Roesler House
W of Nelsonville on TX 159
Nelsonville

Comments:

Architect: Roesler, F. A.

Narrative: The Roesler House is a good example of a late nineteenth-century vernacular pioneer farmhouse in Austin County. The one-and-a-half story, four-room, board-and batten residence stands atop a hill and is located on sixty one and a half acres of land near Nelsonville. Situated near the farmhouse is a nineteenth-century smokehouse, a barn constructed ca. 1927, and a modern privy. In proportion and scale, the Roesler House reflects the modest lifestyle of its original owner, and is an important link to Austin County's nineteenth-century development. The Roesler House is in excellent condition and remains virtually unaltered.

The main facade and entrance of the farmhouse faces south. The T-shape plan consists of a rectangular mass measuring 30' x 14', and a 12' x 14' kitchen extension on the north (rear) side, which is almost centrally located. Pine wood was employed for the exterior walls, with board and-batten construction. The vertical appearance of the exterior is emphasized by the standing-seam tin, gabled roof and the raised foundation of tall brick and mortar piers set on limestone blocks. The roof contains an interior brick chimney at the west end, and another at the end of the north kitchen wall. A one-story porch along three-quarters of the front is supported by three thin, chamfered, wooden posts.

The inset front porch covers two adjacent entrance doors which lead to separate rooms. Fenestration of the structure is simple and consists of nine wooden-sash, doublehung windows with four-over-four lights; a simple window is located at each end of the loft. Molded wooden trim frames all windows and doors.

The simple, functional style of the exterior is reflected in the virtually unaltered interior with its newspaper-stuffed, single-board walls, crude pine flooring, and primitive period furnishings. The original floor, as well as several hand-carved door latches, remain intact. The house has been furnished by the present owners with antiques and family heirlooms including quilts, kitchen utensils, and an antique pie safe.

Outbuildings on the property include a small limestone and concrete well a few feet west of the house, and a woodenframe, board-and-batten smokehouse (11' x 12') with a corrugated tin roof located to the northwest. With the exception of the original wooden rafters, the entire smokehouse structure has been restored, and is probably contemporaneous with an earlier house of 1873. Although it is still compatible in appearance with the main farmhouse, most of the deteriorated exterior boards and interior sills of the smokehouse have been replaced. To the west of this smokehouse stands a heavily altered barn constructed ca. 1927, and a modern board-and-batten privy.

The physical condition of the house is excellent, and most of the original features and materials of both the interior and exterior have remained unaltered. Additions and minor repairs have been made to the exterior, but do not affect the historic integrity of the structure. The unique interior has remained virtually unaltered. Minor replacements have been necessary where deterioration has occurred to structural materials, but have been limited to the wooden floor of the porch and two rotted windows. Four new screen doors have been added by the present owner.

The original appearance and character of the Roesler House have been retained largely through the efforts of Mr. and Mrs. C.L. Jenkins of Houston, who purchased the property in 1970. They have undertaken general maintenance of the house and yard, and have planted flowers and shrubbery. In addition to their work on the Roesler House, the Jenkins' restored a large, two-story, high-Victorian house. Both structures have been used as weekend homes by the couple, and have been included in tours of historic homes by preservation organizations, including the Austin County Historical Survey Committee.

The Roesler House, near Nelsonville in rural Austin County, is a rare survival of a late nineteenth-century vernacular farmhouse in the area. Comparable architectural types located in the county have generally been altered, and the Roesler House is one of a mere handful of survivors. Although this part of Austin County was the site of the first permanent German settlement in Texas, as well as the destination of the first organized Czech immigration to the state, few vernacular farmhouses of the 1890s still exist. The house is significant, also, for its association with the Johann Roesler family, members of the original group of Czech immigrants. The one-and-a-half story structure was built in 1892 by Frederick August Roesler to replace his 1873 farmhouse that burned sometime in the late 1800s. According to local tradition, the house of 1892 is identical to the original. The sensitive treatment of the period interior, which has remained virtually intact, is noteworthy. One of the first farmhouses constructed between Nelsonville and Industry, on the busy Houston market road, the house continued through the years to play a vital role in the social and economic life of this farming community.

Johann Roesler's family, including his eldest son Frederick August Roesler, were members of a group of Czech immigrant farmers from Cechy, who arrived in Galveston in 1852 aboard the British ship "Maria." This first large contingent of Czech settler in Texas were fleeing conscription and the oppression which followed the unsuccessful revolt of 1848. The original settlers, including the Roesler family, have been honored with a state historical marker, located two miles west of the present Roesler House. Upon their arrival in Galveston, the immigrants traveled by ox cart or covered wagon to points between Cat Spring and Nelsonville in Austin County. They came in response to the optimistic letters sent to Bohemia and Moravia by Reverend Joseph Arnost Bagman of Cat Spring.

August Roesler (1836-1933), a Czech with German ancestry (his mother, Karaline, was reportedly descended from German royalty), purchased the tract of land on which he built his first house from his father on December 11, 1873. The 61.5-acre tract was part of Lot No. Six of four leagues granted to Stephen F. Austin. The tract is situated on the east side of the west fork of Mill Creek. August Roesler built his first house in 1873-74 with the help of neighbors, and he resided there as a successful farmer for many years with his wife, Ida Machemehl Roesler, a native of Bellville, Texas. All of their children were born there, including Emilie, Martha, Clara, and Robert Gustav Roesler.

After he became more prosperous, August Roesler leased his small board-and batten house to tenant farmers and built a large family residence nearby. His original farmhouse of 1873 was destroyed by a fire sometime later and, according to tradition, an exact replica of the structure was contacted in the same location in 1892.

Roesler's original house and later replica were located next to one of the earliest pioneer thoroughfares in the area, the Nelsonville-Industry public road. It was often called "Zettel's Lane" for the gin of the same name which helped promote cotton in Austin County in the late 1800s. This important market road continued to run in front of the Roesler House until 1932, when State Highway 159 was constructed. August Roesler and his neighbors regularly hauled their cotton to the Houston market on wagons driven by ox teams. Locally known as the old Austin Road Traveler's Stop, Roesler's house functioned as a lodge for many weary travelers.

After the death of August Roesler on July 20, 1933, ownership of the house and surrounding 61.5-acre tract of land passed to three of his four living children: Emilie Roesler Goldapp, Clara Roesler, and Robert Gustav Roesler. During the Great Depression the house was rented to several tenant farmers and their families. The property remained in the Roesler family until 1970, when Mr. and Mrs. C.L Jenkins purchased the land from the late Otto Goldapp, a grandson of August Roesler. Situated atop a hill off state highway 159, and located two miles west of Nelsonville in rural Austin County, the Roesler House is currently maintained by Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins as a second home.

Architecturally, the Roesler House retains its integrity and original historic fabric. The late nineteenthcentury physical character and appearance of both the interior and exterior of this simple board-and- batten farmhouse have been unusually well preserved, and contribute to the understanding of rural Texas architecture.

BIBLIOGRAPHY ON FILE IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER