Chasing Our Tales - Sunday Houses

I think I have probably mentioned before a book from my childhood called A Month of Christmases by Siddie Joe Johnson. This was published in 1952, and that Christmas a copy of it was given to me by my Aunt Fay. The story is about twins whose birthday was December 1st and who go to Fredericksburg, Texas, for the whole of December and celebrate Christmas the German way, from their birthday, through St. Nicholas Day, and all the way to Twelfth Night.

In the story, cowboys came in from ranches around the area and after staying out late at parties, they returned to family members' houses in town. To avoid disturbing the family, houses were built with an outside staircase. This always intrigued me as a child, and when my family traveled to Kerrville each summer I played "I Spy" with myself through Fredericksburg, looking for Sunday houses and, perhaps, the shadow of one of one of those cowboys returning from a late night of fun and laughter.

This book was especially important to me as my birthday is December 18, and my grandfather came from Germany. I could imagine Grandad, a man I never met, sneaking up the stairs so as not to awaken his older brother, sister-in-law, and children, and I was sorely disappointed to learn that Sunday Houses are native to the German Hill Country of Texas, and not to the Texas Panhandle where he lived.

In fact the town of Fredericksburg was the original site of the innovative Sunday House. These small story-and-a-half cottages were built by farmers who brought their families to town on Saturday for shopping and visiting, remaining overnight in order to attend church on Sunday before returning to their farms. An outside stair on one side leads up to a door opening into the gable of the attic, where sleeping space was provided for the boys of the family who could come in late on Saturday night without disturbing the rest of the family. Typical features included a small porch, steeply pitched gable roof with ridge parallel to the street, and shed-like slope in the rear. This description comes from Texas Houses of the 19th Century by Drury B. Alexander.

The Delforge Place online,http://www.fredericksburg-lodging.com/delforge-place2/, says, "In Fredericksburg's early years, settlers received 2 pieces of property: a 10-acre plot in the country and a small town lot close to Main St. (usually 100' x 200'). Their first priority was to set up a farm or ranch on their country acreage, which would become their primary home. As the town grew and businesses were established, they came into town on Saturday for shopping, visiting, partying, etc., but found it impossible to return to their farm or ranch Saturday evening via wagon, then come back to town again for church on Sunday. To solve this problem, many people built one-room structures on their town lots, usually with a loft above where the children could sleep, which allowed them to stay in town on Saturday night. These one-room town houses became known as Sunday Houses, and were at their peak in popularity between 1890 - 1910. Very few remain today. What happened to many is, as the original settlers grew older, their kids would take over the farm or ranch, so the parents would move into town and add on to their Sunday House in order to make it their primary residence. The Delforge Place is a prime example of this process. It started as a one-room Sunday House in 1898, then gradually grew to its present size as it received more daily use over the years."

The Handbook of Texas Online, http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/, goes on to tell: "Sunday houses were small second dwellings maintained near a church as a weekend place of residence. They became popular in the late 1800s among farmers and ranchers who lived in areas too remote to permit commuting to services. The families owning such houses normally left their farms and ranches Saturday morning, journeyed to town, took care of shopping and business, attended an evening dance or party, and spent the night in the Sunday house. On Sunday they attended church in the morning and either returned home in the afternoon or attended Sunday school in the afternoon, and then spent a second night in town. Sunday houses were also used when a member of the family needed to stay in town to conduct business or receive medical attention. Some Sunday houses became the residences of retired ranchers when their land was turned over to their sons. Although in Texas Sunday houses were almost exclusively confined to Germans in the Hill Country, particularly Gillespie County, the phenomenon was not unique to Texas. Similar houses were used in the 1660s in Middlebury, Connecticut, and a counterpart to the Sunday house exists in the Pennsylvania Dutch country. Sunday houses were small, usually having only two rooms, and often made of frame rather than rock. Some of them had 11⁄2 stories, with a gabled roof to form an attic, usually reached from an outside stairway, that served as the children's sleeping quarters. The roof was pitched at a little less than forty-five degrees and covered with handmade cypress shingles. Some of the houses were embellished with millwork in the door and window casings and had ornamented stair rails, newels, and transoms. The ground floor usually had a single room with a lean-to kitchen behind and a slant-roofed porch in front. Occasionally a second room was added. The houses were furnished for light housekeeping with a fireplace to provide heat and a place to prepare meals. There was no running water.

"Sunday houses originated for several reasons. Since there were few rural churches, a weekend town residence made it easier to attend services. And the social contact of a weekend in town provided compensation for the isolation of rural life. Such German settlements as Fredericksburg, New Braunfels, and Castroville were laid out as farm villages, and it was expected that farmers would build their houses in town and journey each day to outlying fields and pastures, in the European manner. To that end, farmers were granted town lots. Soon after initial colonization, however, Germans moved out to settle in isolated farmsteads on their land, like their Anglo-American counterparts. The Catholic and Lutheran churches, however, did not soon follow their parishioners into the countryside, but stayed instead in the county seats. Many devout Germans therefore erected Sunday houses, often on the town lots originally intended for their homes. Certain streets in Fredericksburg were lined with Sunday houses, and a surviving cluster is found on West San Antonio Street, near St. Mary's Catholic Church. Others still stand on West Main and South Milam streets. Clusters of Sunday houses also developed around St. Paul Lutheran Church in Cave Creek and in the village of Harper. Although the custom began to die in the 1920s with the advent of improved roads and motor vehicles, it experienced a resurgence in the late 1970s. Surviving Sunday houses sell at premium prices as restoration and historical significance have become more important in the tourist business."

So if you're traveling in the Texas Hill Country take a little time to view some unique Texas history and look up a few Sunday Houses. Then close your eyes and think of those boys removing their spurs as they quietly climbed the outside stairs, not wanting their mothers to know how late they were out on Saturday night or Sunday morning!

Regarding my last column about Kathleen Smith, I received a letter from Rick Andrews of Bryson. He appreciated the mention of Kathleen and Carl as they were friends of his family. He also mentioned several Bryson area events that I had touched on.

"I was wanting to know about the Rangers that overtook the raiding party northeast of Bryson. I have been all over Jack County looking for arrowheads and have found a place, maybe the spot where they overtook the Indians. This was years ago. You cannot get in there any more. I did not find any arrowheads but a lot of shells. I can't seem to find any information for that site. My English teacher in school was Barbara Ledbetter. I have read all her books. She is from Graham, Texas. There is another story about stolen gold northeast of Bryson along the Board Tree Creek, 3 miles east of Bryson. I also heard that creek was where the last bear was killed in Jack County. Any information would be appreciated. Rock Creek has two creeks that come west of Bryson. They both feed the lake in Bryson but no creek's named that are east. East and West Creek come across Highway 380 west right at the county line toward Graham. My kinfolks are the McClouds who founded the First Methodist Church. Thanks, Rick Andrews."

Now to see if we can answer any of Rick's various questions. Interestingly, Rick, if you think you found the battle site, and there were no arrowheads but rather shells, that would be an indication of that particular battle, as those Indians at that battle "were armed with breach loading shot guns, and six shooters", says the Texas Ranger Dispatch magazine.

The English teacher Rick is talking about, Barbara A. Neal Ledbetter, wrote Fort Belknap Frontier Saga, Centennial Grahamana, 1872-1972, Cattlemen's Association, Colonel Christopher L. "Kit" Carter, first president: List of persons registering brands, Civil war days in Young County, Texas, 1861-1865, Finis, Texas ; Few landmarks left in old Finis, a town for nearly fifty years, and many others.

As it's about time for the column to end, I'll take up Rick's other questions in future editions of Chasing Our Tales. Do you have questions or answers about your family history and genealogy? Let me hear from you at P O Box 61, Mineral Wells TX 76068.

You all have a good spring and an even better summer! God bless you.

©2008 Sue Seibert