True Crime Series: Murder of a First Founder
By Myra Lee Adams Goff — “Have you heard? Old Squire Moeschen is dead!” So begins Hermann Seele’s narrative of a murder here in New Braunfels in 1855. Seele spun this true, gruesome tale in his book, Die Cypress, which is available at Sophie’s Shop. Here’s the background: Christof Moeschen, born in 1806 in Thuringia, […]
Karbach family responsible for Methodism in New Braunfels
By Myra Lee Adams Goff Methodism is a Protestant religion whose roots can be traced way back to a preacher named John Wesley in England. John Wesley and his brother Charles, while at Oxford University in 1739, began a movement devoted to helping the underprivileged. Fellow students called them “Methodists” for the methods they used […]
Sts. Peter and Paul church family relations go back generations
By Myra Lee Adams Goff Prince Carl, on behalf of the Adelsverein, was given the responsibility of establishing two churches in the new settlement of New Braunfels, one Protestant and one Catholic. They were to be established at the same time, but that didn’t happen. Prince Carl engaged Rev. Louis Ervendberg as the Protestant pastor […]
Lindheimer classified 38 new plants
By Myra Lee Adams Goff Seldom do individuals have clubs or anything named after them. A person becomes famous because of something outstanding that they have done for the advancement of society. All you historians out there and those that have a passing interest in history know the name Ferdinand Jacob Lindheimer. This extremely interesting […]
Letter to Prince Carl
By Myra Lee Adams Goff It’s the Silver Anniversary of Weihnachtsmarkt. Can you believe it? For 25 years the Sophienburg has been putting on this event. Weihnachtsmarkt means “Christmas Market”. Patterned after the Christmas Markets in Germany, the purpose is to allow tradesmen to offer customers goods and gifts for Christmas gift-giving. Of course, our […]
Landa first fair president
By Myra Lee Adams Goff It did not surprise me to find out that Harry Landa was the first president of the Comal County Fair Association. In those early days before the turn of the century, his name appears over and over for new projects, new industry, innovative ideas, and most of them succeeded. He […]
Join Sophienburg at Main Plaza for traditional Fourth of July
Photos: July 4, 2013, Parade and Program By Myra Lee Adams Goff It is fitting that the Sophienburg Museum and Archives sponsor the Fourth of July parade and celebration here in downtown New Braunfels. Prince Carl chose the little hill on which the Sophienburg Museum is located to build a fortress to oversee and defend […]
Emigrants unprepared for conditions in ships
By Myra Lee Adams Goff In your imagination, go back to 1845. The German immigrants will be crossing the Guadalupe River into what would become the settlement of New Braunfels. The date is March 21st and in 1845, it was Good Friday. As we know, Good Friday is not often on that date, but New […]
Christmas icons help us celebrate the season
By Myra Lee Adams Goff I’m writing about iconology, the study of icons. The word “icon” has been stretched thin over the years. Originally it referred to “a painting of religious personages on a wooden panel in the Eastern Church”. In advertising, we have icons for almost everything. Christmas icons are the symbols that make […]
What a woman!
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 […]
