Tour Category: Driving
491 Comal Ave. The home of Ferdinand Lindheimer, internationally known botanist and first editor of the New Braunfels newspaper, is now open to the public by appointment. Construction is typical of the ancient fachwerk the German settlers adapted to Texas cedar and limestone. This property was given to Lindheimer by Prince Carl for guiding settlers […]
480 Comal Ave. The house is an example of the small fachwerk houses made of fired adobe brick and native, hand-hewn cedar timbers built by early settlers. Restored in 1978. Now a private residence.
424 Comal Ave. The Voelcker residence is one of the original fachwerk homes in New Braunfels. It is now part of the Comal Inn Bed & Breakfast, called the New Braunfels Cottage.
388 Comal Ave. August Tolle (1829-1922) immigrated to New Braunfels with his parents and siblings in 1845, and established a drugstore with his brother-in-law, Dr. Theodore Koester, in 1858. In 1861, he wed Karoline Messer and had five children. In 1891, August bought this house and lot, which later transferred to his son Alfred and […]
234 Comal Ave. Bought by Gustav Schmidt in 1865 for $100, this house was sold a year later for four times that amount. In 1881, Wilhelm Guessow bought the house and lot. It was used as his home and broom/brushmaking workshop through the turn of the next century. Now an office building.
202 Comal Ave Built five years earlier than its next door neighbor, this quaint house was built of the limestone, cedar, cypress, and adobe fachwerk popular at the time.
192 Comal Ave Built by Mr. Richter five years after his first house – on the same lot. Typical of the period, the small house is built on a hand-hewn limestone block foundation, constructed with cedar joists and cypress exterior siding placed over adobe fachwerk walls.
166 Comal Ave Born in France, near the German border, Peter Mergele immigrated to the U.S. via the French Emigration Company. Upon arriving in San Antonio, Texas, in 1843 he joined Prince Solms’ group from Germany. The back section of the house is the oldest, with a Victorian Eastlake addition on the front. Now an […]
292 Tolle St. Market Plaza to the earliest residents of 1840s New Braunfels, this block served as a fleischhalle, or meat market. Until the town’s farms could be established, Price Carl of Solms Braunfels, who spearheaded the town of New Braunfels and German immigrations, provided residents with free butchering services for the price of the […]
393 Tolle St. This is the original structure built by Herman Tolle, complete with cedar siding and square nails. It is a classic example of 1880s and 1890s architecture. Now a private residence.