Emil Reiffert House
Cuero, DeWitt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Built in 1868 at Indianola by Emil Reiffert (1839-1910), immigrant at age 15; Confederate veteran; merchant, rancher, President H. Runge & Co., known as First Real Bank in Texas. Anchored to 7-feet. pillars. With 100 refugees upstairs, downstairs windows and doors open, house withstood its second hurricane, 1886. Was dismantled, its planks numbered, moved to Cuero, rebuilt 1887. Has storm pillars, front storm door, handcarved staircase, parquet floors. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1965
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Emil Reiffert immigrated to Texas at 15, served as a Confederate veteran, and rose to become a merchant, rancher, and president of H. Runge & Co., known as the first real bank in Texas. He built this sturdy, storm-anchored house at Indianola in 1868, and it twice withstood Gulf hurricanes—during the 1886 storm it sheltered a hundred refugees. After Indianola was destroyed, the house was carefully dismantled, its planks numbered, and rebuilt in Cuero in 1887.
Why it matters
The house is a survivor of Indianola, the vanished Gulf port wiped out by hurricanes, and a monument to the immigrant entrepreneurs who helped build Texas commerce.
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Related people
- · Emil Reiffert
Related events
- · 1886 Indianola hurricane
Themes & tags
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