The Oldest Czech Settlement
Fayette County, Fayette County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In Texas. Was established at Hostyn when in November 1856 the families of Joseph Janda Valintin Kolibal, Frantisek Koza arrived here from Czechoslovakia.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In November 1856 a small band of Czech families reached this part of Fayette County from Central Europe and put down roots at Hostyn, in what is remembered as the oldest Czech settlement in Texas. Their arrival opened one of the great immigrant streams of the state, as thousands more Czech-speaking farmers followed to the blackland prairies over the coming decades.
Why it matters
This modest settlement seeded a distinctive Czech-Texan culture — of language, faith, and community halls — that still colors the identity of central Texas today.
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Related people
- · Joseph Janda
- · Valintin Kolibal
- · Frantisek Koza
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Cedar Cemetery
LaGrange, TX
The Lewis family settled the La Grange area in the 1830s and set aside this ground as a family burial place, where the earliest marked grave dates to 1857. German immigrants left a deep imprint here—records were kept in German until 1931 and their culture is carved into many of the tombstones. Renamed several times as it grew into a community cemetery, it holds veterans of every American conflict from Texas independence through the Korean War.
Dubina
Dubina, TX
Named from the Czech word for "oak grove," Dubina was founded in 1856 by Moravian immigrant families who cleared farms in Fayette County. By 1900 the community had grown into a full village with a church, mill, cotton gin, blacksmith, store, and post office. A devastating 1909 storm and a 1912 fire broke its momentum, and the town never fully recovered — but it holds the distinction of being the first Texas settlement founded entirely by Czech-Moravians.
Christian G. Wertzner
La Grange, TX
Christian G. Wertzner fought at San Jacinto in the 1836 battle that secured Texas independence and is remembered as the first permanent German settler of Fayette County. Born in Germany, he was part of the wave of German immigrants who would give Central Texas its distinctive character. He died in 1852, having helped plant a lasting community in the young republic.
Boehnke Cemetery
Muldoon, TX
In 1867 Michael and Anna Boehnke bought 430 acres where they farmed, raised livestock, and reared nine children. The family cemetery began in tragedy in 1873 with the burial of their newborn son Ernest, and the last interment came nearly a century later, in 1967, with their granddaughter Mellie Biebas. Seventeen people rest beneath headstones of granite, limestone, and concrete, the record of one immigrant family's faith and perseverance.