a history lesson in themselves. From the center of the Faust St. Bridge, look up river and see the dam leading to the mill. Above the dam, submerged by the higher water was the settlers’ crossing at the foot of Nacogdoches St. The dam changed the Guadalupe forever.

The textile mill dam during its construction. A.C. Moeller got the contract for the dam and the electric generator F building.

Google Maps: Faust Street Bridge

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

On May 19th the Sophienburg Museum and Archives will present a Civil War Exhibit about what was happening here in Comal County during the war and the period of Restoration which followed it. One segment of the exhibit, sponsored jointly by the NB German American Society, will feature the art work of Carl Iwonski (1830-1912). Art work can tell us much about the times.

The first time that the Iwonski name appeared in historical literature was in 1847 when Leopold Iwonski, father of Carl, and a group of disgruntled citizens appeared outside the Sophienburg where Adelsverein’s second Commissioner General, John Meusebach, was residing. That night the Iwonskis, along with others they had recruited, demanded that Meusebach come outside and either honor their land contracts in the Llano region or give their money back. The crowd became agitated and insisted that Meusebach be hanged on the spot.

The von Iwonski family hails from the present Polish area of Silisia, originally a province until 1526, when it was overtaken by Austria. Then in 1742 it was overtaken by the Prussian state of Germany and finally returned to Poland in 1945 after WWII. When artist Carl Iwonski was born, it was part of Germany and his ancestral roots are Polish.

Political turmoil seemed to surround Leopold Iwonski. “He was described as an expelled Prussian” and he was no longer welcome in his native land. (Source: “John O. Meusebach”, Irene Marshall King)

Leopold Iwonski, his wife, and two children emigrated to New Braunfels with the Adelsverein in 1845. Carl was 15 at the time. The family moved across the Guadalupe into Hortontown, then in Guadalupe County. Iwonski became the land agent for owner Albert C. Horton, selling 50 acre tracts. He retained 41 acres of land for his farm. Young Carl Iwonski spent his early years clearing the land and helping his father construct the family home. In 1847 the home became a stagecoach inn and saloon, as it was on the Nacogdoches crossing of the Guadalupe. We learn from Carl’s painting what the interior of the tavern looked like.

Carl and his brother, Adolph, involved themselves with New Braunfels activities. They joined the Turnverein. His drawings of amateur theater in 1854 tell us what the stage and scenery looked like. Also his picture of Seele’s Saengerhalle is perhaps the only rendition we have of that building. The Iwonski exhibit features 25 original pencil or ink renditions of actors and actresses on stage at the Saengerhalle. Many of the characters on stage are recognizable, Hermann Seele being one of them.

Eventually, Iwonski and his parents moved to San Antonio where he taught drawing at the German-English school. He became a professional photographer with William DeRyee. DeRyee left San Antonio before the Civil War, but Iwonski kept the studio open.

Carl Iwonski was a Unionist. He was an admirer of fellow Unionist Sam Houston who refused to sign the oath of the Confederacy. In 1857 Ferdinand Lindheimer, editor of the Neu Braunfelser Zeitung, announced that a portrait of Sam Houston by Iwonski would be on display at the Saengerhalle theater.

At a time when many German Unionists of the Hill Country were being arrested or killed, somehow Iwonski managed to avoid conscription. Check out Sophienburg.com, Nov. 3, 2009.

Immediately after the war, the Unionists in San Antonio hoisted the American flag over the Alamo. Both Carl and his father were staunch Unionist Republicans. Carl drew a very controversial cartoon in the newspaper showing the Democrats’ exit from their public offices as a result of their affiliation with the Confederacy. With a Union victory, Iwonski became tax collector of San Antonio, however, when the Democrats swept office in the next election of 1872, Iwonski was out of office and he left for Germany. The next year he returned to SA and completed portraits of many prominent families. After the death of his father in 1872, Carl and his mother returned to Silisia.

Iwonski’s panoramic painting of New Braunfels tells us much about NB’s early days. The recently rediscovered10×10 ft. Prussian Council of War, 1870 oil on canvas will be featured. The rest of the Civil War exhibit, opening May 19th, will be just as interesting.

Carl Iwonski, (1830-1912 ) artist in New Braunfels and San Antonio. Sophienburg Archives