IT DOESN'T ADD UP, LOGISTICALLY SPEAKING. THAT'S THE ONLY WAY TO DESCRIBE THE QUIRKY EXISTENCE OF A LITTLE GERMAN TOWN IN TEXAS, ESPECIALLY ONE THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR 177 YEARS, JUST A YEAR SHY OF HOW LONG TEXAS HAS OFFICIALLY BEEN A STATE. BUT SURE ENOUGH, THE BIG SIGN LEADING INTO A LONG STRETCH OF BUILT-TO-LAST LIMESTONE STRUCTURES READS, "FREDERICKSBURG WILLKOMMEN." THE WORD "WILLKOMMEN" MEANS "WELCOME," AND THIS PLACE IS NOTHING IF NOT HOSPITABLE. KNOWN FOR ITS BLANKETS OF NATIVE WILDFLOWERS, A FLOURISHING WINE INDUSTRY, AND A PACKED calendar of annual festivals, Fredericksburg has come a long way since its founding in 1846. These days, the once-quiet Hill Country enclave is arguably Texas' hottest small town. "Well, I don't recognize every single person on the street anymore," jokes Cris Crouch Graham, a longtime resident and business owner, "so that has definitely been a funny change."
Each autumn, Fredericksburg honors its German heritage with three days of cultural jubilation that's part small-town homecoming and part international affair. When said with a Texas twang, "welcome" doesn't really sound too different from "willkommen" anyway. Everyone's invited.
HOMETOWN PRIDE
At around two o'clock on a toasty Saturday afternoon, downtown Fredericksburg is buzzing with people strolling up and down historic Main Street. The smells of bratwurst and pretzels fill the air, and polka music rings out as giddy festivalgoers clad in lederhosen and brightly colored dirndl dresses await the stein-hoisting competition. In the sea of Alpine-style felt fedoras, an occasional cowboy hat peeks through.
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Esta historia es de la edición September 2023 de Southern Living.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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Forging a Legacy - A Fredericksburg, Texas, couple is creating a new class of heirloom cast-iron cookware
When Jay Mallinckrodt pitched the idea of crafting cast-iron cookware to his wife and business partner, Heather, in 2020, she was hesitant. I immediately said no, she recalls with a laugh. But I finally agreed as long as we made something that we would actually want to use ourselves. Like many others during the initial throes of the pandemic, their multigenerational family operation, Heartland Enterprises (which specializes in machining parts for jet engines and gas and oil equipment), was seeing a lull. “No one was flying; no one was drilling, says Jay. So we had time to try something different.
A Butterfly Haven - In the Texas Hill Country, a conservationist is helping monarchs adjust to the changing world
Twenty-four years ago, Monika Maeckle bought a small property on the Llano River in Central Texas as an escape from fast-paced San Antonio. A journalist and marketing professional by trade, she didn't at first realize the value of the location on which she and her husband would later build their ranch. She also had no idea how this decision would eventually transform her life.One October evening a few years later, a friend invited Maeckle to their nearby house, which sat on a watershed with several large cypresses. All these butterflies dropped from the sky and started to gravitate toward the trees, she recalls. Stronger people who could swing a big 12-foot-long pole began trying to capture them, and we waited. By the end of the evening, we'd tagged a couple hundred butterflies, and I left there enchanted.
Oktober Feast!
While I respect your right to serve spooky food in October, you won't find any gory grub at my house this month. Instead, I'm hosting a gathering that's inspired by biergartens across the pond. The focus of the menu is a fondue made with Gruyère cheese and crisp Riesling-like beer-cheese dip but more elevated. It's served with a smorgasbord of dippers such as smoked sausage, grapes, apples, and a few amped-up store-bought snacks, like Mustard-Glazed Pretzel Bites and Smoked Paprika Potato Chips. (Just one taste, and you'll want to add this spice to every bag you open.) Pour yourself a Cider Shandy, and get ready for a good time. Prost, y'all!
The Roast With the Most
Embrace the changing seasons with a cozy pork supper
Roll With It
Company's coming? Bake a batch of these apple-stuffed delights
VIRGINIA PASTORAL
IN MIDDLEBURG, THE COMMONWEALTH'S MOST STORIED SMALL TOWN, OCTOBER WELCOMES A HOST OF TREASURED TRADITIONS
TAKING ROOT
Turn the season's freshest veggies-beets, parsnips, sweet potatoes, carrots-into colorful fall sides
THE FAMILY PLACE
When it came time for a young Georgia couple to make an 1800s farmhouse their own, they took it apart piece by piece-then rebuilt it into a home ready to welcome the next generation
Loving Life in Fayetteville
This Northwest Arkansas college town is easy to love and hard to leave
The Road That Raised Me
This lesser-known drive offers the most breathtaking views in the Smoky Mountains
