By Keva Hoffmann Boardman —

Divining. Dowsing. Witching. Switching.

These strange words all refer to the same thing, an ancient method of finding something under the ground. It’s not science. It’s not magic. Some people have “the gift” and others do not. In many cases, the ability is found generationally in families. Whatever it is, it has proven to be a relatively effective technique for finding minerals, coal, oil, water, treasure and burial sites for centuries.

German miners used dowsing rods to locate minerals in the 1400s. English miners were using the method in the 1600s. Americans tended to call dowsing either “witching” or “switching”, possibly because many practitioners used witch hazel branches (switches) for the rods. Dowsing rods can be made of hazel, hawthorn, willow, peach, pear or cherry branches, but not elder. Elder trees were associated with witchcraft and dowsing is not witchcraft.

Dowsing rods are simple to use. The diviner (dowser, witcher or switcher) holds the ends of a Y-shaped branch with the joint nosing upward and then walks across the ground they want to survey. Say he or she is looking for water — when underground water is passed over, the joint end will point down or twist. The strength of the rod’s movement can even estimate the distance under the surface so you know how deep to drill for a well.

Elmo Jonas (1916-2001) learned how to switch for water in the 1930s from watching his uncle. As a Wassersucher, or switcher, Elmo used a Y-shaped rod from the branch of a peach tree. He stored his rods wrapped up in his freezer. Mr. Jonas was known across the county for his ability to find water to help people locate sites for wells on their property. In a New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung article, Mo Schwab was quoted saying, “To my knowledge, he’s never had a client say it was a dry hole …. He doesn’t charge for switching. He earns his living on his sheep ranch off Purgatory Road. People make donations if they want to, but I know he’s found good water sources for people who gave him nothing.”

In other words, he wasn’t scamming anyone.

The Herald-Zeitung interviewed Elmo in 1995 about the “gift” he shared with others. He and many of his neighbors were relocated when their family ranches and farms were bought to make way for Canyon Lake and Dam in the late 1950s. Buying new land and building a new home made it necessary to also drill new wells. Elmo Jonas found just the right spot for good wells for those resettling.

How does it work? No one really knows. Some think it has to do with a physical principle, possibly electrical in nature, that isn’t yet understood. Curtis Bremer (1934-2016) said, “There is no scientific evidence, but I’m satisfied that it works, and I’ve used Elmo Jonas on six or eight wells. I’d want a switcher if I were drilling a water well today because you increase your probability.”

The U.S. Geological Survey can’t prove how or if it works so they caution against using a water witcher. But, they cannot prove it doesn’t work, and as many people have seen, somehow it does. In 1975, Mrs. James Mayer of Bulverde was asked to locate water for a well at the Comal Indepent School District’s Smithson Valley High School. Successful, she was asked by the school board to also find water for Mountain Valley Elementary and Middle School in Sattler. Harvey Pape reported on that experience. “She would just walk across the field and the rod would go straight down — she just could not hold it. There were two places on our land like that. It was really amazing to watch, in fact, the first switch she used split in half.… She gave me the switch, and it wouldn’t do anything, … we gave it to my little daughter, and the switch pulled almost out of her hands.”

Water is not the only thing people switch for. Former educator Wilfred Schlather also uses a divining rod to locate lost gravesites. Sounds weird, right? Mr. Schlather taught high level math and physics at New Braunfels High School as well as hand-built the first computer on campus. He is definitely no stranger to scientific facts. He doesn’t know how switching works, he just knows that it does.

I got to go on a grave hunt with Wilfred (It is so hard not to call him Mr. Schlather.) a couple of years ago. We needed to find out where a young boy was buried in one of the local cemeteries. We vaguely knew about where he was lying, but with no headstone, it was just guesswork. Wilfred got out his switching rods — two copper pipe cylinders in which he put L-shaped pieces of wire. He held one copper cylinder in each fist so that the long end of the L-shaped wires swung freely facing forward. As he passed over different areas of ground, we watched in astonishment as suddenly the wires turned inward and crossed each other and then several steps later uncrossed. I. Kid. You. Not.

Wilfred repeated the action flagging where the wires first crossed and then flagging where they uncrossed. Between the flags was the exact space that would be needed to bury a child’s casket. To make certain of his results, he walked parallel to the marked space. The wires did not cross. When he walked across the area of another marked grave, the wires did their crossing thing again.

“May I have a go, Wilfred?” I asked hesitantly. “Here, try it,” he said, handing me his rods. I held one copper pipe in each fist and with the rods floating forward walked over a marked grave. At the foot, the wires turned inward and crossed. At the headstone, the wires uncrossed. I tried the burial site he had just located. At one end of the space the wires turned inward and crossed and at the other end the wires uncrossed.

It was quite the OMG moment. Apparently, I have the “gift” for finding graves. Who knew I was so blessed. I was telling my mom about this article. It seems I had an uncle in the Fredericksburg area who was a water switcher. Looks like I need to try switching for water!

Sources: New Braunfels Herald; New Braunfels Herald Zeitung; Texas Escapes Online Magazine: “The Ancient Art of Dowsing”,  “Dowsing for Graves, Witching For Water”; Farm and Dairy, “The Curious History of Water Witchers”.

“Around the Sophienburg” is published every other weekend in the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung.

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By Tara V. Kohlenberg —

A drive through downtown New Braunfels is somewhat like a visual history of architecture course comparing different architectural styles from 1845 to mid-20th century. It may just look like a bunch of old buildings sitting side by side to some, but they tell the cultural and socioeconomic timeline of our city.

Take the old city hall building on the corner of Seguin Avenue and Mill Street, before the Wiggins Hospitality Company began transforming the historic building into its newest eatery, the building did not seem to fit in with the more traditional Italian Renaissance-style structures of downtown. It had no distinctive curvilinear parapet, no arched windows, no fancy metal cornice. Simply put, the building was rather plain. Why is it so different?

While we do generally think of government buildings being more about function than aesthetics, the design differences of our old city hall had more to do with the era in which it was built.

The good citizens of New Braunfels had established a government consisting of two elected commissioners and a mayor to handle the city’s business. For a number of years, the city commission and the city clerk occupied space in the courthouse, a massive 3½-story Romanesque-style structure built in 1898.

By early 1929, New Braunfels had grown so much that the city required more clerical help and more space. The county closed in the west courthouse porches to office the city clerk. The need for a real free-standing city hall with adequate space for city staff and records was evident.

Grown? Yep! The decade of the 1920s saw tremendous growth in Texas and New Braunfels due to several key factors. The Second Industrial Revolution took place in the U.S. from 1890 to 1930, infused by innovations in electricity, steel, railroad expansion and oil. The Comal Power Plant was built and came online in 1926, creating new jobs. The end of World War I in 1918 saw soldiers returning armed with new skills. They flooded the urban areas seeking jobs and homes. Our proximity to San Antonio military bases helped. New Braunfels’ population increased by nearly 74 percent in 10 years! Yikes! The little town was becoming a city and had nothing more to their name than a couple of desks, chairs and some records in an office they did not own.

In May of 1929, a bond issue of $35,000 passed to construct a city hall and to acquire the necessary land. Several sites were considered: the Peter Nowotny site (Seguin and Mill); the Landa residence (now County Annex), a lot at Bridge and Seguin, the Comal Hotel (now Prince Solms Inn), Eggling Market Square (possibly Markt Platz as Eggling was previous the name of Comal Hotel), and a lot near the City Hospital (Sts. Peter and Paul Thrift area). Obviously, they chose the corner of Seguin and Mill. Good choice!

By mid-July the City Commission had not only purchased the lot, they had also chosen architect Jeremiah Schmidt. Schmidt was busy between 1929 and 1933, designing and supervising a number of buildings in New Braunfels, including the First National Bank, Comal County jail and courthouse, Seele Parish House, Fire Station No. 2 on Coll Street, and Sophienburg Museum, all in varying styles.

Schmidt’s designs for the old city hall are Classic Moderne, a sub-class of Art Deco architecture. True to the Classic Moderne distinguishing features, the original old city hall has a flat roof with a small ledge at the roof-line, horizontal lines and geometric designs, decorative stone banding, metal casement windows, and glass-block windows used as front door accents. Most importantly, it had prominent outdoor steps rising to a centered, arched entry door on three sides to give the square building a powerful presence. For those of you who have looked at that building all your lives, yes, it originally had an over-sized arched front door.

The contract was let to Sipple Construction, and they broke ground on Tuesday, October 22, 1929, with 110 days to complete work. The stock market crashed exactly one week later, Tuesday, October 29, 1929. The Great Depression took a little while to trickle down to New Braunfels, but they were told to rush the work in December.

The city hall was finished and opened on Tuesday, May 7,1930, at a cost of $30,000. The building housed the city staff of four, Chamber of Commerce and the Board of City Development offices. Summer came and their new building was so warm that the city commission paid to have electric ceiling fans and desk fans installed. The final payment on the 1930 city hall was made in September 1955.

City hall became home to other departments over time. The police department, originally based out of Central Fire Station, moved into the basement. In 1955, an exterior light was added to the basement door since they went in and out at night. The police department moved into their own little white brick building next to old Central Fire Station in 1959. (That little building was later torn down for the new Central Station). New Braunfels Independent School District moved into the city hall basement offices vacated by the police department.

At some unknown point before 1959, renovations were made to the old city hall. They replaced the front doors, bricked in the archway, and hung a metal canopy over the entrance. They installed metal awnings over the windows and, although more efficient, completely changed the clean Art Deco styling.

When the city offices moved into a new home on Castell Avenue in 1992, the Sophienburg Memorial Association purchased the 1930 city hall building to house the ever-growing archives. Following the completion of a new city library, the City of New Braunfels gifted the Dittlinger Memorial Library to the Sophienburg Memorial Association in 2001. The old city hall building was sold to fund renovations to the Dittlinger library building, creating an archives library and museum exhibit hall.

Since that time, the old city hall building at Seguin and Mill has served as office space and restaurants. I’m looking forward to the new Old City Hall Restaurant, making something old new again.

Sources: Sophienburg Museum and Archives.

“Around the Sophienburg” is published every other weekend in the New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung.

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Tara V. Kohlenberg —

Ninety years ago, on October 8, 1933, New Braunfels celebrated the grand opening and dedication of the new Sophienburg Memorial Museum and Library, erected in honor of those pioneers who founded New Braunfels.

It was a grand affair for the entire community. There was a morning parade from Main Plaza to the Sophienburg, headed by the American Legion Drum & Bugle Corp, Boy Scouts and fire department. All were treated to the music of the Old Heidelberg Band while lunch was served by pretty girls in German costume. After the official dedication and customary speeches praising the pioneering spirit of our ancestors, the beautiful new museum and library building was opened to the public for the first time. The party continued into the evening with entertainment by the Music Club String Ensemble, the Echo Singing Club and a musical pageant depicting the important events in the founding of New Braunfels.

You may have raised an eyebrow upon reading the word “Library” with Sophienburg Memorial Museum, but the Sophienburg has long been entwined with the public library. For several years, in a series of locations, people could pay a membership fee to use a local small library (see Emmie Seele Faust Memorial Library, April 1, 2018, Sophienburg.com). It was not until the new museum built a dedicated library room in 1933 that there was truly a free public library.

By 1937, it was clear that the library needed its own space. A new public library building for the city of New Braunfels became a reality in October 1937. Mrs. Emmie Seele Faust, daughter of Hermann Seele, offered a large donation to build a memorial library. The Sophienburg Memorial Association donated a parcel of the Sophienburg Hill property for the new library, with the understanding that when it ceased to be a library, it would revert back to the Association. Built in the same rock style, the Emmie Seele Faust Memorial Library opened adjacent to the Sophienburg Memorial Museum on W. Coll Street in the fall of 1938.

As it is with the ebb and flow of life, so it goes for organizations. The Sophienburg Memorial Museum grew and flourished in place, filling the empty space left by the library room vacancy. In 1968, the city built the Dittlinger Memorial Library on property once the site of the Ernst Gruene home, located directly behind Emmie Seele Faust Library and Sophienburg Museum buildings. Since the Emmie Seele Faust building was no longer used as a library, per the agreement, it reverted back to the Sophienburg Memorial Association and became the Archives building.

The collection and archives continued to grow. By 1975, the Museum’s need for space prompted renovations and addition of the Cedar Room. In 1992, the Association purchased the 1929 New Braunfels City Hall building on the corner of North Seguin Avenue and Mill Street to house the ever-growing Archives. At that time, the old library building became storage for the artifact collection.

Now, all these years, the museum was run by one or two employees and a whole host of members and volunteers spread out in three buildings. Money was derived from memberships and a small Weihnachtsmarkt fundraiser, but it was almost always a struggle to have a steady income. The museum gift/book shop helped contribute to the coffer a little, but the page turned in 1998, which was the first year the museum participated in Wurstfest. Any items, mostly German themed, that were left over from Wurstfest and Weihnachtsmarkt came back to the museum, taking the gift shop to new heights. Our beloved Sophie’s Shop was born… but it didn’t get that name until 1999. Whether in the museum, online, or at Wurstfest, Sophie’s Shop serves to make money for the sole purpose of supporting the non-profit museum operations.

Following the completion of a new city library, the City of New Braunfels gifted the Dittlinger Memorial Library to the Sophienburg Memorial Association in 2001. Renovations to the Dittlinger Library building, creating an archives library and museum exhibit hall, would take money, so a capital campaign was held and the Old City Hall building was sold.

In 2004, Phase I is completed and the Archives, which has been closed for a couple of years, opens in their portion of the renovated building. The Museum exhibit space opened a year later. The original museum building became storage for the collection.

The Sophienburg Museum and Archives was created by the community as a memorial to our founders. She has always given back as a supportive community partner. She has been there to not only support New Braunfels’ anniversary celebrations, she captures and catalogues the history to share with future generations. The Sophienburg Memorial Association presents the annual Fourth of July Patriotic Celebration in partnership with the City of New Braunfels. The Museum presents programs such St. Nicholas Eve and Fiesta Patria celebrations.

In 2009, Sophienburg Museum and Archives proudly became the anchor for the Sophienburg Hill Historic District to help protect the rich architectural history of New Braunfels. As proof of the Association’s dedication, the Emmie Seele Faust Memorial Library was fully restored to its original historical splendor.

The Sophienburg continued to be recognized for excellence in protecting the history of New Braunfels. In 2017, the Sophienburg received two Texas Historical Commission honors: a Historical Site designation for Sophienburg Hill, and a Recorded Historical Landmark designation for the Emmie Seele Faust Library.

This year, the Sophienburg Memorial Association celebrates 90 years of preserving New Braunfels History. The Sophienburg Museum and Archives is an integral and vital part of New Braunfels. “Guardians of History, Keeper of the Treasures and Stewards of the Stories”.

Join us in celebration, Sunday, October 8, 2023, on the campus of the Sophienburg Museum and Archives, 1-4 p.m. All are invited.

Sources: Sophienburg Museum & Archives; LaVerne Pearce; Nancy Classen; Anna Lee Hicks.

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Every child passing through the Texas Public Education System receives an introduction to history. I say an introduction, because they may not remember all of it, but they are definitely shown it. Elementary students begin learning about their own community history in third grade, eventually adding two years of Texas history and two years of U.S. history, followed by World history and government in high school.

I first really dove into history when my sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Christianson, told us that “history” is just that, “his story,” the story of man. (She also taught me how to write outlines, but that’s a story for another time.) She made history come alive for me and I was hooked. There are rewards for those hooked on history. Each year, The Sophienburg Memorial Association awards the Myra Lee Adams Goff Sophienburg History Scholarship to a local graduating senior with an interest in history. The 2019 scholarship recipient is Canyon High School Senior Ross Bedgood. Ross is the son of Steven and Amie Bedgood and will be attending Southwestern University. We are extremely proud to publish his essay in our column today, lightly edited for length and clarity. Enjoy!

The Comal County Fair:

The Resilient Historically Significant Event That Keeps on Giving

When determining an event to be a historically significant one, some consider only those caused by natural disasters or war. However, an established event and its impact on a community throughout time, meets the criteria. The Comal County Fair is one such event.

It is opening night of the 2018 Comal County Fair and I am waiting for my friends. I take in the sights, sounds, smells and excitement the fair offers. I begin to wish I could go back in time and visit the fairs. Then I feel someone tap my shoulder. Thinking it was one of the guys, I turned and…

It was 1894 and I was on a train from San Antonio headed to the first Comal County Fair in New Braunfels, Texas. A man sitting next to me said, “I am Frederick, your fair guide for the next 124 years. He explained how he felt the fair was going to be a success because of the trains bringing people and the community had supported a fundraising fair for the Krankenhaus, the hospital, last year.

When the train stopped, we were on Harry Landa’s property, the sight of the first fair. There were displays of plants, food, livestock, sewing, artwork and so on. It was all I had imagined it would be and more.

Quickly, Frederick motioned for me to follow him. “We’re now on the 11 acres of the Guadalupe River purchased by the Comal County Fair Association in 1898. Just like 1894, it did not disappoint. However, due to financial difficulties, the property was sold to the City of New Braunfels in 1905 with the stipulation that the fair would use the property for the next 50 years.

With the fair of 1908, the stores closed at noon and it was declared New Braunfels ISD Fair Day. The exhibits increased and awards were given for flowers, fruit, handmade men’s suits and so forth. The livestock was in abundance.

For the years 1910-1922, Frederick said he could not find any information about the fair. He thought it might be because of WWI, but did know the land became a dumping ground for the city. I felt sadness and wondered how the fair recovered.

When we entered the year 1923, Frederick’s sparkle returned. He began to explain to me how Comal County Fair Association regrouped into a corporation and was ready for the start of the fair. As we slept, the grandstand burned to the ground, but the fair opened for business and we visited the small house filled with tiny furniture, clothing and other essentials and listened to the Edison playing records. The following two days were rained out.

The next few years were good times, but then I saw Frederick’s demeanor change. “Frederick, you’re not looking so happy. What now?” I asked.

He replied, “Son, we are all in hard times. It is the Great Depression. You see how the fair is not bustling? It had to do away with the queen’s contest, give no cash prizes, lower admittance prices and exhibitors are let in free. It is relying on local cowboys for the rodeo and local musicians for entertainment.” It was a somber time.

I enjoyed the 1933 fair. It was celebrating ’Real Beer’….no more ’Busto’ or ’near beer.’ This fair was filled with dances, the Heidelberg Orchestra playing German music, a football game between New Braunfels and Yoakum horse racing, rodeo and carnival.

Frederick zipped us past the WWII years of scaled back fairs to the 1946 Centennial Celebration, which had been postponed a year due to war. Its highlight was the automobiles that people were becoming interested in. And there was the Greater United Shows Carnival. Frederick was not much of a carnival rides person, I rode the Merry Go-Round, Tilt-A-Whirl and Ferris Wheel and then we watched the horse races. What an adventure I was experiencing!

Frederick said that 1952-1954 were some tough times for the fair. After not being able to have livestock in the parade or at the fair due to Anthrax in 1948, floods and polio spread fear in 1952 to the point the grounds were sprayed with disinfectant. In 1954, the Comal and Guadalupe Rivers almost dried up causing dust issues and few agriculture entries. “But never fear,” said Frederick, “the fair kept on going.”

The 60s were amazing. First it was the rodeo spotlighting Leon Adams riding a Brahma bull through a hoop on fire followed by tied-down calf roping, barrel racing and more. I realized one had to be really tough to participate in these rodeo events. Next, in 1962, came Night in Old New Braunfels and concerts by Canyon, Smithson Valley and New Braunfels High Schools. A quick stop in 1965 allowed us to meet Bobbie Specht, the first rodeo queen. In 1967, we met the first Fair Queen since 1931, Jacque Sahm.

Becoming tired, Frederick informed me that there were only two more stops, one in 1974 and 2001. In 1974, we listened to a country singer by the name of George Strait, who was a rising country star. For 2001, I found Frederick and I at the Comal County Fair Parade. It was just a couple of weeks after the terrorist attack and the parade overflowed with patriotic themes and patriotism swelled from the crowds. It was a time of hope, determination and pride.

Finally, we reached 2018! I thanked him for being a knowledgeable history guide. I now understood that the Comal County Fair was a historically significant event because it had withstood droughts, fire, floods, wars and tough economic times. It continues to give to the community of New Braunfels and Comal County. Thank you to the citizens for organizing the Comal County Fair Association on January 4, 1893. My friends have arrived and we are going to enjoy a night at the fair.

(Information used in the paper came from a report by Myra Lee Adams Goff, author of It’s Fair Time, History of the Comal County Fair.)

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What’s going on at the Hill? The Sophienburg Hill, that is. Busy, busy. There is constant change by collecting, restoring, repurposing, categorizing, identifying, and just about all of those “ing” words.

Probably the biggest change in the museum itself is the closing of the year-long Lindheimer exhibit and preparation for a new exhibit. The Ferdinand Lindheimer exhibit had a great response from garden clubs, school children, and other botanists. You know of course, that Lindheimer was called the “Father of Texas Botany.” Now over 1,000 third graders in the NBISD and CISD have been exposed to that fact.

The whole exhibit was under the direction of Keva Boardman, program director at the Sophienburg. All of those third graders not only came to visit the exhibit but they were given a deck of cards with Lindheimer’s picture on the pack and cards on the inside that had some pictures and stories that related to him or botany. This memorial souvenir was a gift from volunteers that believe in the project and I’m sure these cards will be shared with the child’s family. Records show that people visited the exhibit from all over Texas and several universities.

We’re sort of sorry to get rid of Lindheimer but we’ll just put him to sleep for a while. The next exhibit will definitely not put you to sleep. It’s called “Jump In” like the advertisement for the New Braunfels tourist trade so often used. Jump In is an exhibit of early bathing suits, particularly from around the 1920s, a time when bathing suits became a little more fashionable and less functional.

The exhibit is from the Sophienburg collection and many, many photographs of New Braunfels residents will be on display. You will know many of these bathing beauties. The purpose of the exhibit is to show changes in styles and really show how important swimming was and is in New Braunfels on the Comal and the Guadalupe. Watch for a June opening of the exhibit.

Another change in the museum is the merchandise in Sophie’s Shop which is a very popular stop for visitors. Sophie’s Shop has the largest collection of books about New Braunfels, Comal County, and its people anywhere in town. After moving out the Christmas merchandise, springtime predominates. There are many gift items for very young children and babies. Don’t forget the shirts proclaiming that “In Neu Braunfels ist das Leben Schon.”

Another year has passed and the Sophienburg is proud to announce the winner of the Myra Lee Adams Goff History Scholarship writing contest. This year’s talented writer is Marissa Young, a senior at New Braunfels High School. Her essay was chosen from about 40 entries. The rule for winning the $500 scholarship is to write a 500-word essay relating to anything about New Braunfels or Comal County history.

Marissa chose to write about her great-uncle, Nayo Zamora. She tells about his life and about his political involvement in the 1960s-80s dealing with the imbalance of racial composition in the New Braunfels schools. Marissa is very proud of the accomplishments of her great-uncle and I’m sure he would be proud of her. She is a real scholar and will begin her education in the field of medicine this fall.

You all know about the involvement of Prince Carl with Sophienburg Hill. It was his site of choice to build a fort to protect the settlers with his cannons. And it was in his mind to be the site of a castle for his fiancé still in Germany. On the Sophienburg Hill are historic buildings, some remodeled, and some repurposed. Because of this historic Sophienburg Hill significance to New Braunfels, the Sophienburg Museum and Archives Association has made the decision to pursue a Texas Historical Marker for this site. John and Cindy Coers with the Comal County Historical Commission are researching the history of all of the buildings on the property.

Originally on the hill property there was a log house and several small buildings used for Prince Carl’s headquarters. This building actually bit the dust in 1886 with the big hurricane that also destroyed Indianola. Pictures show that it was well on its way to falling down long before the hurricane.

In the late 1920s, the H. Dittlinger family made a trip to Germany and received a gift of a portrait of Prince Carl. The purpose of the gift was that it be hung in a museum in New Braunfels. Back in NB there was no museum so Mrs. Dittlinger volunteered to keep the portrait until a museum on Sophienburg Hill could become a reality.

A committee was formed to organize the Sophienburg Memorial Museum. Over the years, the hill property had been divided and sold several times and finally Mrs. Johanna Runge, the last owner, sold the property to the association for $5,025 to build a museum.

A rock building on the corner of Academy and Coll Sts. was built and completed in 1933. Eventually the Sophienburg Museum and Archives outgrew this building and then purchased the New Braunfels City Hall on Seguin St. The archives moved in the old city hall but the museum part remained in the rock building on the hill.

Another building that is on the hill property is the Emmie Seele Faust Library at the corner of Coll and Magazine Sts. This building is being nominated for historic designation by the Comal County Historic Commission and being researched by Wilfred and Marlena Schlather and Rosa Linda delaCerda.

In 1928 the New Braunfels Public Library Association was formed. Books were collected in the “small” Landa house on the plaza. The next move was to the Eiband property at 174 E. San Antonio St. In 1938, the Sophienburg Association donated land on Sophienburg Hill for the site of a public library. The library contents were moved into a small area of the 1933 Sophienburg Museum until the new library could be built.

Emmie Seele Faust donated over $7,000 to build the library on Sophienburg Hill that became the Emmie Seele Faust Memorial Library. It was the primary library in town until 1967, when the city built the Dittlinger Memorial Library on adjacent property. The library remained there until the city built the library on Common St. in 1999. The city then donated the Dittlinger Library building to the Sophienburg. It was remodeled and became the new home of the Sophienburg Museum and Archives. The original 1933 museum still stands on the Sophienburg Hill property and is now the home of the collections.

The old Emmie Seele Faust Library building was remodeled in 2001 to serve as a public meeting room.

Groups of people working together on projects are very important to the Sophienburg. For example, the collection ladies are always busy working on some project. A new group headed by Estella and Robert Farias are rounding up friends and researching Hispanic history in NB. Robert Morales uses the Microfiche to find information on old Hispanic history; John Serda is a Vietnam veteran obtaining military veteran’s information using the Sophienburg database; Elvira Villarreal is working on the Herald obituaries for Hispanic genealogy; and David Rutherford is researching the West End baseball teams.

The Sophienburg welcomes and could not exist without its volunteers. There’s always some collecting, restoring, repurposing, categorizing, and identifying to do.

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