Tuleta
Tuleta, Bee County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Rev. Peter Unzicker led a group of Illinois settlers here in 1906. Buying 53.4 acres of land of the original Uranga Grant and later Chittim-Miller Ranch, he founded Tuleta, named for the daughter of J. M. Chittim. A rail depot and post office were opened. In 1909 Pastor Unzicker organized one of Texas' first Mennonite churches. Townspeople established the innovative Tuleta Agricultural High School in 1910, with Miss Amanda Stoltzfus as principal. Once marketing center for this fertile farming area, Tuleta also had a union church and several business houses. (1978)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1906 the Rev. Peter Unzicker led a band of Illinois settlers to this South Texas prairie, buying land from an old Spanish grant and founding the town of Tuleta, named for a rancher's daughter. He organized one of Texas's earliest Mennonite churches in 1909, and townspeople opened the innovative Tuleta Agricultural High School the next year. For a time the town thrived as a marketing center for the surrounding farmland.
Why it matters
Tuleta shows how faith-driven colonists and progressive rural education planted new communities across the Texas farm belt.
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Related people
- · Peter Unzicker
- · Amanda Stoltzfus
- · J. M. Chittim
Themes & tags
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