Schumacher Crossing on the Guadalupe River

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Schumacher Crossing on the Guadalupe River in Kerr County. Christian Schumacher came into this world in 1845, the very same year his family packed up their lives in Germany and set sail for Texas. That's the kind of beginning that sets a certain tone, arriving on a new continent before you're old enough to remember the voyage.

By 1880, Christian had made his way to Kerr County, and not long after, he married Sarah Brazeal Sublett and put down roots on land along the Guadalupe River. Now, that land had a history of its own. Before Christian ever arrived, Gustav and Fredrich Tegener had run a sawmill operation there, an antebellum enterprise right on the banks of that same river.

The Guadalupe, as anyone who's spent time in the Hill Country can tell you, is a beautiful river. It is also, when it has a mind to be, a dangerous one. Floodwaters on the Guadalupe are no joke, and a stream crossing in that era was only as reliable as the river's mood that particular day.

Enter John Randolph Schumacher, Christian's son, who in the 1920s took on the river in the most methodical way he could think of. He built not one dam, but a series of dams across the river, one after another, securing that crossing against the raging floodwaters and opening up a new road to hunt. That was the kind of practical ingenuity that built the Hill Country.

Those dams are still standing today. An improved highway bridge crosses the stream now, but the dams John Randolph built remain, and Schumacher Crossing is still drawing people in for its scenery and its access to the Guadalupe. Three generations, one river, and the place is still worth stopping for.

What the marker says

Christian Schumacher emigrated with his family from Germany to Texas in 1845, the year he was born. He came to Kerr County in 1880, later marrying Sarah Brazeal Sublett and moving to land along the Guadalupe River, near the site of an antebellum sawmill operation built by Gustav and Fredrich Tegener. In the 1920s, son John Randolph Schumacher built a series of dams across the river, providing security from raging floodwaters for a stream crossing and new road to hunt. Today, the dams remain and an improved highway bridge crosses the stream. Schumacher Crossing is still enjoyed for its scenery and access to the river. (2003)