The Railroad in Boerne
We are deeply indebted to Boerne Library for their generous assistance with much of the
information and most of the pictures used here. In particular, Bettie Edmonds, took a lot
of time to both find materials and answer questions. She created a small booklet in 1999,
the year of Boerne's 150th anniversary, called The Journey To Boerne which is a
fascinating introduction to the history of this vibrant community. It is available upon request for
the amazing price of only $2.00 at the library.
If you are lucky, your town has a library that has such excellent local records.
If you are blessed, it will have someone maybe half as dedicated and enthusiastic as
Ms. Edmonds.
While the story of railroad service to Boerne - pronounced "burnie" due to its
German origin - begins in March of 1887, the town itself dates back
to around 1851. It was founded during the time of the largest German immigration to the USA. As
the diaspora began to fan out from New Braunfels, more and more new towns were established,
creating places like Fredericksburg,
Comfort and Sisterdale. Boerne became the county seat of Kendall county in 1862, but the
courthouse was not finished until seven years later, due to many hardships, not the least of
which were the Civil War and indigenous Native Americans, who were not so kindly named back then.
Times were hard all over and the population of Boerne was beginning to decline following the
failure of attempted large cattle ranching and associated drives up to Kansas and its railheads to the
northern states. The coming of the railroad was an economic boost of some magnitude, and it
created infinitely better conditions for the area. The population stabilized and began to grow.
Both people and their produce could be moved with an exponential improvement in time taken and
conditions to be endured en route. The cities of Boerne and Fredericksburg petitioned for the
creation of rail service and when the $180,000.00 subscription asked of Boerne was forthcoming,
the line was built with surprising speed. It was started on August 26, 1886 and service began in
the march of the following year.
To understand the huge impact the arrival of the railroad would have you have to consider the
prevailing conditions for travel and the transportation of goods. Boerne is thirty miles north west
of San Antonio. It is 1,500 feet above sea level which is 800 feet higher than San Antonio. A trip
to San Antonio by stage coach would take over seven hours, perhaps longer during inclement weather.
There were no paved roads then and the trails would become nothing but muddy ruts whenever it rained.
Moving goods was even more arduous. By horse and buggy or, more commonly, by ox pulled cart, the
journey would take an entire, grueling, day. Moving fruit and vegetables under such conditions
would be close to pointless as the produce would be all but rotten by the time you got anywhere.
Moving heavy loads of materials, even relatively easy items like bricks, would take for ever, as only
small relatively small quantities could be moved on any one wagon. People lived within a small
radius of their homes and a trip into town would be a major event.
Which brings us to March 12, 1887, when the first public run of the San Antonio & Aransas Pass
Railroad came to Boerne. It was a huge event, and the cause of much celebration. Now the journey
to San Antonio would only take three hours. It would be a whole lot more comfortable than riding
in a stage coach, and less expensive, to boot. Poor weather would hardly make a difference. In
addition, Boerne residents could get daily newspapers and a much improved postal service.
That first public trip is well recorded. There had been a private trip a day or so before for
Dr. Ferdinand Ludwig Von Herff, a local landowner who had been a major booster and right of way granter
for the new service. On the big day for the regular public, the train left San Antonio at 4:30 PM.
It was a Saturday. The train, which consisted of seven bright red passenger coaches, one baggage
car and two freight wagons, according to the San Antonio Express was filled to capacity. At
95 cents for a ticket, it carried over 600 people to Boerne and arrived without incident at around
7:00 PM. Travelers were allowed to carry up to 150 lbs of luggage for free but would have to pay
extra to move their horses and buggies. There was a huge picnic arranged followed by several speeches
from local dignitaries and railroad officials. The train returned to San Antonio the next day.
Soon, as well as daily service, special tourist weekend trains were set up and local hotels and camp
grounds emerged to cater to the new trade. Boerne was known for the purity of its air and a new industry
grew to cater to people hoping to convalesce in the Hill country. Other spas in the area, such as Hot
Wells in San Antonio, were already doing a roaring trade but the appeal of Boerne was even stronger
and soon there were around 13 sanitariums and hotels catering to the demand. Another business that
was able to flourish was cedar posts, and countless hundreds of tons of them were moved expeditiously
by the railroad, creating jobs and more income for the area.
Railroads did not only merely provide transportation. Railroad agents were more than just ticket
sellers. Their main job was to develop local business by attracting companies to the area and
helping existing businesses to improve their operations. One area at which they excelled was in
developing agriculture. As you can see in one of the pictures, there were special Farm Trains
that would come to town on a regular basis. As there was no governmental agencies to provide
such assistance, railroads took it upon themselves to actively solicit immigration, mainly in
Europe, so the potential farm lands around their rail lines would be developed. Such immigrants,
many illiterate in English if not their own native tongue, would set up in Texas only to find
agricultural opportunities entirely different from those they had experienced in the colder lands
they had come from. The Farm Trains were created to help them make the best of what
could be done in Texas. The trains would have agricultural experts on board, to show farmers the
best methods to use in the often harsh conditions they were finding. The trains would have seed
for the best types of crops to sow, and demonstrations of the new farm equipment being developed
at that time. Of course, the railroad would be only too happy to help deliver such new equipment
plus transport the resulting crops and animals that would result from the gains made by the
farmers. Railroads even had migrant labor well organized. They would bring in the required temporary
workforce, provide them with shelter, move out the harvest and then move the labor onto another
destination.
The handsome depot in Boerne was built around 1906. There were two structures. One, the smaller,
was a freight room. The larger building was timber framed and measured
approximately 24 by 62 feet. The line did not end in Boerne. It continued on to the northwest going through Comfort and, ultimately,
reached Kerrville in August of 1887. The original intention was to continue up to the Texas Panhandle
but this never happened. In around 1914 a spur line to Fredericksburg was completed, which connected to the
main line just east of Comfort. The Fredericksburg line lasted until 1939, when competition from
the new roads that had been built and the lack of freight brought the service to an end. The
Southern Pacific was running the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railroad almost from the very
start but it did not officially drop the name until the mid 1920s. It decided to down size the depot
in 1959 and it was sold to Paul Driess, of Comfort, who had both the larger and smaller buildings
relocated within Boerne. Both still survive today. The smaller building is at 1105 S. Main and
contains the Hitching Post Liquor Store. The main building is on a quiet street in Boerne and,
though substantially altered for use as a private home, is still recognizable as the old depot it once was
if you know what it is you are looking for.
One reason for the change was to lessen the taxes the railroad had to pay on the structures. A smaller
building was erected, more in keeping with the diminishing role the railroad was performing for
the much expanded city. With more cars, better buses, larger trucks, improved roads and the soon to be opened IH 10 freeway on the
immediate horizon, fewer and fewer people were using the railroad for transportation. Moving
freight has always been the true raison d'etre of the railroads, and the S.P. still perceived a
useful role for itself in that regard. It must be said, however, that the whole line up to Kerrville
had always been a disappointment and, in fact, the line never made an operating profit. It is surprising
that it survived as long as it did, since railroads, notoriously, are not in the charity business.
With few major industries along the line. Had the line ever been extended up to the Panhandle as
was originally envisioned, there might have been a role for the line to play but it would still
have been a diminished one for the communities along the way. As the loads big trucks could
carry increased, the need for the railroad declined and the S.P. made the decision to end service
along their north west branch line in 1971, according to the Boerne Star on 2/4/71. The
second depot was destroyed in a fire some time after the rails were removed, according to a local fireman.
For a long time the old right of way was but a ghost of itself. Now a large section has been made
into into a handsome nature walk, complete with SA & AP styled shelters and sign posting. Depot
Road, leading from Main Street to the station, was renamed Rosewood Avenue a long time ago but
the new nature path is bringing Boerne's railroad history back to life, reminding residents
of this once important connection to the rest of the world.
For images of the new nature path along the right of way, click here (scroll down page to find Boerne):
•Old #9 Boerne Greenway•
Another reminder of railroad history is far more prominent. Boerne is home to large, handsome, depot, right on Main Street. This one was relocated to a
beautiful spot beside the river from its original location in Encinal, Texas, not too far from
Laredo. This depot does tend to throw railroad enthusiasts off the tracks, as it were. It is
located a long way from where the old right of way ran through Boerne and is built in an entirely
different style from any other depot installed by the San Antonio & Aransas Pass Railroad. It was, in fact,
constructed by the International & Great Northern which became part of the Missouri Pacific. It
is operated as a high end women's fashion boutique called "Traditions At The Depot." Its
owners brought the structure and its smaller freight room as well, to Boerne simply because they
thought it was a great building. Occasionally, according to the owners, who are very proud of
their depot, they get the occaisional customer who actually remembers it in Encinal. These folks
often get transported back in time as memories of hours spent waiting for the train come
flooding back. One older man vividly recalled visiting the depot alomost daily with his pals
just to pass the time as they waited for trains to come by, their legs dangling from the platform,
a pastoral scene of rural Texas life long before television and the interstates, when things
were simpler and entertainment came from real life.
If that wasn't enough, there is yet another old railroad depot in Boerne! This one is from further
up the line, a place called Center Point, between Comfort and Kerrville. It can be found at a
commercial center comprised of several old, relocated, structures, on the southern edge of town.
For images of this depot, click
•Center Point•
For more images, taken from the very last train to Kerrville in 1971, click:
•Last train to Kerrville•
To go to the home page of the Texas Transportation Museum web site, click:
•TTM•
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