Karte des Staates, Texas, 1851
[Map of the State, Texas]
Published in Wiesbaden, Germany in 1851, this map of Texas was printed by the Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas (also known as the Adelsverein).[1] The map, part of a guidebook for prospective German settlers, was very influential in recruiting German immigrants to Texas. Printed almost wholly in German, its primary focus was to familiarize prospective settlers with the general geography of Texas, and more specifically, the land the Adelsverein had procured for their ambitious new German colony.
Adelsverein settlers immigrating to Texas arrived at the deep-water port of Indianola, located on Matagorda Bay in Calhoun County. The town was selected by the general commissioner of the Adelsverein, Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels, when it was then known as Indian Point.[2] The name was briefly changed to Karlshafen in honor of Prince Carl and became known as Indianola in 1849.
German settlers disembarked at Indianola — underlined in green on the map — and made their way northwest towards the areas designated for the German colony. The map traces the route that was taken by settlers to the two established German settlements of New Braunfels and Fredericksburg, also underlined in the same green highlight. The course indicated on the map extends further to the site designated for the German colony, outlined in pink and labeled Grant-Gebiet des Texas Vereins (Grant Area of the Texas Society). To the west of this grant is a space labeled Noch nicht vermessener Theil des Grant-Gebiets (Not yet surveyed Part of Grant Area), which indicates an optimistic view that the colony would expand due to continued settlement.
Much of the area around the German colony grant is portrayed inaccurately, suggesting that at the time of publishing the area had not been fully surveyed. Most notably, the map shows the Colorado River — one of the specified boundaries of the German colony grants — dramatically curving north and to the east from its erroneously indicated headwaters in south Texas. Additionally, most of the geography of West Texas, the Panhandle, and North Texas is either absent or incorrect.
The mapping of the most-settled parts of Texas at the time of publishing — southeastern Texas between the Nueces and the Sabine Rivers — is quite accurate. Almost every town and county at the time is represented, as well as major waterways and roads. The map extends eastward to show the Mississippi River, Louisiana, and the port of New Orleans, making it a suitable instrument for newly arriving German settlers.
Despite its best efforts, the Adelsverein was not successful in their stated mission of creating a “new Germany” via mass emigration. Almost from the start, the society was plagued by mismanagement and financial troubles. By 1853, only two years after this map was published, the Adelsverein was completely out of business, having sold or forfeited all its assets, property, and colonization rights to creditors. The endeavor was not a complete failure, however. An estimated 7,000 German immigrants did manage to relocate to Texas due to the efforts of the Adelsverein, and their greatest and lasting achievement, evidenced by this map, was establishing a vibrant German community that grew along with the new state of Texas.
[1] Handbook of Texas Online, Louis E. Brister, “Adelsverein,” accessed August 16, 2017, https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/ufa01. Uploaded on June 9, 2010. Modified on February 29, 2016. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
[2] Handbook of Texas Online, Brownson Malsch, “Indianola, TX,” accessed August 16, 2017, http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/hvi11. Uploaded on June 15, 2010. Modified on May 1, 2017. Published by the Texas State Historical Association.
[3] Handbook of Texas Online, Roger A. Griffin, “Compromise of 1850,” accessed August 29, 2017, http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/nbc02.
