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rE--------~t~ --------------• THE TEXIANS AND THE TEXANS
THE
BELGIAN
TEXANS
THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS
AT SAN ANTONIO
INSTITUTE OF TEXAN CULTURES
THE TEXIANS AND TEXANS
A pamphlet series dealing with the many kinds of people who
have contributed to the history and heritage of Texas. Now in
print: The Indian Texans, The German Texans, The Norwegian
Texans, The Mexican Texans (in English), Los Mexicano Texanos
(in Spanish), The Spanish Texans, The Polish Texans, The Czech
Texans, The French Texans, The Italian Texans, The Greek
Texans, The Jewish Texans, The Syrian and Lebanese Texans,
and The Belgian Texans.
The Belgian Texans
Principal researcher: Samuel P. Nesmith
CD 1975: The Institute of Texan Cultures
Cover illustrations: Seraphine Hooge, Courtesy of Mrs. Mary
Persyn
The Bauwens Family's Belgian Farm Band,
Courtesy of Mrs. Homer Verstuyft.
The Roggeman Brothers and Aviel Bauwens
in Jungman's Saloon, Courtesy of Mrs.
Homer V erstuyft.
I
FR. DOUAY AND THE DEATH OF LA SALLE Verne, Exploration of the World
THE BELGIAN TEXANS
Belgians first set foot on Texas soil with
La Salle in 1685. Even prior to that time,
natives of this small, north European
country had influenced exploration of the
New World. Gerard Mercator, the father
of modern cartography, was a Belgian, as
was Peter of Ghent, a lay brother whose
educational techniques, pioneered among
Mexican Indians, were later adopted in
Texas. Even the king of Spain during
much of the exploration period was a
Belgian, Charles V of Ghent. It was he
who launched the epoch-making expedi­tion
of Heman Cortes against Mexico,
which led to Spanish conquest in much
of the hemisphere.
Arriving with La Salle were three
Franciscan priests-Zenobius Membre,
Maximus Le Clerq, and Anastasius Douay
-each born in the province of Hainaut.
Membre and Le Clerq were killed in the
massacre at Fort Saint Louis by hostile
Indians, but Douay survived to return to
France and tell the story of La Salle's
death.
Belgium, and especially the province
of Flanders, furnished many notable pio­neers.
Most were farmers, who came to
enjoy the blessings of freedom, the chance
to acquire wealth, and the promise of
good land. The Belgians did not arrive in
large numbers at first; the greatest inflow
occurred late in the nineteenth century.
By that time, these immigrants had come
to represent widely divergent back­grounds
and occupations. Each brought
his own valuable contribution to his new
homeland.
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JUAN BANUL, BY MICHAEL WATERS
JUAN BANUL
1719
One of the earliest Belgians in Texas was
Juan Banul, a master blacksmith, born in
Brussels. Belgium was under Spanish rule
then, so Banul was considered a Spanish
subject. While still a young man, he trav­eled
to New Spain seeking a new life with
better opportunity. By 1719, he was at the
presidio of San Antonio, possibly having
arrived the year before with the founding
Alarcon Expedition. In 1721, the young
blacksmith was recruited by the Marques
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fTC Collection
de Aguayo to accompany an East Texas
expedition. Given the rank of corporal,
Banul helped build six missions and two
presidios in eastern Texas and Louisiana.
Two years later he returned to the pre­sidio
of San Antonio. In addition to shoe­ing
horses and mules, he also made most
of the iron hardware and did much of the
woodwork at missions San Antonio de
Valero and San Jose. During this period
Banul married Maria Adriana Garcia, a
Flemish widow, and in 1730 they were
living in Mission San Antonio de Valero,
where, in addition to operating the black­smith
forge, he was also master of the
sawmill. In 1737, he was the only black­smith
operating in the Province of Texas.
He had land in the Villa of San Fernan­do,
and in 1741 he was granted additional
land in recognition of more than twenty
years of loyal service to the Spanish
crown.
BELGIAN INTEREST
IN TEXAS
1840
Following its war for independence, the
young Texas Republic was deeply in debt.
Solution to this problem seemed to lie in
European recognition and the negotiation
of substantial loans with the governments
of Europe. Under President Mirabeau
Lamar's administration, General James
Hamilton was appointed commissioner of
loans and began his official rounds. In
London, he met the Belgian minister, Syl­vian
Van de Weyer. Belgium itself was a
new nation, having gained its independ­ence
from the Netherlands in 1830, but
already it controlled much capital and
produced large quantities of export goods.
Van de Weyer indicated that King Leo­pold
I of Belgium might be willing to
discuss trade concessions. When next in
Brussels, Hamilton met with the foreign
minister, but nothing was agreed upon.
While keenly interested in Texas as a
foreign market and possible site for colo­nization,
the Belgians were afraid that of­ficial
recognition might jeopardize trade
with Mexico, which still argued a claim
to Texas.
GENERAL JAMES HAMILTON
Woolen, Comprehensive History of Texas
Before returning home in 1841, Hamil­ton
contacted Van de Weyer once more
and proposed that, in exchange for a Bel­gian
loan of thirty-seven million francs
(over seven million dollars) Texas would
allow certain Belgian products favored
status over imports from other nations,
and allow Belgian vessels the privileges of
coastal trade. Since the Belgian govern­ment
wanted an American colony, there
is some indication that Hamilton agreed
to do what he could to make a site avail­able
in Texas, though it was not written
into the treaty. The Belgians were still
reluctant to advance so large a sum
against the revenue of a country about
which they had so little information;
therefore, Hamilton proposed that the
king send a reliable representative to Tex­as
to observe firsthand the nature of the
land and its people. The representative
would report to the king and the Belgian
Chambers. They could determine then
the value of a treaty with Texas. At last
Belgium agreed to send a commissioner to
Texas, and a young artillery captain, Vic­tor
Pirson, was chosen.
VICTOR PIRSON
1842
At thirty-two, Victor Pirson was already
well known in Belgium. He had played
an active role in its war for independence
and had served as attache to the Belgian
legation in Constantinople. When ap­pointed
as agent to accompany Hamilton
to Texas, Pirson was Gautiilned by the
government that he was being sent only
as an observer, and that he was in no way
empowered to make treaties. With this
stipulation understood, Pirson was to meet
Hamilton in England for their departure
on November 19. When the two met,
Hamilton informed Pirson that he would
be unable to leave England until Decem­ber
4. During this delay, Hamilton re­quested
Pirson to tran'smit two added
clauses for the treaty. One stated that Bel­gian
arms and munitions sent to Texas
would enter duty free, and the others ex­tended
the loan to twenty years.
On the day of departure, Hamilton de­cided
to remain behind, sending Pirson
on to Boston, where he would be met by
Hamilton's oldest son. Docking in late
December, Pirson hurried to Washington,
D.C., where he visited President John Ty­ler
on New Year's Day, 1842. On learning
of Pirson's mission to Texas, Tyler be­came
concerned at the prospect of a Bel-gian
colony in a republic the United
States had talked of annexing. The next
day, Pirson continued his journey by
packet to Charleston, and then on to New
Orleans. During this voyage he met Henri
Castro, also bound for Texas. Castro had
recently completed negotiations for a
colony in Texas, and he gave Pirson a
copy of his contract to use as a model in
his negotiations.
Hamilton joined Pirson in New Or­leans
and the two took a steamer to Gal­veston,
arriving January 25. From there,
they proceeded to Austin via Houston.
While Hamilton had been in Europe,
President Lamar had been replaced by
Sam Houston, who was determined to
take a closer look at financial matters.
When Pirson and Hamilton arrived in
Austin, February 1, Hamilton immedi­ately
called on President Houston to dis­cuss
his negotiations for the Belgian loan.
VICTOR PIRSON
Belgian Institute for Information and Documentation
(INBEL)
3
The matter was submitted to the Senate,
but no decision was reached.
Meanwhile, Pirson was recording his
impressions of Texas, including some very
favorable ones about the quality of the
land and the prospects for colonization.
He was surprised to find Austin so primi­tive,
compared with European capitals.
He was even more dismayed when three
members of a nearby family were killed
and scalped by Comanches during his
stay in Austin.
At last, Pirson was presented to Hous­ton
and was given permission to examine
all registers and archives of the Republic.
From this research, Pirson could deter­mine
population, revenue, public debts,
and other sources of income and expendi­tures
by which he could better report the
advantages of a Belgian loan.
VICTOR PIRSON MEETS ANDRE MELLAERTS, BY MICHAEL WATERS fTC Collection
PIRSON'S TRAVELS
Upon congressional adjournment in early
February, Pirson was convinced that little
else could be accomplished in Austin; so,
he decided to see more of the Republic
and set out in the company of about a
dozen congressmen returning to their
western homes.
On arriving in San Antonio, Pirson
visited the missions and historical sites,
as most tourists do. His attention then
turned to the subject of commerce, which
he knew would be of interest to Belgian
merchants considering a trade agreement.
Assisted by Andre Antoine Mellaerts, a
local businessman and fellow Belgian,
Pirson gathered information on the vol­ume
of goods traded in San Antonio, and
even purchased samples to take back with
him. Instead of exploring the region be­tween
the Nueces River and the Rio
Grande as he had intended, Pirson de­cided
to leave for Galveston. This was
due in part to news of an impending in­vasion
from Mexico. Pirson reached Gal­veston
in early March, and submitted a
report on harbor conditions there.
President Houston and Anson Jones
were also in town, and Pirson had a last
visit with them. They expressed a desire
to draw Belgium and Texas into closer
diplomatic ties; Houston suggested re­placing
Hamilton with Ashbel Smith to
continue negotiations. Secretary of State
Jones brought up the subject that had
been foremost in everyone's mind, but
had not been officially mentioned-Bel­gian
colonization. Houston was prepared
to grant the Belgian government two ex-
tensive tracts of land along the Rio
Grande, between the Castro and Kennedy
grants, in exchange for the introduction
of 600 to 1,000 families of high character.
This land was to be held for the coloniza­tion
project until December 1, 1842, after
which time, if no action was taken, the
President could dispose of it.
FURTHER BELGIAN
NEGOTIATIONS
As Pirson was preparing to sail, news
came that a Mexican army under General
Rafael Vasquez, had captured San An­tonio,
Goliad and Refugio. Pirson's report,
submitted on August 9, 1842, dealt favor­ably
with the Republic of Texas in gen­eral,
but expressed concern over unstable
political and military conditions. The
Belgian government did not wish to en­danger
its relations with either Mexico
or the United States.
As Houston had promised, Ashbel
Smith was sent as the new charge d'af­faires
to Europe. Smith asked Pirson to
arrange a meeting with Count de Briey,
the Belgian foreign minister. This was
done, but nothing fruitful was accom­plished,
because Belgium did not wish to
imperil its new treaty of commerce with
Mexico. As the colonization deadline of
December 1 drew near, Pirson urged the
the government to act. A contract was
prepared on November 18, calling for the
immigration of at least 350 families dur­ing
the first year. De Briey not only
questioned whether the colonists would
remain loyal to Belgium, but voiced con­cern
for their safety, since they would
exist in a buffer zone on the Mexican
border of Texas. He also doubted the need
for colonization in Texas, since Belgium
was already backing a similar scheme in
Guatemala. Pirson was unable to contrib­ute
further; so, with the Texas coloniza­tion
plan ended, he withdrew from the
project and went on to other important
roles in Belgian public life.
The continued hope for a Belgian loan
and recognition prompted Texas to send
yet another charge d'affaires to Belgium,
William Henry Daingerfield. Waiting
until May, 1844, Daingerfield tried again.
This time he was advised by the Belgian
government that not only diP. it wish to
preserve Mexican commercial ties, but it
was certain that the United States plahned
to annex Texas anyway. This ended the
matter of Belgian recognition and the
loan. Though four years of labor had
yielded nothing substantive, the threat of
European interest did prompt the United
States to move in the annexation of Texas.
PETER SHINER
Peter Shiner, a native of Luxembourg,
Belgium, settled in 1842 at Victoria, Tex­as,
where he became a prominent mer­chant,
land speculator and stockraiser. In
1858, he delivered 1,300 horses purchased
in Mexico to a buyer in Illinois. This
was one of the first major trail drives
north.
About 1860, Shiner sold his holdings
in Victoria and moved to San Antonio,
where he opened a store on Military
Plaza. He also opened a rendering works
near the stockyards, buying large num-
HENRY B. SHINER
Edwin Wolters Memorial Museum
bers of cattle and killing them for the
hides and tallow. During the Civil War
he was an outspoken Union man. In 1865
and 1866, he served on the San Antonio
City Council under the provisional gov­ernment.
Later he was a Bexar County
Commissioner for two terms, before re­suming
duties as a city alderman.
After the war, he purchased ranches in
Frio and Lavaca Counties and, in 1869,
established a candle and soap factory at
San Antonio. Operating under the name
of "P. Shiner & Sons," this was one of
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the first major manufacturing industries
in the Southwest.
After his death in 1881, Shiner's sons
carried on his business. One of them,
Henry B., became a great cattleman in
his own right. After early experience
managing his father's herds, the son be­gan
acquiring land in Lavaca County
about 1875. A dozen years later he do­nated
land for the townsite of Shiner,
which was named in his honor. Another
son, William B., was a noted San Antonio
real estate man. After graduating from
college, he briefly joined his brother in
management of their father's ranch near
Victoria, but sold his interest in onler to
live and work in San Antonio, where he
was a noted civic worker until his death
in 1919. His brother, Henry died two
years later.
BELGIAN BRICKS FOR
ST. MARY'S
1845
During the spring of 1845, Bishop John
M. Odin visited Europe in an attempt to
recruit new priests for his Texas diocese
and additional funds for his churches. His
quest took him to Belgium, where he was
approached by relatives of Father J. M.
Paquin. Father Paquin, a Vincentian
priest and vicar-general of Texas, had
perished in the yellow fever epidemic at
Galveston in 1844. Bishop Odin had long
dreamed of building a new church in
the coastal city and Father Paquin's rela­tives
now assisted by donating a half-mil­lion
bricks for the construction of a
cathedral there. Since Paquin had been
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ST. MARY'S CHURCH AT GALVESTON
pastor of old St. Mary's at the time of his
death, it seemed an appropriate tribute.
Throughout 1846, the bricks were
loaded in the ships of Antwerp bound for
Galveston and were sent freight-free as
ballast. By early 1847, the transfer was
complete and construction on St. Mary's
Cathedral began in March. The massive
Gothic structure was easily the largest
--.
DRT Library
church in East Texas. In November, the
remains of Father Paquin were reinterred
within the new building by his old frieno,
Father John Brands. One year latec the
church was completed and stood as a
proper monument to a man who had
faithfully served his church and the peo­ple
of Galveston.
ANTON DIEDRICK
(Dutchover)
1846
In 1842, young Anton Diedrick was walk­ing
the streets of his native Antwerp
when he unwittingly witnessed a murder.
The killers, fearing exposure, had Anton
shanghaied onto the first outgoing ves­sel.
For several years he was kept a vir­tual
prisoner aboard ship. In Galveston
he got his chance to go ashore. The task
of finding food and a job was complicated
because he spoke only Flemish. A pair
of soldiers recruiting for Mexican War
service attempted to convince Diedrick
ANTON DUTCHOVER AND FAMILY
that he only had to make his mark and he
would be fed and cared for. When asked
his name, he responded blankly. At last
one said in exasperation, "Aw, he's Dutch
all over. We'll call him that." Thus he
was listed on the roll as Diedrick Dutch­allover.
The name was still too cumber­some
so the "all" was dropped, leaving
Dutchover.
After the Mexican War, Diedrick lived
in San Antonio for a time. He gained ex­perience
as a frontier scout, and in 1850
was approached by Big Foot Wallace to
serve as shotgun guard on the first stage
run from San Antonio to EI Paso. He con-
I
UT Barker Archives
tinued working for the stage line, and
married Refugia Salcedo. When not serv­ing
as guard, he operated a small sheep
ranch in Limpia Canyon. Later, he ac­quired
cattle, and after Fort Davis was
established in 1854 he frequently sold
milk at the post. Indian attack was a con­stant
threat, and when the 8th Infantry
left in 1861, Diedrick took refuge in the
fort to await the expected Confederate
troops. There were not enough soldiers to
man the post permanently~ so, when the
Confederates evacuated, they left Died­rick
in charge.
Soon after the troops departed, Chief
Nicolas and 250 Apaches swooped down
on Fort Davis, intent on ransacking the
place. Diedrick, with his family and four
Americans, had no time to escape, but
hid fearfully on a roof top. After forty­eight
hours, the Indians grew tired of
looting and had begun to scatter. One of
the Americans was dying and could not
be moved, so on the third night, he was
left in hiding and Diedrick led the others
toward Presidio, ninety-two miles away.
Four days later, the exhausted party
reached safety.
When Federal troops returned in 1867,
Diedrick was employed as an army con­tractor
to haul timber from Sawmill Can­yon
for use in rebuilding the fort. Even
with a heavy guard, he would frequently
lose oxen at night to the Apaches. Died­rick
spent the rest of his days near Fort
Davis, and was still there when the last
soldiers left in 1891. The Dutchover name
remains prominent in far West Texas,
where numerous descendants live today.
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JOSEPH AND THEODORE
VANDER STRATEN
Joseph Vander Straten, a veteran of Na­poleon's
army, left Antwerp in 1846 with
four sons and a daughter to join Henri
Castro's colony in Texas. Landing at Port
Lavaca, they journeyed by oxcart to their
land at Castroville. Joseph's wife and one
daughter had remained in Belgium until
a home was prepared for them. Tragedy
occurred when the wife died and was
compounded when the two youngest sons
died of malaria. Vander Straten decided
that the land at Castroville was too barren
and conditions too unstable, so he moved
his family to San Antonio, where he
found employment as a cook. In 1850, he
built a home behind the present Menger
Hotel.
Joseph's son, Theodore, worked as a
stonemason. One of his first jobs was to
repair the walls of the Alamo in prepara­tion
for its occupancy by the United States
Army. Later he became a general con­tractor
and built many of the city's early
stone buildings, including the old Menger
Hotel, begun in 1858. A close friendship
developed between the Vander Stratens
and the Menger family. Joseph lived at
the hotel until his death in 1873.
In 1854, Theodore had married Miss
Franceska Leznick, who had immigrated
with Father Leopold Moczygemba's Pol­ish
colonists. During the Civil War, Theo­dore
moved his family to Boerne, where
he led a detachment of scouts on patrol
against marauding Indians. Descendants
of the family are still found in the area
today . THEODORE VANDER STRATEN Courtesy of Mrs. Clara Christians
Zwischen den Unterzeichnelen, Enlre les soussignes,
den Verein zum i1a Societe de Colonisation au Texas,
Schutze der Einwanderer in Texas,j G.'" DRANIS & c."
G.m. DRANIS & C·"
e~chtet 18 Antwerpen,
laul Acte ausgesteUt vom Notar J. HANEGRAEFF
den 25 Februar 1846.
I
LA SOCIETE DE COLONISATION AU TEXAS CONTRACT
D'HANIS
1847
Henri Castro was beset with troubles in
the summer of 1845. Having successfully
defended himself on charges of fraud, he
found his Texas colony was still faced
with serious financial problems. While in
Belgium, Castro transferred the entire
colonization project to a group of Ant­werp
bankers. Among these was Guil­laume
D'Hanis, who became the princi-rlabIle
a Anvers,
par aele passe Ie 25 (evritr 1846, devant Ie
notaire J. HANEGRAEFF, ·
DRT Library
pal administrative agent for the "Societe
de Colonisation au Texas." After 1846,
D'Hanis was the principal European rep­resentative
who signed all colonists' con­tracts.
While under his direction, the
colonists established the town of Vanden­berg
(named for the consul general of
Texas at Antwerp) and, in 1847, the town
of D'Hanis. Although the town was
named in his honor, there is no indica­tion
that D'Hanis himself ever visited the
place. Laid out by Theodore Gentilz, the
townsite grew. Two years later, its Alsa­tian
families were given protection from
roving Indians when Fort Lincoln was es­tablished
nearby. In 1881, the town
moved one mile west to join the railroad,
leaving old D'Hanis to join the list of
Texas ghost towns.
JOHN PHILIP GOETSEL
AND THE FOUNDING
OF LOUVAIN
1856
In 1854, the first of Victor Considerant's
colonists arrived at La Reunion near Dal­las.
Many Belgians were included. Occu­pational
backgrounds were diverse: poets,
engineers, architects, and workers, but no
farmers. Since La Reunion was intended
to be an agricultural colony, this obvious­ly
could present difficulties. Among the
first to arrive was John B. Louckx, of Lou­vain,
who was with the advance party.
Because of his architectural training, he
was appointed supervisor of construction.
He was joined by John Philip Goetsel, al­so
of Louvain, who was in charge of
building the rock houses for the settlers.
They were assisted by Ferdinand Michel,
another Belgian, who made lime for the
mortar.
After a year of labor and many natural
disasters, it became clear that this was not
the utopian colony that had been hoped
for. In 1856, Goetsel purchased seventeen
sections of land on Mountain Creek, just
south of present Grand Prairie, with the
intention of establishing a separate colony
for the Belgians. He named the town Lou-
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Zwischen den Unlerzeichneten, Entre les soussignes;
den Verein zurn i1a Societe de Colonisation au Texas,'
Schutze der Einwanderer in Texas, I G.'" DRANIS & c.;'
G·m' DRANIS & c·;'
e.:r.chtet III Antwerpen,
laut Aete ausgesteUt vom Notar J. HANEGRAEFF
den 25 Februar 1846.
I
LA SOCIETE DE COLONISATION AU TEXAS CONTRACT
D'HANIS
1847
Henri Castro was beset with troubles in
the summer of 1845. Having successfully
defended himself on charges of fraud, he
found his Texas colony was still faced
with serious financial problems. While in
Belgium, Castro transferred the entire
colonization project to a group of Ant­werp
bankers. Among these was Guil­laume
D'Hanis, who became the princi-
~tabIle a Anvers,
par acle passe Ie 25 {evrier 1846, devant Ie
notaire J. HANEGRAEFF,
DRT Library
pal administrative agent for the " Societe
de Colonisation au Texas." After 1846,
D'Hanis was the principal European rep­resentative
who signed all colonists' con­tracts.
While under his direction, the
colonists established the town of Vanden­berg
(named for the consul general of
Texas at Antwerp ) and, in 1847, the town
of D'Hanis. Although the town was
named in his honor, there is no indica­tion
that D'Hanis himself ever visited the
place. Laid out by Theodore Gentilz, the
townsite grew. Two years later, its Alsa­tian
families were given protection from
roving Indians when Fort Lincoln was es­tablished
nearby. In 1881 , the town
moved one mile west to join the railroad,
leaving old D'Hanis to join the list of
Texas ghost towns.
JOHN PHILIP GOETSEL
AND THE FOUNDING
OF LOUVAIN
1856
In 1854, the first of Victor Considerant's
colonists arrived at La Reunion near Dal­las.
Many Belgians were included. Occu­pational
backgrounds were diverse: poets,
engineers, architects, and workers, but no
farmers. Since La Reunion was intended
to be an agricultural colony, this obvious­ly
could present difficulties. Among the
first to arrive was John B. Louckx, of Lou­vain,
who was with the advance party.
Because of his architectural training, he
was appointed supervisor of construction.
He was joined by John Philip Goetsel, al­so
of Louvain, who was in charge of
building the rock houses for the settlers.
They were assisted by Ferdinand Michel,
another Belgian, who made lime for the
mortar.
After a year of labor and many natural
disasters, it became clear that this was not
the utopian colony that had been hoped
for. In 1856, Goetsel purchased seventeen
sections of land on Mountain Creek, just
south of present Grand Prairie, with the
intention of establishing a separate colony
for the Belgians. He named the town Lou-
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THE BUILDING OF LA REUNION, BY MICHAEL WATERS
vain, after his home in Belgium. Many
La Reunion colonists joined Goetsel;
houses and other improvements were
built as the nucleus of his proposed city.
Unfortunately, their location was too near
the creek and was subject to the overflow
after heavy rains. Goetsel recognized that
the land was unsuitable for farming, so
he attempted to establish a ranching eco-
..r .,
.., "
fTC Collection
nomy. But the colonists were no better
cowboys than farmers.
Goetsel had invested thirty thousand
francs in La Reunion, which he hoped he
could withdraw from that project to help
his own. The directors refused to return
his money, arguing that Louvain was es­tablished
in opposition to La Reunion and
that it might draw away their trade. By
late 1857, most of the families at Louvain
had decided that they were not suited for
the rustic life, and were beginning to
move to Dallas and Fort Worth. Eventu­ally
Goetsel himself closed his store and
post office and moved to Dallas.
DR. CHARLES A.
OTTERBEIN
Charles A. Otterbein, a well-known den­tist
and investor of Weatherford, Texas,
was compelled by his political activities
to leave his native Tervuren, Belgium. As
a young man he edited a newspaper,
L' Abeille, in which he advocated that the
French-speaking portion of Belgium
should be annexed to France. He soon
found it expedient to voice such opinions
from the opposite shore of the Atlantic. In
1856, he established a less controversial
dental practice at Weatherford.
In the 1870's the Memphis, El Paso and
Pacific Railroad went bankrupt. Its bond­holders,
mostly French, formed the Fran­co-
Texan Land Company to take over and
dispose of the railroad lands that secured
the bonds. Many of the investors, rather
than sell their bonds at a loss, decided to
move to Texas and occupy the land. Dr.
Otterbein ultimately became a sharehold­er
and a director in the Franco-Texan
Land Company. His stepdaughter had
married George P . Levy, the company's
last president. Otterbein resigned his post
not long before this company's charter
expired in August, 1896. He died at
Weatherford in 1905. His wife, who was
an artist and sculptress, returned to
France to live out her life.
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RESIDENCE OF DR. C. A. OTTERBEIN AT WEATHERFORD
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Courtesy of Virginia Taylor
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JEAN·CHARLES HOUZEAU
1858
Jean-Charles Houzeau, one of Belgium's
most famous astronomers and naturalists,
found himself dismissed from the staff of
the Royal Observatory because of his out­spoken
political views. In October, 1857,
he landed at New Orleans, stayed briefly,
then pushed on to Texas. Seven months
later he was living in San Antonio, where
he surveyed for irrigation ditches. Open­ing
up some of the old Spanish "acequias"
and cutting new channels, he was able to
help local farmers with their water needs.
He soon moved to Uvalde. There he
planned various geological and scientific
expeditions into different parts of the
state.
On one of these expeditions in 1861,
Houzeau explored the upper Brazos River
and descended it, crossing then to the
Colorado watershed. As a social critic, his
a bolitionist views quickly surfaced in the
course of his travels. He found little evi­dence
of slavery on the upper Brazos, in
marked contrast to the lower reaches of
the Colorado. Near Smithville, his aboli­tionist
sympathies were expressed when
he assisted the escape of some Negro
slaves. In turn, he had to save his com­panion,
who was captured by the plant­ers.
Houzeau returned to San Antonio,
and in August attempted another geolo­gical
expedition, this time to the Pecos
River country. Conditions were so un­settled
and the threat of Indian depreda­tions
so prevalent, that he was compelled
to return first to Uvalde, and then to San
Antonio. He continued on to Austin,
HOUZEAU HELPS ANDERSON ESCAPE, BY BRUCE MARSHALL fTC Collection
where he violently refused service in
the Confederate Army. He hurried back
to San Antonio and sought a way out of
his dilemma. He wrote the Belgian consul
in New Orleans that he was in danger of
being pressed into the local militia, but
the consul replied that conditions were no
better in New Orleans, and that he was
helpless to intervene.
At this point, Houzeau decided to ren­der
all possible aid to the Union cause.
The most prominent Unionist in San An­tonio
was Charles Anderson, brother of
the Union commander at Fort Sumter.
Anderson had been arrested because he
had freed his slaves, an act that was inter­preted
as aiding the enemy. Houzeau and
his friends decided to help Anderson es-
cape. On October 22, he waited for Ander­son
with provisions and a mount and
accompanied him far enough to insure
that he was beyond danger. Back in San
Antonio attempts were made to discover
who had helped Anderson escape. Hou­zeau
feared that he might be exposed at
any time. He then planned his own es­cape.
In February, 1862, Houzeau, disguised
as a Mexican laborer accompanying a
wagon train to Brownsville, left San An­tonio
carrying secret documents from lo­cal
Unionists. Two days out of Browns­ville,
they were challenged by a party of
Confederates. Houzeau's dark appearance
and fluent Spanish supported his guise,
and a search failed to locate the messages
secreted within his shotgun. The wagons
were passed without incident and, on
March 20, Houzeau crossed into neutral
Mexico. There his message was given to
the United States Consul. After a while,
he continued to New Orleans, which was
then in Union hands, and became politi­cal
editor of a Negro newspaper. From
1868 until 1876 he lived on a plantation
in Jamaica. He then became director of
the Royal Observatory in Brussels. In
Decem ber of 1882, he returned to San An­tonio
under happier circumstances than
his departure. This time he was the chief
of the Belgian Astronomical Commission
to observe the transit of Venus.
FRANK VAN DER STUCKEN
1862
Frank Van Der Stucken and his brother,
Felix, immigrated to Texas from Antwerp
with Henri Castro in 1846. They left Cas­tro's
colony, however, and moved to
Fredericksburg, where Frank assisted in
the construction of Fort Martin Scott. In
the early 1850's, he opened a mercantile
store in Fredericksburg and soon became
a prominent citizen; he was twice elected
a county commissioner. He and a partner
MR. AND MRS. FRANK VAN DER STUCKEN
also secured government freighting con­tracts
to supply West Texas military
posts. In 1862, Van Der Stucken opened
the Reliance Flour Mill in partnership
with his brother, but this activity was cut
short by the Civil War.
Most Gillespie Countians held Unionist
sympathies, but there was fear that the
Pioneer Memorial Museum
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Confederacy might begin conscripting in
the area. As a token gesture, Frank Van
Der Stucken was authorized to raise a
company of seventy-five state rangers,
presumably to serve as a home guard unit
for Indian defense. These rangers were
under state, rather than Confederate,
jurisdiction, the objective being to free
regular Confederate troops for war serv­ice.
Shortly after their organization, they
were detailed to guard Federal prisoners
at nearby Fort Mason. Some members of
the company objected to guarding prison­ers
whose political beliefs were similar to
their own; there was talk of a mutiny.
When word of an escape plan reached
Capt. Van Der Stucken, he quickly ended
it. As long as Texas was part of the Con­federacy,
and he was in its service, he
would follow orders.
In July, 1862, the company was ordered
to transport the prisoners from Fort Ma­son
to Vicksburg, Mississippi, to be ex­changed
for Confederate prisoners in
Union hands. In January, 1863, the outfit
escorted another group of prisoners to
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, then served
briefly on the Rio Grande and elsewhere
in Texas. In December, Captain Van Der
Stucken's unit was taken into the Con­federate
Army as Company E, First Texas
Cavalry and given the responsibility of
rounding up Union sympathizers and
bringing them to trial. As might be sus­pected,
the company was not very effec­tive
in this role, and in February, 1864, it
was disbanded.
While he was in service, Frank Van
Der Stucken's business had been con­ducted
for him by his partners, and he
had become wealthy. In 1864, he was
elected chief justice of Gillespie County,
but a year later he resigned and returned
to Belgium. He deeded his house, store,
and stables to his father-in-law, and the
mill to his brother. He then dug up
money from its hiding place beneath the
floor of his house, and returned with his
family to Antwerp, where he established
another mill. His son, Frank Van Der
Stucken, Jr., born in Fredericksburg in
1858, became a noted symphony conduc­tor
in both Europe and America.
I
RELIANCE FLOUR MILL, FREDERICKSBURG
FELIX VAN DER STUCKEN
In 1862, Felix Van Der Stucken and his
brother, Frank, opened the Reliance Flour
Mill at Fredericksburg. The operation
was left to Felix, while Frank served in
the army. In 1865, Frank assigned his
share of the ownership to his brother and
returned to Antwerp. Felix remained in
Fredericksburg to become one of its out­standing
citizens.
In 1869, he was appointed a county
commissioner by the military govern­ment.
In 1889, his son, Alfred, joined his
father in the milling business. At this
Courtesy of the Van Der Stucken Family
time, the mm was remodeled and the
burr mmstones were discarded in favor
of a more modern roller system. The Gold
and Red Star Flour, produced by the F.
Van Der Stucken & Son Mills, were fa­vorites
in Central Texas for many years.
In 1904, Felix was an organizer of the
Citizens Bank of Fredericksburg and
served as president until his death in
1913,
BELGIANS IN SOUTH
TEXAS
1867
In 1864, Archduke Maximilian accepted
the imperial throne of Mexico under the
sponsorship of Napoleon III. When he
and his Belgian-born wife, Carlota, went
to Mexico, they were accompanied by
Belgian army volunteers and Belgian set­tlers.
As conditions grew progressively
worse, French support dwindled. When
Maximilian was executed by Juarista
troops in 1867, Belgians were no longer
welcome in Mexico, and many had to es­cape.
Some chose the northern route,
across the Rio Grande into Texas. At one
time, Belgian immigrants lived in most
of the river towns from Laredo to Browns­ville.
MICHEL SCHODTS
1869
Michel Schodts's assassination on the
streets of Brownsville in 1896 stunned
South Texas. The Belgian-born merchant
was a highly-regarded businessman with
no known enemies. The assassin, believed
to be a hired kmer from Mexico, was
,
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THE EMPRESS CARLOTTA
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MICHEL SCHODTS Brown, Indian Wars and Pioneers of Texas
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never brought to justice. Schodts was
given one of the largest funerals ever
seen in Brownsville to that time.
A native of Antwerp, he migrated at
twenty-five to New Orleans, where he
worked as an accountant. The Civil War
was already underway; so, in 1862 he
moved beyond harm to Matamoros, then
a thriving export center for Texas cotton
as well as a Confederate supply base.
Schodts became first a clerk, then part­ner,
in a prosperous import house. In
1866, he married Miss Susan Diaz. At her
untimely death three years later, he and
his small daughter moved across the river
to Brownsville. He built a highly success­ful
trade in lumber and building ma­terials.
On a February night in 1896, he and a
friend were walking home in the moon­light
after a game of cards in Jagons's
saloon. Within moments after the friend
entered his own front gate, shots were
heard at the corner of Eleventh and
Washington Streets. The assassin was last
seen entering a canebrake near the river.
Schodts's daughter and two grandchil­dren
were his only survivors.
PIERRE VAN HOLLEBEKE
1879
Pierre Van Hollebeke owned and oper­ated
several large West Texas ranches be­fore
his death in the saddle at seventy­four.
As a young man in his native
Antwerp, Belgium, he operated one of the
small skiffs that ply Antwerp canals, car­rying
people and merchandise. Imbued
with a spirit of adventure, he came to the
HOLLEBEKE RANCH, COLORADO CITY, c. 1890 Courtesy of Rosa Belle Cooksey
wide expanse of West Texas in 1879, set­tling
on a small ranch south of Colorado
City. His wife and children joined him
the following year, and for a few months
they lived in a dug-out, like so many
other plains pioneers.
At first, Hollebeke tried raising sheep,
but subsequently found cattle ranching
more to his liking and his profit. He
gained his American citizenship in 1888.
In the 1890's he operated a small freight
line, delivering equipment and supplies
to the XIT and other West Texas ranches.
In 1900, he began operating a general
store at Midland, but three years later he
settled on an Andrews County ranch and
became the county's first postmaster at
"Hollebeke." From 1907 to 1909 he lived
at Knowles, New Mexico, then purchased
a large spread in Culberson County. He
was one of the area's biggest landowners
at his death in 1928.
E. D. WELTENS
1881
At an early age, Edward Weltens decided
that he was a better cook than farmer, so
leaving his home near Brussels, he ob­tained
a job as chef on a passenger vessel
out of Antwerp. He acquired a reputation
as an excellent baker. Once, while visiting
in Galveston, he traveled to San Antonio,
where he had heard there were other
Belgian families. He liked the appearance
of the town and decided it would be a
good place to establish a bakery.
About 1881, Weltens moved to San An­tonio,
but did not have enough capital to
build his bakery right away. For several
years he worked as the pastry chef at the
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WELTENS'
BAKERY .
l"'INE: PASTR.IES
WELTENS DELIVERY SERVICE, BY BRUCE MARSHALL
Menger Hotel, where his knowledge of
five languages quickly established him as
unofficial interpreter for the community.
Then he stayed at Richter's Bakery for
nearly a dozen years before his dream
came true.
Shortly before the Spanish American
War, he established Weltens's Bakery. In
fTC Collection
1898, it was Weltens who delivered the
bread and pastries to Teddy Roosevelt's
"Rough Riders," in training at the Old
Fairgrounds. Several years later, the bak­ery
moved to an expanded location at
Prospect Hill. Bread from its ovens was
famous on San Antonio's west side for
many years.
HERMAN VAN DAELE
1884
In middle age, Herman Van Daele was
stirred by a call of adventure that had
been stimulated by letters from a friend
in the American West. Finally, Herman
decided to experience the excitement first­hand.
Van Daele arrived in San Antonio
on New Year's Day, 1884~ it was his fif­tieth
birthday. He acquired land on the
old Frio City Road. His wife and children
came as soon as he had prepared a home
for them.
Van Daele, born in Liedekerke, Bel­gium,
had always lived close to the soil~
his father had been a truck farmer. After
a year at the Frio City Road site, he found
good, rich earth at a reasonable price near
the intersection of South Brazos and La­redo
Streets. This twenty-acre truck farm
at first suffered a lack of irrigation. Water
had to be hauled from Apache Creek~ or,
in the dry season, purchased from proper­ty
owners along San Pedro Creek. It be­came
apparent that another source must
be found ~ so, in 1894, Van Daele and the
Baeten family cooperated in drilling their
own well. The result was one of the first
artesian supplies developed in Bexar
County. Not only could the Van Daele
and Baeten land be irrigated, but there
was now enough water to sell for a penny
per barrel.
Van Daele also operated a dairy in con­junction
with his highly successful truck
farm. About 1922, a baseball stadium was
built on a portion of his property and was
named "Van Daele Field" in his honor.
He died the following year at eighty-nine.
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HERMAN V AN DAELE
Courtesy of Mr. and Mrs. Herman Ripps
A half century later his descendants still
live on the property.
THE GODDESS OF
LIBERTY
1888
When the old Texas Capitol burned in
1881 , designs were already afoot to build
a new capitol. Work began a year later on
the same site. The first plans called for
a limestone structure with a brick sup­ported
dome, but technical problems
caused a change to pink granite. To hold
the dome in place, it was decided to use
lightweight steel girders imported from
Belgium. This was natural, as Belgian
steel was already world-famous for its
high quality. It was further decided to
complete the edifice with a zinc statue
of the Goddess of Liberty. The sculptor is
unknown, but there is some evidence that
he was a Belgian. The figure was cast in
sections, and the pieces assembled on the
capitol grounds in February, 1888. It was
THE GODDESS OF LIBERTY
then hoisted into place and finished in
time for the May opening. Although her
features appear exaggerated when seen at
close range, they mellow to proper pro­portions
when viewed from the ground,
testifying to her maker's skill.
State Archives
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ADOLPH BAETEN
Adolph Baeten worked on his father's
farm in Belgium until he was almost
thirty. Then, in 1888, he moved to San
Antonio where he worked at odd jobs
until 1892, when he leased land on Pro­bandt
Street. It was necessary, however,
to buy irrigation water from the San
Pedro Ditch-at the rate of $2 per acre;
so, in 1894, Adolph Baeten joined Her­man
Van Daele in digging one of the first
artesian wells in Bexar County. It was
dug on the Van Daele property, but Bae­ten
paid the drilling expenses. Both men
agreed to share the water. After the well
came in, Adolph got married, built a
house on his property leased from Van
Daele, and began farming. Eight years
later, he moved to a larger place, and
finally, in 1907, to a thirty-two acre site
on Zarzamora Street. Here the Baeten
Truck Farm became one of the show
properties of San Antonio, where many
new vegetables and fruits were intro­duced
in the area .
ADOLPH BAETEN
Davis &: Grobe, New Encyclopedia of Texas, Vol. III
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THE PERSYN FAMILY (CHARLES AT LEFT, PETE HOLDING GREY HAT) Courtesy of Mrs. Leo Persyn
CHARLES PERSYN
1891
During the winter of 1812, two Persjn
brothers accompanied Napoleon's ill-fated
retreat from Moscow. Able to go no fur­ther,
they stopped in the Belgian town of
Lokeren, which they made their home.
One of the brothers, who changed the
spelling of his name to Persyn, was the
grandfather of Charles Persyn. Filled
with the spirit of adventure, sixteen-year­old
Charley ran away from home in 1886
and worked passage aboard an American­bound
ship. For five years he held a varie­ty
of jobs, from miner to zookeeper. About
1891, he passed through San Antonio
while working for the Southern Pacific
Railroad. It struck him as a nice place to
settle when the time came. He continued
on to Del Rio, where he worked as assis­tant
foreman for the Southern Pacific
Railroad on construction of the high
bridge over the Pecos River.
When this project was completed in
1892, Persyn moved to San Antonio. He
wrote his brothers, Pete and Casmire, urg­ing
them to immigrate. They did so later
that year. Charley, meanwhile, was em­ployed
at Alamo Iron Works, where he
finally saved enough money to buy his
own farm. In 1896, he married Augusta
Verstuyft. They lived happily on this
farm until her death in 1901 . Charley
later remarried and continued raising
produce for many years. Pete Persyn, a
farmer himself, was very successful at
growing radishes. He is also credited
with introducing cauliflower to the San
Antonio market, dearing over three thou­sand
dollars on his first crop. About 1905,
Casmire returned to Belgium, but other
relatives soon replaced him. Today, num­erous
Persyn descendants still play an ac­tive
role in the agricultural economy of
Bexar County.
THE HOOGE FAMILY
1892
In 1892, Peter Hooge left the family farm
near Ghent, Belgium, and moved to San
Antonio. For two years he worked on the
railroad, and in 1894 was joined by his
brother, Philemon. Together they rented
twenty-five acres of irrigated land on Pro­bandt
Street and began growing vege­tables.
They were able to send enough
money home for their father and five
brothers and sisters to immigrate in 1896.
The Probandt Street land was fertile, but
the rent was expensive, and there was talk
of closing the San Pedro canal. Shortly
after 1900, Peter and Philemon moved to
other property on Brady Street. There,
THE HOOGE FAMILY IN 1896 (PETER SECOND FROM LEFT, PHILEMON STANDING BY HIM)
they drilled a water well in joint effort
with their neighbors, the Wauters family.
The venture was unsuccessful; the Wau­ters
sold their land to Philemon and
moved.
In 1903, Peter married Elizabeth Cha­vagneux.
For six years the couple lived
near Espada Mission, where they re­paired
many of the buildings, assisted the
priest and operated the store. In 1909,
they moved back to the city limits.
In 1916, Philemon and his family
homesteaded a small ranch near Colum­bus,
New Mexico. He had no more than
settled when Pancho Villa raided and ran
off his stock. Discouraged, he returned to
Texas and started a ranch near Campbell­ton.
Courtesy of Mrs. Mary Persyn
That same year, Peter Hooge and his
family moved again, this time to Valley
Wells. He remained until 1925, when he
became a soft drink distributor at Pear­sall.
In 1931, he joined Philemon at
Campbellton, where they owned a fruit
orchard. Peter's family subsequently re­turned
to San Antonio and became an
important part of the Belgian community.
STEPHANIE HOOGE
1903
When her mother died in Beirvelde, Bel­gium,
Stephanie Hooge assumed the care
of her five younger brothers and sisters.
She had wanted to enter a convent, as her
younger sister had done, but felt a sense
of responsibility to her family. When the
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STEPHANIE HOOGE (RIGHT) Courtesy of Mrs. Mary Persyn
22
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Hooges moved to San Antonio in 1896, it
was Stephanie who educated the younger
children while her father and two older
brothers worked in the fields. In 1903,
they decided to drill a water well on their
Brady Street property. A vow was made
that, if the well was productive, a chapel
would be built. Although the result was
disappointing, it was decided to build a
chapel anyway. The one-room structure
was quickly completed and Stephanie
gathered the children of the Belgian col­ony
to teach them the catechism and to
broaden their education. The small chap­el
was also used by the adults whenever
Father Heuchemer from Sacred Heart
parish could come to say mass.
When Stephanie felt that her duties to
her family had been fulfilled, she made
plans to fulfill h er lifelong dream of be­coming
a nun. In 1906, she bade goodbye
to her kinsmen and friends and returned
to Belgium, where she joined her sister,
Mary Leocadia, in the convent at Beir­velde.
There, she took the name Mary
Lutgardis and became a teacher. She was
prevented by failing health from return­ing
to San Antonio and starting a school
for the Belgian children. In 1911, she died
of pneumonia at h er convent in Beirvelde.
In San Antonio her chapel continued un­der
the name of St. John Berchmans, as
she had wished. St. Stephen's Church,
which now occupies the site, is dedicated
to her memory.
OCTAVE VAN DE WALLE
1905
In 1905, Octave Van de Walle left his
father's farm near Lokeren, Belgium, to
start a life of his own in San Antonio. A
year later, he married Marie Leonie
Hooge and began farming a small plot of
ground at Zarzamora and Brady Streets.
In 1910, Octave, his wife, and her broth­er,
Peter Hooge, donated land for the new
St. John Berchmans Church. Because of
crop failure, the Van de Walles moved in
1914 to Valley Wells in Dimmit County.
The situation did not improve; one year
there would be drought, the n ext year
flood. While the farmers who r emained
in San Antonio during World War I pros­pered,
those in Valley Wells became
poorer. After seven years of hard times in
Valley Wells, the Van de Walles moved
back to San Antonio.
They farmed first at St. Peter's Orphan­age
on Mission Road, and later on Castro­ville
Road and Morey Road. In 1929,
Octave visited his father in Belgium.
When he returned to Houston, he was
met by his wife and son, who had
brought a truck load of vegetables with
them. The vegetables were quickly sold at
the market and, since that time, the Van
de Walles have had a wholesale outlet at
the Houston Produce Terminal. The
family survived the depression years and
began buying land around Kelly Field.
At the start of World War II they had
the largest truck farm in the San Antonio
area, with more than eight hundred acres
under cultivation. In 1937, Octave
brought his four sons into the business
and it became "Van de Walle & Sons."
Later, three grandsons became partners.
In 1942, V an de Walle & Sons were
granted large government contracts to MR. & MRS. OCTAVE VAN DE WALLE Courtesy of Mrs. Mary Persyn
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supply vegetables to nearby military
bases. This led to the introduction of
some new crops, in addition to the in­evitable
potatoes. In 1945, the firm was
given a special certificate for meritorious
service by the Quartermaster General.
Octave Van de Walle retired from busi­ness
after suffering a stroke, but con­tinued
to assist from the sidelines until
his death in 1952. Later that year, Mrs.
Van de Walle rebuilt St. Stephen's
Church as a memorial to her husband.
"COMPAGNIE DES EAUX
DE SAN ANTONIO"
1909
In 1906, the San Antonio Water Sup­ply
Company was organized to supply
the city of San Antonio. The organization
experienced financial difficulty and, after
three years, ninety percent of the stock
was sold to a group of Belgian investors
in Antwerp. Under a new name, "Com­pagnie
des Eaux de San Antonio," they
not only continued the water works, but
expanded it. From 1910 to 1920 the city's
population almost doubled. In 1914, Ger­many
invaded Belgium and all communi­cations
between the stockholders in Ant­werp
and the company in San Antonio
were cut off. Throughout World War I
the interest and dividends that ordinarily
would have been sent to the investors
were put back into the company for ex­pansion.
When the armistice was signed
in 1918, the Belgian owners badly needed
money to rebuild their devastated land.
The Belgian franc had fallen to its lowest
point; so, by selling their stock, they
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would be getting a comparatively greater
number of francs for use at home. In
1920, a syndicate of San Antonio busi­nessmen
purchased the stock from the
Belgian investors. Since the company's
net worth had increased, there was a sub­stantial
profit for both parties.
ST. JOHN BERCH MANS
CHURCH
1910
Named in honor of a seventeenth cen­tury
Belgian saint, St. John Berchmans
Church can trace its ongms to the one­room
chapel erected by Stephanie Hooge
in 1903. Use of the chapel declined after
Stephanie returned to Belgium. Interest
revived in 1910, with the appearance of
Father Richard Verschaffelt. While lying
ill in Santa Rosa Hospital, he heard a
nurse speaking Flemish. They talked of
the Belgian colony in San Antonio and as
his health improved, the priest visited the
colony. He envisioned the chapel as the
site of a new Belgian church. In 1910, it
was decided to enlarge the original
chapel. Additional land was donated by
Peter Hooge and Mr. and Mrs. Octave
Van de Walle. Work began in July and
was completed two months later at a cost
of thirteen hundred dollars. The simple
structure did not even have a bell until
1912, when an old fire bell was donated
by Mayor Bryan Callaghan. Even then,
it was about six months before a tower
could be erected.
Until 1947, St. John Berchmans was
the Belgian national parish, with all serv­ices
conducted in Flemish. Then there
was a revision of parish boundaries which
greatly diminished the Belgian influence.
In 1948, new land was purchased and St.
John Berchmans relocated. In 1952, the
original Brady Street chapel was re­modeled
by Mrs. Octave Van de Walle
and renamed St. Stephen's. In 1965, St.
John Berchmans moved to its present site
on Cupples Road. A rectory and a school
stand nearby . Throughout the history of
St. John Berchmans Church, most of its
priests have been Belgian.
REV. RIC H AR D
VERSC H A FF EL T
Richard Verschaffelt was responsible for
the rebuilding of St. John Berchmans
Church and was its first pastor. In addi­tion
to regular parish duties he was also
an educator, sometimes a physician, and
an advisor in business matters. Born at
Ghent, Belgium, in 1879, he had ex­pressed
an interest in the Church from his
earliest years. He was ordained a priest in
1898. After serving churches in Belgium
and in Paris, he sought to fulfill a long-time
dream of becoming a missionary. In
1904, he had his chance when he went to
Tulancingo, Mexico, to minister to the
Indian tribes there. During this period he
visited San Antonio on annual trips north.
Father Richard remained in Mexico until
forced out by the Revolution of 1910.
After getting acquainted with the Belgian
colony of San Antonio, he recognized the
need for a Belgian national church,
which he promptly set about to organize.
In 1912, he was asked by the bishop to
go to Marfa, Texas, and to work with
the Mexican missions. Although life there
was difficult, he cheerfully carried out his
I
duties until Wodd War I began. He felt
then that his homeland needed him more
and he asked to be relieved of his position.
Verschaffelt tried unsuccessfully to return
to Belgium. In 1917, he joined the Cana­dian
Expeditionary Force and was sent
overseas. While in occupied Belgium, he
was captured by the Germans and sen­tenced
to be executed. With the aid of
Resistance forces, he was able to escape
from prison on the night before his im­pending
execution.
After the war, the priest returned to
the United States and was pastor at
Thibodeaux, Louisiana, until 1932. Fa-
REV. RICHARD VERSCHAFFELT, AT THE GROTHEUS HOME, 1910 Courtesy of Mrs. Mary Persyn
I~~_:.~~~~
25
26
ther Vervaeke of St. John Berchmans
died, and Father Richard returned to San
Antonio for his second term as pastor.
He labored for ten more years, but age
and illness were his companions until his
own death in 1942.
JULIEN PAUL BLITZ
1912
In his sixty-six years, Belgian-born Julien
Paul Blitz led two major Texas symphony
orchestras-one at Houston, which he
founded, and another at San Antonio.
These two organizations laid important
foundations for later cultural develop­ment
in the state. The man responsible
was born at Ghent of a Belgian father
and an American mother. Both were mu­sicians,
so it was not surprising that
Julien should have an early love of music.
He graduated from the Royal Conserva­tory
of Ghent in 1905, after completing
an eight-year course in four.
Young Blitz sailed from Antwerp to
New York that same year, but soon found
the northern winters too harsh. His father
contacted an old friend, Herman Bal, who
was chairman of the music department
at Baylor Female College in Belton, Tex­as,
and secured employment for Julien.
The young man soon moved on to San
Antonio, Houston, and back to Europe
for post-graduate work. In 1912, he re­turned
to Houston as director of the
"Treble Clef Club." A year later, he saw
possibilities for starting a symphony or­chestra
and turned to Miss Ima Hogg for
help. A trial concert was given at the
Majestic Theater with a group of thirty-five
musicians selected and led by Blitz.
The trial concert was a success, and the
Houston Symphony Association was
formed soon after. Blitz was appointed
the first conductor. For the next three
years, he conducted both the Houston
Symphony Orchestra and the Treble Clef
Club. He then left the orchestra and
JULIEN BLITZ AND SAN ANTONIO SYMPHONY
moved to a monastery in Arkansas to
further develop his techniques.
In 1917, Blitz became conductor of the
San Antonio Symphony Orchestra, which
had been sponsored by a Jewish Texan,
Mrs. Anna Hertzberg. About 1923, he
left the orchestra, and for two years he
and his wife taught music, gave concerts
San Antonio Symphony Association
and frequently accompanied Josephine
Lucchese on her tours of Texas. In 1930,
the couple moved to Sherman, where he
headed the stringed instrument depart­ment
at Kidd-Key College. After five
years he became chairman of the music
department at Texas Technological Col­lege
in Lubbock, where he spent another
fifteen years. In 1950, he retired and
moved to Dallas, where he and Mrs. Blitz
taught music and conducted a workshop
for the staff of the Dallas public schools.
In 1951 , Julien Paul Blitz died, after hav­ing
contributed more than forty years to
music education in Texas.
AVIEL IITIP" VANDER
POORTEN
1917
At his death in 1936, "Tip" Vander Poor­ten
was a highly respected leader of San
Antonio's Belgian community. His nick­name
derived from World War I service
when he learned his first song in English,
the ever-popular "It's a Long Way to
Tipperary." He was excessively generous
with his rendition of the melody. Tip was
assigned to the Quartermaster Corps.
Frequently, he was chosen to drive Gen­eral
Pershing's staff car. He and the gen­eral
enjoyed a long and enduring friend­ship.
In 1927, he bought the 3-Points
service station and a small cafe at Quin­tana
and Frio City roads. He expanded
the diner into a tavern called "Tip's
Place." There, patrons could relax and
enjoy a game of bolls or shoot pool. "Tip"
also dispensed advice to local farmers on
the type of seeds to buy, how to cultivate " TIP" VANDER POORTEN Courtesy of Mr. &: Mrs. Louis Vander Poor/en
27
28
one's land, and even gave counsel in
simple legal matters. He always urged
expansion of the Belgian colony and was
influential in bringing additional immi­grants
from the "Old Country."
CAMILLE DE WINNE
1920
A center of Belgian culture in San An­tonio
is the Belgium Inn, owned and
operated by the De Winne family. The
founder, Camille De Winne, arrived in
San Antonio from Overmeer, Belgium
about 1920. At first, he worked on Peet
Calle's farm, but soon obtained a job at
Ed Weltens's "Prospect Hill Bakery." In
1923, Camille, by then a foreman, felt
secure enough to get married. The follow­ing
year, he opened a small grocery store
on West Commerce, which was operated
by his wife, while Camille worked at the
bakery. In 1925, he opened his own bak­ery
next to the grocery store and called
it the "Daylight Bakery." Soon he had
a thriving bread route among the Belgian
farmers.
CAMILLE DE WINNE (RIGHT) AND RUDOLPH DE WINNE Courtesy of Mr. &: Mrs. Camille De Winne
CAMILLE DE WINNE San Antonio Light
De Winne began selling sandwiches in
the grocery store, and soon it evolved into
a small restaurant. When Prohibition was
lifted in 1933, he opened a package store
and tavern called "The Belgium Inn."
This became the most popular of the Bel­gian
gathering spots, offering card games,
darts, and Belgian bolling. During World
War II, the bakery was closed because
of a shortage of raw ingredients. After
the war the restaurant was enlarged and
tourist courts were added next door. This
gave the De Winnes a block-long com­plex
which is still in use today.
SOCIAL LIFE
The Belgian "Kermess," or outdoor fes­tival,
was traditionally held in mid­August
and again on November 17, de­pending
on the condition of the harvest.
BELGIAN SOCIAL GATHERING, SHOWING BOLLS AND DART BOARD Courtesy of Mrs. Cyril Persyn
Another festive event was June 21, the
Belgian national holiday. In reality how­ever,
the Belgians of San Antonio re­quired
no special reason to celebrate, and
each evening generally found some of the
colony in the "Belgium Inn," "Belgian
Village," "Flanders Inn," or one of the
other local spots. There, over a cool drink,
they could discuss the crops. In earlier
days, wooden shoes were worn. and these
were sometimes the source of free drinks
from non-Belgians who would buy a
round for the privilege of trying on the
wooden footwear. These shoes also had
another practical side; in addition to be­ing
economical, they were also easier to
clean, which was important in an agri­cultural
society.
One of the most popular Belgian pas­times
was the sport of boIling. The game
was played with round wooden bolls,
which resemble flat cheeses, the object
being to roll the disk in an arc to a peg
at the opposite end of the alley. The play­er
whose boll came closest to the peg, and
survived the bombardment of the oppos­ing
team, was declared the winner. The
women enjoyed a similar game, but it
involved rolling the boll into a narrow
box. Dancing was also popular and some­times
the dancers wore native costumes.
Today, these traditional games have dis­appeared,
except for special occasions,
such as the Texas Folklife Festival.
BELGIAN ACHIEVEMENTS
IN AGRICULTURE
Thanks to their ingenuity and diligence,
the Belgian vegetable growers of San An­tonio
have made it possible for Texas
housewives to prepare fresh vegetables all
year long. No segment of the agricultural
economy is so fickle as the growing and
marketing of highly perishable truck
crops. Too much or too little rain, labor
problems, insects, blight and other dis­eases
cast a shadow over every crop year.
Another threat is even worse-no market!
Through the Bexar County Truck
Growers Association, these farmers have
encourage.d their own members and
others to assume the risk of raising vege­tables
on a year-round basis. More im­portantly,
they have tried to create a
stable market. At first, vegetables were
brought from the fields by wagons and
sold in stalls at the old market in Military
Plaza. Today, vegetables are processed
29
30
AVIEL BAUWENS WITH VEGETABLE WAGON
and packaged. then speeded by truck to
their destination. In 1952, Henry Van de
Walle was influential in starting the first
annual South Texas Vegetable Day show
to acquaint consumers with locally-grown
crops and to encourage quality im­provement.
Belgian farmers have also pioneered
new roles in irrigation. The siphon tech­nique
which they introduced into this area
---~--~.
Courtesy of Mrs. Homer Verst urI!
is a far cry from the days when water had
to be carried to the ditches by hand. A
series of siphon tubes are placed in the
ditches at right angles to the water
source, and the gravity flow system di-
verts the water to the individual furrows.
In addition to growing vegetables,
many San Antonio Belgians produce a
flower crop in the fall. A major market
for these flowers has been the Mexican
population of South Texas, who use them
to decorate cemeteries on All Souls Day.
Through modern technology and untir­ing
labor, these hard-working Belgian
farmers have contributed impressively to
the San Antonio economy.
ANDRE A. CRISPIN
1949
Typical of many Texas success stories is
that of Andre A. Crispin. Born in Brus­sels,
young Andre served with the Bel­gian
army during the dark days of 1940.
After Belgium'S defeat by the Germans,
he continued his education at the Uni­versity
of Louvain and graduated with
an engineering degree in 1943. Wishing
to aid his occupied country, he served for
a time with the Belgian underground,
then, after the war, with the American
Military Government in Europe. Here he
decided that he would like someday to
go to America. In 1947, he got his chance.
Early that year Crispin arrived in Colo­rado
Springs, Colorado, with thirty dol­lars
in his pocket. He worked for a while
with a wholesale grocer, and kept hoping
to have his own company.
In 1949, he moved to Houston, where
he opened a small import-export business
with money borrowed from friends. This
was the start of the Crispin Company,
which primarily imports iron and steel
products, and oil field tubular goods. To- ANDRE A. CRISPIN The Crispin Company
31
32
ANDRE GRAINDORGE
day, the Crispin Company is a multi­million
dollar concern, with affiliates
throughout the United States, and with
foreign offices in Europe, Latin America,
and South Africa.
In addition to his business enterprise,
Andre Crispin has many other activities.
In 1953, he was named one of five out­standing
young Texans by a committee
of Texas businessmen, for his work in the
steel industry from 1950 to 1953. He was
president of the World Trade Association
of Houston, and is the founder and past
president of the World Trade Club.
Prominent in Houston society, Crispin be­longs
to more than a score of civic organi­zations,
and led efforts to build the World
Trade Center.
Bill Records Photography
ANDRE GRAINDORGE
1966
Brussels-born Andre Graindorge ran
away to sea at sixte~n and worked as a
deck boy on a Belgian freighter. Among
his duties was helping the ship's cook,
who recognized Andre's potential and
recommended that he attend cooking
school. Graduating from the "Ecole Ho­telier"
in Brussels, he began working as
a baker on a cargo liner operating be­tween
Antwerp and North America. He
soon became head chef and achieved
recognition for his many Belgian and
French dishes. In 1965, he married Miss
Loelleta Carpenter of Austin, and decided
to settle there. In 1966, he became the
chef at the Polonaise, where many Tex-ans
became aware of his culinary talents.
After two years he became chef at the
Swiss Chalet, and a year later assumed
management of the cafeteria for the local
IBM plant.
Ever since arriving in Austin, Grain­dorge
had wanted to open his own restau­rant.
In March, 1970, he leased the old
Courthouse Cafe and remodeled it as
"Andre's." It was a family operation and
each member pitched in. While condi­tions
were cramped, business was good
and Andre's reputation grew. In 1972,
the enterprise moved to a new location on
Highway 71. Here his Belgian style game
dishes have earned him a reputation as
one of the finest chefs in Texas.
CONCLUSION
The 1850 Texas census revealed only
eight Belgians living in the state, seven
of those in San Antonio. More than a
century later, most Belgian Texans re­main
concentrated in the Alamo City.
While many diverse occupations are
represented, agriculture heads the list.
Belgian Texans have experimented wide­ly
in the introduction of new crops and
improved irrigation techniques. There
have been countless individual success
stories in other fields of endeavor. Today
it is difficult to distinguish Belgians from
other ethnic groups, since many of their
distinctive folkways are no longer ob­served.
They have blended into the local
culture until they survive more as Texans
than as Belgians. They retain a proper
pride, however, in their contribution to
the growth of their adopted land.
One of a series
prepared by the staff of
THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS
AT SAN ANTONIO
INSTITUTE OF TEXAN CULTURES
1975