The history behind the Marglin name

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Recently, the Ludwig Leather Company on Seguin Avenue was purchased by Terri Moore Cocanougher, originally from New Braunfels. The new name of the company is Ludwig and Marglin. Why Marglin? Marglin is the French name for Mergele and First Founder Peter Mergele is Terri’s ancestor.

Continue reading

Peace on earth, good will to men

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Imagine that you are on the Texas Coast where you have just arrived on one of the Adelsverein ships. You left Germany three months ago. You are far away from the Heimatland (homeland) for the first time ever and it is Christmas time. Your whole

Continue reading

Jacobs Creek teacherage still standing

By Myra Lee Adams Goff There was a time when teachers in the rural areas were furnished a house called a teacherage. These dwellings were either attached to the school or nearby. One such teacherage can be seen while driving along the Guadalupe River Road. The school and teacherage were

Continue reading

We owe a lot of what we know to Oscar Haas

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Almost 70 years ago (1947), local historian Oscar Haas was asked by the Texas State Historical Association to compile the origin and history of all name-places in Comal County. Haas’ histories and thousands of others are what make up the Handbook of Texas that can

Continue reading

The area of Sattler includes many names

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Most of our small settlements in the Texas Hill Country, if they survived, grew up next to rivers and creeks. The Guadalupe River Valley NW of New Braunfels has been hailed by many as the most beautiful area in all of the Hill Country. Part

Continue reading

Waisenhaus Orphanage on the Guadalupe

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Do you believe everything you read? Do you believe everything you hear? If your answer to these two questions is “no,” you must be thinking like an historian. A good historian reads material and thinks “there must be more” and hears information and thinks “where’s

Continue reading

Margarethe Schertz, pioneer woman

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Margarethe Schertz was only 12 years old when she came to Texas with her parents in 1844. If she were alive today, she could tell us a story and a half about Texas, Comal County, and especially New Braunfels. It’s a unique story of an

Continue reading

The year 1846 was a dark year for the German immigrants

By Myra Lee Adams Goff The year was 1846, a year after Hermann Seele arrived in Texas. It was the time of year that we, in Texas, understand – July and August. The heat continued to increase and thunder storms made the Guadalupe River rise. A ferry boat at the

Continue reading

“Tenax propositi” or “finish what you begin”

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Baron Otfried Hans von Meusebach (later John O. Meusebach) and Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels represented two philosophies and cultures of Germany in the early 1800s. Prince Carl was a feudalistic, aristocratic, ultraconservative wanting no change in the politics of Germany. It was a collection of

Continue reading

Summer camps on the Comal

By Myra Lee Adams Goff Growing up in New Braunfels, I was well acquainted with the name Giesecke. I knew the names of all the watering holes from early age on – Landa Park pool, Camp Ulbricht, City Park (later Cypress Bend Park), Camp Warnecke, and Camp Giesecke. Camp Giesecke

Continue reading