Diedrich Rode Complex

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Out here in Gillespie County, in the Cherry Spring community, there stands a complex of buildings that'll stop you in your tracks if you know what you're looking at. And once you hear the story behind them, you will.

This is the Diedrich Rode Complex, and the man who built it was something else entirely. Diedrich Rode, born in 1828, came from Germany, and when he put down roots in this part of Texas, he didn't do things halfway. The centerpiece of what he built was a three-story limestone residence, completed in 1880.

Three stories. Limestone. Out here on the Texas frontier.

That third floor wasn't just for show, either. It was a storage area, purpose-built for the wool and cotton his land produced. The man was thinking practically from the roofline on down.

But here's where the story gets a little richer. Rode was a Lutheran, and faith wasn't something he kept quietly to himself. He served as an early minister, and he held services right there on the property, in a prayer chapel called the Betkapelle, situated on the east side of the second floor.

A chapel built into his own home, between the ground floor and the storage above. So under one limestone roof you had the harvest of the land, the work of the school, because he taught school too, and the worship of a congregation. Diedrich Rode, rancher, schoolteacher, minister.

He lived until 1905, and the homesite he built became a true landmark for the Cherry Spring community. In 1929, it was sold to Willie Kothe, and it has remained in his family for over fifty years since. Some places just hold on.

This is one of them.

What the marker says

This group of buildings was constructed by german native Diedrich Rode (1828-1905). The three-story limestone residence was completed in 1880 and featured a third floor storage area for wool and cotton produced on the land. A Lutheran, Rode served as an early minister and held services in the Betkapelle, a prayer chapel on the east side of the second floor. In addition to his ranching, he also taught school. A landmark in the Cherry Spring community, the homesite was sold to Willie Kothe in 1929. It has remained in his family for over 50 years. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1989