Lindenau
Lindenau, DeWitt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
By 1891 German farmers settled in this area which Charles and Daniel Wild named "Lindenau." A schoolhouse built in 1893 served as a community center and for worship. The settlement boasted a church, cemetery, mercantile store, blacksmith shop, drugstore, post office, and cotton gin. The present rifle club formed in 1901 and erected a hall which became the social center. In 1906 Lindenau was moved to be near the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railroad. The post office closed in 1947 and Lindenau School consolidated with Westhoff. Many descendants remain in the area.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
German farmers put down roots on the DeWitt County prairie by 1891, and brothers Charles and Daniel Wild gave the place its homeland name, "Lindenau." A schoolhouse doubling as church and meeting hall anchored a full village—store, blacksmith, drugstore, post office, cotton gin, and a rifle club whose 1901 hall became the social heart of the community. When the railroad passed nearby in 1906, the whole town simply picked up and moved to meet it, a common fate before it faded after World War II.
Why it matters
Lindenau captures the arc of thousands of immigrant farm settlements that flourished, chased the railroad, and then dissolved into the surrounding countryside as rural America consolidated.
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Related people
- · Charles Wild
- · Daniel Wild
Themes & tags
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