Naomi Mitchum

Learning the rules of immigration and preparing for the trip was a trip of its own.

YOU CAN’T JUST SHOW UP

What is an immigrant?

An immigrant is a person who is a citizen of another country such as Germany, Mexico or Canada, who wishes to become a citizen of a different country. The person immigrates or moves to another country to become a permanent citizen. You can’t just show up to announce your intentions. You have to make arrangements ahead of time.

Why did Rika’s father want to leave Germany?

He wanted new freedom for his family. Germany was not a united country in the early 1800’s; it was a group of states fighting between themselves. This meant conscription of young men to fight in the state’s armies. Rika’s father did not want his son, Emil, to go off fighting in a war. Emil wanted to become a tailor, and in Texas there were no trade union or guild requirements, so Emil could just become a tailor, and if he turned out to be a good tailor, people would use his services. Rika’s father had also heard there were no taxes in Texas and he understood the climate was pleasant and good for his families’ health.

Were there German settlers in Texas before Rika and her family came?

Yes. According to Glen E. Lich in The Texas Germans and others, several thousand Germans preceded the Verein settlement in New Braunfels. Germans could be found in Austin, Colorado, Fayette, Washington, DeWitt and Victoria counties. A few were allowed to buy land from the Verein and enjoy the privileges of the organization.

How did Rika’s family and other German families get to Texas?

A German count and some other businessmen organized a group called the Adelsverein to help people emigrate to a part of Texas they had purchased. The nickname for the group was Verein. The count, Prince Solms, wrote a book of advice to the German settlers. The Verein organized the trips and set up rules for organizing settlements in Texas.

What were the rules?

Each family paid $240.00 and was promised 10-15 acres of land, food to get them started and financing through the first crop. Also promised were churches, schools, hospitals, gins, mills and other public services.

Daily meat rations were given and only men could go for the rations.  A small tuition was charged for schooling. Each male who was able-bodied and in the age span of 18-45 years was required to serve in the militia.

SHOES MADE FOR WALKING

How far did Rika’s brown shoes walk?

The most reliable estimate of the distance from Indian Point to New Braunfels is 152 miles, but some trail bosses reported as many as 198 to over 200 miles. Verbal and written diaries of immigrants report various locations for overnight halting places, each one depending on fresh water for humans and water and grass for the animals, safety from Indians and the fatigue of the livestock. Some terrain had to be skirted such as flooded creeks and mud flats that sucked at the hoofs of the animals and the wheels on wagons. A dried up creek meant that the wagon train had to go out of its way to find water.

We don’t know exactly how far Rika walked, but we can accurately say, “Man! It was a long way!”

Why did Rika need to wear the ugly brown shoes?

Rika kept her secret dancing shoes hidden away on the long trip from Germany.  It was no secret that she hated the brown, high top walking shoes that were ugly and heavy. Let’s face it, though, the dancing shoes could NOT have walked from Indian Point to New Braunfels.

It wasn’t smooth walking.  First came wet sand, marshes and mud, then grasses, hills, dry dust, slick mud, and tall prairie grass. If you have walked in knee-high grass lately you will know that you have to high-step to save your legs.  Try doing it wearing a semi-long skirt and heavy shoes, and you will be falling-over-dead tired.

Walking beside oxen when crossing a creek meant heavy, water-soaked leather as well as soggy socks. Squish around in wet socks for a few hours, and your feet will look like prunes when you take off your shoes.  If you had to walk that far under the same conditions, what would you wear on your feet?

WHAT WERE CONDITIONS FOR CHILDREN AT INDIAN POINT AND ON THE TRIP INLAND?

What were conditions for children at Indian Point and on the trip inland?

Germs and fear combined at Indian Point. Malnutrition and unsanitary living conditions made people sick. In his book Indianola, The Mother of Western Texas, page 13, Brownson Mielsch tells us that because of epidemics of typhoid, cholera and cerebro-spinal meningitis as many as 400 to 1,200 died and were buried in mass graves. Many immigrants were overcome with fear, and having no transportation to New Braunfels, started walking that direction without knowing for certain how far the walk would be.  Over 200 persons died along the way. Occasionally, a dying person was left behind on the trail, just propped against a tree with food nearby, as the wagon train had to move on.

An example of this occurs in The Reluctant Immigrant when the wagon train comes upon the body of a woman left behind by a previous wagon train.

Deaths of German parents left orphans.  At least 60 orphans arrived in New Braunfels because many parents died at sea from bubonic plague, and others caught diseases at Indian Point. Often another family would take children on to New Braunfels, but times were hard and food was scarce, and all orphans could not be absorbed into other families. An orphanage was built for 19 of these children by Pastor and Mrs. Ervenberg of The Evangelical Church. The Ervenberg Road near Gruene, Texas still exists.

RIKA’S SECRETS

Rika carried her secrets in a reticule. What was it?

Rika’s handbag or reticule was called “new fangled” only because the style of the purse had recently changed. During the 1800’s both men and women carried purses, often very ornate and jeweled. These evolved to new forms for women called reticules, and they had drawstrings, were worn instead of carried, often diagonally across the chest or around the waist under clothing. This evolution was possible because women in this era were wearing less underwear than before. Many had given up on pantaloons and hoop skirts, and this made more room around the waist and hips for carrying a reticule.

The very first purses recorded in written records were carried around the waist, embroidered or jeweled. The richer the ornamentation the higher the status of the person.  By the 16^th century , handbags (or purses) had become more practical and had a drawstring at the top. By the time Rika brought hers to Texas, fashionable ladies in France and Germany called them reticules, and in them they carried items to fit the needs of their social situation such as rouge (now called blush), face powder, a fan, a scent bottle, visiting cards and smelling salts. Rika carried none of this because she was moving out of the social scene, and she was smuggling two things that were her secrets. One was her diary and the other was a pair of shoes. Only on her person could she be certain that her mother’s prying eyes would not see the fragile ballroom dancing shoes she has brought across the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. She could only hope that somewhere in Texas there would be a floor for dancing.

Coming soon: History of Rika’s life in New Braunfels. What did the settlers eat, wear and drink, and what was the social life?