Meyer Hotel Complex
Comfort, Kendall County, Texas
Marker Inscription
German native Frederich Christian Meyer (1828-89) came to Comfort in 1862. A wheelwright, Meyer also ran a stage stop and weight station at this site. He later purchased the property, which included a small log cabin he enlarged by adding a second story. In 1869 he constructed a two-story stone residence here for his wife Ernestine (Mueller) (d. 1910), a midwife. A separate wooden structure was built for her work, south of the original log cabin in 1872. The building housed maternity rooms for use by the women of the surrounding area ranches. In 1887, when rail lines were completed through the area, Comfort began showing promise as a resort community. That same year, the Meyers constructed a two-story frame building south of their residence to serve as a hotel. The upper floor of the structure was used for guests and the ground floor housed a large kitchen and a dining room. With the help of their 8 children, Ernestine continued to operate the hotel after her husband's death in 1889, despite a fire which damaged the family home. A second guest house was added east of the first hotel in 1920 by a daughter Julia (Meyer) Ellenberger, who operated the business until her death in 1956. (1981)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
German immigrant Frederich Christian Meyer arrived in Comfort in 1862 and ran a stage stop and weigh station, gradually enlarging a log cabin and building a two-story stone home in 1869 for his wife Ernestine, a midwife who kept a separate building with maternity rooms for the women of the surrounding ranches. As rail lines reached the Hill Country in 1887, the Meyers added a hotel, and Ernestine and her children ran the business for decades after Frederich's death. A daughter, Julia Meyer Ellenberger, added a second guest house in 1920 and operated the complex until 1956.
Why it matters
The complex preserves the enterprise of a German immigrant family — and especially the women who kept it running — as Comfort grew from a stage stop into a Hill Country resort town.
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Related people
- · Frederich Christian Meyer
- · Ernestine Meyer
- · Julia Meyer Ellenberger
Themes & tags
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