PHOTO CAPTION: New Braunfels Social Club, ca. 1930s.

New Braunfels treasures — social, fraternal and otherwise

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — Reaching a certain age and lifespan in New Braunfels entitles me, and others like me, to call buildings/places by other names and not sound crazy. It is like a secret code. We can use the “old” name when referring to a current building, and not

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Remembering when Wurstfest was at a hole in the ground

Encore of November 1, 2006 By Myra Lee Adams Goff Get ready to celebrate New Braunfels’ heritage. Long before the Chicken Dance entered the city limits, the Wurstfest was held in a hole in the ground next to Main Plaza. Of course, this wasn’t the first location. The brainchild of

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Women in history

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — When the Museum is quiet, like it has been for the past few weeks, I like being in the exhibit hall. In fact, my favorite thinking spot is sitting on a bench in there, just listening. In the silence, one can almost hear the sounds

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Religious needs of the colonists

The articles of the Verein zum Schutz detscher Einwandrer in Texas (also known as the Society of Noblemen or the Adelsverein) required that the spiritual needs of the immigrants were to be met. The calendar and customs of church life were an important part of the Germanic culture. After their

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Dressing Little Miss America

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — Remember the wonderful Sears or JC Penney Christmas catalogues that used to arrive in the mail each September? School had barely begun, the weather still hot enough to wear shorts, but I spent hours looking at the beautiful Christmas dresses. However, my Christmas dresses never

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Still chugging after all these years …

Keva Hoffmann Boardman – A research request regarding an old stage at the Landa Park dance slab led me to ferreting out what the Works Projects Administration (WPA) projects were in Comal County in the 1930s. I wasn’t at all surprised when I found myself looking into the Landa Park

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Depot sign returns to New Braunfels

By Keva Hoffmann Boardman – Imagine it’s 1920. You’re making your way north on Seguin Street and you can just see the roofs of Landa’s flour mill and cottonseed oil gin over the tree line. You get to the “Y’ where Landa Street and N. Seguin split and you stay

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OLPH celebrates beliefs, history and traditions

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Our Lady of Perpetual Help congregation is celebrating its 90th year of existence. It is a good example of a group of people who held on to their beliefs and held on to their culture and traditions. Sts. Peter and Paul Church, the oldest Catholic

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Morales Funeral Home early business in Comaltown

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Dr. Ferdinand Roemer in his book “Roemer’s Texas,” when he arrived in the village of New Braunfels in 1846, wrote that a speculative American had laid out a new city in between the fork of the Comal and the Guadalupe within view of the city

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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

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