Williamson County
Historical Commission

 

 Beyersville,
History
 also known as
  Dacus or Dacus Crossing.
Williamson County, Texas

 

  Beyersville, community near Dacus Crossing and Dacus School. Dacus Crossing was mentioned in records soon after the Civil War, the school by 1889, where church services were also held. Gustav (Gus) Beyer settled there in 1886, established several businesses; post office at Beyersville was established April 15, 1893, Gustav Beyer, postmaster, succeeded by William Rummel (1898), changed to Wilhelm Rummel a month later; Robert Stumhofer 0906); office closed January 31, 1909. Businesses included stories of Beyer, Rummel, Albert Frerichs, Stumhofer, J. T. Simcik's molasses mill, 1908-1935; blacksmith shops of Albert Becker and Walter Sipple; gins owned by Leopold Bachmayer, Charlie Bachmayer, Ben Thonig; Albert Frerichs garage; Wagon Wheel Tavern; Sons of Hermann Lodge Hall used for dances and community activities. Name of the school was changed from Dacus to Beyersville at least by 1897. A small oil field was developed on the Charlie Preusse farm about 1940. School consolidated with Taylor in 1950.14

BIBLIOGRAPHY Clara Stearns Scarbrough, Land of Good Water: A Williamson County History (Georgetown, Texas: Williamson County Sun Publishers, 1973).

BEYERSVILLE, TEXAS. Beyersville is on Farm Road 619 thirty-five miles northeast of Austin in eastern Williamson County. The area was first settled shortly after the Civil War and was originally known as Dacus or Dacus Crossing. Beyersville became the town's official name in 1893, when Gustav Beyer established a post office, which remained in operation until 1909. The Dacus school opened in 1889, adopted the name Beyersville in 1897, and was consolidated with the Taylor schools in 1950. In 1896 Beyersville had an estimated population of only fifteen, but soon grew to include several retail stores and gins, two blacksmith shops, a garage, a tavern, and a molasses mill. The Order of Sons of Hermann Hall served as a center for community activities. The Beyersville's population was estimated at 100 from 1933 to 1970. From 1970 to 2000 it remained around seventy-five. At some time the community was moved one mile south of its original site, to a location known earlier as Happy Hill. In 1986 Beyersville had two taverns, a diesel and equipment repair shop, and a Czech fraternal hall.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Clara Stearns Scarbrough, Land of Good Water: A Williamson County History (Georgetown, Texas: Williamson County Sun Publishers, 1973).
 

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road map -1

road map -2

GPS Coordinates
Latitude: 30.510512, Longitude: -97.329769
 

 
Mager Cemetery -


 by: John Christeson
4/03/2010

1 mile south of Beyersville on the west side of FM 1466

Marker text

Mager Cemetery - Reinhold Mager (1863-1930), a native of Brandenburg, Germany, came to Texas and married Franziska Krueger (1868-1951), a native of the Dessau community in nearby Travis County, Texas. The Magers donated one acre of their 150 acres of land here in Williamson County for this cemetery and a school. The first known burial, that of Albert C. Mager, took place in 1900. Many of the tombstones bear inscriptions in German, and 14 mark the graves of infants. Burials in the cemetery ceased after the interment of Franziska Mager in 1951. The 55 known grave sites are testament to the area's 20th-century German heritage. (2000)

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road Map

GPS Coordinates
Latitude: 30.488215, Longitude: -97.319727
 		 
 

interment list
by John Christeson

 

 

Mager Cemetery
Historical Narrative


Mager Cemetery is located in southeast Williamson County, Texas (approximately 1 mile south of Beyersville), adjacent to and just west of Highway 1466.


Reinhold and Franziska (Krueger) Mager donated one acre of land off their 150 acres located in the Robertson's Pasture area in Williamson County for the purpose of a cemetery and a school, becoming known as Mager Cemetery and Mager School. Church services of the Lutheran faith were held in the Mager schoolhouse.


Reinhold Mager was born in Spremberg Province, Brandenburg, Germany on September 11, 1863. After leaving Germany, he landed at Galveston, Texas. Franziska (Krueger) Mager was born in the Dessau Community, Travis County, Texas on October 30, 1868. She was given the name Franziska in memory of the ship Franziska on which her mother, Augusta Thiele came to Texas in 1855. Reinhold and Franziska are laid to rest in the Mager Cemetery — Reinhold — November 11, 1930 and Franziska — August 07, 1951. (1)


The first known burial in the Mager Cemetery is Albert C. Mager in 1900. The last known burial WV was Franziska Mager in 1951. Many of the markers bears an inscription in the German language; most of the buried were of German heritage. The total number of people buried in the cemetery is 55, of these, 14 are infants. There are six markers with no names. They are included in the total. This information is as accurate as deemed possible.

The Influenza Epidemic of 1919 claimed the lives of many. The Anna and Gus Thonig family suffered the loss of three children within a two-week period. Gus, the oldest was 21 years old, Otto was eight years old and the baby, Grover was 7 months. Anna's brother, Herman Wolf also died of the flu during the 1919 epidemic. Anna, the mother, was so grieved. She could see the Mager Cemetery from her home about a mile across the fields and she looked and grieved, "Why am I still here?" Wishing she could join her children in death, she went out into the bitter cold without proper clothing hoping to get sick too. She was told she had her remaining children to live for. (2)


Rattlesnakes were a common part of this area of the Mager Cemetery. Christine Wolf is believed to have been bitten by a rattlesnake. She put out a "flag" to notify her daughter who lived nearby (as there was no other means of getting in touch). She had red streaks on her arm and lived only a few days. A rattlesnake was found and killed nearby. She passed away on August 29, 1934 and is buried in the Mager Cemetery. (3)


The cemetery is maintained by Emil Bachmayer on a volunteer basis and is in very good condition. The cemetery is not in current use.
Information:


(l) Genealogy Andrew and Augusta Krueger; Copyright 1970 by Ben J. Krueger (2) Contributed by Cecilia Thonig Hannan
(3) Contributed by Cecilia Thonig Hannan and Melba Ihlenfeldt Hill.


Research by: Mary Lucy Mager


Bibliography and interment list

 
Beyersville Cemetery
Also known as: Old Beyersville Cemetery

 

Local sources say that the post office was moved in about 1970 from the old Beyersville site on Wagon Wheel Road to present day Beyersville. The buildings in the old Beyersville site were gradually abandoned and fell into ruins surrounded by weeds and saplings. The cemetery is now abandoned and overgrown with weeds, saplings, vines, creepers and ground cover, which had to be cut away to photograph the gravestones. Two of the gravestones have toppled over on their inscriptions. There may be other gravestones hidden in the cemetery growth, which is enclosed by cyclone fence about 100 or more feet along one long side of a field. 

The cemetery is along Brushy Creek with reeds from 10 to 12 feet tall along the rear of the cemetery. The river has flooded at times and may have caused some damage to the cemetery. Believed to be more burials than has been documented.
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road map


satellite map

GPS Coordinates
Latitude: 30.51854, Longitude: -97.34077
  


interment list
by John Christeson

  

 

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