(SPLIT IN MULTIPLE PARTS DUE TO SIZE) (PART I of 3)

I didn't get a chance to comment on this Tuesday because my work schedule was pretty hectic, so I hope it is okay to revisit this thread on Sunday!

As someone who specializes in both Texas and African American history, the persecution and oppression of minorities is well-known and well-documented in both topic areas. In Texas history, the oppression of indigenous peoples and Mexicans who lived in Texas before European settlement in the 1820s by the white settlers is also fairly well-documented.

However, there was much more persecution and oppression of other ethnic groups than just indigenous peoples, Blacks, and the Mexican people who lived in Texas in the 20th century.

Today, I'm going to tell you about a series of events that resulted in the oppression, murder, harassment, and more of another ethnic minority in Texas history, specifically German Texans. We will explore several incidents involving Germans from the period before the American Civil War to World War II.

Germans had a presence in Texas dating back to 1831, (Biesele, R.L. "The State Convention of Germans in 1854," Southwestern Historical Quarterly, April, 1930, vol. 33, No. 4, pp. 247-261). The root of distrust and oppression of German Texans, however, has its roots in the 1850s. (Sonntag, Mark. "Fighting Everything German in Texas 1917-1919," Historian, Summer 1994, Vol. 56, Issue 4)

On May 14-15, 1854, in conjunction with the second annual "Saengerfest," a political meeting of Texas Germans was conducted in San Antonio. Among the things adopted in a platform this group produced was a clause relating to abolition of slavery. This caused the Germans to largely be viewed as abolitionists. The meeting caused a "considerable disturbance," that impacted Texas politics for the next year. The so-called "agitation," in Texas coincided with a German movement across the U.S. at that time. (Biesele)

Although there were German slaveholders in Texas, the vast majority of Germans in Texas at the time were not slaveholders. (Kearney, James C. "Nassau Plantation: The Evolution of a Texas German Slave Plantation." University of North Texas Press, 2011). When the question of secession came to Texas in 1861, some Germans left the state. Some were apathetic. The remaining Germans basically divided into three groups concerning the issue. Some opposed secession and remained loyal to the Union. Some German unionists accepted secession because it had been approved by popular vote. A few were pro-secession slavers. (Buenger, Walter L. "Secession and the Texas German Community: Editor Lindheimer vs. Editor Flake," Southwestern Historical Quarterly, April, 1979, Vol. 82, No. 4). By 1860-61, some Germans in Texas had organized Loyal Union Leagues as they feared the coming political troubles. (McGowen, Stanley S. "Battle of Massacre?: The Incident on the Nueces, August 10, 1862," Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Vol. 104, No. 1, July 2000).

The most infamous incident involving German Texans during the civil was is the popularly named, "Massacre on the Nueces," which occurred August 10, 1862. At that time, the most hard-core anti-secession, pro-Union Germans lived in parts of Kendall and Gillespie Counties, (McGowen) although a portion of Germans at Frelsburg, in Colorado County, were also anti-Confederate, although how truly pro-union these people were isn't well documented. (Heinsohn, Leslie, "History of Frelsburg, Part 1, 'Frelsburg area saw difficulties during civil war,' Colorado County Citizen, July 3, 2019, p. 11). Some pro-Union German communities also organized militias. (McGowen).

For several days prior to August 10, 1862, beginning on August 1, a group of around 80 pro-Union Germans, of whom about 60 who were allegedly attempting to travel to Mexico, gathered along Turtle Creek west of Kerville, ultimately beginning skirmishes with Confederate soldiers on August 3. Although a full account of the incidents from August 3-August 10 would be lengthy, what happened on August 10 was a flashpoint for Germans in Texas. After a protracted skirmish, Confederate soldiers killed nine badly wounded Germans who had reportedly surrendered, and chased down and killed as many as 20 more, according to varied sources. (Heintzen, Frank W. "Fredricksburg During the Civil War and Reconstruction," unpublished manuscript online via the City of Fredricksburg, Texas website) Because the incident occurred at the conclusion of protracted skirmishes, historians do differ on whether or not the incident was a "massacre," as it has been known in popular culture. (McGowen) Some contemporary recountings have called it a "murder," because it went against rules of warfare at the time to slaughter those who were surrendering. (Parner, Richard and Emily Boyd, "Massacre on the Nueces," August 11, 2012, New York Times).

Whether massacre, murder, or casualties of war, the death of the Germans in this fashion was not lost on other Germans in the state. Shortly after the Civil War, a monument to the killed Germans was established by Texas Germans, which still stands today.

When Confederate Conscription troops were sent from Columbus to Frelsburg in Colorado County around this time, the young men of service age had largely been sent to a wooded area roughly between the communities of Zimmerscheidt, Frelsburg, and Mentz--all German communities. The conscription troops were never seen again, and assumed murdered by the young German men hiding in the woods. (Heinsohn)

After the Civil War, and during Reconstruction, many Germans sided with and voted for Republican and reconstructionist candidates. In fact, in the 1870s and beyond, German voters and Black voters often voted for the same tickets, resulting in a sizeable voting strength that, in some cases, helped elect Blacks to local and state legislative offices. (Colorado County Chronicles, Vols. 1 & 2, Colorado County Historical Commission, 1986). Not all German communities, however, seemed to be openly pro-Union, however. Frelsburg, in Colorado County, did have a Loyal Union League after the Civil War. However, it appears the League was, at least at one point, made up entirely of Blacks. (Daniel D. Claiborne to James P. Newcomb, letter including listing of League chapters in Colorado County and their membership with racial identifiers, August 10, 1870, James P. Newcomb Papers, Briscoe Center for American History)