USA > Texas > History of the German element in Texas from 1820-1850, and historical sketches of the German Texas singers' league and Houston turnverein from 1853-1913, 1st ed > Part 1
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Gc 976.4 T46h 1753102
REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 02290 0697
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016
https://archive.org/details/historyofgermane00tili_0
HISTORY
OF
THE GERMAN ELEMENT IN TEXAS
FROM 1820- 1850
AND
HISTORICAL SKETCHES OF THE GERMAN TEXAS SINGERS' LEAGUE AND HOUSTON TURNVEREIN
FROM 1853-1913
BY MORITZ TILING Instructor in History, Houston Academy
FIRST EDITION
Published by MORITZ TILING, Houston, Texas Nineteen Hundred and Thirteen
1753102
MORITZ TILING
F
877
.88
Tiling, Moritz Philipp Georg, 1851-
1
History of the German element in Texas from 1820- 1850. and historical sketches of the German Texas sing- ers' league and Houston turnverein from 1853-1913, by Moritz Tiling ... 1st ed. Houston, Tex., M. Tiling, 1913. vili, 225 p. front. (port.) 21°m. $1.50
"Works for bibliographical references": p. (1831-185.
ONLY CARD
1. Germans in Texas. 2. Texas-Hist. 13-10554
Library of Congress F395.G3T5
Copy 2. Copyright A 346590
1
COPYRIGHT BY M. TILING 1913
PREFACE.
This plain, unpretending monograph has been written for the purpose of preserving to posterity the records of German achievements in the colonization and upbuilding of the great state of Texas. The pioneer's humble life and courageous struggles are very often left unnoticed by the historian, yet, without his brave and patient labors none of the great commonwealths of the United States would exist. The early pioneer, whose brawny arm wielded the axe, who cleared the forest and broke the virgin soil, is as much a maker of a country, as the statesman, the diplom- atist and the soldier of today. His faithful work and often hazardous task are well worth remembering.
The different Texas histories used in the public schools unfortunately are lamentably deficient with respect to the important part the Germans have taken in the coloniza- tion and shaping of Texas. Some of them, which are used extensively in the schools of the State, do not make any mention at all of the German immigration and its bearing on the rapid development of Texas, while others at least state briefly that-"Texas is indebted to her German till- ers of the soil for developments of great value, and which to Americans had been considered of impossible produc- tion in this climate." (Brown's School History of Texas, p. 218.) Prof. A. B. Faust of Cornell University devotes but ten pages to Texas in his History of the German Ele- ment in the United States.
Thus the present generation is even now almost ignor- ant of the men, who went intrepidly into an unknown coun- try, who fearlessly braved the many dangers and hardships incident to pioncer-life and who helped to lay the founda- tion of the great State of Texas.
The publication of this unassuming book shall remedy this deficiency with proper accounts of the colonization of Texas and will give credit to whom credit is due.
To Prof. C. W. Welch I am indebted for proof-reading and other valuable suggestions.
Houston, Texas.
M. T.
INDEX
Introduction 1-2
Texas Before 1820 3-5
The Immigration Proper Begins (1820-1830) 5-6
German Immigration from 1820-1830. 7-11
German Immigration from 1830-1840 12-16
First German Settlement in Texas. 17-23
Robert Kleberg, the Founder of Cat Spring 24-29
Cause of the Texas Revolution 30-32
The War for Independence 33-38
The Battle of San Jacinto 39-42
The Immigration Increases After Texas Wins Her Freedom 43-47
First German Societies of Texas. 48-52
The Germans in the Republic of Texas 53-57
The Society of German Noblemen 58-62
The Adelsverein Buys a Worthless Land Grant 63-72
Colonization Under the Auspices of the Adelsverein. 73-78
Further German Immigration Under the Adelsverein in 1845 79-85 Arrival of More Than 5,000 German Immigrants in 1845-46. . 86-90
Last Effort of the Adelsverein in Colonization. 91-94
Expedition of von Meusebach to the Comanche Territory and His Treaty With the Indians 95-107
Collapse of the Adelsverein 108-113
Criticism of the Adelsverein 114-120
The Revolution of 1848 and Its Effects on German Immi- gration 121-126
Industrial Establishments of the Early German Settlers and Their Relation to the Anglo-Saxons. 127-131
Houston Saengerbund (Display Page). 132
Brief History of the German State Saengerbund of Texas. . 135-159 Historical Sketch of the Houston Turnverein. 161-175
German Day Celebration in Houston 177-181
Works for Bibliographical References 183-185
Landing in Galveston (Poem). 187-189
Die Landreise nach der nuen Colonie (Poem) 189-192
Das Lager auf der Zinkenburg, wo jetzt die Katholische Kirche steht, 1845 (Poem). .192-194
Die erste Ansiedelung der Stadt Neu Braunfels, 1845 194-196 (Poem)
Appendixes
197-225
TEXAS ODE FOR DEDICATION OF THE RICE INSTITUTE HOUSTON, TEXAS OCTOBER 12, MCMXII
By Henry Van Dyke.
(In writing this poem Professor Van Dyke made use of an Indian legend. The legend is that when the Indian hears the bees in the forest he knows that his tribe must move on, for the whites are near. Ile lays stress upon the fact that when the white man brings his women, his children and his bees, he never retreats. It is then that he comes to stay.)
All along the Brazos River, All along the Colorado,
In the valleys and the lowlands Where the trees were tall and stately, In the rich and rolling meadows Where the grass was full of wild-flowers, Came a humming and a buzzing, Came the murmur of a going To and fro among the tree-tops, Far and wide across the meadows.
And the red-men in their tepees Smoked their pipes of clay and listened.
"What is this?" they asked in wonder ; "Who can give the sound a meaning ? Who can understand the language Of a going in the tree-tops?" Then the wisest of the Tejas Laid his pipe aside and answered : "O my brothers, these are people, Very little, winged people, Countless, busy, banded people, Coming humming through the timber ! These are tribes of bees, united By a single aim and purpose, To possess the Tejas' country, Gather harvest from the prairies,
vii
TEXAS ODE
Store their wealth among the timber. These are hive and honeymakers, Sent by Manito to warn us That the white men now are coming, With their women and their children! Not the fiery filibusters Passing wildly in a moment,
Like a flame across the prairies, Like a whirlwind through the forest,
Leaving empty lands behind them! Not the Mexicans and Spaniards,
Indolent and proud hidalgos, Dwelling in their haciendas. Dreaming, talking of tomorrow, While their cattle graze around them, And their fickle revolutions Change the rulers, not the people ! Other folk are these who follow Where the wild-bees come to warn us ; These are hive and honeymakers, These are busy, banded people, Roaming far to swarm and settle, Working every day for harvest, Fighting hard for peace and order, Worshiping as queens their women, Making homes and building cities, Full of riches and of trouble. All our hunting-grounds must vanish, All our lodges fall before them, All our customs and traditions, All our happy life of freedom, Fade away like smoke before them. Come, my brothers, strike your tepees, Call your women, load your ponies ! Let us take the trail to westward, Where the plains are wide and open,
viii
TEXAS ODE
Where the bison-herds are gathered Waiting for our feathered arrows. We will live as lived our fathers, Gleaners of the gifts of nature, Hunters of the unkept cattle, Men whose women run to serve them. If the toiling bees pursue us, If the white men scek to tame us, We will fight them off and flee them, Break their hives and take their honey, Moving westward, ever westward, There to live as lived our fathers." So the red-men drove their ponies, With the tent-poles trailing after, Out along the path to sunset, While along the river valleys Swarmed the wild-bees, the forerunners. And the white men, close behind them, Men of mark from old Missouri, Men of daring from Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, Men of many states and races, Bringing wives and children with them, Followed up the wooded valleys, Spread across the rolling prairies, Raising homes and reaping harvests. Rude the toil that tried their patience, Fierce the fights that proved their courage, Rough the stone and tough the timber Out of which they built their order ! Yet they never failed nor faltered, And the instinct of their swarming Made them one and kept them working, Till their toil was crowned with triumph, And the country of the Tejas Was the fertile land of Texas.
THE GERMAN ELEMENT IN TEXAS.
CHAPTER I-Introduction.
The brilliant achievements of the conquering hero, the records of marches and counter marches, of skirmishes and battles, of sieges and slaughters, have heretofore been uni- versally accepted as history. This is an erroneous, or at least only partly correct assumption, for such, certainly is not the history of the life and evolution of a people. Neither wars and conquests, nor glittering court life and elaborate social functions, but the quiet, peaceful and productive life of the people is that which makes or unmakes a nation. As Thomas H. Buckle pertinently says: "Nations are great through their architects, engineers, artists, teachers, busi- ness men and workers, and not through their lawyers, preachers, soldiers and policemen." The colonization and marvelous development of the United States furnish a striking example of the correctness of this axiom and so does Texas.
A new country is no place for weaklings. Texas, 80 years ago, was such a country in every sense of the word, its broad plains being then the almost undisputed domain of barbarous Indian tribes, whose hunting grounds stretched practically from one end of the great State to the other. It required strong arms and stout hearts to enter this country as a settler and perform the dangerous and onerous work and labor of the pioneer.
The Texas pioneers of the 30s and 40s of the last cen- tury -- among them more than 15,000 Germans-were such men, who unflinchingly braved all dangers and hardships connected with the arduous task of clearing and cultivat- ing a country that was virtually in possession of ferocious redskins. They fulfilled, as Colonel Roosevelt tersely
2
German Element in Texas
writes in his book, "African Game Trails," the three prime requisites of any progressive race: "They worked hard ; they could fight hard at need, and they had plenty of chil- dren." If the Texas pioneers had lacked in any of these essential qualities the Lone Star State would not be, as it is today, dotted with the peaceful homes of more than four million prosperous people.
We of the present generation, living in well organized cities and communities, surrounded by all the comfort and luxury, seemingly indispensable in modern life, can hardly conceive or properly appreciate the hardships and priva- tions of the early Texas pioncer, struggling with the iron difficulties and dangers of frontier life, but we have every reason to hold these men in cherished and revered remem- brance. Their noble work should not fall into oblivion.
It is only a little more than four score years since the colonization of Texas, then almost "terra incognita," began. The pioneers of that period are all dead, and of their sons and daughters, the first generation of Germanic blood born on Texas soil, only a few remain to tell their children of the life and the struggles of the early frontiersmen. With the object that the highly interesting records of the impor- tant part the Germans took in the colonization of Texas may not be lost and forgotten, this history has been writ- ten. The author has been enabled to do this principally through the kind assistance of Prof. Gustave Duvernoy, who for more than 50 years has diligently collected many interesting data and facts connected with the early Ger- man colonization in Texas, and who put all this valuable material at his disposal. Other sources of information are the "Texanische Monatshefte." published by the late L. F. Lafrentz, William von Rosenberg's "Kritik des Adelsver- eins," and publications by Olmstead, Siemering and Ehrenberg, J. O. Meusebach's "Answers to Interrogato- ries" and G. G. Benjamin's study, "Germans in Texas."
3
German Element in Texas
Texas Before 1820.
There have been a number of conjectures as to the origin of the word Texas. First, That Texas in the language of the aborigines means friends ; second, that Tejas, Tecas, or Texas, means tile-roofs, and that the country received that name because some of the Indian tribes lived in houses with tile roofs. Third, that Texas or Tecas means people, and it received that name because inhabited. Fourth, in an article on tribal names of America the National Magazine for August, 1873, said: "The word Techis, from which the word Texas is derived, is a word from the Caddo dia- lect, and gives title to a population which calls itself Kiwomi, that is, two. The name Tachis or Tecuas was ap- plied to a native confederacy and an ancient province, Ticues, and is said to mean friends, just as Dacotas means allied or leagued." In this last statement there are two facts, viz: First, that the name of Texas was that of an Indian tribe, and second, that this tribe belonged to the Caddo family. Coronado, in 1540, found that tribe on the Red River; he spelled the name Tayos. Joutel, in 1687, found the Tehas, or Taos Indians on the Sabine River. The map of Bellin, published in Paris in 1744, locates the Tehas or Teijas village on the Trinity River. The old maps of Texas of the last century locate the Tehas or Teijas village on the east of the Neches River, at the crossing of the old San Antonio road. It was from that tribe that the name of Texas was derived.
Texas enjoys the unique distinction of having been un- der six flags. By right of discovery it was claimed by Spain and after LaSalle's expedition (1684-87), by France. When the Spanish colonies in America threw off the un- bearable yoke of their mother country (1810-1821), Texas became part of Mexico ; from 1836 to 1845 it was an inde- pendent republic, then joined the United States as a sov- ereign State. From 1861 to 1865 the banner of the Con- federate States floated over its wide domain, and since
4
German Element in Texas
then it has prospered again under the Stars and Stripes, having become the Empire State of the great Southwest.
The first attempt at colonization in Texas was made by the well known French explorer, the Chevalier Robert de LaSalle, who entered Matagorda Bay in January, 1685, with three ships, and sailing up the Lavaca River for about six miles, took possession of the country in the name of King Louis XIV. of France, built a fort and a small church and planted crops for the families and the animals and fowls he had brought with him.
Among LaSalle's men was one known as Heins (erro- neously spelled Hiens in most Texas histories), who very likely was the first German on Texas soil. This Heins, accompanied LaSalle on his unfortunate expedition for the mouth of the Mississippi River, in January, 1687. When LaSalle was shot by Du Haut, on March 19, 1687, in the camp on the Neches River, this Heins took possession of the valuables, dressed himself in his late chief's uniform and offered himself as leader to the peaceable Nassonite Indians. His further fate is unknown. When two years later (1689) the Spanish Governor of Coahuila reached the place, where LaSalle had built his little fort and church, not a trace of the French men and women left there could be found. All was deserted. Thus ended the first attempt to establish a European settlement in Texas.
The efforts of the Spaniards in colonizing Texas in the eighteenth century were mainly restricted to the building of fortified missions, garrisoned with Spanish troops and inhabited by priests belonging to the Franciscan Order. They tried to Christianize and civilize the Indians, who should then be utilized as a barrier against the coming of foreigners. The success of this policy was rather limited, for the converted Indians generally remained "good" only as long as they were within reach of the Spanish bayonets and rifle balls. On their hunting grounds they were quickly
5
German Element in Texas
transformed into the ferocious savages of old. The Span- ish method of civilizing the Indians proved a dismal failure.
The Immigration Proper Begins-(1820-1830).
Simultaneously with the independence of Mexico (1821) begins the immigration into and the colonization of Texas by the vigorous Teutonic race that was destined to wrest this great domain from the decadent Latin race in 1836 and build up the greatest commonwealth of the United States.
The policy of the Mexican Government in respect to im- migration was the opposite of that of the former Spanish authorities. It was comparatively easy for "empresarios" (contractors, or promoters) to receive large land grants from Mexico. The only conditions under which these em- presarios received their grants, were that they agreed to pay the cost of survey and recording fees, to bring a cer- tain number of families to Texas within a specified time and to see that none but Catholics should settle in Texas. After the abdication of Emperor Iturbide in 1823, the Mexican colonization law was adopted by the Mexican Congress with the proviso that not more than 11 "Sitios" (one sitio-4428 acres) should ever be granted to one person; viz: One league (sitio) of irrigable land, four leagues of dry, but cultivable land and six leagues of grazing land. This provision was made to prevent land monopolies and on it were based the so-called "11 league claims" in Texas.
The first American empresario securing a claim under this law was Moses Austin, who was born in Durham, Conn., but had spent many years in Missouri, at that time part of the Louisiana Territory. In December, 1820, he arrived at San Antonio and, with the assistance of Baron Von Bastrop, he sent his application for a land grant to Governor General Arredondo at Monterey. His request was granted in January, 1821, but Austin died soon after-
6
German Element in Texas
ward, transferring his grant to his son, Stephen F. Austin, who ably and conscientiously carried out the intentions of his late father.
Among the empresarios of this time were two Germans, Joseph Vehlein and Robert Leftwich (not Leftwick, as spelled in several Texas histories). It seems that Vehlein never made use of his grant and no records exist relating to any land transactions by him. Leftwich's grant dates from the year 1822 and his extensive lands were situated near the old San Antonio road, leading from New Orleans to Texas, between the Colorado and San Marcos Rivers. He built a small fort and settled a few families on his land in 1826, but soon afterward returned to Tennessee, where he formerly had lived, and died there. After his death a company was formed at Nashville in 1830 to carry out the conditions of his contract, but the Mexican Government did not recognize the transfer of Leftwich's claim to this company and gave the land to Austin and S. M. Williams. Four years later the Mexican Government reversed its de- cision and permitted the Nashville company to succeed as owners of the original Leftwich grant. Thereupon, Sterl- ing C. Robertson brought 500 families from Tennessee and South Carolina as settlers on this fertile land.
CHAPTER II. German Immigration From 1820-1830.
Texas was first brought to notice of the German people through J. V. Hecke's book, "Reise durch die Vereinigten Staaten" (Travels Through the United States), published in Berlin in 1821. Hecke, a former Prussian army officer, had traveled extensively through the western parts of the United States, and in 1818 had come to Texas, then part of Mexico. He remained in Texas for about one year and after his return to Germany published a glowing report about the beautiful climate, the rich, productive soil and the highly favorable conditions for immigration to Texas. He advised the purchasing and colonizing of Texas by Prussia in the following words: "If there is a land on the trans-Atlantic continent favorable as a colonial posses- sion for Prussia, it is the province of Texas, the acquisi- tion of which by purchase from Spain, to which it is neither of use nor of political advantage, might be very easily made. Certainly very important results in agricultural, political and mercantile respects would accrue from the possession of a country which is greater than Germany. Although at present there is no, or very little, civilized pop- ulation in that country, in a short time it would become a flourishing colony, if Prussia would make use of the emi- grants from Germany who, having become beggars, through the expense of their voyage and lack of employ- ment, suffer wretchedly in the United States. The Prus- sian Government should furnish them free transportation to Texas on Prussian ships and give them land either gra- tuitously or grant them support, if only by advanced pay- ments."
He continues that 50 acres (Morgen) of fertile land
8
German Element in Texas
would not only be sufficient to support the colonist and his family, but also enable him to pay back in five or ten years all sums advanced to him with good interest, thus becom- ing an independent land owner.
Urging the purchase of Texas, he writes further: "The sum for which this land might be obtained would not be very heavy, and in case the Government would not desire to furnish the necessary amount, the merchants, who would receive most of the advantage from this colonial posses- sion, might, without difficulty, advance the necessary funds to the State. Then a commercial company, like the British East India Company, might be formed, which should de- fray all expenses of administration, but also should de- rive all profits, and the State should only furnish the troops for the protection of the colony against Indian dep- redations, or any other hostile aggression."
He continues by saying that Prussia could send over 10,- 000 former soldiers, who could be given land as a gift. With these the colonists could form an effective militia. Prussia's navy would be built up through this colonial possession and Prussia become rich and powerful through its trans-Atlantic commerce.
When we remember that the Monroe doctrine was at that time not yet promulgated and that Iturbide who had just then proclaimed himself Emperor of Mexico, might have been quite willing to part with the province of Texas for a monetary consideration, Hecke's plan of a New Prus- sia on this side of the Atlantic does not look like an iri- descent dream, and leaves a wide field of speculation of what might have occurred, had his ideas been carried out. Quien sabe! As we shall see later, the plan of creating one or more German States in the immense territory west of the Mississippi River, then atmost an unknown wilder- ness, was revived several times in Germany and several unsuccessful efforts were made to realize this idea, that
.
9
German Element in Texas
seems preposterous to us, but seemed very probable to many German idealists.
In the fall of the same year in which Hecke's book was published, 53 adventurers of different nationalities landed on Texas soil. This was in the month of October, 1821, the party coming from New Orleans. A report of this ex- pedition in the State archives at Austin contains the fol- lowing German names: Joseph Dirksen, Eduard Hanstein, Wilhelm Miller, Ernst von Rosenberg, Carl Cuans (?) and Caspar Porton. Nothing definite is known about any of these adventurers except Ernst von Rosenberg. The expedition landed at Indianport (Indianola) and went to La Bahia (Goliad), where, it seems, its members were made prisoners by Mexican soldiers. All participants of this ex- pedition were heavily armed, and the Mexicans, fearing a hostile invasion of Texas, held the adventurers in custody until they received further instructions. Rosenberg was escorted to San Antonio. He had been lieutenant of artil- lery in Prussia, and when he declared his willingness to join the Mexican army his services were gladly accepted. He received a commission as colonel of a regiment of ar- tillery, and, according to some unconfirmed statements, was shot after the abdication of Iturbide, while, accord- ing to others, he fell during the political fights that fol- lowed, in battle. A brother of this Ernst von Rosenberg came to Texas in 1849, and his descendants belong to the most prominent German families of Texas of the present time.
The first German colony in Texas was established on the Colorado River, about 30 miles east of the city of Aus- tin. Baron von Bastrop, having received a land grant westward of Stephen Austin's grant, induced a number of German families in the year 1823 to settle on his land on the beautiful banks of the Colorado. (Anton Eikhoff, "In der Neuen Heimat" ("In the New Home," published by E. Steiger, New York, 1885). Nearly all of these pioneer-
10
German Element in Texas
settlers came from the County of Elmenhorst, Grandduchy of Oldenburg. For 16 years, until the founding of the city of Austin in 1839, this was the farthest northeastern settlement in Texas. Here the sturdy German pioneers, surrounded by ferocious and barbarous Indian tribes, in a wilderness a hundred miles away from civilization, toiled faithfully and undaunted, plowing their fields with guns on their shoulders and performing all the hazardous work incident to pioneer life. When in 1836 Bastrop County was organized, this county comprised all of the present Travis County, and the five commisssioners, ap- pointed by the Texas Congress in 1839 to select a suitable site for a capital of the Republic of Texas, bought 7735 acres in the township of Waterloo, on the banks of the Colorado River, where the city of Austin now stands, for $20,000, the deed for this property being executed by the Sheriff of Bastrop County. It may be of interest to note that when the State agent, John Edwin Waller, and sur- veyor, W. Sandusky, appointed by President Lamar to sur- vey and plot the grounds purchased for the future capital, arrived at their destination, they found two families, Beck- er and Harrel, the only inhabitants of Waterloo. Two miles south of Waterloo was another city with the proud name of Montopolis, the rival of Waterloo, also inhabited by two families. On August 1, 1839, Judge Waller sold the first town lots, substantial houses were quickly built, and on October 17 President Lamar with part of his cab- inet arrived at the new capitol of the Republic of Texas, received by General Sidney Johnston, Colonel Edward Bur- leson and Judge Waller, the latter delivering the address of welcome.
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