Bushdale Community

Address

County

utm_east

Milam

678178

utm_zone

utm_north

Rockdale

14

3403472

		Latitude	Longitude
		N 30.68230°	W 97.04247°

Location

Repair Condition

FM 908 4 mi. NW of Rockdale

Excellent

Marker Text

The community of Bushdale was founded in this area of Milam County by

German immigrants in the 1870s. Within ten years the population of the county

doubled and the Bushdale area developed into a thriving farming community.

A community cemetery was established on land owned by John and Johanna

Broeckl. In 1878, school trustees Herman Henniger, John Timmerman, Sr., and

Paul Pieper purchased two acres south of the cemetery for five dollars. A

schoolhouse was erected on the site and it also served as a church on Sundays.

In 1883 the Reverend Immanuel Glatzel organized Peace Lutheran Church. A

church and parsonage were built on a seven-acre parcel of land donated by

Herman Henniger. John and Martha Brockenbush operated a general store in

the community, and a cotton gin and blacksmith shop were established by

Gustav Backhaus in 1883. A two-story dance hall erected by the Herman Sons

Lodge was the site of many social activities. The Bushdale community

gradually declined. Peace Lutheran Church moved to nearby Rockdale in 1909,

and the school was closed in 1949. The cemetery is the only remnant of this

once active community. Incise on back: Some known early families of Bushdale

community area: Backhaus, Bauer, Brockenbush, Broeckl, Dornhoefer, Dockall,

Doss, Druschke, Foehner, Gruttner, Henniger, Hirt, Leschikar, Loehr, Mayer,

Menn, Pieper, Nieschwitz, Seelke, Seidl, Stolte, Stork, Strelsky, Strube,

Timmerman, Vogel, Von Gonten, Voss, Wanoreck, Wenzel and Witkowski.