More hidden treasures of New Braunfels

July 26, 2026

PHOTO CAPTION: Von Coll home, street side ca. 1970s.

By Tara V. Kohlenberg —

I have written many times about the treasures of New Braunfels, the people, places and things in our history that make our community so special. Some are prominently displayed — Main Plaza, the Plaza Fountain and such. Others are hidden in plain sight. Some are so well hidden that we do not even recognize it as a treasure.

Today I will tell you about a lesser-known treasure in town, the old pioneer’s home on Coll Street. It is unremarkable in appearance and easy to miss. It sits on a large L-shaped lot that wraps around to Clemens Avenue, which is difficult to distinguish except on a map. The house is located directly across the street from Carl Schurz School and yet has remained fairly invisible to passersby. It has been hidden behind overgrown trees and underbrush until just recently.

The pioneer is Jean Jacques von Coll. You may have heard his name if you hang around in museums. So, who is von Coll and why is this guy with a French name important enough to have a street named after him in a German settlement?

Born Johann Jakob von Coll in Wiesbaden, Germany, in 1814, he was a lieutenant in the service of the Duke Adolph of Nassau. At the age of 27, von Coll and a group of young officers attended a neighbor’s party while still being under the effects of their alcohol consumption the night before. An exchange of words left both the neighbor and von Coll insulted. A duel was called for, but was quickly called off as neither involved could clearly remember who threw the first insult.

Rumors flew about von Coll leaving town to escape a duel, impacting the future of his military career. The entire officers’ corps was commissioned to learn the truth. Von Coll, believing that he would be dishonorably discharged, resigned at the behest of Duke Adolph of Nassau who suggested that he serve in the military of another country. Von Coll eventually joined the French military and changed his name to Jean Jacques von Coll. Illness caused him to be discharged after six months.

He became involved with the Adelsverein (German Emigration Company), where he was assigned to help with the settlement of Germans in Texas. He led the first German immigrants from Galveston inland on December 29, 1844.

Von Coll was given town lot #25 on Main Plaza (now Schmitz Hotel and NB Coffee). He and partner Adolph Nevendorf operated a lucrative saloon and store at that location. Incidentally, the Sophienburg Museum and Archives currently has the original saloon doors on display. They also have the original matching double doors of his home on Coll Street in the collection.

Von Coll was appointed by Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels as the financial officer for the Adelsverein. Not only responsible for keeping the accounts, von Coll was responsible for the new colony’s supplies (kept in the magazine on Sophienburg property) and how they were distributed to the colonists.

For this service, he received acreage adjacent to the Adelsverein Sophienburg property where he built his home. The original acreage encompassed several modern-day city blocks, from Coll Street to San Antonio Street and from Magazine Avenue to Guenther, which includes Clemens Avenue. We will connect these dots in a minute.

Von Coll is famous for stopping New Braunfels from being renamed “Comal.” In 1852, he was elected mayor but served only two months before he was murdered in his store by a discontented settler. Apparently, one of the immigrants walked into von Coll’s store arguing that the Adelsverein was not living up to the promises made in the old country. It resulted in von Coll being shot.

He left behind a wife, Margarethe Elisabeth Schertz, who had come with the Castro colonists, and two young daughters, Kathinka, age 3, and Elisabeth (Bettie), not yet one year old, to live in the home he had built on Coll Street.

The house is built, as many 1845 homes were, a basic house with multiple additions. The small center section is of fachwerk construction (exposed beam frame with straw/mud bricks and stucco exterior). The second, larger section is rectangular and built of stone. The third addition, on the opposite side of the fachwerk house, was built much later in the 19th century after von Coll’s death. The collage of building and window styles is cool to see in person.

And what of von Coll’s little family? Von Coll’s widow, Maragarethe, married Karl Heinrich Guenther. They continued to live in the home at 624 Coll Street. They went on to have seven children between them. Guenther had a brewery on the Comal River. After Guenther died, Margarethe ran the business, becoming the first women brewer.

Daughter, Kathinka, married Senator William Clemens, Jr. Their beautiful home stood on what is now the parking lot of Arlon’s Market at Clemens and San Antonio. Clemens served on the Texas Penitentiary Board and the Clemens Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is named after him. Daughter, Bettie, married Otto Simon.

This just goes to show you that just because something looks unremarkable does not mean that it does not hold a remarkable amount of history or that the history will always be there to see.

Comal County has more than 124 markers highlighting the historical significance of buildings, areas and events; however, for every marked place or building, there may be two or three times more that remain unmarked for various reasons and an unbelievable amount that have been lost. The Comal County Historical Commission works diligently to identify and mark as many historically significant places and buildings as possible before they disappear into a parking lot. If you know of something out there, let them know.