Original Site of Mountain Valley School
New Braunfels, Comal County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Original site of Mountain Valley School The original Mountain Valley School was located at this site for 83 years. In 1874, Carl and Matilda Marschall sold one acre to Fritz Krause, Fritz Pantermuehl and Joachim Pantermuehl for use as a school. The nearby Jacobs Creek School joined the new school in a one-room log cabin, which served from 1874 until 1883, when it was converted into a teacherage and a new school, which also served as a church meeting place, was built. In 1956, the county reorganized the school district, closing the small, rural schools that had served their communities for decades. The district sold this property in 1962. (2002)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1874 Carl and Matilda Marschall sold an acre to three neighbors for a school, and the Mountain Valley School opened in a one-room log cabin that doubled as a church meeting place. It served the rural community for 83 years, growing into a fuller schoolhouse before the county consolidated its small country schools in 1956. The district sold the property in 1962, closing the book on a neighborhood institution.
Why it matters
It marks the era of the one-room country school, the shared heart of scattered rural communities, and the mid-century consolidation that swept such small schools away.
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Related people
- · Carl Marschall
- · Matilda Marschall
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Jacobs Creek School Teacherage
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Settlers in Comal County started Jacobs Creek School in 1867, leasing land for a dollar, and teacher Carl Pantermuehl soon built a teacher's residence beside it. The 1½-story cabin is a fine example of German vernacular building—hand-hewn Ashe juniper joined in half-timbered fachwerk, with limestone and brick worked in. After a newer school opened nearby, the schoolhouse was razed but the teacherage lived on as a home.
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