BERGMANN-WINTERS HOUSE
N from Bergheim on Hwy. 3351;
WaterStone Subdivision; 722 Rio Colorado

HISTORY: This rock home was originally built by Max Bergmann in the 1850’s (there is no formal documentation as to when the house was built nor by whom (the Bergmann's think C. F. Sr. did it sometime between 1860 and 1870) but it was earlier thought the date to be 1895? – Max was the grandson of C. F. and the son of C. F. Jr.(who was 16 when he came with his family to the land in 1857) but if it was Max it would not have been built in the 1850’s – my guess is that it was done by C. F. Sr. with an assist from his oldest son, C. F. Jr. or it was done exclusively by C. F. Jr.). There are four structures representing various periods of development and architecture in the 1850s, 1860s, 1870s and 1880s. In 1970, Dr. Winters restored and added to the original structure with its hip roof, native limestone and sloping Early German construction. There is an old Bergmann Cemetery on the grounds which is listed in the Cemetery Book published by the Boerne Area Historical and Preservation Society in 1986.

Here are some updates to the original article: Max Bergmann was the grandson of Christian Friedrich and Johanna Christiana Louisa Bergmann, who immigrated to Texas in 1854 from Ebersbach, a textile community in Saxony. Saxony sits in SE Germany, near the present day countries of Poland and Czechoslovakia. When they began their journey to America, Mr. Christian Friedrich Bergmann was 37, his wife Johanna Christiana Louisa was 36. Their 3 sons - Christian Friedrich Jr., Karl Heinrich, & Christoph Wilhelm, were 12, 9, and 5 respectively. They came to the homestead in 1857 after spending a couple of years in San Antonio. The cemetery (on private property) mentioned was established in 1888 upon the death of C. F. Sr. Descendants located the cemetery, and after extensive clearing of brush and trees, re-fenced it by matching the pattern of the few remaining pickets. At the same time they also added gravestones for Mr. & Mrs. C. F. Bergmann, even though the site was tested by an expert who found only one coffin. This makes sense, as the oral history of the family relates that Mrs. Bergmann was buried under a large tree, very near the homestead house. The majority of land that the family accumulated, as well as the rock home, is now within the WaterStone subdivision. Dan & Cindy Barden currently live in the rock home. A community park with Guadalupe River access was the site of a ceremony on November 9, 2008, as WaterStone dedicated this park to the original settlers, naming it Bergmann Park (although on private property, the dedication plaque can be seen from 3351).

Source: Boerne Public Library files, February, 2000; Update courtesy of researcher Bryden Moon - November, 2008

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