Texas Travel: Fredericksburg

From LoveToKnow Travel

The charming town of Fredericksburg, Texas is situated in the Texas Hill Country, just 70 miles west of Austin and 65 miles northwest of San Antonio. It’s an intriguing destination.


German Immigrants

The specific site for this town was selected by Baron Otfried Haus von Meusebach, the Commissioner General for the Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas (also known as the Adelsverein) at the time of Fredericksburg’s birth – and he named the settlement after a German nobleman, Prince Frederick of Prussia. The first wagon train of 120 settlers arrived here on May 8, 1846 – and each of these first immigrants was given a town lot and ten acres of nearby farmland. The town was even laid out much like the towns along the Rhine, making it appear somewhat similar to what many of these people were used to ‘back home’.

An Unbroken Peace Treaty

In 1847, just one year after Fredericksburg had begun, Meusebach signed a peace treaty with the Comanche – and this has remained unbroken to this very day! This unbroken treaty is celebrated in the annual Inter-Tribal Powwow, which is held at nearby Fort Martin Scott (and features colourful native costumes and traditional dances).


Growth

Within a couple of years of its "birth", Fredericksburg had grown into a thriving community of almost a thousand residents, and it had been made the county seat of Gillespie County. A wagon road had been completed between here and Austin, and a great deal of new construction was taking place, including several Fachwerk houses - and the Vereins Kirche (which has served as a church, fortress, school, meeting hall, and museum).

Sunday Houses

As time passed, many of the landowners built a second house in town, called a "Sunday House". This was used when the farmers would come to town for supplies – and for Sunday church service. Typically, these houses had one room on the main floor, a porch, and an upstairs sleeping loft (that was reached by way of an outside staircase). Many of these frame or rock structures are now popular B&Bs. Several impressive century-old limestone homes are still found in this community - and several of today’s "modern" Fredericksburg houses are now being built to look "old" (with the "Hill Country style" limestone walls/façade, porch, gingerbread trim, and metal roof).

A Popular Tourist Destination

Today, Fredericksburg is a vibrant town of about 10,000 – and growing! It offers a great variety of restaurants, shopping (herb and wildseed farms, wineries, gourmet foods, and boutiques), accommodations (including the more than 300 B&Bs in the area), activities (such as cycling, kayaking, horseback riding, rock climbing, and birding) and special events (such as Wine and Wildflower Tours, Oktoberfest, and the Hill Country Antique Auto Swap Meet and Car Show). Places of interest in the area include the Trois Estate at Enchanted Rock (an “Old World” Village that features an artisan market and a day spa), the Hangar Hotel (a 1940’s style fly-in boutique hotel), the National Museum of the Pacific War (dedicated to those who served with Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz – a Fredericksburg native – in the Pacific War), Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park (including his boyhood home and his ranch), Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park (with its walking trails, pool, and golf course), the Old Tunnel Wildlife Management Area (where you can see about a million Mexican free-tailed bats emerge from the abandoned railroad tunnel at dusk!), Bandera (a nearby town that’s known as “the Cowboy Capital of the World”, and Luckenbach (the nearby ‘town’ – with a population of 3 - that was made famous in the ‘country classic’ sung by Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings about getting “back to the basics of life” – in Luckenbach).

In The Texas Hill Country

Fredericksburg is located right in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, and you’ll find that it effectively combines its German heritage with Texan hospitality.


For More Information:

Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitor Bureau, 302 E. Austin, Fredericksburg, TX 78624; phone: 1-888-997-3600; web site: www.fredericksburg-texas.com



 


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