A Guide to the F. E. Giesecke Collection, 1867-1887

Biographical Note

With a starting capital of $40,000, the New Braunfels Woolen Manufacturing Company was established in the converted Koestch Distillery of New Braunfels, Texas, in 1868. At its peak, the factory could make forty pairs of blankets and two hundred yards of tweeds or yarns a day using local raw materials. The company was still in business in 1890, but closed around the turn of the century.

Source:

Benjamin, Gilbert G. “Germans In Texas.” The Quarterly Americana Germanica (1909).

Scope and Contents

Comprised of a minute book, account books, and a certificate, the F. E. Giesecke Collection, 1867-1887, documents the business operations of the New Braunfels Woolen Manufacturing Company. The accounts include two ledgers of sales (1877-1880, 1883-1886) and the minute book (1867-1873) describes company stockholder meetings, including the establishment of their bylaws. The certificate (1870) from the Mechanics and Agricultural Fair Association of Louisiana declares that the company produced the best woolen cloth in the Southern states.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

F. E. Giesecke Collection, 1867-1887, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.

Processing Information

Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s "History Revealed: Bringing Collections to Light" project, 2009-2011.

Detailed Description of the Papers