The German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country eBook Jefferson Morgenthaler
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The Texas Hill Country is the sweet spot of Texas. Rolling hills covered with oak and cedar enclose flat, green bottoms coursed by prolific spring-fed creeks and rivers. Deer, wild turkey and fox inhabit the forests and venture into the fields at dusk. Four distinct but moderate seasons reinforce the cycles of life.
Geographically, the Hill Country is the rippling eastern portion of the Edwards Plateau. It is bordered to the west by less convoluted stretches of the plateau, to the south by the Balcones Escarpment, and to the north by rolling plains and prairies that extend to the base of the Llano Estacado. The Colorado River, curving from the west to the south and draining to the Gulf, is a reasonable but inexact definition of the eastern boundary.
The Hill Country is not especially high its maximum elevation is around fifteen hundred feet above the sea and much of it lies below one thousand feet. Like the remainder of the Edwards Plateau, the Hill Country has a thin layer of soil over Comanchean limestone. This same limestone underpins the High Plains of Texas; despite the ripples in the Hill Country, the plateau is considered the southernmost unit of the Great Plains.
Cotton and other crops have been raised in the Hill Country, but the scant local soil lends itself more to grazing. Cattle do well where soils are deepest and forage is greatest. Sheep are the livestock of choice as soils and flora thin; goats are the best alternative as hillsides become rockier and grasses turn into browse.
It may be limestone that most characterizes the Hill Country. Subsurface aquifers flow through limestone, making the waters exceptionally hard. Houses are built of limestone blocks. Long limestone fences divide fields. They’ve been quarrying limestone out of the face of the Balcones Escarpment for more than a century and, while the resulting scars are far from attractive, they’ve barely made a dent in the supply of stone. Limestone makes the spring-fed creeks and rivers of the Hill Country run clear and cool. The most beautiful streams—the Guadalupe River and Cibolo Creek, for example—are lined with towering cypress trees that thrust immense roots into the cool current.
During the decades of Spanish Texas, Mexican Texas and the Republic of Texas, the Hill Country was unsettled; it was too remote, and too thoroughly in control of Lipan Apaches, and later Peneteka Comanches. The Spanish attempted to establish the Presidio de San Luis de las Amarillas and the Mission Santa Cruz de San Saba (near today’s Menard) in 1757, but the mission was abandoned within two years and the presidio within fifteen. Between that time and the mid-nineteenth century, only bold explorers and military expeditions penetrated north of the Balcones Escarpment.
The first significant influx of settlers into the Hill Country began in 1845, when German immigrants founded the town of New Braunfels, then moved north to establish Fredericksburg. These immigrants arrived under the auspices of a quasi-charitable organization known as the Adelsverein. Even today it is not uncommon to come across someone in the Hill Country whose ancestors arrived in Texas aboard ships chartered in Germany by the Adelsverein. The impact of organized German colonization has lingered in the Hill Country for more than 150 years.
The German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country eBook Jefferson Morgenthaler
I recently moved to New Braunfels, Texas and wanted to learn about the unique history of the area which has as much the flavor of Germany as any place in the country. A kindle search surfaced this title and I jumped in. And, boy, did I learn about the German settlement of Texas! Moreover I learned a lot about the US at this time in our history. I do not know how the author was able to find so much detail on so many people and events, but he did, and then some. I almost know what the families ate for breakfast on Tuesday. There is almost too much detail, which often derails one's interest, but if you want to know the what, why, and how of this strange part of our history, this is a great reference.Product details
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The German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country eBook Jefferson Morgenthaler Reviews
Well-researched and well-written. Would be especially interesting to those descended from the Germans who immigrated to Texas under the auspices of the Adelsverein in the 1840's. Concentrates more on Kendall County history than Gillespie County.
Very detailed , good book
This book told of the trials and tribulations of the Germans settling in the central part of Texas. The book leaves you with a better understanding of the areas of Texas where the Germans had a greater influence. The German organization, Adelsverein, helped sponsor the settlers. I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to know more about the early days of the Texas Hill Country region.
Since I was raised in the Hill Country it was very interesting of how the area was settled. I have ancestors in New Braunfels, Kendalia, and Fredericksburg area. The book was very informative.
BOOK REVIEW
by Walter Danley
German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country by Jefferson Morgenthaler - edition, Published 2011 by Mockingbird Books
Since I am new to Boerne (and to Texas, for that matter) I stay on high alert for any book that will educate me about the history of my new home. I found a gem that is well worth sharing with my Boerne neighbors!
German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country by our own Jefferson Morgenthaler is a work of exceptional importance to those who live in the Hill Country, the sweet spot of Texas. Jeff's non-fiction account of the story of the founders begins in 1845 with the first wave of German immigrants. These émigrés founded New Braunfels, with subsequent settlers moving on to establish Fredericksburg and the other towns of the Hill Country.
Morgenthaler makes history come alive in his telling of the individuals who struggled to build these communities. He examines, in fascinating detail, each element of their world; from the German fatherland's politics and economy that instigated migration, the trials of travel, the hardships overcome of disease and weather, the faith, and traditions kept sacred by those who came. Morgenthaler explores the conflicts with native Indians, the reasons they left everything and risked coming to these shores, and in the telling, Jeff puts a human face on those pioneers. He does this in such a way that each character becomes a person you may have known.
Much in the style of historian David McCullough, Morgenthaler's writing is personal and insightful. Making that history live and be significant for today, marking the path that those earlier men and woman fashioned which leads to our doorsteps; this is a talent that only a few great authors demonstrate. Morgenthaler tells this sweeping, fascinating story with power and intimacy, bringing us into the lives of remarkable men and woman.
Morgenthaler's epic - it is a 9 hour read - follows are forefathers through the significant history of Texas and that of her component counties. Throughout the book Morgenthaler draws comparisons to cause and effect that we live with today. He ends the tale with a report of the last days and demise of the central characters, putting each in their final identified resting place.
I highly recommend German Settlement of the Texas Hill Country for the joy of entertainment in addition to the knowledge of our past which it intelligently delivers. You will be glad that you experienced this brilliant work of literature.
The German settlement began in 1845, and this book covers through 1865, the end of the US Civil War. The 1830s were an unsettled time in Germany, and a German charity, called Adelsverein, was organized by some wealthy citizens. to move German citizens who were will to go to Texas. Eventually over 5,000 people came through the Adelsverein.
The area selected was what is called the Hill Country, and the settlements started centered on New Braunfels and then Frederickersberg.
I found it interesting that there was even a New Harmony Indiana commune style community called Betttina, which only lasted for one year as could be expected. As with New Harmony and the original Pilgrims, when everything is joint in ownership and work, everyone works as little as possible, and ensures that he receives the maximum from the work of others.
Interesting stories of the struggles to get the people moved from the landing spot on the shore to New Braunfels and beyond. SOme of the places were really the frontier and the indians, including the Comanches were present. There were some cases of crimes including murder, and running off livestock committed by the Indians.
When it got to 1860 and 1861 the loyalty of the German settlers to the Union or the Confederacy became an issue. Many of the Germans were loyal to the Union, and they really were not slave-holders or believe in slavery. This created issues between other Texans and some of the Germans were shot or imprisoned and others were forced to sign loyalty oaths to the Confederacy. Interesting book about a small part of Texas in the 1840s through the Civil War.
I highly recomend this book for anyone who is interested in the early German settlers who came to Texas from Germany. I bought the book because I was married to a man from Fischer, TX, and I am in the process of learning all I can because I am working on geneology of his family, who came and settled in the Hill Country. I learned a lot by reading this book. It is well writen, and very in depth about the hardships these people suffered, but survived. It helped me to understand why these people seemed so distant and different, from the way of life I was exposed to in Alabama.
NH
I recently moved to New Braunfels, Texas and wanted to learn about the unique history of the area which has as much the flavor of Germany as any place in the country. A kindle search surfaced this title and I jumped in. And, boy, did I learn about the German settlement of Texas! Moreover I learned a lot about the US at this time in our history. I do not know how the author was able to find so much detail on so many people and events, but he did, and then some. I almost know what the families ate for breakfast on Tuesday. There is almost too much detail, which often derails one's interest, but if you want to know the what, why, and how of this strange part of our history, this is a great reference.
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