William Pfluger Home
Pflugerville, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
A native of Germany and Confederate veteran, William Pfluger (1842-1923) bought this land in 1871, just before he married Franziska Sternberg (1851-1931). The limestone house was built in 1875 and the frame section added later. A rancher, Pfluger and also built a cotton gin, Pflugerville's first bank, and other commercial structures. He deeded land for the railroad and Lutheran Church. In 1931 his son Martin (1880-1945) inherited the residence, home to five generations of the family. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark-1985.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
William Pfluger, a German immigrant and Confederate veteran, bought this land in 1871 and built its limestone house in 1875 as he raised a family that would span five generations here. Beyond ranching, he ran a cotton gin, founded Pflugerville's first bank, and deeded land for the railroad and the Lutheran church. The town that grew up around him still carries his name.
Why it matters
Pfluger's homestead reflects the German immigrants who helped build Central Texas towns through farming, commerce, and civic institutions.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · William Pfluger
- · Franziska Sternberg Pfluger
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Bohls House
Pflugerville, TX
Gottlieb William Bohls, eldest of ten children born on a nearby farm, raised this handsome two-story Queen Anne Free Classic house in 1913 on land once home to a country school. His brother Otto later took over and became a champion of soil conservation, using contour farming, cover crops, and stock tanks to hold the ground together through Texas droughts. With no plumbing until 1975, the household drew its drinking water from brick and tin cisterns fed by a rooftop rain-harvesting system.
Oertli Dairy
Austin, TX
Swiss immigrant Fridolin "Fritz" Oertli came to Travis County in 1904 and by about 1923 was running a dairy, his wife Margaretha making Swiss cheese while Fritz yodeled for guests. Three of their children carried on the business, adapting through the end of home milk delivery in 1950 and shifting locations as Austin's growth swallowed their pastureland. When it closed in 2001 after 78 years, the Oertli Dairy was the last dairy farm in Travis County, its land becoming a city park.
Carlson
Manor, TX
Brothers Pete and John Carlson, Swedish immigrants who came to America in 1869, settled here in 1881 and helped found a small cotton-farming community. Pete opened the area's first store and John ran the cotton gin, and at its height in the early 20th century Carlson supported family farms, a school, a band hall, and a community club. As ownership changed hands the gin and store took new names, but the town's life turned on cotton.
George Irvine House
Georgetown, TX
Scottish immigrant George Irvine built this two-story frame home for his family in 1886 in the growing college town of Georgetown. Founder of the Irvine Brothers Lumber Co., later the Belford Lumber Co., he was a pillar of civic life, serving on the school board, city council, and the vestry of Grace Episcopal Church. In 1922 he sold the house to postmaster Simon J. Enochs, who reworked its original Italianate detailing in the 1930s.