Henry Doering established his general store in 1882. (Williamson Museum)
Henry & Lena Doering Family, ca. 1912. (Williamson Museum)
Walburg Motor Company, 1934. (Williamson Museum)
St. Peter Lutheran Church, ca. 1930. (Williamson Museum)
Zion Lutheran Church, ca. 1939. (Williamson Museum)
It began with a single store. In 1882, Henry Doering built his general store 33 miles northeast of Austin, just as the railroad was opening up more Texas land for new settlements. Four years later, the town had a post office and a name: Walburg, after Doering’s hometown in Germany. Two Lutheran churches – Zion and St. Peter, both still vibrant and worth visiting – opened in town. By the late 1890s, Walburg was a fully functioning community with a few hundred people and a distinctly German feel.
That building Doering constructed in 1882 is still standing, now home to a roadside German restaurant and large biergarten. Wander in sometime and you just might hear Ron Tippelt – an acclaimed yodeler and accordionist from Munich.
Walburg Community
- 12 miles northeast of Georgetown on FM 972, Walburg, TX
