Austin: German Free School

Long front porch of a house with many dachshunds relaxing

Dr. Kelly Stevens deeded the building to the German-Texan Heritage Society, his dachshunds on the patio.

1872 drawing of the German Free School building showing three front entrance doors, a balcony on one end of the second storey and raised front lawn

German Free School, established 1857 (German-Texan Heritage Society)

Portrait of Julius Scheutze

Julius Scheutze (UTSA Special Collections Library)

German text alphabet card, circa 1871

German text alphabet card, ca. 1871 (Library of Congress)

Stained glass window depicting the Virgin Mary

Window detail at the school buiding.

Two storey building with a balcony and sign saying Texas German and English academy with students standing in front and on balcony

Another Austin school, the Texas German and English Academy opened in 1877, founded by Jacob Bickler. (Austin History Center)

Boy selling pretzels in a courtyard at a festival

Oktoberfest at the German-Texan Heritage Society.

Three accordion players on a covered stage during the German-Texan Heritage Society Festival

What’s a party without a little polka?

It might not look like much from the sidewalk: a limestone house, a few feet above East 10th Street. The German Free School of Austin, built in 1858 with its unique rammed-earth construction, transformed education in Austin. Today, it is the headquarters for the German-Texan Heritage Society, a nonprofit organization that preserves German culture in Texas through festivals, language classes, genealogical searches, and other services.

German-Texan Heritage Society

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