German Settlers in Hill County
Malone, Hill County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Germans first came to Texas in 1821, immigrated by the hundreds in the 1840s, and in the 1880s began to move into Hill County. Here land was made available by such earlier settlers as G. W. McNeese, the Savage family, A. D. Walling, the Whites, the Worleys. First to arrive (1882) were Fritz Lentz and Alex Radke. Later came families named Degner, Dietz, Gehrels, Gehring, Geltmeier, Hodde, Huse, Kaddatz, Kelm, Klein, Klinkert, Krueger, Kunkel, Maas, Manske, Manthei, Meyer, Neumann, Piel, Reinke, Schronk, Schulz, Sonnenberg, Schmidt, Steffer, Strauch, and Zettler. Pastor J. C. Rieger came from West (16 miles southwest) and held church services in settlers' homes. Salem Lutheran Congregation was organized with 15 charter members on June 6, 1886, and erected a church building three months later. St. Peters Lutheran Church was founded July 1, 1906, at Walling with nine charter members. Religious leaders (some of whom also taught in the Parochial school) have included pastors Bartel, Finke, Gaertner, Heinmeier, Hodde, Hopmann, Kramer, Liefer, Machina, Oertel, Seils, Walters, and Wunderlich. By diligence and thrift, these people made garden spots of their farms; and with love of God, of family, and of music, they created a goodly heritage.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Germans had been coming to Texas since the 1820s, but they began moving into Hill County in the 1880s, buying land opened up by earlier settlers. Fritz Lentz and Alex Radke arrived first in 1882, followed by dozens of families whose names still fill the marker. They gathered for worship in one another's homes until Salem Lutheran Congregation was organized in 1886 and quickly built a church, with St. Peter's Lutheran following in 1906, turning hard-worked farms into a lasting community bound by faith, family, and music.
Why it matters
The settlement is a portrait of German immigrant life on the Texas prairie, where newcomers transformed raw land into prosperous farms and anchored their community in Lutheran churches and parochial schools.
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Related people
- · Fritz Lentz
- · Alex Radke
- · Pastor J. C. Rieger
Related events
- · Organization of Salem Lutheran Congregation (1886)
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Salem Lutheran Church
Malone, TX
This congregation grew from the wave of German immigrants who first settled Washington County and began pushing into Hill County in the 1880s. In June 1886, fifteen families organized the Salem Lutheran Congregation, worshipping in homes while their first building rose. The Salem community it served became a forerunner of nearby Malone.
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