Fayette County, Texas

Birthplace of the SPJST

Location:  La Grange, South west corner, Courthouse Square, NS 71.

Marker Text: On December 28, 1896, twenty-five Czech-Texans gathered in the district courtroom of this courthouse to establish a new fraternal benefit insurance society, the Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas, more commonly known a the SPJST. The SPJST held its first convention in the same room on June 20, 1897. I. J. Gallia served as the society's first president and J. R. Kubena was the first secretary. The SPJST officially began its business in Texas on July 1, 1897. SPJST headquarters now is located in Temple.

Site of Baursville School

Marker Location: from Moulton, take FM 532 about 5 miles east to CR 261, then go north on CR 261 about .9 miles

Marker Text: Early settlers August Baur (1841-1902) and his wife Emilie (1848-1901) donated five acres about 1.5 miles north of this site for a community school in 1881. A one-room school building was erected shortly thereafter. Because many students who first attended the school were members of German and Czech families who settled this area, instruction initially was offered in both the German and English languages. Tuition charges and private donations supported the school for about five months of the year. The school building was also the site of religious services held by the Rev. Wilhelm Westerhoff of Moulton's Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church. In 1892 severe storm damage to the school building prompted local citizens to erect a new three-room structure here which they named Concordia School No. 33. After becoming a public school in 1895, its name was changed to Baursville for August Baur who was also recognized as the founder of the community. The Baursville School building was renovated in 1927. At its height the school offered instruction in ten grades for about 95 students. The school continued to serve students in the rural Baursville area until 1951 when it was annexed to the Moulton Independent School District. The school building was later razed.

Brethren Church-- Recorded Texas Historic Landmark

Location: Fayetteville,  From Fayetteville, take Ross Prairie Road south about 1.4 mile to Junction of Ross Prairie & Kramer Roads.  Built in 1874 by Czech-Moravians. Near the site of first Czech Protestant worship service ever held in Texas, in 1855.

The Reverend Joseph Chromcik

Location:  Fayetteville, County: Corner of Bell & Church St., 

Marker Text: Czech Catholics, who settled in Fayette County in the mid-1850s, were initially served by area priests. Eventually they petitioned the Bishop of Texas for their own Czech priest, and in 1872 the Rev. Joseph Chromcik (1845-1910) arrived from Europe. He held his first service in Fayetteville that year and became Texas' first permanent Czech Catholic priest. He established Chromcik School and many churches, and was instrumental in establishing the KJT, or Czech Catholic Union of Texas. He was fondly referred to as "Taticek" (dear little father) by many of the people who knew him.

Old City Cemetery

 Location: La Grange, Corner of E. Travis & W. College, La Grange.

Marker Text: Used for burials by 1840, this site was deeded by J. S. Lester to trustees who conveyed it to La Grange after incorporation of the city on July 3, 1854. Fourteen townswomen on April 17, 1873, formed what was probably the first such organization in Texas when they organized the Ladies' Cemetery Association of La Grange. Mrs. L. W. Moore was the first president. Since that time, this association has maintained and administered city cemetery. Annual decoration day, started in 1874, honors those resting here including many of the pioneers who fought for Texas freedom.

The Oldest Czech Settlement

Location: near La Grange, take Hwy. 77 4.5 mile south.

Marker Text: Was established at Hostyn when in November 1856 the families of Joseph Janda Valintin Kolibal, Frantisek Koza arrived here from Czechoslovakia.

Czech Catholic Union of Texas

Location:  near La Grange  From La Grange, take S 77 S about 5 miles then go NW on FM 2436 about 1 mile to Queen of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church.

Marker Text: On March 24, 1889, a group of Czech immigrants gathered here to form the Katolicka Jednota Texaska (KJT), or Czech Catholic Union of Texas. A fraternal benefit society, the KJT was chartered on July 4, 1889, with six individual lodges. Through programs such as life insurance, financial aid to members, churches, and educational scholarships, the organization has served people throughout the state and has grown to number over one hundred lodges. The KJT continues to uphold the purpose of its founders in the same fraternal spirit.

Dubina

Location:  Dubina on  FM 1383,

Marker Text: Dubina, which derives its name from the Czech word for Oak Grove, was founded in 1856 by a group of Moravian immigrants, including the Marak Kahlich, Sramek, Peter, Holub, Muzny, and Haidusek families. By 1900 the farming community had erected a church building, mill, cotton gin, blacksmith shop, store, and post office. A 1909 storm and a 1912 fire caused extensive damage from which the town never recovered. As the first settlement in Texas to be founded entirely by Czech-Moravians, Dubina remains an important part of the state's regional and cultural history.

Fayette County

Location: La Grange.  Corner of N. College & E. Travis St., La Grange.

Marker Text: Formed from Colorado and Bastrop counties. Created December 14, 1837. Organized January 1, 1838. Named in honor of Marquis de la Fayette. 1757-1834. Nobleman and Republican friend of Washington and of the United States. County Seat, La Grange.

Fayetteville

Location: Fayetteville, Public Square, Main & Washington,

Marker Text: Stage station on the Old San Felipe Trail founded by James J. Ross, John Crier, James Cummins - members of Austin's first colony. Nearby resided William J. Russell, participant of the Battle of Velasco. Jerome B. Alexander, Fidelie S. Breeding, James Monroe Hill - veterans of San Jacinto. Andrew Crier, William Hill, Dr. William P. Smith of the San Jacinto Campaign. Asa Hill, Jeffery B. Hill, John C. C. Hill - members of the Mier Expedition.

Original Site of First Oil Mill in Texas

Location: Schulenburg, Cr of Ds 77 W High Hill, 4 mile NW of Schulenburg.

Marker Text: Erected by Frederick Hillje, 1866, using German made sugar beet crusher adapted locally to seed processing. Later enlarged plant had regular milling machinery for cottonseed. After Galveston, Houston & San Antonio Railroad bypassed High Hill, Hillje move mill to Weimar, 1880. Marker Sponsored by: Mrs. E. M. Hubbard, Chas. Herder, Jr., Leroy Herder, Paul K. Herder, Henry Herder.

High Hill Cemetery

Location: : Schulenburg.  From Schulenburg, take FM 2672 north 1.2 miles.

Marker Text: High Hill Post Office, established about 1858, united three adjacent villages and gave this community cemetery its name. This six-acre tract was once the property of George Herder (1818-87), a German immigrant and a veteran of the Battle of San Jacinto. The oldest stones here mark the graves of August Wolters, who died April 6, 1861, and Friedrich Eicholt, who died May 18, 1861. The cemetery contains about 241 graves, primarily those of German settlers in the area. Family members cared for the site until 1963, when the Old High Hill Cemetery Association, Inc., was organized.

The Rev. Jindrich Juren

Location: Fayetteville From Fayetteville, take Ross Prairie Rd. South about 1.4 miles to Junction of Ross Prairie & Kramer Rd.

Marker Text:  Jindrich (Henry) Juren was born in Hradiste, Bohemia, on March 20, 1850. A Protestant minister's son, he studied theology at several universities and became fluent in Czech, English, German, French, and Polish. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1876 as the newly-ordained pastor of the Ross Prairie Czech-Moravian Brethren Church. He served locally and traveled by horse and buggy and train to Czech congregations throughout Texas. Also a public schoolteacher for 40 years, Juren was a revered leader in Ross Prairie and the statewide Czech community. He was buried here in the churchyard cemetery in 1921.

Schulenburg

Location: Schulenburg, : Hwy. 77 .3 miles N. of Hwy. 90 (at Chamber of Commerce)

Marker Text: German and Czech settlers used this gateway to the rolling hills of Fayette County. Settled by former residents of Lyons and High Hill in 1873, when the Galveston, Houston & San Antonio Railway reached here. Named for landowner Louis Schulenburg, town was incorporated in 1875.

St. John the Baptist Catholic Church

Marker Location: corner of Church & Bell St., Fayetteville. Marker Size: 27" x 42" Subject Repairs Completed: Nome Marker Text: Many Czech and German immigrants settled in this area in the mid-1800s. After many years without the services of a Czech-speaking priest, the Czech community sent Konstantin Chovanec and John Vychopen to ask Galveston Bishop Claude-Marie Dubuis for help. Encouraged by Dubuis, the Czech community organized St. John the Baptist Catholic Church and erected a sanctuary in Fayetteville in 1870. The Rev. Joseph Chromcik arrived on Christmas day in 1872 to minister at St. John Baptist Church and became the first Czech-speaking priest in Texas. The church prospered and in 1875 the Chromcik School was opened. A mission church was established in nearby Warrenton in 1886. Chromcik extended his missionary work throughout the region and remained in Fayetteville until his death in 1910. A new sanctuary was erected in 1911 and a new 2-story school built in 1915 during the pastorate of the Rev. John Vanicek. A convent for the Sisters of Divine Providence was built in 1964. A new sanctuary was erected in 1969, and a parish hall, educational center, and other facilities were added over the years. St. John the Baptist Church is representative of the area's Czech heritage and continues a tradition of leadership in the region's Catholic community.

The Sladek-Hillman House

Location: Fayetteville,: SH 159 and FM 955,

Marker Text:  R. J. Sladek, a Bohemian immigrant, built this home about 1896. In 1899 ownership was transferred to Anna Hillman, the widow of Ludwig Hillman, one of the early settlers of the Fayetteville area. She lived in the house until her death in 1923. The interior of the Victorian cottage features 12-foot ceilings and millwork carvings of intricate detail. The front porch columns are bracketed and the bay window is decorated with fish scale siding. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1979

St. Mary's Catholic Church

Location: From Ellinger, take FM 2503 NE about 2 mile, then go 1/2 mile E on CR 250.

Marker Text: In the 1850s, families of German and Czech origin in the Ross Prairie area were served by visiting priests. After 1855, they worshipped in a log church (2 miles N) named Saint Joseph, the first permanent Catholic church in Fayette County. The church moved to Live Oak Hill about 1861, and purchased this site near the settlement in 1864. The first resident priest arrived in 1872, and a larger church structure, named Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary (St. Mary's), was built in 1879. After it burned in 1905, this Gothic-styled church was built here now called Hostyn Hill--in 1906. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986.

West-Wagner Homestead

Marker Location: 8 miles south of Hallettsville on US 77; 0.5 miles north on CR 312; 0.4 miles west on Wagner Ranch

Marker Text: Washington West and his wife Mary Willauer West moved their family from Tennessee in 1854 and settled in Lavaca County, Texas. Their home became a stagecoach stop which developed into the community of Old Sweet Home. The Wests' sons George, Ike and Sol drove longhorn cattle to markets in Kansas, Nebraska, the Dakotas, Montana and Wyoming from 1867-85. George married Catherine (Kittie) Searcy in 1874, and in 1875 built this Greek revival style home on family land. George West's ranching interests expanded to several south Texas counties. They moved to Live Oak County in 1880 and later established the town of George West on a portion of their 200,000 acre ranch. In 1883 George and Kittie West sold the Lavaca County homestead to Ike and Emma West, who sold it in 1891 to Frank and Anna Wagner. Natives of Czechoslovakia, the Wagners had lived at the West homestead doing ranch and farm work. Here they reared their six children, Frank Jr., Jim, John, Anton, Joe and Mary. In 1918 Frank and Anna Wagner deeded the homestead to their youngest son, Anton Wagner. His brother and sister, Joe and Mary, lived in the house until the 1950s. The West-Wagner homestead remains in the Wagner Family. (1997)

Information excerpted from Texas Historic Sites Atlas (on line) located at: http://atlas.thc.state.tx.us/Atlas/atlas_search_frame.html

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