Henry Pfluger brought his family from Germany to Texas in 1849 to escape the Prussian War. A rich man in Germany, Pfluger lost nearly all his property during the war. After living for a time with his brother-in-law John Liese on a farm east of Austin, in 1853 Pfluger paid Liese $960 for 960 acres along Brushy Creek north of the state’s capital city. Pflugerville wouldn’t begin to add more residents until after the Civil War, when churches and a school were built. But it was the advent of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad that sparked rapid growth, which continued throughout the 20th century.

Pflugerville’s Heritage House Museum interprets much of the town’s history – a town that owes its discovery, and name, to an early German-Texan.

Watch our The First Texas Germans 1831-1861 video to learn more about German Texan cultural heritage in Texas. This video was produced for inclusion in our German Texans mobile tour found in our Texas Time Travel Tours mobile app. Download the app for more videos and travel information: