Tag Archives: Antique

Let’s Go Antiquing!

Just south of the Dallas / Fort Worth metroplex, you will find yourself in the little town of Venus. I mean, it’s little, not small, little. I found myself looking at the water tower that hovered over the police station, overlooking the park and the one and a half blocks of buildings that surrounded it. A restaurant, hardware store and an antique store. I couldn’t have been happier to have found the antique store… I’ve been searching for just the right piece of furniture to call my own!

In the above building, you will find Grandma Had One Antique and Once in a Blue Moon Antique Sale. Essentially, the store is split up into two sections. The section on the far left is filled to the brim with books. Thousands and thousands of books!

The section on the right, well, anything and everything else. Furniture, books, window panes, horse shoes, cookware, odds and ends, chairs, tables and everything else.

For the curious and crafty mind, you might as well bring a trailer for your goods. You’ll be overwhelmed with ideas from all of those great HGTV shows. For others who are just looking for a good piece of furniture to pick up and bring home, well there’s plenty for you as well! If I had a house, I would’ve taken the below piece home.

Instead, what I took home was this little table (below). Super cute and very reasonably priced. I just had to dust it off a bit and I was able to check getting a piece of Texas furniture off my bucket list! Plus, the color is perfect!

If you happen to be in the market for furniture, refurbishing or even just looking for a drive thru a little ole Texas country town, here’s one you can check off your list!

Volkswagen Car Rally

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While I was visiting Fredericksburg in April, there happened to be a Volkswagen convention in town. There’s literally a different event every weekend year round in Fredericksburg. (Check out their calendar. It’s packed!) It was like walking into the 1970’s seeing all these cars. I think the best way to describe this is to let the photo’s speak for themselves. There were one to two hundred cars around, a great variety.

Here ya go!

Growing up, I use to want a bug – I thought they were so cute. Now, if I had to pick I’d go for the Thing.

This dune buggy – I’d love to take for an off road drive!

I have no idea what this is (below), but it really reminds me of the Bat-mobile.

Texas Tuesday link up with Amanda from Princess of the Panhandle and Crystal from Masons Mama. This is a chance for any blogger to participate in a post on the greatness of Texas! There’s so much to explore!

Happy Birthday Fredericksburg, TX

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Founded on May 8, 1846, Fredericksburg became home to 120 German settlers on 10,000 acres of land. Now home to over 700 historically significant structures, the history in this area is alive and well.

Baron Otfried Hans von Meusebach (later changed his name to John O. Meusebach) is the founding father of this area. The survival of the area did not come easy as Comanche Indians were notable in the area. In 1847, Meusebach signed one of the most credited and successful treaty (within Texas) with the tribes. The tribes agreed not to interfere with the settlers in the area in exchange for $3,000 worth of gifts.

1848 brought added security and economic assistance with the establishment of Fort Martin Scott. This fort was one of the first military outposts in Texas and is still one of the few restored museums / sites depicting the new Texas independence.

Frederickburg CVB / Credit Gillespie County: 1896 Early Parade

The Civil War did not go unnoticed this far south in Texas either. The majority of residents favored the Union, however not all. In 1862, a Confederate colonel and his soldiers came into town. This led to the death of 76 Germans who had plans to join the Union army. This event became known as the 1862 Massacre at Nueces.

Fredericksburg CVB / Credit Gillespie County: July 4 Parade

Other unique Fredericksburg history:

Schoolmaster and inventor Jacob Brodbeck – Successfully flew his own self powered flying machine. This was almost 40 years prior to the Wright Brothers flight.
Sunday House – Per European custom, farmers lived in town and traveled to their farms daily, each settler received a small lot for a home and 10 acres in the country for farming. Soon, these settlers adapted to the “American” custom of living on their properties in the country. The lot in town did not go unused as these farmers built small homes for the purpose of having a place to stay on the weekends, to attend church and gather with others.
Sauer-Beckmann Living History Farm at Lyndon B. Johnson State Park and Historic Site.
Pioneer Museum
Gillespie Country Country Schools Trail – 16 sites dating back to the 1880’s, including Lyndon B. Johnson’s first schoolhouse.
Vereins Kirche ( SocietyChurch) – one of the first buildings to be built in town.
Kaffeemuehle (Coffee Mill) – octagonal building served as various congregations, a school, community hall and a fort. The actual building was destroyed but a replica was built in 1935 and has been relocated to the Marktplatz.
National Museum of the Pacific War – Dedicated to everyone who served in WWII under Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. Admiral Nimitz was a five star admiral hailing from Fredericksburg. The museum now hosts the AdmiralNimitzMuseum, the George H.W. Bush Gallery, the Garden of Peach, the Pacific Combat Zone, the Memorial Wall and the Plaza of Presidents.

If you are interested in learning more and visiting some of these areas, please visit the FredericksburgVisitorsInformationCenter. They will be able to provide a map of the Walking Tour of the Historic District which will bring you to 30 historical sites within Fredericksburg.

To plan a trip to Fredericksburg, located in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, call (830) 997-6523 or 1-888-997-3600 (toll-free in the U.S.) to request a free visitor information kit or go to www.VisitFredericksburgTX.com for a complete list of accommodations in Fredericksburg and Gillespie County.

Historical Information from the CVB of Fredericksburg.