Eleven years ago Rosemarie Gregory and I wrote a book called “Kindermaskenball, Past and Present”. It’s about an event here in New Braunfels that goes back to the early days of the settlement. At the beginning of the book we made this statement: “Kindermaskenball is about tradition and make-believe. Children particularly flourish in this world of make-believe and adults create the tradition by recreating what they themselves enjoyed in childhood.” Isn’t that what tradition is?

Next weekend on Saturday, April 12, and Sunday, April 13, Heritage Society’s annual Folkfest will be held on their grounds on Churchill Drive. The Kindermaskenball parade downtown NB will be part of this celebration on Saturday.

The Kindermaskenball is believed to be a celebration of spring, as in Germany it dates back to the Teutonic custom of the coming of this season. Another theory claims it was a pre-Lenten observance in Germany called Fasching. According to German teacher, Benno Engel, Fasching began on the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the month lasting until Ash Wednesday. Parades and masked dances prevailed.

The event used to be called Kindermaskenball. Yes, Kinder is “children”, Masken is “masks”, and Ball is “dance”. For several years the term Kindermasken has applied. That’s possible because there is no dance connected to it now. Hermann Seele is given credit for starting Kindermaskenball in 1846 but some written accounts say 1856. Which is a type 0? The Neu Braunfelser Zeitung says that children assembled at the New Braunfels Academy (on Mill St.) dressed in costumes, led by their leaders (probably teachers), and a brass band. They frolicked through the streets, engaged in plays and sang at the Saengerhalle. At a time, when the norm was for children to be seen and not heard, this must have been quite a show.

Nevertheless, after parading through the streets they moved out to Seele’s Saengerhalle. Hermann Seele in 1855 had built a large hall next to his home on the Guadalupe River. There is no building standing now but if you drive to the foot of Seele Street, you can pick out the location. Another street in that area is Saenger. That makes sense because the first state-wide Saengerfest (Festival of Singers) was held at Seele’s Hall. All his life he was active on the music scene. Oscar Haas stated that the Kindermaskenball parade ended up at the hall for 20 or more years.

The next location for Kindermaskenball was the Lenzen Halle located where the Courthouse Annex stands on Seguin Ave. This hall burned in 1895 and after that the children paraded to Matzdorf Halle (formerly Rheinlaender Halle, and later named Echo Hall and now Eagle’s Hall.)

In 1901 the Seekatz Opera House opened on San Antonio St. In reference to this location, a 1917 news article tells of “merry dancing and romping by children until 10 o’clock when the hall was turned over to grownups to “render homage to Terpsichore”. I love that statement. Not only did I not know who Terpsichore was, but I didn’t know how to pronounce it. It’s pronounced “terp-sick-o ree” just in case you want to use it in your every-day conversation. Terpsichore was the Greek muse of dancing.

It is believed that the custom of the Grand March began about this time. The Grand March is hard to describe in words and certainly didn’t begin in New Braunfels, but during the 1920s, 30s, 40s and 50s it was a big part of the dance.

Elaborate costumes became popular in the early 1900s and by the 1920s, Landa Park was a favorite destination after the parade. Serious costume making began by mothers, aunts, grandmothers, and seamstresses. Thousands watched the parade according to the newspaper. Ballerinas, dancers, Indians, soldiers, cowboys and clowns marched down the street. The 1920s brought in the innovation of lipstick and eye makeup. Little girls and big girls were allowed this luxury during the Kindermaskentall but it was a “no-no” on ordinary days.

Eventually the parade culminated about where the old City Hall is on Seguin Ave. and then families got together in Landa Park. In Landa Park, there was a wooden hall that was located between the Pioneer Statue and the Outdoor Dance Slab. Children through Jr. High age would play and dance “Put Your Little Foot”, “Herr Schmidt” and “The Bunny Hop” inside the wooden pavilion that has been torn down.

In the evening, the crowd would move over to the open-air dance slab. Christmas tree lights adorned the big tree in the center of the floor. On this tree-house pavilion the orchestra sat and played. Dancing on the slab would take place until 9 o’clock when an announcement was made that the Grand March would begin. Two by two, children followed the leaders by grade level. “Under the Double Eagle” was the favorite march. The custom was for boys to ask girls to be their Grand March partner, usually at school.

The NBISD sponsored the event for years, then the Beta Sigma Phi sorority and finally it became a part of Folkfest in 1992.

In the past, costumes were very elaborate. There were some women in town that were very handy with needle, thread, ribbon, sequins and net. Photos reflect these costumes. The Sophienburg has a large collection of some of these costumes on mannequins inside the museum. Joline Erben, Marie Jarisch and Antoinette Malmstead designed costumes that are still in the collections.

Gone are the days when thousands participated. I have my own theory. In the 1920s, 30s and 40s all the elementary schools had an end of school event. These were programs in April and parents were asked to furnish costumes. Then World War II came along, and everything was scarce, especially for such frivolous things. Programs turned to “non-costumed” events.

Folkfest, which is all about tradition, is keeping the tradition alive. Tina Lindeman, chairman, asks all participants to line up at 10 a.m. at the Central Fire Station in downtown New Braunfels and then, along with parents, make their way to Folkfest after the parade.

The post Historic Kindermaskenball Parade This Coming Saturday appeared first on Sophies Shop.

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.

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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 Guadalupe River crossings, and was known as a safe place to cross from New Braunfels and San Antonio toward Johnson City and Fredericksburg and into the northwest part of the state.

Esser’s Crossing was one of four such crossings used by farming and ranching communities, and was 19 miles northwest of New Braunfels. The flat rock bottom was necessary for horses and wagons to cross the ever-changing Guadalupe river bottom. Furious floods took their toll on the Guadalupe River even after the dams were built.

Esser’s Crossing was originally known as Henderson Crossing after Hensley Henderson. He sold the land to James Henderson, who left the area in 1860. Charles Esser homesteaded near the crossing, and in 1858, provided a public way station for weary travelers along a lonely stretch of road from New Braunfels to Blanco and then on to Fredericksburg.

Esser was a judge, justice of the peace, teacher, and brought postal service to the area in the 1890s. Esser’s place was on the trail, first known as Fredericksburg Road, then Fredericksburg-New Braunfels Road, then the New Braunfels-Blanco Road and finally FM 311.

Charles and Henrietta Esser’s homestead still stands.

Travelers often had to wait a long time to cross the flooded Guadalupe. They would camp at Esser’s Crossing, sometimes as long as two weeks. The alternative was that teamsters had to drive to Fischer Store, Devil’s Backbone or Purgatory Road to cross over the New Braunfels’ Faust St. Bridge, the only other high water Guadalupe crossing, built in 1887.

In 1904, Comal County commissioners decided to build a second high-water bridge over the Guadalupe. One of four crossings were considered and Esser’s was chosen, but not without controversy. Grover E. King Co. of Dallas built the bridge for $12,498. The construction of the bridge was Whipple truss design, very common at the time. The spans were supported by oval-shaped masonry piers and rusticated stonework.

While the bridge was being built, the Guadalupe flooded at 16 feet, the under pinning on the construction washed away and the whole unfinished span fell into the water, causing a major delay.

The first high-water bridge, the Faust Street Bridge, was 640 feet in length built in 1887. This bridge and the Esser’s Crossing Bridge looked almost identical. Crossing the Guadalupe to the Textile Mill, the Faust St. Bridge was sometimes known as the “Mill Bridge.” At a cost of $25,600, the contract was let to the King Iron Bridge Mfg. Co. of Cleveland, Ohio. Over the years, rules of the bridge reflect the times: “No livestock on the bridge” (Your imagination can probably tell you why), “Walk your horses or be fined $5.00”, and a later sign in 1912 stated that automobiles were not to exceed 5 mph.

The Texas Department of Agriculture named this bridge in 1917 as a major crossing of all traffic between Austin and San Antonio. It was used until another concrete bridge was built in 1934. In 1999, the Faust Street Bridge was designated as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.

Throughout its history, Esser’s Crossing was a busy place.

Reported by long-timers in the area that after World War II, troops from Ft. Sam Houston marched to New Braunfels and then on to Esser’s Crossing, where they camped overnight and then marched back to Ft. Sam the next day. Hermann Seele in his writings speaks of crossing at Esser’s Crossing early on.

The bridge was condemned in 1954 but remained visible until 1976. Comal County commissioners ordered the bridge to be torn down because of floods, fire damage and vandalism. Close by, the present bridge was built in 1978.

Historian Brenda Anderson-Lindemann and other long-time property owners have spearheaded a drive to have the area of Esser’s Crossing recognized with a Texas Historical Marker.

It’s a nice drive.

The post The interesting history of Esser’s Crossing appeared first on Sophies Shop.

By Tara V. Kohlenberg —

When I was in junior high school, I sometimes would tag along with my dad when he drove my Oma to Comal Cemetery. She tended my Opa’s grave twice a month. While they were scraping the dirt and replacing the flowers, I would wander through the gravestones. It may sound goofy, but I loved the way that they were perfectly aligned, each with their own color and design according to the personality of the person laid beneath them. I rarely made it down to the “really old” part of the cemetery before we had to go, but I loved seeing the “cemetery trees” (Italian cypress and cedar bushes) that had long ago outgrown their originally intended landscape purpose. It was not until much later that I came to love Comal Cemetery for the history that it holds.

The arrival of German immigrants on Texas shores in 1845 opened the doors to a new life, adventure and unfortunately, untimely death. Some immigrants died on the way to their new town and impromptu burials were performed along the road. By July 31, 1845, 505 people had arrived in New Braunfels. When surveyor Nicolaus Zink laid out the town, he reserved a little over 4 acres of land on the southwest side of town for the New Braunfels Cemetery. Settlers kept coming to New Braunfels and sadly, 293 burials took place in the New Braunfels Cemetery between 1845-1846.

New Braunfels continued to grow, prompting the later settlers to seek land/housing across the Comal River. The new developments of Braunfels and Comal Town eventually became known as Comaltown (although still part of New Braunfels). A new cemetery, Comal Cemetery, was established in Comaltown in March 1868. It was perched on the bluff above the Guadalupe River where Common Street came to a dead end.

New Braunfels businessman John F. Torrey issued a promissory note, donating 8 acres of land plus $500 to three trustees for use only as a public graveyard, with the exception of a small plot of land for his family. There were additional stipulations that it be fenced and have a proper hearse to transport bodies for burial. The first known interment in the cemetery was Fredrick (Fritz) Hartwig on August 12, 1873. The City of New Braunfels took over administration of the cemetery from the Comal Cemetery Association in January 1887 (at John Torrey’s request) in exchange for $1.00.

The Comal Cemetery acreage has increased over the years. The original cemetery of 8 acres gained 6.93 acres in 1913 when Henry Kellermann sold his land adjoining the Torrey acreage. A small amount was gained when heirs of John Torrey, signed a quit claim deed to the original Torrey family plot, as their father had died and been buried elsewhere. Then in 1927, it gained another 10 acres with the purchase of land formerly belonging to E.A. and Ella M. Eiband. Today, the cemetery covers almost twenty-five acres and is the final resting place of over 12,550 souls.

The earliest graves are laid out in an east-west orientation, with feet to the east. I was always told that with feet to the east, your face will see the rising sun forever. It must have been an inefficient use of the land because in the later sections, graves are slightly akilter, with feet facing more northeast and mostly parallel to Common Street. I get it, perfectly square plots. The square plots hold 4 graves and most likely were sold as a “family plot”.

My Opa’s was an 8-grave plot, curbed and covered in sandy dirt and a caleche rock mix, much like the rest of the cemetery. Everything was dirt, including the spaces between the graves and the roads. A good family tended their loved one’s gravesites to keep the weeds off. Grass growing on a grave was said to be disrespectful. The wealthier families, like in the old part, had fancy Victorian wrought-iron or pipe fences around their plots (in very rural areas, it was to keep animals from grazing). Some families completely covered the family plot over with concrete to permanently prevent weeds. Others marked their plots by planting evergreen bushes at the corners, which then grew into huge “cemetery trees” that can be seen from a distance. Comal Cemetery was a “scraped earth” type cemetery until at least the late 1970s before allowing grass to grow between the grave plots.

One of the most unique features of Comal Cemetery is that unlike some cities, Anglo Americans, African Americans and Hispanic peoples are buried in the same cemetery. It was Mr. Torrey’s wish to establish a Freedman’s section. Sexton’s records prior to 1917 were lost, but between 1917 and 1957, over 200 burials took place in the Freedman’s section. Citizens petitioned City Council and were granted the addition of more burial spaces in the Freedman’s section. One of those citizens was Amos Ball Jr., who was the city’s Animal Warden for 26 years and is buried there. Another notable burial in this section is Ruth D. Harper, who was born in New Braunfels and taught and served as principal at Booker T. Washington. Notable Hispanic persons resting in Comal Cemetery include Thomas Sias Villanueva, Sr, a distinguished Army veteran, who worked for the City of New Braunfels as the cemetery sexton for 20 years; and the Rev. Daniel Campos, a Pentecostal minister, who began the Iglesia Santa Pentecostes Jerusalem church, in 1958, serving the Hispanic community in New Braunfels for 35 years.

Remains of some of the earliest New Braunfels settlers can be found in the oldest part of the cemetery including those from Germany, France and other parts of the United States. The more notable persons found in Comal Cemetery are Ferdinand Lindheimer; Hermann Seele; Ernst Gruene; and H. D. Gruene, (son of Ernst), who built the now famous gin, saloon, store, and dance hall in Gruene, TX. One important, but lesser-known person buried there is Daniel Murchison. He was born in North Carolina and moved to Texas when he was 23. He was hired by Prince Carl as a guard for the early colonists. He went on to help with the Veramendi’s Braunfels and Comal Town developments; served in the 11th Texas Legislature, representing Comal County; and helped revise the state constitution.

The headstones marking a life gone in Comal Cemetery are truly like stepping-stones through New Braunfels history. Comal Cemetery received a Historic Texas Cemetery designation in 2000. It will soon receive a Texas Historical Marker from the Texas Historical Commission. Please watch for the marker dedication ceremony announcement.

Sources: Sophienburg Museum & Archives; Comal County Historical Commission

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Driving down Magazine Street the other day, I may have muttered some choice words when I bounced into a pothole that, I promise, a whole pig could have fit into. By the time I got to the Sophienburg, I was thinking hard about the streets in NB. Were they ever worse than they are now?

Oh. My. Yes.

Imagine a time when there were no motor vehicles, only wagons, carts and carriages ALL pulled along by horses, mules and oxen teams. There was a lot of _ _ _ _ on the roads.

To alleviate the amount of manure and urine and God only knows what else was laying on those dirt streets, they needed to be “sprinkled” with water daily. Sprinkling also improved health and living conditions by lessening the awful dust problem caused by street traffic. Shop owners on the main business streets were forever dusting and washing off produce, wares, floors and store counters.

A sprinkling wagon was a large and heavy vehicle designed to carry a tank that held up to 1000 gallons of water. A sprayer system was hung off the back that delivered water “more natural than a shower itself” according to the Fairchild sprinkler wagon patent in 1879.

The first sprinkler wagon in NB was built at the Comal Ironworks (near the old Comal Cottons mill) by Theodor Meckel in October 1893. Citizens paid Meckel a small fee to sprinkle the street in front of their home or business. The City also paid Meckel to sprinkle Main Plaza and the first block of W. San Antonio Street.

In 1905, the City paid Julius Buske a salary of $754.10 ($2.25 per hour) to haul gravel to fix potholes and to sprinkle the main streets. With continued growth came more dirt streets and dust — – more animal-powered vehicles and muck. A small poem was published in the Herald.

The sprinkler man in our town, he works with might and main,
To get the pavement sprinkled well before it starts to rain.

The local Womens Civic Improvement Club marched to the rescue by purchasing a new street sprinkler wagon for the city in 1914. The Mayor “expressed his high appreciation and thanks.” These women also championed the placement of public restrooms under the bandstand on Main Plaza. These women were good people.

By 1917, the city’s growth had made the dust/sanitation problem of gravel streets nearly impossible to maintain. Mr. Clemens suggested the new-fangled asphalting of Main Plaza and W. San Antonio to Academy Streets. The Uvalde Rock Asphalt Company was hired and completed the paving by February 1918, giving “the principle part of the city an up-to-date appearance.” FYI: A public notice was published warning everyone “not to burn trash or make fire for any purpose on the new asphalt street paving, as it will damage the paving.” Duh….

The City Council noted in 1918 that the City had paid $12,590.93 of the downtown paving bill and that 30 (named!) individuals had chipped in another $8,820.32 to extend the paving to the curbs on both sides of the streets. Incidently this public/private payment system remained in play up into the 1960s. The City would pay 1/3 of the cost of paving a street; that part was laid down the center. The other 2/3 of the cost was paid by the owners of the property on each side of the street; they were responsible for the pavement to the curb in front of their homes/businesses. Neighborhoods petitioned the City for paving, then had to get all the property owners to agree to the terms — not an easy thing to do.

A combination street sweeper and sprinkler was purchased in 1922, reflecting the dual nature of NB streets. Dust from unpaved side roads was being carried onto the asphalted main streets. F.F. Fischer ran the unit for 50 cents an hour.

In 1932, the demand from folks across the river in Comaltown was addressed by the renting of a motor-driven sprinkler truck. The truck accomplished in 5 hours what the horse-drawn sprinkler wagon could manage in 7. FYI: It required 22 hours to sprinkle all the unpaved streets in just downtown NB at this time.

Eventually, the city streets get paved and the dust problem is more or less solved, but that doesn’t really happen until the 1960s. That means I should remember gravel roads, but I don’t. By the time I was hitting the streets, it was pretty much all paved. All this has made me come to the conclusion that instead of muttering under my breath when I hit that pothole, I am going to joyfully praise the Lord that 1. I drive a car and 2. I drive on paved roads

Sources:

• Neu Braunfelser Zeitung, New Braunfels Herald, New Braunfel Herald Zeitung
• A Pictorial History of New Braunfels, by Myra Lee Adams Goff and Rosemary Leissner Gregory
• Wheels that Won the West Archives blog, David Sneed
• Meckel family history, Sophienburg Museum & Archives

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At 11:00am on November 11, 1918, the fighting ended. Bells tolled around the world to mark the end of the Great War.  Over 4.7 million Americans stepped up to serve in uniform between April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918. Two million of them were deployed overseas and 116,516 of them never made it home. Over 5,100 of these casualties were Texans. Today, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, Bells of Peace will toll 21 times to commemorate the truce between the Allies of WWI and Germany, honoring those who died in service. Conceived and designed in collaboration with the nation’s veterans of service with the Honor Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the bell tolling provides a solemn reminder of the sacrifice and service of veterans of World War I, and all veterans.  Bells will be tolled in communities across the nation, in places of worship, schools, town halls, public carillons, and cemeteries, to mark the centennial of the Armistice that brought an end to hostilities, in what Americans fervently hoped had been “The War to End All Wars.”   This nationwide program is designed to honor those American men and women who served one hundred years ago, during WWI.

The Sophienburg Museum & Archives, in collaboration with the Texas WWI Centennial Commission presented “War Stories: New Braunfels in World War I” an exhibit depicting how New Braunfels’ uniquely German character compelled its citizens to respond with fervor once America was at war with Germany. On view in the exhibit are artifacts from the Sophienburg’s rich collections  — posters, photographs, uniforms and other historical objects to showcase events, individuals and ideology during 1914 – 1919, as well as touch on the lasting impact of The Great War. Although today marks the end of the Centennial Commemoration, the War Stories: New Braunfels in WWI exhibit will continue until January 1.

This column, Around the Sophienburg, is so named because we try to share the little details of history offering a glimpse of people’s lives in early New Braunfels. Not just about the Prince or the first founders, but of the real everyday people who fished or taught children or joined the military or ran a business… well, you get the picture. We follow the threads and solve the mysteries that beg to be solved – lying in wait on the shelves of the collection. It is not often I use this space to toot our own horn, but just for today, that changes. For the benefit of all those new to New Braunfels and those who have “lived here all their lives but never knew the Sophienburg Museum was here”, this column is for you.

On October 8, 2018, the Sophienburg Museum & Archives celebrated 85 years of preserving the history of our founders and all that has come after. In 1928, a group of civic minded citizens began the community fundraising drive to build a history museum. They were able to obtain the hilltop portion of the property originally owned by the Adelsverein. They built a rock museum in the image of a fortress on the very site where Prince Carl had built the first log government building naming it Sophienburg (Fort Sophie) in honor of his bride back in Germany. The community grew and prospered due to the determination of the settlers. That determination is deeply embedded in who we are as a community. Imagine where Boston would be if they hadn’t embraced the tea party in the hArtwork by arbor or Boston son Paul Revere? That’s why we protect our history so fiercely.

Everyone should know these basic tenets about New Braunfels:

1. it is the only known city in the USA to be founded by (as in stepped foot on the property, not just named for) a Prince.
2. as the first German colony on the way to West Texas, it is basically the Gateway to the Hillcountry
3. it was once the 4th largest city in Texas!

But there is so much more…um, I digress.

The Sophienburg Museum & Archives, a non-profit benefitting from memberships, donatons, grants and fundraisers. Following our Mission, our fundraisers focus on preserving and sharing the traditions of our heritage: Sophie’s Shop booth at Wurstfest and Weihnachtsmarkt. Just like Wurstfest, Sophie’s Shop is synonymous with German tradition, selling German ornaments and little pieces of German culture to tie people to the heritage and ancestry of our fair city. Today marks the last day of the best “Ten Day Salute to Sausage” ever, but tomorrow we pack up our Prince Carl and move our Christmas wares over to New Braunfels Convention & Civic Center , where in three days time the huge space is converted by a hundred volunteers into a magical market place — Weihnachtsmarkt! Pronounced Vy-noks-markt, this New Braunfels tradition offers the charm of open-air Christmas markets of Germany, with a Texas twist. Enjoy Gemütlichkeit and fun at this three-day market supporting history education and preservation through the Sophienburg Museum and Archives. Shop over sixty merchants and artisans with unique German collectibles and ornaments, holiday decorations, apparel, jewelry & gifts. Spend time with friends – make it a date. Parking is free. New Braunfels Civic Center. Market hours: 10 -5 Friday, 10-6 Saturday & 11-5 Sunday. For more information call the museum at (830) 629-1572 or check our website at www.sophienburg.com

This is the 30th Weihnachtsmarkt supporting the museums operations, preservation of historic artifacts and documents and educational programming. It’s a great shopping experience to benefit the preservation of our wonderful city’s 173 years of history.

Oh – and continuing the German Christmas traditions in December, St. Nick stops by the museum on December 5th to make sure the children are on their best behavior. Bring your children and grandchildren to learn the Legend of St. Nickolaus.

Sources:

• Texas Centennial Commemoration Committee
• Sophienburg Museum & Archives

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Museums tell the stories of our lives over and over again in detail. It becomes challenging to present annual events – like Christmas – in a new and interesting way. Our current special showing is an 18-month long exhibit of War Stories: Memories of New Braunfels in WWI, so Christmas during WWI is an easy pick.

Since that time frame predates us by quite a few years, Keva headed for the archives to find an image to create the scene. Image found. Perfect. The archives, however can provide just as many puzzles as it can solve. The photo is catalogued as “Christmas tree given to the children of Amanty, France, 1917. Unfortunately, it came to us and was catalogued during the early years of the museum, when very little detail was included about the donors or the provenance of the artifact. With a little further research, we learned that Amanty was located in the Meuse department in Lorraine region in northwestern France. Early in 1917, farmer’s fields were appropriated to set up a temporary airfield, or aerodome, about one mile from Amanty by the French escadrille (squadron) C4. Most temporary airfields during WW1 made use of already existing fields for takeoffs and landings. The hangars were fashioned of canvas stretched over metal tubing frames providing cover for aircraft maintenance. Wooden structures were built for barracks, operations offices, and other out buildings. In October 1917, the escadrille C 43 and 1st Aero Squadron made Amanty their home. The airfield was then used by the U.S. 1 Corps Observation Group School and 91st Aero Squadron.

WWI was the first war of the industrial age, bringing with it the use of poison gas, submarines, tanks and aerial warfare. “Aeroplanes” were just coming into military use at the beginning of the war. Initially, they were used mostly for reconnaissance. 1 Corps Observation Group School trained both pilots and observers for the new aerial observation and photography. The 91st Aero Squadron was assigned to general surveillance. The 91st Aero Squadron, originated at Kelly Field, on August 21, 1917. From there they traveled to New York and New Jersey before being shipped overseas. They arrived in France on November 15, and at “Amanty Aerodrome” on December 14, 1917. Could the photo of the Christmas tree have been taken at that time? The photo shows a tree with decorations of looped tinsel, American flags and paper ornaments. Small parcels and cards surround the bottom. Above the tree, it is easy for you to see the ceiling joists of the hanger-like building. American doughboys sharing gifts with the children in war-torn France is such a beautiful expression of the Christmas spirit!

The “Amanty Christmas tree” scene was recreated on the stage of this year’s Weihachtsmarkt in honor of those American doughboys and flyboys. The Sophienburg continues its centennial commemoration of the American involvement in WWI by adding the Amanty Christmas Tree to our “War Stories” exhibit.

You can visit the Sophienburg Museum and Archives Tuesday through Saturday to learn about the history and heritage of New Braunfels and Comal County. We invite you to bring your children out on December 5th to learn about and experience the “Legend of St. Nikolas”. This annual event is only $5 per family and includes a short program, a children’s activity and an opportunity to walk through the exhibit floor. Choose either the 5:00 pm or the 6:30 pm program. by calling 830.629.1572 to make your reservation. Space is limited.

Sources:

• Sophienburg Museum & Archives
• History of 12th Aero Squadron; History of 91st Sqadron; Amanty Airdrome – Wikipedia

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The Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce sponsors an amazing brochure titled “New Braunfels, Texas Culture & Heritage (Kultur und Erbe).” The brochure invites you to take a peek inside with the words “Open to see trails & explorations involving New Braunfels, Texas.” Just inside the front cover, one can find out that there were many expeditions that went through New Braunfels in the 1600s and 1700s; many old transportation trails including the Old Indianola Trail, San Antonio Stage Line, El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail (also known as the King’s Highway), International & Great Northern Railroad, and the Meridian Highway; some military and postal routes; and some cattle trails and Indian Nation trails including the Shawnee, Chisholm and the Western. Obviously, all of these trails led to an abundance of trade and social interaction and we have been right in the middle of all of it. Of course, new trails (roads and highways) are being made every day.

What is a trail? Mostly it is a means of getting from one place to another. Even the smallest ant makes trails that the whole colony travels. I still remember the trails of the red ants that were more prevalent when I was a a child. They left the nest and one by one followed a path that led them to water or food. As kids, we even had a song that we sang as we watched this process: “The ants go marching one by one, hoorah, hoorah.” Out in the wilderness you can observe paths made by animals.

Indianola Trail

If we use this simple definition of a trail, then the trip from Germany to Galveston was a trail. Some old trails from the coast to New Braunfels are significant enough to be marked. Some have national and state significance as well. The trail from Indianola to New Braunfels is marked by granite markers. It marked the trek by the German immigrants first led by Prince Karl and the Adelsverein. They traveled from the coast on the east side of the Guadalupe River and then crossed into New Braunfels. Five sites along the route are marked. They include in order, Indianola, Victoria, Gonzales, Seguin and New Braunfels. The markers begin at the foot of the LeSalle statue at Indianola and end in a flower bed on the Castell Avenue side of the New Braunfels Civic Center. This trail memorializes the thousands of German immigrants that braved the elements to reach this destination.

El Camino Real

When the settlers reached the Guadalupe River on March 21, 1845, the settlers crossed the river at the El Camino Real or Old King’s Highway, an old established trail. The crossing site can be viewed from the Faust Street Bridge. El Camino Real de los Tejas (now a National Historic Trail) became part of the National Trails System in 2004. It is a corridor that encompasses 2,580 miles of trail from the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass and Laredo to Natchitoches, Louisiana. The period of historical significance dates from 1680 to1845. When Spanish explorers began to travel into Texas and western Louisiana in the 1680s, they followed already existing networks of American Indian trails.

Representatives of the Spanish Crown used these paths to reach areas where they subsequently established missions and presidios. In Comal County and New Braunfels there is a corridor of trail routes extending from the Old Bastrop Road and Hunter Road to the Comal Springs, along Nacogdoches Road to Hwy 482 and then crosses the Cibolo along the Old Nacogdoches Road. The Comal Springs were discovered in 1691 by Spanish Explorers. Many American Indian tribes were found living there at the time. In 1918, The Daughters of the American Revolution marked the El Camino Real with markers every five miles. There are five in Comal County and their locations can be found by reading this Sophienburg column from November 1, 2010.

The Chisholm Trail

The Chisholm Trail was not the longest cattle trail but probably became the most famous due to movies and the many versions of: “Come along boys and listen to my tale, I’ll tell you of my troubles on the Old Chisholm Trail. Come a ti yi yippee, come a ti yi, yea.” The longhorns moved slowly giving the cowhands plenty of time to make up different versions of this song. Supposedly over 1000 versions have been found. From the Chisholm Trail brochure sponsored by The Texas Historical Commission: “In the decades following the Civil War, more than six million cattle were herded out of Texas in one of the greatest migrations of animals ever known. The 19^th century cattle drives laid the foundation for Texas’ wildly successful cattle industry and helped elevate the state out of post-Civil War despair and poverty. Today, our search for an American identity consistently leads us back to the vision of the rugged and independent men and women of the cattle drive era.” The Chisholm Trail came through New Braunfels roughly following IH 35. The Chisholm Trail era ended in the 1880s and a new marker for this trail has been placed at the corner of Seguin Avenue and Nacogdoches Road. Soon, a second marker will be placed at the Comal County Courthouse.

Meridian Highway

Back on July 12, 2015, I wrote an article on the Meridian Highway in Texas (see Sophienburg.com) The following is an excerpt from that article describing the highway:

“When the Texas Highway Department was created in 1917, the Meridian Highway in Texas was called State Highway 2 which meant it was the second most important highway in Texas. The highway in Texas is approximately 900 miles. With the adoption of the interstate highway numbering system, this highway became US81 for the most part and much of the segments now follow IH 35, one of the nation’s busiest interstate highways. The highway links Canada to Mexico and also continues as the Pan-American Highway that stretches from Alaska to Argentina.” The Texas Historical Commission has completed a project to identify significant businesses along the Meridian Highway route. In New Braunfels, the following were identified: a gas station at 4731 Old Hwy 81; the Faust Street Bridge; the el Camino Real marker at Seguin and Nacogdoches; a gas station (now Palacio Tire Shop) at 711 S. Seguin Avenue; a gas station (part of Bluebonnet Motors) at 619 S. Seguin Avenue; Becker Motor Company (now Bluebonnet Motors) at 541 S. Seguin Avenue; a café and bus station (now Celebrations) at 275 S. Seguin Avenue; the Faust Hotel at 240 S. Seguin Avenue; the Prince Solms Inn at 295 E. San Antonio Street; Leissner Gas Station (now UPS) at 301 Main Plaza; the Schmitz Hotel at 471 Main Plaza; the Gerlich Auto Dealership at 386 W. San Antonio Street and an auto dealership and repair shop (now Landmark Properties and other businesses) at 472 and 474 W. San Antonio Street. For more information on the Meridian Highway, visit www.thc.texas.gov/meridian.

Trails in New Braunfels

Once you explore all of the trails leading to New Braunfels, you can download the New Braunfels mobile app found at http://walkingtourinnewbraunfels.com to embark on your self-guided walking tour of NB, driving tour of NB, walking tour of Gruene, or the NB murals tour. If you desire a professional guide for a unique walking tour, you can contact Jan Kingsbury at Spass Walking Tours of NB. Other tour guides can be found on the Chamber website also. What would the first founders of New Braunfels say if they could see what has become of the wilderness they explored. “Gee, it would have been easier if I had had the app on my phone.”

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Rural communities in Comal County outside of the City of New Braunfels formed mostly around land for farming and ranching. Stores, post offices and dance halls sprang up around these farming communities. Around Comal County roughly 30 of these small settlements developed. One of those communities was originally called Fischer’s Store. It was one of the largest and luckily it still exists because it wasn’t swallowed up by Canyon Lake.

One of the reasons for the success of this community was a social but cooperative organization called the Agricultural Society of Fischer’s Store organized in 1875. As you will see, as time goes by, it wasn’t always smooth sailing for this group.

Go back to 1853 when two brothers, Otto and Hermann Fischer emigrated from Germany to Texas and made their land claim. A few other families made their claims in this area in the late 1850s but up to that point, it had no name.

Due to the difficulty of clearing land for agriculture in the hill country, the Fischer brothers started their cattle ranching business. They encountered many hazards, such as Indians, wild weather, wolves, and rustlers. This was a time of open ranges (no fences) and the cattle roamed from the Pedernales to the San Antonio Rivers. During the Civil War, cattlemen had to have a pass to move from one county to another to retrieve lost cattle. Neighbors worked together to round up cattle to send on the trail drives to markets in Kansas. A trip to Kansas took about three months. Trail drives did not last very long due to these hazards.

On their ranch, the Fischer brothers not only raised cattle but also Merino sheep, a breed that was introduced by George Kendall. When fencing became possible, they were able to raise a better brand of cattle. At this same time, Hermann Fischer began a general store and the area became known as Fischer’s Store and finally, just Fischer. Hermann Fischer eventually became a successful mercantile business man and Otto became a successful rancher. This store is still standing at Fischer.

The Fischer Agricultural Society was formed to promote agriculture and animal husbandry and to acquaint families in the area through social activities, like dances. Dances were held outside or in someone’s home. A mixture of alcohol and the ability to carry a fire arm resulted in sometimes violent behavior at the dances. The first incident was an altercation between attendees in 1877 at which time a fiddle player was killed by a stray bullet. Can you just picture the scene? This caused the Agricultural Society to close down.

A few years later, the Society reorganized but in 1892 when a dance was held at the Andrea Kuhn place, a few miles from Fischer’s Store another shooting took place, resulting in the decision for the society to try and find a permanent home.

While Hermann Fischer was busy with the mercantile business, Otto Fischer had become a very successful rancher and he eventually owned over 2,000 acres. Otto’s interest in having an Agricultural Society is easy to understand. He gave a portion of his property to the Society to construct a permanent home which they did in 1897. A building for the dance hall would provide more security for Society activities. Society minutes before the last 1897 tragedy were not found and so the society’s minutes officially began in 1897 even though the Society was much older. A dance hall called Fischer Hall was built and still stands.

It is thought that members built the hall with some outside help. It is positive that most of the lumber was purchased at Henne Hardware in New Braunfels, as that name can be seen stamped on the inside boards. Like other dance halls in the county, this hall was built utilizing a lamination of pine and curved into arches, vaulting the ceiling. The wood for the arches was soaked in water and then bent in the form of an arch.

Immediately, activities and dances were held and in the first two years there was a July 4 Ball with Guenther’s Band providing the music, a costume Ball, an Easter Ball with the Bird’s Band, a Festival Ball and the Fischer Store Band performed.

Everything went well at the dances. Right? Wrong! In 1917, at a society dance a Comal County Sheriff’s deputy was shot by a man named George Burkhardt whom the deputy had suspected of robbing a watch in a recent burglary. Burkhardt had a gun in his boot, pulled it out and shot the deputy. Ironically and sadly, the deputy Alfred O. Fischer was the son of Otto Fischer.

Fast forward. The dance hall didn’t close but became the site of weddings, anniversaries, reunions, plays, school functions and masked balls. Best of all the hall became famous because it was the site of some famous western bands. Adolph Hofner started his career at Fischer Hall and Bob Wills who was named to the Music Hall of Fame in 1968, played there. His songs like “San Antonio Rose”, “Take Me Back to Tulsa”, and “Ida Red”, spilled out of the hall into Comal County.

In 1978, a Texas Crossover artist decided that Hollywood would use the hall in the movie, “Honeysuckle Rose, starring Willie Nelson. Although the scene in the hall was only a few minutes long, everyone enjoyed being entertained by Willie Nelson after shooting the pictures, where he sang for the crowds that had gathered.

In 1897, the Society built a nine-pin bowling alley adjacent to the Fischer Hall. The alley has expanded to four lanes and is still in use today. The dance hall is still used today also.

Bryan Weidner has done extensive research on the Fischer family and the Agricultural Society of Fischer’s Store. He is the son of the late Homuth Weidner and Thelma Fischer Weidner. He lives in the Fischer homestead in Fischer, where his grandfather Arnold B. Fischer lived and his mother, Thelma, grew up.

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The Texas Historical Commission is taking on a two-year project documenting the Sixth Principal Meridian Highway in Texas. Don’t know where it is? The highway has been a major highway north to south since 1911. The Commission is gathering information on travel related structures along the highway. New Braunfels is part of that survey.

In 1911 John C. Nicholson, a Kansas lawyer and supporter of the Good Roads Movement, organized the International Meridian Road Association wanting a highway from Canada to Mexico. This was the beginning of the Meridian Highway. It is not a completely new highway as many segments of the highway follow Native American paths, Spanish explorer paths, military roads and cattle trails.

When the Texas Highway Department was created in 1917 the Meridian Highway in Texas was called State Highway 2 which meant it was the second most important highway in Texas. The highway in Texas is approximately 900 miles. With the adoption of the interstate highway numbering system, this highway became US 81 for the most part and much of the segments now follow IH 35, one of the nation’s busiest interstate highways. The highway links Canada to Mexico and also continues as the Pan-American Highway that stretches from Alaska to Argentina. As far as Texas was concerned, a 1953 Texas Parade article noted that US 81 was in the process of being widened to a four-lane divided roadway from Fort Worth to San Antonio and the author called the road the “main street of the Lone Star State”.

No doubt, the availability of automobiles and trucks in the 1900s changed the way of life for all Texans, but good roads were hard to find. The Meridian Highway going from north to south opened up all avenues of trade and travel which affected auto repair garages, gas stations, diners, tourist camps, auto courts, motels, road markers, bridges, traffic signs, and of course road constructions and maintenance. This important corridor was a big boost to tourism. Think about our tourism in Comal County and how it would have been affected by the lack or automobiles and the roads on which they travel.

New Braunfels, being the Beauty Spot of Texas, had a lot to gain from this highway. In 1924 the Official Automobile Red Book showed the route of the highway to be from just north of NB to just south as follows: One would travel along Post Road and cross over the Guadalupe River at the Faust Street Bridge, turn right on to Seguin Ave. and continue to the Main Plaza. After circling the Plaza, head out West San Antonio St. and then travel on FM 482. Later after the US 81 bridge was constructed the route changed slightly and became US 81 and then finally became IH 35.

The Texas Historical Commission has begun its survey collecting information of historic structures that were influenced and benefitted by the Meridian Highway. When the survey is complete, results will be published and made available to the public. In some of my past articles, I have written about several businesses along the New Braunfels downtown route that I think will qualify as examples of what was on the Meridian Highway. Now I will talk about one automobile business that I haven’t written about that was actually located in three locations along the route. Possibly no business benefitted more from a good highway than the automobile industry.

Becker Motor Company began in 1928 when August Becker and his son-in-law Louis Niemeyer held the Chevrolet franchise for Comal County. August Becker had been connected with the Seguin Motor Co. for several years. He and his son, Walter, bought the Forshage Building at 472 W. San Antonio St. from Jess Sippel. The Becker Chevrolet Company was founded with August Becker as general manager and owner and located in that building.

The Great Depression had an impact on the automobile business. During this time period General Motors sent cars to the dealers, whether they wanted them or not. This situation became a point of contention to August Becker because just as the new Chevrolet models were coming out, G.M. sent him sixty 1932 cars to sell. This was during the height of the Great Depression. Can you see the problem? August, his son Walter, and some of the sales staff literally went from door to door selling cars within a 30 mile radius. All the cars were finally sold but, needless to say, Becker soon changed his franchise to Dodge/Plymouth and the name of the dealership became Becker Motor Company.

For a short time Becker Motor Company moved to the Baetge Motor Sales location now the Rahe-Wright building at 162 S. Seguin Ave. and then in 1935 moved to 300 South Seguin Ave. located where the First Protestant Church parking lot is. This building subsequently held other automobile-related business like Carl Ohm Motor Co. and the last was Dietert Auto Supply owned by Darvin Dietert. First Protestant bought the property to increase their parking capacity.

The final move for the Becker Motor Company occurred right after WWII when it moved to 547 S. Seguin Ave. its last home. The building was constructed from the demolition of two warehouses from the Landa Mill property. Concrete blocks were made on the spot.

Additional adjoining property, and properties across the street were purchased by the company. In 1972 the Chrysler franchise was obtained when Ruppel Auto Co. went out of business. In 1973 Becker Motor Company was reorganized as a corporation and finally sold in 2002 to Bluebonnet Chrysler Dodge but the building still stands.

The Becker family members have in their possession a collection of photographs of the

history of Becker Motor Company. They have allowed the Sophienburg Archives to scan these photos and make them part of its vast collection. A particular one-of-a-kind collection is black and white photographs taken by George Becker with a little Kodak camera. The collection is of 18 early Dodge trucks sold to local businesses and individuals. Names are on the back. Once again, if you have been hanging around in New Braunfels long enough, you will recognize some of these names:

“Tate” in front of a Fritos truck by the business that is now the First Protestant Church parking; Pittman’s Red and White truck; Sattler Feed Store truck; county road crew in front of truck; Oscar Brehmer in front of farm truck; Ed Soechting Mobile Oil truck; Curt Linnartz in front of delivery truck; Handy Andy grocery truck; Loeps Plaza Market downtown; First NB garbage truck; Erwin Staats Meat Market truck; Hanz Schwamkrug in front of New Braunfels Sausage Factory; plus many pictures of old buildings and unidentified trucks.

Thank you, Texas Historical Commission for taking on the Meridian Highway project and adding to the information that the Sophienburg has. I think there’s no doubt that we will all benefit.

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