Snapshots of History: Blumberg House

By Tara V. Kohlenberg and Mark Rahe — I love the buildings in New Braunfels. I especially like the ones in downtown New Braunfels and Comaltown. Built over a period of 150 years, each building tells a story in every little detail of each window, porch, and roofline. They are

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Historic sounds that inspire

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — Time is elusive. It moves slowly but passes quickly. It is also easy to lose track of time. As a child growing up in New Braunfels, only a few markers of time stood out to me: the twelve-noon siren from Central Fire Station; the streetlights

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The House That Jack Built

By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — I have heard some murmurings in town lately about a place called The House that Jack Built. As often happens at the Sophienburg, I had already done some research into this business. Let me share some facts and a couple stories that I discovered along

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Outlaws, cowboys and armadillos

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — How do we pick topics for Around the Sophienburg? you might ask. Well, a myriad of mysteries and ideas come across our desks, but this one came simply from the question, “Whatever happened to that armadillo guy?” First off, let me tell you how we

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Oscar Haas’ research used by many for over 75 years

By Myra Lee Adams Goff There is one historian’s name in New Braunfels that is mentioned over and over. After writing this column for the last nine years, and writing a few books, I can’t begin to tell you how many times his name is mentioned as a writer or

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Famous trees in Comal County

By Myra Lee Adams Goff In the Central Lowlands, the Hills, and Edwards Plateau, where Comal County is located, the average rainfall is 28 inches a year. Along with elevation and content of soil, these conditions determine the types of trees that grow in the area. New Braunfels was once

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