Waldeck, formerly Long Prairie, Texas, Fayette County. (original) (raw)

History in a Pecan Shell

Count Ludwig Joseph von Boos-Waldeck is the community�s namesake. The count was head of a German Immigration Society when that organization bought the site in 1843. First known as Long Prairie, Texas, a post office was opened under that name in 1860.

The Long Prairie German Company (Infantry) was mustered in at the start of the Civil War. This was ironic since most German immigration was undertaken to avoid conscription in Europe.

Long Prairie�s post office closed in 1876 but reopened under the name Waldeck in 1881. It stayed open until its permanent closure in 1925.

In 1900 Waldeck was peaking. Besides the post office, the community was a voting precinct and had a saloon, store, blacksmith and cotton gin.

Corn and cotton were principle crops although the soil was considered poor and the area was prone to flooding. By 1950 Waldeck had just two businesses to serve a population of 60.

Children who had once attended the Waldeck school were sent to the consolidated Round Top � Carmine schools. By the 1980s, Waldeck had an estimated population of 35 people living in dispersed households.

The same population was used for the 2000 census.

American Party Band and Waldeck Hall
Courtesy Fayette Co Hist Comm; submitted by Carolyn Heinsohn FCHC member

Albers Saloon, 1907
Courtesy Fayette Co Hist Comm; submitted by Carolyn Heinsohn FCHC member

Waldeck, Texas Landmarks

Waldeck Evangelical Lutheran Church
Photo courtesy Gerald Massey, July 2011

Historical Marker: Intersection of FM 2145 and FM 1291

Waldeck Evangelical Lutheran Church

Waldeck Evangelical Lutheran Church Before 1900, the German families of Waldeck, once called Long Prairie, were served by German-speaking Methodist missionaries; by 1885, a congregation had organized. In December 1899, the Rev. August Wenzel led local Lutherans in starting a new congregation, which organized as Waldeck Evangelical Lutheran Zion. Pastor Carl Baer became the church's first salaried minister. The congregation met in the Waldeck schoolhouse until 1926, when it bought the Methodist Episcopal sanctuary from the declining neighbor congregation at this site. By that time, the Lutheran church offered Sunday school classes. Within a few decades, it also celebrated with church picnics, programs and community services, all of which continue today.
(2003)

Historical Marker: from Fayetteville, take FM 1291 about 14 mile NW, then take Waldeck Cemetery Rd. about 0.8 miles east.

Waldeck Cemetery

This cemetery has served the Waldeck community of German immigrants for over 100 years. Originally known as Long Prairie, the community met in 1866 to erect a school/church building and to establish a cemetery. Louis Tittel deeded six acres of land which became the cemetery. There were existing graves in the north corner, though the earliest marked grave is dated 1871. Burials include many German immigrants, and veterans of wars from the Civil War to the Vietnam War. This cemetery contains more than 530 graves, and continues to serve the Waldeck community.
1994

Fayette County map showing location of Long Prairie (Waldeck)
From Texas state map #10749
Modified Texas General Land Office 1920s map

Fayette County 1907 postal map showing Waldeck (NE corner)
From Texas state map #2090
Courtesy Texas General Land Office

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