Schulenburg, Texas

Everything Schulenburg is known for

1 song mention this city 2 artists from here

Music in Schulenburg

Songs About Schulenburg

Grandpa Drank Too Much at St. John Picnic
Dujka Brothers
95%

Artists From Schulenburg

T
The Fabulous Ginn Sisters
country
A
Annie Rost
country

Rivers & Roads in Song near Schulenburg

Songs written about the waterways and highways that run near Schulenburg.

Interstate 10 36 songs US Route 90 9 songs Texas Colorado River 6 songs Texas State Highway 71 2 songs Guadalupe River 17 songs

Musical Heritage

Moravia Store RoadyGoat

1889

There's a Texas polka waltz called "Moon Over Moravia," and the Moravia it's named for is a Lavaca County hamlet about ten minutes out of Schulenburg — pretty much dead center between Houston and San Antonio. The store at the heart of it opened in 1889 as a country market and saloon, back when Czech settlers were just starting to farm the land and named the place for the old country. It sat closed six years until Henrietta Filip bought it in 1996 and brought it back as a bar. Same wooden floors, same bar, same shelves. She grew up a few miles off, watching farmers play an old card game called tarok while the neighbors danced. Daniel Klapuch and Mark Harmes wrote that waltz about this very room. Twenty-five years on, they're coming back to play it here.

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History of Schulenburg

Plain Churches Hiding European Cathedrals RoadyGoat

1900

Schulenburg is the gateway to one of the most surprising sights in Texas, the Painted Churches, though most of them sit just outside town in tiny communities like Dubina, Ammannsville, Praha, and High Hill. From the road they look like ordinary plain country churches, simple wood or masonry, nothing to slow down for. Then you step inside, and it is breathtaking: ceilings and arches and walls covered in color, and wooden columns painted so cleverly that they look like polished marble. German and Czech immigrant artists, many of them arriving after 1900, brought the look of the grand cathedrals of the old country and recreated it out here in the Texas countryside, on a farm-community budget, with paint and patience instead of stone and gold. The plain exterior is almost part of the trick. You have no idea what is waiting until the door swings open and a little Texas prairie church turns into a piece of Europe.

The Painted Churches of Fayette County RoadyGoat

Just outside Schulenburg, you’ll find some of the most surprising buildings in all of Texas. They’re known as the Painted Churches. From the outside, they look like simple, white wooden churches you’d see anywhere in the rural South. But when you step inside, you’re transported to another world. The interiors are an explosion of color, art, and intricate detail, mimicking the grand cathedrals of Europe. These churches were built by German and Czech immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Far from home and with limited resources, they used their own folk-art traditions to make their houses of worship beautiful. Artists used stencils, freehand painting, and clever techniques to create faux marble columns, gilded arches, and sky-blue ceilings dotted with stars. Visiting a place like St. Mary’s in High Hill is an unforgettable experience—a testament to the faith and artistry these pioneers brought to the Texas prairie.

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The Brothers Who Built the Sky RoadyGoat

In Schulenburg, the dream of flight wasn't just for the birds. It was for two local brothers, Victor and Joe Stanzel, who turned a boyhood hobby into a world-renowned business. Victor used to stop plowing the family farm to watch airplanes pass over town; he became the idea man, and Joe was the one who made the ideas real. Starting in the 1930s they designed and built model airplanes that became icons of the hobby. They were true innovators, pioneering the control-line field with their 'G-Line' flying system, which let a flyer steer a plane in the air on a single line — a patent they were granted in 1951. Their gas-powered Tiger Shark, finished in 1939, went out from their factory here to kids and adults all over the world, and Victor was still developing electric control-line planes when he died in 1997. Between them they held better than two dozen patents. Their work wasn't just about toys; it was about applying principles of aerodynamics and engineering. Today you can visit the Stanzel Museum in the old 1935 factory building and see the story of two local boys whose ingenuity and passion for flight took off and circled the globe.

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Schulenburg Painted Churches

1890

Czech and German immigrants in Fayette County built and painted elaborate church interiors in small prairie communities between the 1890s and 1910s.

Anderson Place, Old

1857

Area's oldest occupied house. Built before 1857 by William B. and Rosetta Anderson, three of whose eleven children were born here. Anderson was a carpenter, blacksmith, postmaster in town of Lyons, justice of the peace, notary public (appointed by the Governor of Texas), and sergeant of Lyons Riflemen, C.S.A. Family watched military drills from second story during Civil War. Later owners: Louis Schulenburg, for whom town was named; T. W. Pierce, a principal investor in Galveston, Houston & San Antonio Railroad; and C. A. Rose family, who remodeled house for roomers. (1971)

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Morene, Carl T.

1933

Carl T. Morene, the “Music Man of Schulenburg,” was born on November 13, 1887, in Muldoon, a small community located in southwestern Fayette County, Texas. He was the son of A. F. Morene, and his parents were Swedish immigrants. The family moved often because of his father’s occupation as a railroad worker, and in 1896 they lived at Lyon’s Station in Burleson County. Morene’s mother died that year, and his father’s death in Gonzales County four years later left Morene an orphan. At the end of his eighth grade year, he left school to find work. He enlisted in the United States Navy in 1909 and served for four years and subsequently joined the United States Army and served in the Motor Transport Corps during World War I . He most likely learned the electrical trade during his military service and began employment in the electric utility business at Nixon in Gonzales County after the war. He worked in Hallettsville for the Central Power and Light Company in 1924 and moved to Schulenburg to head company operations there in 1928. He eventually became city manager over the town’s municipal utility program. Morene, known as an able and productive manager, opened a new chapter in his life due to the economic consequences of the Great Depression . In 1933 a financial shortfall prompted the local school board to discontinue the paid directorship position for the Schulenburg High School Orchestra even though the program had earned regional accolades. Orchestral programs were rare in public schools in Texas at that time. In order to save the program, Carl Morene offered to serve as the unpaid director of the Schulenburg High School Orchestra. Intrigued by the creative plan to continue the orchestra and with little left to lose, the school board approved Morene’s directorship. After working his regular job during the day, Morene enthusiastically volunteered his time for the orchestra in the evening. He possessed the fundamental skills for reading and playing music and proved to be a resourceful and inspiring teacher. He accepted the economic challenges posed by the depression and persevered to build and maintain a high-quality orchestra. He personally recruited participants and offered personal lessons free of charge. Morene invested his own money to purchase musical instruments, sheet music, and other supplies for the orchestra. He furnished transportation, using his own car, to help students attend rehearsals, which occurred in the school auditorium every Monday and Wednesday night. In September 1934 an appreciative school board secured a special Texas teaching certificate for Morene. He stated, “I had never expected to have a teacher’s certificate because of the lack of school education I have had. I never graduated from high school.” Under Morene’s leadership the orchestra gained recognition for its repertoire of classical works, marches, and patriotic songs. The Schulenburg High School Orchestra achieved high honors at interscholastic events and impressed audiences at public concerts, local community events, and on the radio. The group also embarked on regional concert tours to destinations such as Shiner, Gonzales, Waelder, and Yoakum. Morene composed the words and music for Schulenburg High School’s official school song, “Shorthorns Forever,” which his orchestra debuted at a school assembly in February 1938. During World War II , Morene continued his dedication and volunteer service to lead the orchestra. With the coming of gasoline rationing, he used his own ration stamps to assist with student transportation. He continued his work as manager of the city’s utility program and in that capacity also mentored mechanically-inclined students. He maintained memberships in the Masons, Lion’s Club, and American Legion . After the war he initiated a marching drum and bugle corps program at Schulenburg High. In 1947 the corps had evolved into a full-fledged marching band. In early 1948 Morene was stricken with pneumonia which was probably th

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Upton, William Felton

1861

William Felton Upton, early Schulenburg settler and legislator, was born on August 31, 1832, near Winchester, Franklin County, Tennessee, the son of John and Ann (Cunningham) Upton. In 1853 he moved to Texas with his mother and became a farmer and store owner in the Blum Hill community, west of Foerster's Creek in southern Fayette County. William married Mary Ann Henderson in Austin on January 21, 1858, and the couple had one son. In 1859 he was joined by his older brother, John Cunningham Upton , who took charge of the farming operations while William concentrated on the mercantile business in the community, which by 1858 was called High Hill. During the Civil War both brothers rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel. John served in Hood's Texas Brigade and was killed during the second battle of Manassas. William enlisted for six months on October 19, 1861, in Galveston as a second lieutenant in Walter L. Mann 's Texas Cavalry. He re-enlisted on June 16, 1864, as a captain in Company H of Charles M. Bradford 's Texas Cavalry that served along the Texas coast and frontier. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in March 1865. On October 20, 1873, the new town of Schulenburg was platted on the route of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway four miles southeast of High Hill. Upton Avenue in the new town was named jointly for the two brothers. In 1875 Upton moved his business to the growing city, where he was elected alderman, and his father-in-law, Alfred Henderson, was the newly elected mayor. Upton served Fayette County as a State Representative in the 11 th Texas legislature in 1866 and in the 16 th through 19 th legislatures from 1879 to 1885. He died in Schulenburg on February 7, 1887, and is buried in the Schulenburg City Cemetery beside his wife, who died in 1911, and her parents. Upton County, established in 1887 and organized in 1910, was named for the two brothers.

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Lyons Family Cemetery

1820

James Lyons (b. 1778) brought his family to Texas from New York in 1820. While working outside his cabin near this site on Oct. 15, 1837, Lyons was killed by Comanches. His was the first grave in this family cemetery. His 12-year-old son Warren (b. 1825) was captured in the attack and held by the Indians for about 10 years before he was able to return home. In 1848 he married Lucy Boatright. They later settled in Johnson County, where he died in 1870. A stone erected here in 1931 states incorrectly that Warren Lyons, rather than his father James, was a victim of the 1837 raid.

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Schulenburg, TX

1873

Schulenburg is at the intersection of Interstate 10, U.S. Highway 77, and Farm Road 1579, on the Southern Pacific Railroad, eighteen miles south of La Grange in southern Fayette County. The area was settled by German, Austrian, and Czech settlers in the mid-nineteenth century. Schulenburg was founded in 1873, when the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway built through the site, and was named for Louis Schulenburg, who donated land for the railroad. The community was granted a post office in 1874 and incorporated in 1875. Another land donor was John Christian Baumgarten Sr., one of the "Forty-eighters" from Germany, who built a cottonseed-crushing plant in the community. He also operated a lumberyard, a planing mill, a sash and door factory, and a cotton gin, and in 1883 he opened the Schulenburg Oil Mill, which manufactured Baumgarten Process Allison Flour from cottonseed. In 1884 the community had 1,000 inhabitants, two churches, a bank, schools, thirteen general stores, and four saloons. Among the early newspapers in the community were the Schulenburg Enterprise , the Messenger , the Sticker , and the Texas Volksfreund . Schulenburg had electric lights by 1896, and in 1900 the community had 1,149 inhabitants. By 1914 it had Baptist, Catholic, Lutheran, and Methodist churches and the G. E. Ruhman plant, which manufactured steel furnaces and wire goods. The population of the town slowly climbed to 1,246 in 1920, 1,640 in 1930, and 1,970 in 1940. In 1945 Schulenburg had 112 businesses, including two manufacturing companies, three cotton gins, a machine shop, and the Stanzel Company—a model airplane factory. The population of the town continued its slow rise in the postwar period, reaching 2,207 in 1960, 2,347 in 1980, and 2,455 in 1990. The population was 2,699 in 2000 and 2,945 in 2015. Schulenburg has a rich musical heritage, especially polka music , and has had several orchestras, the Gold Chain Bohemian Band, and the Texas Polka Music Museum . The town is also noted for the painted churches in the region and is home to the Stanzel Model Aircraft Museum. See also COTTONSEED INDUSTRY .

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Things to Do in Schulenburg

quirky 15.2 mi away
The Chicken Ranch

A brothel outside La Grange operated continuously from the 1840s until Houston television reporter Marvin Zindler exposed it in 1973 -- one of the…
food 23.6 mi away
Spoetzl Brewery

Home of Shiner beer since 1909. Free tours and tastings in tiny Shiner Texas.
quirky 23.9 mi away
The Beer That Tasted Like Medicine

In 1909 a group of homesick German and Czech farmers in tiny Shiner Texas pooled their money built a ramshackle brewery and tried to make beer that reminded…
historical 23.9 mi away
The Brewmaster from Egypt

Kosmos Spoetzl took one of the strangest paths to small-town Texas. Born in Bavaria he trained at brewmaster school in Germany then spent eight years brewing…
historical 23.9 mi away
The Only Female Brewery Owner in America

When Kosmos Spoetzl died in 1950 his daughter Cecile -- known as Miss Celie -- took over the brewery. She became the only female brewery owner in the entire…
quirky 24.0 mi away
When Hippies Discovered Shiner Beer

For its first 60 years Shiner Beer barely left the county. Then in the 1970s something unexpected happened. At the Armadillo World Headquarters in Austin an…
food 15.7 mi away
Hruska's Bakery & Store

Family-run Czech bakery on Highway 71 in Ellinger since 1912. Kolaches, klobasniky, and a roadside-store side hustle for travelers between Houston and Austin.
historical 23.8 mi away
Surviving Prohibition with Near Beer and Ice

When Prohibition hit in 1920 most breweries across America shut their doors forever. Not Kosmos Spoetzl. He kept the Shiner brewery alive by officially…
day trip
Day Trip to Schulenburg 🇩🇪 (FULL EPISODE) S6 E11

Featured on The Daytripper — a full-episode local travel guide.

Everything Near Schulenburg

504 stories, landmarks & places within ~20 miles — the nearest 200 are listed here — the same local lore RoadyGoat plays as you drive through.

Explore Schulenburg on the Map
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