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 […]
The one-room schoolhouse
By Myra Lee Adams Goff Shortly after the immigrants arrived in New Braunfels in 1845, small communities sprang up in the outer reaches of Comal County. Settlers were interested in good farmland which was available in the area. One of these small communities was called Ufnau, located in the western area of Comal County off […]
Journals are important to history
By Myra Lee Adams Goff A designated post office can reveal a great deal about an area and about who lived there. In Comal County the Spring Branch Post Office was at one time headed by Gottlieb Elbel and he had the forethought to keep a journal from 1867, when he became postmaster to 1872. […]
Local Masons dedicate new lodge
By Myra Lee Adams Goff Yesterday (Feb. 9) a historic event took place for New Braunfels Masonic Lodge No. 1109. The cornerstone leveling of a new lodge building at 1353 Wald Rd. took place. This is the fourth home for this lodge. It is believed that the history of the Freemasons goes back in antiquity […]
The interesting history of Esser’s Crossing
By Myra Lee Adams Goff When I was a child, people used to just ride around to sight-see. If you want to see what people saw in that practice, just drive up Farm-to-Market Road 311 about 19 miles to a place called Esser’s Crossing. You’ll enjoy the sightseeing. Esser’s Crossing was one of the first […]
Lost map becomes found treasure
Detail of K. W. Pressler & W. Völker 1851 map of Texas. This map was issued as part of G. M. von Ross’ 1851 book, Der Nordamerikanische Freistaat Texas. By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — Among a stack of “orphaned” papers, I found an old map of Texas. “Orphans” are those papers or artifacts that either […]
Furniture sold here since 1902
By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — Last week I took on the challenge of finding out about City Lot 89. It is located on the corner of South Seguin Avenue and Coll Street, across from the First Protestant Church. We know it today as the location of Johnson Furniture Co and their lovely, landscaped corner. This […]
Historic treasures hiding in plain sight
By Tara V. Kohlenberg — Historic Downtown New Braunfels. It calls to my heart. The fascination for me is held by the details of the buildings and architecture, the part many people do not notice. Growing up, any business that needed to be conducted could pretty much be done within two blocks from the Plaza. […]
Waggoners important to early New Braunfels transportation
(Encore presentation — Originally appeared February 8, 2011) By Myra Lee Adams Goff Waggoners or Teamsters were important to early New Braunfels. They not only led the wagon trains of the early German settlers but they hauled freight to and from the frontier, especially the Gulf coast. G. Fred Oheim, editor of the Zeitung’s Jahrbuch in 1943, […]
Indian Days House
By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — Legend, lore and local memories hover over this old house. The structure is one of the oldest permanent dwellings in Comal County. Old it is, and certainly old to be so far out of New Braunfels. The current address for the place is 7600 FM 2722. Back in the day […]
