The Fredericksburg Texas Historic District

The district area coincides with the original platting of the town by Herman Wilke, with the streets are laid out in a wide grid. The district encompasses 367 contributing buildings and 191 non-contributing buildings. Many of the buildings in the historic district have been designated either a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, and/or added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Texas.

Located in the Texas Hill Country, Fredericksburg is one of the earliest Germanic settlements in the state. The district encompasses 40 blocks of historic buildings dating from the mid-19^th century. The buildings are made of stone and fachwerk, a traditional German building technique consisting of heavy timber framing and diagonal bracing, with an infill of limestone. The town was founded by an association of German noblemen, the Adelsverein, that brought 7,000 German immigrants to Texas. 

By the turn-of-the-century, Fredericksburg began to look like many other American towns with residences reflecting popular American architectural styles ranging from the Queen Anne and the Colonial Revival to Bungalows and Four-Squares.

The Architectural Structures of Fredericksburg are often unique to the Texas Hill Country

The Vereins Kirche, or Peoples Church, was designed by Friedrich Armand Strubberg; it became the first public building in Fredericksburg in 1847. It served as a non-denominational church, school, town hall and fort. Pupils learned their lessons in their own German language. The building models a style known as Carolingian architecture, similar to the Aachen Cathedral. Each side of the octagon was 18 feet (5.5 m) wide by 18 feet (5.5 m) high, with each side having a10 foot roof (3.0 m) high, topped by a 7 foot (2.1 m) high octagonal cupola.

The Sunday Houses are unique to the German immigrant culture of the Texas Hill Country. In reverse of the old European tradition of living in town while working the rural farms, the early Fredericksburg German settlers made their main homes on the acreage they worked. On their town lots, they erected Sunday Houses for overnight stays on their weekly travels into town for supplies and church attendance. Older generations would use the houses as a retirement house, as the younger generations inherited the acreage and the work. These houses were often made of limestone rock coated with whitewash inside and out. Depending on the individual family's need, these relatively small 2-story houses were designed for limited stays, with one or two ground floor rooms and an upper loft for sleeping. Standard design was a fireplace and a porch. Often there was an outside staircase leading to the loft.

Many of these homes have been restored with some used as Bed and Breakfast retreats

The White Elephant Saloon is famous for its elephant relief parapet and rich iron cresting. The native limestone building was constructed in 1888 by John W. Kleck. Originally part of a chain of gentleman's resorts, the building was operated as a saloon until Prohibition.

The Richardsonian Romanesque style bank building was designed in 1889 by architect Alfred Giles who also designed two other structures in Fredericksburg, the old courthouse now known as the Fredericksburg Memorial Library, and the William Bierschwale house on Bowie Street. A fourth design by Giles is the 1893 Morris Ranch Schoolhouse at Morris Ranch in Gillespie County.

US Gulf and South Atlantic City Breaks

New Orleans Mobile Savannah Charleston Ashville and Charlotte

The original settlement of New Orleans and the oldest neighborhood in the city is Vieux Carre, better known as the French Quarter. Established by the French in 1718, the location continues to be a valuable site for trade due to its strategic position along the Mississippi River. The district is a National Historic Landmark and is bordered by popular streets, such as Canal, Decatur and Rampart Streets and Esplanade Avenue. The French Quarter boasts cultural contributions from the French, Spanish, Italians, Africans, Irish and others as demonstrated by the development of New Orleans as a global port. 

Mobile Alabama is located at the head of Mobile Bay and the Central Gulf Coast. Mobile was founded by the French in 1702. During its first 100 years, Mobile was a colony of France, Britain and Spain; it became a part of the United States of America in 1813. 

Savannah was founded in 1733 on the Savannah River, it became the colonial capital and later the first state capital of Georgia. Its port was of strategic importance during both the American Revolution and the Civil War. 

 

Charleston was founded in 1670, Charleston is defined by its cobblestone streets, horse-drawn carriages and pastel pre-Civil-War-era houses, particularly in the bustling French Quarter and Battery areas. The Battery promenade and Waterfront Park both overlook Charleston Harbor, while Fort Sumter, a Federal stronghold where the first shots of the Civil War rang out, lies across the water. 

Charlotte is named in honor of King George III of Britain’s consort. It is a city with 199 neighborhoods and many nicknames, including: the famed Hornet’s Nest derived from the American Revolution, The QC, Crown Town, Home of NASCAR, Gem of the South, CLT, Bank Town, Char-Town and City of Trees.

Asheville has a fascinating past; experience a walking itinerary that commemorates the city’s most significant cultural, educational, social and architecture stories; a museum without walls. Urban Farm and Mountain Trails Gourmet Cuisine Public Art Music Heritage and a Bohemian Culture.

Aberdeen Mississippi

A Colorful History Architecture and Southern Hospitality

Aberdeen is located on the banks of the Tombigbee River; in the 19^th century it was one of the busiest ports on the Mississippi. Today Aberdeen retains many historic structures from this period, with over 200 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places. Aberdeen Lock and Dam forms Aberdeen Lake, a popular recreational area and part of the Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway system. 

History the first Europeans reached this part of the American South in 1540 as part of the Hernando Desoto Expedition. Aberdeen was first settled in 1834 and chartered as a town in 1837 when it became a thriving cotton port.

Aberdeen is ideally located to visit the cities of the American South and the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway links it with the Tennessee River and the Gulf of Mexico. 

Aberdeen is Located on the Tombigbee River and Near Prairie Land Ideal for Cotton Farming

Southern Hospitality as a historic port city, Aberdeen is accustomed to hosting travelers and sharing access to the area's recreational treasures, festivals and parades, shopping, hunting, fishing, hiking and golfing. The city’s local cultural scene includes the theater, antebellum mansions and one of the best libraries in Mississippi.

Historic Architecture Aberdeen homes feature a variety of architectural styles such as stained and leaded glass windows, towers, bays and brackets and outstanding examples of almost every period and style of Southern architecture; antebellum cottages and mansions, ornate Victorians, turn-of-the-century neoclassical homes and substantial bungalows from the 1920s and 1930s.

Aberdeen Lake Marina is conveniently located for boaters to enjoy cruising the Tenn-Tom Waterway and Aberdeen Lock and Dam. The Blue Bluff Recreation Area is one of the most scenic recreation areas on the waterway with both a campground and day-use area. The area is named for the beautiful clay and limestone cliffs that border the park on the eastern side. The bluff rises 80 feet above the water and provides a lofty view of the lake and nearby lock and dam.