Meckel-Hanus Building
Fredericksburg, Gillespie County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Saddle and harness merchant Henry Meckel (1855-1909) acquired this property in 1886 and soon made improvements to a one-story, ca. 1860 stone house already on the lot. A second level of concrete blocks and a double gallery of milled wood were added to the central-hall structure. Dr. J. J. Hanus (1898-1966) bought the building for a hospital in 1927 and altered the facade to its present appearance by 1929. The building served as a Catholic convent from 1949 through 1979. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1986 Incise on base: Restored 1985 by Joe, Pat, and Eric Vance.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Saddle and harness merchant Henry Meckel bought this Fredericksburg property in 1886 and improved a stone house already on the lot dating to around 1860, adding a second level of concrete blocks and a double gallery of milled wood. In 1927 Dr. J. J. Hanus purchased the building for a hospital and reworked its facade to the look it wears today. It later served as a Catholic convent from 1949 to 1979 before being restored in 1985.
Why it matters
The building's shifting uses—shop, hospital, convent—trace the changing needs of a German Hill Country town across more than a century.
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Related people
- · Henry Meckel
- · J. J. Hanus
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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