Gillespie County Was Built by German Immigrants in the 1840s

In May 1846, John O. Meusebach led 120 German settlers sponsored by the Adelsverein — a society that organized German immigration to Texas — to the site of Fredericksburg. By 1850, Germans made up about 74% of the county's white population. Many settlers came from villages along the Rhine and other parts of western and central Germany. They built stone houses, established Lutheran churches, and started farms and ranches across the Hill Country.

Gillespie County was formally created in 1848 and named for Captain Robert A. Gillespie, a Texas Ranger killed in the Mexican-American War. The German heritage is still visible in the architecture along Fredericksburg's Main Street, in church congregations, and in place names across the county. The Handbook of Texas at tshaonline.org has a full account of the county's founding and history.