Theis House
Boerne, Kendall County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This pioneer home was built in 1858 by German immigrant Phillip Jacob Theis (1809-1876), an early Kendall County blacksmith and wheelwright. The original part of the Theis house is a dogtrot plan of palisade construction. Willow branches were woven around cedar support posts to form the walls, which were then packed with clay and rock and finally stuccoed for protection. The Theis house is a rare surviving example of this construction type. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1984
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
German immigrant Phillip Jacob Theis, an early Kendall County blacksmith and wheelwright, built this dogtrot home in 1858 using palisade construction: willow branches woven around cedar posts, packed with clay and rock, then stuccoed. Such earthen-and-timber walls were once common on the Texas Hill Country frontier but rarely survive, making the Theis House a rare intact example.
Why it matters
The house preserves the vernacular building techniques of German immigrants who settled the Texas Hill Country, a tangible record of how newcomers adapted Old World craft to frontier materials.
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Related people
- · Phillip Jacob Theis
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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