Copied from Texas Civilian list. Posted September 2007 by Annette Bethke
I'm posting an AAR here for those of you who were unable to attend the event. It was a good time. I hope those
of you unable to make it this year can next year.
Henkel Square 2007 AAR
Schumann II household
Most participants arrived Friday night in time to enjoy the social time organized by Debra Russell. We used this time to introduce our impressions and ourselves.
Saturday morning started quite nice and then the heat set in. Mrs. Betts, up early as usual, started a fire and coffee and then
commenced to breakfast. We had quite a full house with my family,
Mrs. Betts, the Collissons and Mr Graf. We had a large breakfast of sausage, bacon, eggs, bread, butter and jam and fruit.
After breakfast dishes were done, Mrs. Betts set to laundry while my family visited the post office but the postmaster was not in. We then visited the general store, which had some cloth, shoes, a bonnet, and food stuffs. We then prepared for dinner of pork, fruit, cabbage salad, pickles, bread, and beans. It was all very tasty, except the pork was a bit too salty as I forgot to soak it. Mrs. Betts received several letters and she was kind enough to share the news with the rest of the household. By then Land Commissioner Crosby and his wife had arrived and joined us for lunch and brought some wonderful sorghum syrup. Mrs. Crosby had been at the coast for her health and filled us in on the goings on there.
Then the Ladies Aid Society meeting where we enjoyed lemonade and
cookies and discussed how best to help some families in the area
having a rough time. We also learned of the death of one of our
neighbors.
While I was out at the Ladies Aid meeting we received an anonymous note from the Knights of the Golden Circle of La Grange warning me that they were watching abolitionists and unionists. This upset me very much as my husband is the Justice of the Peace and we are long time residents of the community. As my husband had to leave to attend to business at our other property, I set about trying to find who left such a note but to no avail. I did go to the sheriff but he seemed unconcerned about it. I then felt a sick headache come on and decided it best to lie down a bit.
The rest of the day was spent visiting and relaxing, as the heat did not allow for much activity. In the evening was enjoyed some musical entertainment by the sheriff's wife and the newly arrived handyman. It was greatly enjoyed and lead to a few dancing couples. However, the joviality of the evening was dispelled as other community members of German descent returned home and found notes as I had previously received. Then in the dark of night a group of men with torches visited our homes, I assume to intimidate us. No violence occurred, thank goodness.
The next morning at church, Dr. Russell filled in as preacher and
preached against such division of the community and the need for
brotherly love. We then joined together as a community to enjoy the cooler air of Sunday under the oaks for a picnic. Commissioner Crosby spoke passionately on the need to support the Confederacy; we all thought he was running for governor! The traveling photographer also was present and took some photos of the group. Thus ended the second annual Henkel Square event at Round Top Texas.
I'm posting an AAR here for those of you who were unable to attend the event. It was a good time. I hope those
of you unable to make it this year can next year.
Henkel Square 2007 AAR
Schumann II household
Most participants arrived Friday night in time to enjoy the social time organized by Debra Russell. We used this time to introduce our impressions and ourselves.
Saturday morning started quite nice and then the heat set in. Mrs. Betts, up early as usual, started a fire and coffee and then
commenced to breakfast. We had quite a full house with my family,
Mrs. Betts, the Collissons and Mr Graf. We had a large breakfast of sausage, bacon, eggs, bread, butter and jam and fruit.
After breakfast dishes were done, Mrs. Betts set to laundry while my family visited the post office but the postmaster was not in. We then visited the general store, which had some cloth, shoes, a bonnet, and food stuffs. We then prepared for dinner of pork, fruit, cabbage salad, pickles, bread, and beans. It was all very tasty, except the pork was a bit too salty as I forgot to soak it. Mrs. Betts received several letters and she was kind enough to share the news with the rest of the household. By then Land Commissioner Crosby and his wife had arrived and joined us for lunch and brought some wonderful sorghum syrup. Mrs. Crosby had been at the coast for her health and filled us in on the goings on there.
Then the Ladies Aid Society meeting where we enjoyed lemonade and
cookies and discussed how best to help some families in the area
having a rough time. We also learned of the death of one of our
neighbors.
While I was out at the Ladies Aid meeting we received an anonymous note from the Knights of the Golden Circle of La Grange warning me that they were watching abolitionists and unionists. This upset me very much as my husband is the Justice of the Peace and we are long time residents of the community. As my husband had to leave to attend to business at our other property, I set about trying to find who left such a note but to no avail. I did go to the sheriff but he seemed unconcerned about it. I then felt a sick headache come on and decided it best to lie down a bit.
The rest of the day was spent visiting and relaxing, as the heat did not allow for much activity. In the evening was enjoyed some musical entertainment by the sheriff's wife and the newly arrived handyman. It was greatly enjoyed and lead to a few dancing couples. However, the joviality of the evening was dispelled as other community members of German descent returned home and found notes as I had previously received. Then in the dark of night a group of men with torches visited our homes, I assume to intimidate us. No violence occurred, thank goodness.
The next morning at church, Dr. Russell filled in as preacher and
preached against such division of the community and the need for
brotherly love. We then joined together as a community to enjoy the cooler air of Sunday under the oaks for a picnic. Commissioner Crosby spoke passionately on the need to support the Confederacy; we all thought he was running for governor! The traveling photographer also was present and took some photos of the group. Thus ended the second annual Henkel Square event at Round Top Texas.
