Erste Fischerstechen in Texas

By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — On Sunday, October 12, 1884, Texas witnessed its very first Fischerstechen right on the Comal River. Earlier in 1882, Clemens Dam had been completed and destined as a source of power for a textile mill. That same year, a benevolent society, the Knights of Honor, had been organized and one […]

Oak or cedar Christmas trees?

By Keva Hoffmann Boardman — Christmas lights and decorations are going up all over town. I love all the green, the red, the shiny and the bright. Our German town founders did too. The tradition of putting up a Christmas tree goes back to 16th century Europe. Germanic-speaking Christians brought fresh-cut evergreens into their houses […]

The voice of Oscar Haas

By Tara V. Kohlenberg — Oscar Haas was well known as the historian and record-keeper of New Braunfels and Comal County. He documented a hundred years of our community’s progress through twenty years of newspaper articles and a published book. Now in its fourth printing, The History of New Braunfels and Comal County, Texas 1844-1946, […]

Fish Tales

By Keva Hoffmann Boardman, Sophienburg Curator I recently found photos of Alfred Selke in the Oscar Haas collection. In August 1926, Selke and several coworkers were walking around the grounds of the new Comal Power Supply Co. (LCRA). They caught what he described as a “lobster” in the millrace pond. The group gathered for photos […]