The first July 4 celebration in New Braunfels took place in 1845, just four months after the first emigrants crossed the Guadalupe into what would be the “Neu Heimat” (New home). A lot has happened historically since that first Independence celebration. For one thing, two statues were placed on the Main Plaza commemorating the men who fought in the Civil War and World War I. This is their story.

One statue located on the Main Plaza is called “Spirit of the American Doughboy”. Doughboy became a nickname for American soldiers in World War I and it stuck. No one knows where the name comes from but the term supposedly goes back long before the Civil War. In WWI both Americans and British soldiers were called Doughboys. Originally the term was not a compliment. Herman Melville in “Moby Dick” calls the cabin steward a doughboy suggesting a negative comparison to the sun burnt whalers and harpooners. Later the US Army cavalry looked down on the infantry calling them Doughboys, referring to the shape of the infantrymen’s buttons on their jackets that looked like dumplings .Whatever, it was not a compliment and mostly mocked the American infantryman. After WWI, Doughboy became a popular name for all American troops. This changed by WWII when American service men were called G.I.s or Yanks. Doughboys are now mostly associated with WWI.

Doughboy (we’ll call the statue that name) was placed on the Main Plaza in 1937 in observance of the 19th anniversary of the Armistice of WWI. It is in full uniform complete with pack, helmet, grenade and rifle. The granite base contains tree stumps and barbed wire. There it remained for 49 years until it was run over by an inebriated driver in 1986. The statue broke into five pieces, losing its head, both arms and half a leg. A clever Herald writer quipped “A farewell to arms”.

When the statue was knocked off of its rather large base, an unexpected tombstone was revealed on which the statue stood. It had an inscription on it: “T. Stokely M. Holmes, born Aug 21, 1828, died July 28, 1905. A kind affectionate husband, a fond father and a friend to all”. How this tombstone became part of the Doughboy is not known. Looking up that name in Ancestry.com, one finds this person buried in the Tuttle Cemetery in Guadalupe County: “Stokely M. Holmes, b Aug 21, 1828 and d July 28, 1905”. Obviously the Doughboy tombstone was rejected because it had incorrect information. It has rested under Doughboy since 1937.

Who was the sculptor of Doughboy? E.M. Viquesney was the sculptor of the cast zinc statue. He was a “chip off the old block” because his grandfather, Charles Alfred Viquesney was a stone carver in France who came to the US in 1842. Then Charles Alfred’s son, also Alfred, followed in his father’s trade with a stone carving business, making monuments and carvings of angels, crosses and other figures. These figurines were very popular as early decorations of gravesites. Viquesney, the sculptor of Doughboy, learned the business from his father.

Viquesney designed monuments at Clark’s Monument Works. He went on to design and sculpt many other memorials during his lifetime, too many to name here. They ranged from a Confederate War Memorial to his last sculpture in 1946 titled “Last of the Comrades”. All of his sculptures honored war heroes. Sadly, following completion of “Last of the Comrades”, Visquesney took his own life.

In 1921, the Doughboy sculptor won a national American Legion award for design. With the success of the Doughboy statue he received orders all over the United States for replicas. In Texas alone this Doughboy can be seen in Canyon, Crowell, Ft. Worth, Grosebeck, Lufkin, Sinton, Wichita Falls, Vernon, Texarkana and New Braunfels.

With this success, he produced 12 inch replicas of this statue. This is a common practice for sculptors and he sold as many as 25,000 of these miniatures. One of the miniatures was given by Viquesney to President Warren Harding and one was given to Gen. George Pershing. He also made lamps, and candleholders and incense burners in the shape of the statue .The last Doughboy statue was produced in 1942. I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if there was one of these miniatures in someone’s attic right here in New Braunfels.

Mr. and Mrs. E.A. Clousnitzer had originally presented money in 1937 to the local American Legion to purchase both the Doughboy statue and another statue placed on the south side of the Plaza called “To the Memory of our Fallen Soldiers of the Civil War 1861-65”, honoring all soldiers of that war. The statue actually honors both sides of the Civil War, the Confederacy and the Union, because both sides in this conflict in Comal County lost soldiers in that war.

Another move took place when New Braunfels was getting ready to celebrate its Sesquicentennial in 1996. After refurbishing both statue soldiers and replacing stolen guns, they were placed on the same side of Main Plaza and rededicated in 1997. Both statues are now on the north side of the Plaza. Does this placement seem a little confusing to you? This might help: Hermann Seele said that when Nicholas Zink was plotting out the streets of NB, he followed the wagon trails, more or less. If you go to Main Plaza with a compass, you will find that North and South Seguin actually go in a northwest and southeast direction and West and East San Antonio go in a southwest and northeast direction. I suggest that you just go down there and find the statues yourself.

When you go to downtown to see the Sophienburg’s July 4th Parade, make your acquaintance with these two statues and remember the ones they honor.

The Sophienburg July 4th celebration begins with the lineup of parade participants at 8:30 at the Sts. Peter & Paul parking lot. The Community Band plays on the Plaza at 8:34. Then a Commemorative Air Force fly-over should take place at 9:10, followed by the parade and program on the Plaza. Call 830-629-1572 for parade entry reservations.

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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 Christmas gift-giving. Of course, our purpose is also to help keep the doors open to the Museum and Archives. The event will be at the Civic Center from Friday, Nov. 22 through Sunday, Nov. 24.

There are some unexpected connections between Weihnachtsmarkt and the Civic Center. Stretch your imagination and see if you can guess the first connection.

Karl Matern

In 1844 when the first group of immigrants on the ship Johann Dethardt arrived in Galveston, there was a young man aboard named Karl Matern. He was typical of the single first emigrants looking for a new life. Early in March, Prince Carl went to San Antonio looking for land to buy and bought the Veramendi Tract (Comal Tract) from the Juan Veramendi heirs. Karl Matern accompanied Prince Carl on this trip. As a first founder of New Braunfels, Matern received Lot #63 from the Adelsverein, on which he built a log cabin without using nails. He had been trained in forestry in Germany.

A year later Matern attended a picnic in Austin County where he met his future wife, Ulrike Fuchs. After they married in 1853, the couple moved to land on the Colorado River in Burnet County where her family had settled. Matern was gone from New Braunfels and so was his little log cabin.

Now you have connection #1. Lot #63 is where the Civic Center now stands and I’m sure lots of nails were used in construction. In front of it is the statue of Prince Carl. This is where Weihnachtsmarkt will be held.

Alonzo Garwood

About the time the Matern left New Braunfels, a child, Alonzo Garwood, was born in Bastrop, Texas. He was destined to have a successful medical practice in New Braunfels. Dr. Garwood built a grand home on the corner of Seguin and Garden Sts. sometime in the mid-1920s. The lot number was #63. He married Irene Pfeuffer, the daughter of Senator Georg Johann Pfeuffer and Suzanah Gravis and two children were born to the couple – Lucille in 1885 and George in 1889.

After Irene’s death, Garwood married Bertha Harpstrite. When Dr. Garwood died in 1932, his widow lived in the house until her death.

After several owners, the property was purchased in 1969 by the City of New Braunfels, including most of the block, that included lot # 63.

Chamber of Commerce

Fast forward to an ad in the l00th Anniversary of the Neu Braunfelser Herald-Zeitung in 1952. This ad stated that the Chamber of Commerce began in 1920 when the town was a “neat little town” of 3,590 to almost 15,000 in 1952 (today’s population is at least six times that amount). In its infancy, NB had ideal living conditions, was favored by nature, and was strategically located in the heart of Texas. Originally called the Merchants Association, the Chamber of Commerce organization became the Board of City Development and eventually the Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce.

Now go way back in time. As long as commerce existed, traders grouped themselves together for protection and then eventually to set up rules of governing the conduct of trade. As a world-wide organization, the Chamber goes back to the end of the 17^th century in Marsaille, France when the city council formed an association of traders.

In the British Isles, it was in Glasgow, Edinburg, Manchester, and London in 1881. In Germany, Kaiser Wilhelm saw the advantages of such organizations for promoting trade. Its success spread over Germany.

The oldest Chamber of Commerce in America was formed in New York in 1768 and was chartered by King George of England and by 1870 there were 40 U.S. Chambers. Each was an association of tradesmen for promotion of the sale of goods. When businesses realized that their success depended on a healthy community, the Chamber of Commerce became a true community organization. That’s true of the New Braunfels Chamber. To attract new industries and to involve the community in governmental affairs on a local, state and federal level became major goals for Chamber programs.

Our Civic Center opened its doors in 1971. Most of the building is smack-dab in the middle of lot #63.

Weihnachtsmarkt

Now let’s get back to Weihnachtsmarkt. Eighty years ago the Sophienburg Museum and Archives was organized for the purpose of preserving the unique history of New Braunfels and Comal County. Weihnachtsmarkt began in 1989 as a primary fund raiser.

The Civic Center was the location of the event. During the expansion of the Civic Center, Weihnachtsmarkt was held as a one year event in the Wursthalle. Although the atmosphere was charming using huge murals of Germany, the event returned to the new Civic Center in 2008. More geared to this type of event, Weihnachtsmarkt has been there ever since.

The sounds and smells of Weihnachtsmarkt will put you in the mood for the holidays. Sophie’s Kaffee Shop gives you an opportunity to eat and rest in between shopping. There is so much variety in the shopping and if you want to experience old world Christmas charm, come to Weihnachtsmarkt.

Letter to Prince Carl:

Dear Prince Carl,

Perhaps you can be with us in spirit at Weihnachtsmarkt. We think you would like what we have done at Sophie’s Castle on the hill. We will use the money we make at Weinhachtsmarkt to keep alive the history of the community you helped found.

Sincerely,
The Sophienburg Museum and Archives

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It did not surprise me to find out that Harry Landa was the first president of the Comal County Fair Association. In those early days before the turn of the century, his name appears over and over for new projects, new industry, innovative ideas, and most of them succeeded. He would have gotten the Chamber of Commerce’s Besserung Award.

Here’s how the Comal County Fair began: The editor of the Neu Braunfelser Zeitung, Anselm Eiband, (the second editor after Lindheimer) asked the question in an editorial, “Why don’t we have a fair here in New Braunfels when towns like Fredericksburg and Lockhart have one?”

An opportunity arose, as it so often does. The newly built Krankenhaus (hospital) needed money, so they decided to have a fair on their lot (corner of Zink and Seguin Sts.) during their dedication Sept. 30, 1892. It was a huge success.

Shortly thereafter, a group of civic-minded men met in the courthouse and formed the Comal County Fair Association. They elected Harry Landa to be president, so in 1893 they set the date for the fair to be in November on Landa’s pasture.

“No Rain, No Fair” screamed the newspaper headline. That first fair was called off because of a drought. In other words, too much dust for everything that was going to happen, livestock and horse races. The fair was postponed for a year.

That first fair in 1894 was a huge success according to the newspaper, and I’m sure Harry Landa relished in that success. For that matter, he rented the pasture to them to have four more years of fairs until they bought their own land.

Harry Landa became interested in horses although he admitted that he knew nothing about them. He bought a string of standard bred trotters. In the bunch was a magnificent dark brown stallion that he said he appropriately named “Bankrupt”. He not only spent a lot of money on this new venture, but he decided to dress the part himself as a racehorse owner. He bought a white plug hat (bowler), a loud checkered suit, gaudy shirt and tie with an immense Hot Springs diamond on the tie. To top off this outfit, he put a cigar in his mouth twice the ordinary size.

Possibly this new interest in horses had something to do with his interest in forming a fair association. Before the New Braunfels races, Landa decided to try out his horses at other tracks: Austin, Baylor, Waco and in all these races his trainer sent word that the horse was either lame, cast a shoe, or couldn’t be seen for the dust. Now came the New Braunfels Fair. By this time, Landa’s desire to be a big time racehorse owner had reached an all-time low. Landa’s brother, Morris, traded his horses for him for 30 carloads of hay and then sold the hay for $1,030 . This was the end of Harry Landa’s racehorse adventures.

Here is a little bit about the Landa family and how they came to own the property later known as Landa Park:

Joseph Landa, Harry’s father, ran away from his home in Germany to escape his father’s desire that he become a Rabbi. Working his way to England, he saved enough money to buy his steerage passage to America. He arrived in New York and after a few jobs, he bought a horse and loaded down a wagon with merchandise. He made his way to Texas selling his goods and arrived in San Antonio in 1844. Here he opened a little store and three years later rode his mule to NB and opened up a store on the corner of San Antonio St. and Castell Ave. now occupied by the Phoenix Saloon. Source: (Harry Landa, “As I Remember”)

He would make an annual trip to New York to replenish his stock where he met and married Helena Friedlander. She was 16, he was 41. In New Braunfels they stayed in the Millett Boarding House (where the CC Courthouse now stands). Right behind this boarding house Joseph and Helena bought the property adjoining it on the Plaza. For 75 years, members of the family lived in the beautiful Victorian home, a real showcase.

By 1862, Joseph was a prosperous merchant, owned a gristmill, owned the Comal Springs and the surrounding areas. He owned a cotton gin, a sawmill, a flour mill and a store. Then in 1896, Joseph Landa died. Harry and his mother, consequently carried on the various businesses in NB. This successful business partnership of Harry Landa and his mother bought small river frontages on the Comal River until they owned the entire stream on both sides.

A large contribution to the city was Harry Landa’s establishment of the Landa Electric Light and Power Co. Electricity for street lights would be furnished to the city at the rate of $1.50 a light a month. Soon everyone wanted electricity.

In 1927, Landa sold the entire estate including the park in compliance with the will of his mother, which called for liquidating and dividing the estate ten years after her death. The property was purchased by an investment company, suffered reverses during the depression years, and the park was closed with barbed wire surrounding the property until 1936, when the City of New Braunfels finally bought the area of Landa Park.

This week in all the excitement of the fair, let’s give a little thought to the guy that brought us Landa Park, electricity, and of course, spearheaded the Comal County Fair.

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Photos: July 4, 2013, Parade and Program

By Myra Lee Adams Goff

It is fitting that the Sophienburg Museum and Archives sponsor the Fourth of July parade and celebration here in downtown New Braunfels.

Prince Carl chose the little hill on which the Sophienburg Museum is located to build a fortress to oversee and defend New Braunfels. When he came to Texas in 1844, he brought two cannons made in Victoria. Those cannons and other guns would protect the immigrants, he said. The guns were kept in a warehouse on the grounds of the Sophienburg to be distributed when needed. The warehouse was called the magazine, hence Magazine Blvd.

The two cannons were to be set up at an appropriate point near the magazine. The Prince felt that in case of an attack the cannons could “sweep the streets with cannon shots and the enemy could be cleaned out.” Can you imagine it? These two cannons were originally set up at the east and west entrances to the Zinkenburg, the site above the Comal Creek where the Sts. Peter and Paul Church is now located.

In the New Braunfelser Jahrbuch, years later, the then mayor, C.A. Jahn, wrote that the two cannons rested for many years on the slope of the Sophienburg Hill. He says that before the Civil War, the cannons were used in Fourth of July celebrations as well as anniversaries. They would shoot one cannon, wait a few minutes, and then shoot the other cannon, giving the two to three-inch cast iron walls time to cool. He remembers seeing one cannon catapult down the hill as a result of firing it too early. Jahn also remembers hearing that one cannon blew to bits as a result of firing it in quick succession, scattering parts everywhere. This was in celebration of the end of the Civil War.

The other cannon was taken to Comaltown to be part of the 25^th anniversary in 1870 and was shot many times. It was placed on the banks of the Comal near Clemens Dam. It was shot once in 1876 at sunrise during the Centennial Fourth of July Celebration. That celebration is claimed to be the most elaborate of all Fourth celebrations.

There were many stories as to what happened to the remaining cannon. In a 1980 Reflections Program, Carlo Fischer claimed to have the real story of the missing cannon. He claims that in 1894 his father, Emil Fischer, Harry Galle, Adolph Henne, and Emil Gerlich decided to shoot the cannon to “put a little life in the town”. The cannon was located on the banks of the Comal. These three young men forced too heavy a charge of gun powder into the old cannon and inadvertently blew it up. For more on this story, see my column on Sophienburg.com, July 8, 2008.

In this year’s parade, the Sons of Confederate Veterans will enter a small float decorated with two flags – one, an 1862 Confederate flag, and the other, an 1862 United States flag. They are bringing a cannon, but don’t worry, it’s not a resurrected one, nor are they going to shoot it. This cannon is a replica that was used by NB Confederate leader, Gus Hoffmann. Hoffmann, by the way, was the first elected mayor of New Braunfels. (June, 1847 to March, 1848)

The Civil War’s 150^th Anniversary has been commemorated all year and the Sophienburg has just taken down its year-long Civil War exhibit.

The first year that the emigrants were here, only four months had passed before the Fourth of July rolled around and Texas was still a Republic. The first actual celebration was after Texas became a state of the United States in February, 1846.

Dr. Ferdinand Roemer in his book “Texas” says that the 1846 Fourth of July was celebrated in New Braunfels by hoisting a large American flag on the Verein building and a formal banquet was held to which officers of the Verein and a number of dignitaries of the city were invited. The year before, Prince Carl strung up an Austrian flag on the Verein building and downtown at the same time a group of men hoisted a flag of the Republic of Texas. Flags have always sent a very strong message and that was a strong one.

As always, the bigger an event gets, the more rules you have to have. There are some new rules: For this year, you must reserve a spot to enter the parade by submitting an entry at which time you will get a line-up number. Entries must be approved as to the type of vehicle. No trucks bigger than F350 pulling 16’ Trailer. No objects may be thrown by participants, no commercial entries or political entries. Find the application on the Sophienburg.com website or come by the Sophienburg. 830-629-1572.

For those watching the parade, the Community Band begins performing at the Main Plaza bandstand at 8:45. The parade begins at 9:15 from Sts. Peter and Paul Church parking lot, goes down Castell St., turns left on San Antonio St., continues around Main Plaza, turns onto Seguin St. after the Courthouse and disbands at Seguin & Mill Sts. At 10:00 o’clock, the patriotic program on Main Plaza begins and it traditionally lasts about half an hour. There will be special music and remarks by City and County officials. See you downtown!

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A Texas Historical Marker honoring Eiband & Fischer store is being cast at the foundry in San Antonio, soon to be installed at the site of the one-time famous mercantile store. You or your family may remember this store if you were in New Braunfels before 1959.

The big store on Main Plaza burned down in 1947 but limped along with what was left, trying to survive. When it was just a hole in the ground, Wurstfest inhabited it from 1963 to 1966. During that time it became a joyful place to be, with music and lights and fun. But it was an eyesore downtown the rest of the year. Finally the property was sold in 1969 to local investors and eventually to NBU.

At first a store owned by Gustavus Conrads was located on this spot on the Plaza and in 1864 he sold it to Ernst Sherff. Sherff enlarged the store, even adding a campground out back for those who came to town from the country. This store was bought by George Knoke and George Eiband and became Knoke & Eiband.

In 1907 the store was sold to Ernst Eiband (brother of George) and Emil Fischer. Eiband and Fischer opened a modern establishment in 1910. Their beautiful modern building sported a skylight in the middle of the roof and a grand staircase to the mezzanine. An interesting thing about the mezzanine is that gift items and fine clothing were located there. For some reason, the clientele would not go up the beautiful stairs for purchases. Soon after the opening, these gift items were moved to the basement. Apparently people would walk down but not up.

The fateful fire happened March 2, 1947. Beginning in the basement, the fire raged undetected during the night until the early morning hours when a salesman called on Naegelin’s Bakery next door and noticed smoke. But by this time the damage was done. The cause is still unknown but there was speculation of a defective small motor in the grocery department. The basement was also where hunting goods, guns, and ammunition were sold and when the fire reached this stash, there was quite a racket that could be heard for miles.

A small part of the store was spared because it was separated from the main building by an alley-way. This is the part of the store that became the “after fire store”. It managed to stay open until 1959.

For 16 years the hole gaped with only a wooden enclosure at ground level for safety reasons. In 1975 after the Wurstfest years (63-66), the city bought the remaining business building and the burned-out corner. San Antonio Public Service had their offices on the San Antonio St. corner since 1929. The basement was filled in and became a parking lot.

I remember the inside of the store before the fire. First, outside on the sidewalks were glass blocks embedded in concrete giving light to the basement. Enter the front door on Seguin St. to the main floor. There in the front of the store were women’s clothing and on the right side were men’s clothing and all shoes. In the back of this floor was the grocery store. On the mezzanine was the cashier’s office that controlled the “cash caddies” that carried cash up and down on wire cables. The basement held the china and crystal.

Behind this building was the annex housing a cotton exchange. Upstairs in the annex was a dance hall used for dance lessons and functions. The camp yard was in the back extending to Comal Street. Farm equipment and feed were sold there. There were outhouses, horse stalls, and places for farmers to park their wagons and spend the night. Way in the back of this area was a statue of J.I. Case eagle on top of the world, a logo of that tractor company. Some may remember this.

The Sophienburg has quite a few items from before the fire. One is a collection of books called the Eiband & Fischer Cookbooks. Written in German, recipes were thought to be by the Women’s Civic Improvement Club. The first edition was in 1915. Here’s a sample of some of the recipes: Roasted Flour Soup (good for the sick), Beer soup, Turtle Soup, Wine Soup with Snow Dumplings, Blood Sausage, Meat in Beer, and the old favorites, noodles, sweetbreads, Koch-Käse. Yum! Roll out the barrel.

Marijane Stafford has spent years researching Eiband & Fischer store. She is a direct descendant of the Fischer family. Her father was Carlo Fischer, the last family member to own the store. Placement of the historical marker will once again remind us of the mercantile store that it used to be.

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Are you one who thinks that John Meusebach led the group that founded Fredericksburg up Fredericksburg Road, out Highway 46 and then straight on to Fredericksburg? I know that’s what I thought, but it’s not true.

I ran across evidence that this more recent pathway from New Braunfels to Fredericksburg wasn’t the way the group traveled. I enlisted directional help in interpreting Dr. Ferdinand Roemer’s description of the early 1840s route from retired TxDOT archaeologist Al McGraw. Roemer states that there was only one possible road to Fredericksburg from New Braunfels due to the accessibility of water for the animals and because of geographic conditions for wagons.

The road ran in a southwesterly direction from NB toward Fredericksburg just past the Cibolo along the Old San Antonio Road. The route includes a portion of old Nacogdoches Road that is designated as a National Historic Trail of the Camino Real. At this point it takes a straight northwesterly course intersecting and then following an old Indian trail running northward from San Antonio called the Pinto Trail (Pinta). The route continues to the valley of the Salado and then to a higher elevation and several miles above this point to Meusebach’s Comanche Springs. One would then descend into the Guadalupe valley to the banks of the Guadalupe River near modern Sisterdale where wagons could cross. Finally, travel to a high, broad plateau and continue north to Fredericksburg.

The route has few rough places or steep inclines, and is free of swamp and muddy river crossings. Apparently the Adelsverein helped maintain this route, as Roemer notes that he met a crew of 20 Adelsverein men working on the road near the Salado.

After resigning from the Adelsverein, Meusebach settled at Comanche Springs (now in the vicinity of Camp Bullis), established a livestock operation and an inn. The date is thought to be before 1852. Later when the route to Fredericksburg changed to the north, Meusebach sold his land at Comanche Springs and moved to Loyal Valley on Cherry Springs near Fredericksburg.

Today if you would travel the same general route, you would take Hwy. 482 from NB, continue on the Nacogdoches Road towards San Antonio, go past Rolling Oaks Mall, turn west onto 1604 and then take IH10 towards Fredericksburg.

Texas early roads often followed Indian trails. Some people think that these trails were created by long 12 foot tent poles dragged behind horses as they moved their tents from one spot to another. When the Spanish explorers moved into Texas, they reported seeing large herds of wild animals roaming the trails. The Spanish brought horses of Arabian stock and mustangs were their descendants. With time, the Comanche in particular had mastered the mustang for traveling the trails. Later, the Caminos were roadways blazed by expeditions connecting towns and missions.

When Comal County was created in 1846, the Commissioners Court had the power to lay out new roads and discontinue old ones. The court appointed local overseers to supervise maintenance of the roads. It required all able-bodied males between 21 and 45 to perform road duties several days a year. Also all people convicted of misdemeanors and those who owed unpaid fines were compelled to work out the amount in roadwork.

Laurie Jasinski in her book “Hill Country Backroads”about the origin of Comal County roads, stated that the commissioners declared Seguin and San Antonio Sts. to be the first highway roads in the county. By the latter 1800s some established routes were Smithsons Valley-Boerne Rd., Cranes Mill Rd., Bear Creek Rd .,Boerne-San Antonio Rd., Purgatory Rd., and Mountain Valley Rd.

By the turn of the century, in the United States, two million miles of roads stretched across the country, but most were pitted rocky trails or soggy mud-holes. Jasinski found that in 1895, there were four autos registered in the US, and by 1899, three thousand.

In 1907, Harry Landa was one of the earliest auto owners. Change was taking place. As more autos were being purchased, local merchants converted the farmer wagon yards to parking lots. Hitching posts were removed.

Around 1910, crews improved city streets by a process of graveling called macadamizing, which was a process of packing down the roads with layers of progressively smaller rocks until the top layer consisted of crushed stones called screening, no larger than two inches in diameter. The roads caused so much dust that a sprinkling cart had to sprinkle down the roads every day.

View Larger Map

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In the next column we will look at how touring cars contributed to the tourist industry and Joe Sanders helped that happen.

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Would you like to know what was on the property on which our present Comal County Courthouse sits? If so, read on.

When Nicholas Zink laid out the town of New Braunfels, with its main plaza and streets leading to it, he was given the town lot #32 by the Adelsverein for his efforts. Town lot #32 is the lot on which our present courthouse is built. Zink built a house on this lot in 1845. In 1847, the year that Zink and his first wife were divorced, he began selling his property in New Braunfels and eventually left altogether.

Zink sold lot #32 to Samuel Millet dated January 21st, 1847, who used the house as a hotel. Millet, in turn, sold the house in 1852 to Dan Wheeler and Wheeler sold it to Karl Floege in 1866. (Source: County Clerk’s office, book A, deeds p. 35) The family moved to a farm outside of Seguin.

Samuel Millet who was originally from Maine has a Texas Historical Marker at his gravesite in Guadalupe County. It states that he had come to Texas in 1827 and died in 1863. Records show his birth as 1801. He came to Texas as a member of Stephen F. Austin’s colony. During the Texas Revolution, he took part in the battle of San Jacinto.

In 1833, he married Clementina Bartlett and they had nine children. She was also with Austin’s colony and from Tennessee. She married her teacher, Samuel Millett, who was a graduate of Bowdoin College. Family tradition claims that Clementina at age 90 could recall early history of the Republic and those who were instrumental in its founding.

Harry Landa, in his memoirs “As I Remember” writes that his father, Joseph Landa, made this statement about the hotel: “Old lady Millett, mother of the well-known cattleman, Alonzo Millett, was operating a boarding house at the corner where the Comal County Courthouse now stands. The Landas boarded for a few months at Mrs. Millett’s establishment until they bought the adjoining property on the Plaza”.

Alonzo Millett, one of Samuel Millett’s sons, made a name for himself in the ranching business. In “The Traildrivers of Texas”, Alonzo Millett is described as spending his boyhood days in Bastrop County and Seguin where he attended school. When the Civil War broke out, he and his brothers volunteered in the Confederate army. Alonzo was only 16 and his twin brother, Leonidas, was killed. After the war, the surviving brothers returned to Texas and over the years that followed, gained wealth by accumulating ranches in several states. “Misfortune came and their wealth was swept away”.(Traildrivers…)  Alonzo persevered and when he died, he owned a large ranch in San Juan Valley, Colorado. He was killed by being thrown by a horse and then buried in San Antonio. Thirty-five miles south of San Antonio was a small settlement named “Millett” after Alonzo. Many local and Seguin Milletts are descendants of Alonzo Millett and his wife, Arlene Wilson Millett.

Now back to the present courthouse: Early on, Comal County conducted its business in rented rooms, then to a privately owned building on Seguin St. (Elks parking lot). In 1860 the first two-story courthouse was built on the corner occupied by Chase Bank. In 1999 the present courthouse celebrated its 100th birthday. (For more information about this courthouse, log on to Sophienburg.com, Jan. 20, 2009)

Our present courthouse was originally designed to sit in the middle of the Main Plaza with four easy accesses. When that plan fell through, the present location was chosen. The jail was added later, obscuring two entrances and another closed to add more office space. When this present restoration is complete, the original four entrances will once again be usable.

Nothing is left of the Millett Hotel, as the building was torn down shortly before the new courthouse was started. Behind the present courthouse where a parking area was located by the jail, a water well was discovered. The Texas Historic Commission evaluated the dry well and said that it pre-dated the Courthouse.  The well would have been in the right spot for use by the hotel. It was recently filled in with sand to protect its integrity and to prevent a cave-in. The last remnant of an era.

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What’s happening to the old house at 230 W. Mill St? I found out. Jeff and Denise Mund have bought the old Georg Pfeuffer house and they are restoring it. Records show that this is the sixth time that there have been major additions and renovations.

Ownership of the lot on which the house stands was conveyed to Johann Georg Pfeuffer in 1852 and it is assumed that the house was built shortly thereafter. It is one of the early houses in New Braunfels built with fachwerk walls, a custom brought from German architecture. One can see fachwerk construction in present day Germany. Casement windows with unique latches can be seen upstairs. Hand-hewn cedar beams throughout the house and wide cedar beams were used in the ceiling. The full basement contained the kitchen and has a brick floor. In the downstairs area are two original black walnut doors, a wood that was plentiful along the banks of the Guadalupe.

Johann Georg Pfeuffer was born in 1799 in Bavaria. He married Barbett (Barbara) Broschel in 1829 and six children were born to the couple.

Pfeuffer was a tanner and owned several tanneries in Germany. He was quite a prosperous businessman. The children were all educated and servants tended to their needs.

The family does not know why in 1845 Pfeuffer sold all his tanneries, uprooted his family, and signed up with the German Emigration Company to come to Texas. They were among the second group of emigrants and arrived in Galveston in November of 1845. From there the family took a schooner to Indianola.

A near tragedy occurred when they were put on an overloaded schooner. It sank in the bay outside of Indianola. The lives of the family were saved but most of their possessions were lost. Now they were virtually penniless and were stranded on the coast along with the hundreds of other emigrants. They didn’t arrive in New Braunfels until 1848. The 1850 Comal County census lists Georg as 51, Barbett as 44, Valentine as 18, Christopf as 16, Daniel as 12, Barbette as 9, and Anna Marie as 6. The oldest son, also named George, was 20 years old and wasn’t listed in this census. He was known to have moved to Corpus Christi at the time.

Sometime between 1852 and 1860, the elder Georg Pfeuffer began a tannery in the basement of his home on Mill St.( Source: “Texas and Texans”,1914 translation). Inquiring about the process of tanning, I asked Al Ludwig, the g-g grandson of Georg Pfeuffer and owner of Ludwig Leather Co. on Seguin Street. He said that the process was done by soaking the hide in tannin extracted from oak trees to produce leather that was soft and durable. The word Tanne is an old German word for oak or pine trees (hence the word Tannenbaum). How did this family survive with the tannery in the basement?

Family records state that Georg Pfeuffer was very opinionated about the politics of the day. He signed the petition in Comal County calling for secession. Four sons fought in the Civil War.

About that time the young Georg Pfeuffer returned to New Braunfels from Corpus. This Pfeuffer son became the most prominent in the family, as he was a Texas Senator and responsible for the capitol in Austin being constructed of Texas Granite. Later he became president of Texas A&M College. To read more about him, log on to Sophienburg.com Nov. 26, 2008.

Johann Georg Pfeuffer (Sr.) died in 1886. Thereafter the house was conveyed to the Baetge family. In 1942 Arthur Baetge as executor of the Baetge estate sold the house to Annie Lehman who, in turn, conveyed it to her son Leroy Lehman in 1954.

Leroy Lehman and his wife Agnes raised one son and four daughters in this home. Some changes were made to the home to accommodate their growing family. The August Koch map of 1881 shows the house without the side porch that the Lehmanns added. Ernest Lehman, son of the Leroy Lehmans, recently brought the original pillars to the Munds.

The City of New Braunfels designated the house as a historic landmark. All of us in New Braunfels benefit from restoration projects like the Munds have taken on.

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An outstanding early citizen of New Braunfels and one who contributed much to the culture of the community was a man named Stefan Haelbig. Haelbig organized many of the early musical groups and was the music instructor of hundreds of children and adults alike in voice as well as musical instruments. He generally made music a big part of the community. His studio was moved to Conservation Plaza and open for all to see.

Stefan Haelbig emigrated to New Braunfels from Germany through Indianola in 1868 at age 40. His obituary states that he worked in the woolen mills and resided at the Waisenhaus (orphanage) for a year and a half, giving music instruction from there. He instructed piano, French horn, cello, violin, cornet, clarinet and voice.

Haelbig had received extensive musical training in Germany. He had been the bandmaster of a Regimental band in the Austrian Army, and had played Wagnerian (Richard Wagner) music while Wagner himself was the conductor. With a few local musicians, he was able to put together an orchestra to perform the finest of classical music. Those local musicians were listed as Father Blum, Hermann Schimmelpfennig, Mr. Wenzel, Bose and Eberhard. They, however, were amateurs but Haelbig exhibited the greatest patience and persistence, thereby guiding them into playing the classics. Many fine musical events were held in the old Matzdorff’s Halle and Seele’s Halle on the Guadalupe. Concerts were also held at the Seekatz Opera House, featuring the Haelbig orchestra and selected singers.

Not only in instrumental music was he a leader, but also in vocal music. He founded and became leader of the Maennerchor and Concordia Mixed Chorus. He organized the New Braunfels Music Club and its orchestra. Mrs. Lottie Faust was the pianist for this orchestra. In addition he gave lessons several times a week in San Antonio.

When Haelbig was 83, a celebration was given in his honor. Joseph Faust and A.C. Coers told of his abilities and called him the soul of music in New Braunfels. They raised their glasses and gave a toast, “Er lebe hoch, Er lebe hoch, Er lebe hoch”.When the glass was raised, the salute was given in this manner, showing high admiration The literal translation is “He lives high”.

Before being moved to Conservation Plaza, Haelbig’s studio was located on Seguin Street. After he vacated it, the building became Voigt’s Shoe Repair and that’s how I remember it. There was after all a time when people had their leather shoes repaired instead of replaced. Putting on a new sole or a new heel could add years more service to a shoe. The building was moved to Conservation in the early 1980s and the lot became the site of Pizza Hut and is now Taqueria El Tapatio.

There are some interesting things inside the Haelbig studio at Conservation Plaza. You would expect a piano, although it is not Haelbig’s. Paul Jahn’s cello stands up against the wall. Al Schnabel’s trumpet, the “wiggle and wobble with Al Schnabel” orchestra leader and student of Haelbig. There are pictures of former students, names familiar from the past like: Bading, Fischer, Gerlich, Gruene, Heidrich, Naegelin, Marckwardt, Koebig, Jahn, Oelkers, Voelcker, Coreth, Altgelt, Schultz .There is a tiny trumpet, no longer than 8 inches called a piccolo trumpet. Used in classical music, this instrument plays tones higher than a regular trumpet.

Remember that Haelbig once played Wagnerian music in Germany with Richard Wagner as conductor? Hanging on the wall are three pictures from the operas, “Ring of the Nibelung”, a collection of fantasy-filled operas of Norse Mythology. The first picture is the Rhine Maidens, the second is Siegfried Slaying the Dragon, and the last is Brunhilde, all characters from the four Ring operas. Glorifying ancient war heroes in mythology, Wagner operas became controversial at different times in history.

Stefan Haelbig died at age 90. His obituary ends with, “Here in the beautiful city of New Braunfels, he made an impression which is more beautiful and more lasting than any monument of marble – the love and appreciation of music”. Er lebe hoch, hoch, hoch!

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The Zuehl Family Book at the Sophienburg contains a rather well-known story to local historians. It was written by Wilhelm Zuehl when he was in his 70s as he recalled coming to Texas with his family as an 18-year-old in 1846. His family was on a brig going from Galveston to Indianola.

When the brig would get stuck on a sand bar, the 60 emigrants would have to run from one side of the ship to the other until the vessel was again buoyant.

They landed at Indianola at the time when “northers” were making life miserable and cholera was rampant. Freezing rain tore apart their makeshift tent. The family was stuck on the beach, as there were no means of transportation. Wilhelm and his brother Fritz took on a temporary job aboard an English surveying vessel. Six weeks later when they returned to Indianola, their parents had left for New Braunfels, leaving instructions for the boys to make their way.

A young man named Adam Wuest was delivering mail from New Braunfels to Indianola and told the boys that they could come along with him on his return trip. Fritz left the two at Peach Creek and Wuest and Wilhelm finally arrived in New Braunfels in the middle of the night. Wuest had a small one room house without room for Wilhelm so Mrs. Wuest made him a bed of cedar logs and he slept out in the street.

This spot where the Wuest house was located on Seguin St. later became the site of the Homann Saddlery and finally the location of the subject of this article, the New Braunfels Coffee Company (across from Naegelin’s Bakery).

If Wilhelm Zuehl could have looked into the future, he would have seen what became of that property; a saddlery and eventually a two story building in which Otto Vogel operated a coffee company.

In 1921, brothers Arthur and Gilbert Zipp purchased the New Braunfels Coffee Co. from Vogel. The business moved in 1940 to the corner of 315 W. San Antonio St. next to the railroad track. The New Braunfels Coffee Company ended its business in the basement of the San Antonio St. building, finally closing forever in 1950.

Coffee beans were purchased in 100 lb. bags from Brazil, Columbia, and Mexico and roasted in a large steel tumbler. Then the beans were ground and sold in one and two pound bags. Their Model A truck delivered the coffee to local merchants and restaurants like Ma’s Café, Reimer Grocery, and Valley Fruit Stand. At its height, the company sold 60,000 pounds a month.

The Zipp brothers sold their 100 percent pure coffee under the name “Zipp’s fancy Peaberry” and “Rio”. Then in 1933 they decided to have a contest to name their new blend of coffee. One could enter the contest by filling in a blank enclosed in every package of coffee. Karl Zipp, son of Gilbert has a metal box containing the entries – 385 of them. And the winner was Mrs. Adolph Forke with “Cup-O’Joy”. She won a ten dollar gold coin. Don’t laugh; think of how much that gold coin would be worth today.

Here are some of the entries that attracted my attention, not necessarily good, but interesting:
Remember it was 1933, so some had political connotations like: “Depression”, “Roosevelt”, “New Deal”, “Daily Need”, “Roosevelt’s Prosperity” and “Liberty Bell”.

Others were “Beatsall”, “Howazat Coffee”, “Want More”, “Zipp’s Super Stimulant”, “10 Shun Please”, “Talk of the Table”, “Zipper”, “Zipperior”, and “Wake Up”.

In their heyday, the Zipps had quite an advertising campaign. In 1939, Zipp’s Cup O’ Joy was sent to Gov. W. Lee O’Daniel when the 133rd Field Artillery Band from NB went to Austin to give a concert in honor of the governor. At Gruene Hall, one can still see a sign advertising “Zipp’s Cup-O’Joy” and “Peaberry Coffee” on the left side of the dance floor. Now I think I’ll have a “Cup-O’Joy”, thank you.

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