DUANE
Duane's take
Here's the story as the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. William Pfluger — born in Germany in 1842, died right here in Texas in 1923 — came a long way by any measure. He crossed an ocean, fought in a Confederate uniform, and then, when the war was done, he went looking for somewhere to plant himself permanent.
In 1871 he found it. He bought this land, and — well, the timing suggests a man who had his priorities in order — he bought the land just before he married Franziska Sternberg. Franziska was born in 1851 and would live all the way to 1931, long enough to see what the two of them had built turn into something worth inheriting.
The limestone house itself went up in 1875. Limestone, because this is Texas Hill Country adjacent, and limestone doesn't apologize for itself. A frame section came along later, the way houses grow when families do.
Now, William wasn't a man to stop at one thing. Ranching was the foundation, sure, but he also built a cotton gin. He built Pflugerville's first bank — first bank — which tells you something about what kind of confidence a community places in a man.
He put up other commercial structures too. And then, as if to make certain the town had every reason to keep growin', he deeded land for the railroad and for the Lutheran Church. Land given away, on purpose, for the good of something bigger than one man's fence line.
That's a particular kind of vision. William died in 1923, and eight years later, in 1931, his son Martin — born in 1880, would live until 1945 — inherited this residence. Five generations of the Pfluger family have called this place home.
Five generations. The limestone is still standing. Some things you build, they outlast every argument about whether they were worth buildin'.
What the marker says
A native of Germany and Confederate veteran, William Pfluger (1842-1923) bought this land in 1871, just before he married Franziska Sternberg (1851-1931). The limestone house was built in 1875 and the frame section added later. A rancher, Pfluger and also built a cotton gin, Pflugerville's first bank, and other commercial structures. He deeded land for the railroad and Lutheran Church. In 1931 his son Martin (1880-1945) inherited the residence, home to five generations of the family. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark-1985.