A Visit to Boerne

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Today we drove south to the town of Boerne which is located just off I-10 and about 40 miles south of Kerrville.  Boerne is the county seat of   Kendall County and was named in honor of a Jewish-German author and publicist, Karl Ludwig Börne, with the Anglicized spelling of Boerne. In March 1887, the San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway came to town creating an economic boom but the town was not incorporated until 1909.   It is now a fast growing community due to its proximity to San Antonio.  The main street through town is a heavily traveled four lane road and it is hard to enter the road from a side street if you are not on a street with a light. 

Our visit included going to the following places: 

Dienger Trading Co. (a restaurant, bakery and unique shop of clothes and jewelry for men, women and infants as well as some interesting home décor items).  The building was constructed in 1884 and served as a fancy grocery store on the street level with the family’s living quarters on the second floor. In 1900, Mr. Dienger added on to the original structure to allow for a new dry goods store.

Next we stopped by Ye Kendall Inn which was an old stage coach stop and is now a lovely Inn with a lovely gazebo across the street.  The Inn was built around 1859 by Erastus and Sarah Reed who came from Georgia.  At that time travelers were at the mercy of homeowners in the area who were willing to let them spend the night in a spare room.  The Reeds built the center portion of the hotel and were the first to offer four rooms for travelers in the Hill Country. 

Gazzebo across the street

The Old Courthouse (the limestone courthouse is the second oldest in Texas and was designed by architects Philip Zoeller and J. F. Stendebac).    Kendall County was created in 1862 and Boerne became the county seat with the courthouse being built in 1870.  A new front was added in 1909.  

Next door is the Old Jail (circa 1909).

The old St. Peter on the Hill Catholic Church is a wood frame building on Main Street.  In the 1860’s Emil Fleury, a young deacon studying to be a priest, was sent by the Bishop of Galveston to build the first Catholic Church in Boerne.  Fleury found a spot high on a hill south of Cibolo Creek and began to build the original St. Peter’s Catholic Church.  

This church served the people in Boerne until 1923 when a newer church was built next door.  This new church was modeled after San Antonio’s Mission Conception.

Across the street from the church is a city park with a lovely memorial to the fallen soldiers of many wars in the center. 

  Our drive around town also took us past a few old homes 

and the creek (Cibolo Creek) flowing through town even though it looks more like a river to me.  In addition, we took in a number of antique stores before returning to Kerrville.  

On the way home, we stopped at the local Mexican Restaurant (Mamacita's) where we each had a chimichanga covered in what they call ranchero sauce with virtually no flavor.  The plate also included rice and either refried or whole beans along with sour cream and guacamole.  The meal was plentiful but lacked flavor.  We really are spoiled after living in New Mexico so long.