Steinbach Haus in Castroville, TX
Tour a home from the mid 1600's.
Originally built in Wahlbach, France and reassembled in Castroville in 2002.
The Steinbach Haus is a long way from Wahlbach, France. There you will find the Little Alsace of Texas, and a small Alsatian house originally built between 1618 and 1648 that was relocated to Castroville Texas and made history.
The four year relocation and restoration project was undertaken by the Association Jardin des Racines (Garden of Roots Association) and carried out by faculty and students of the Lycee Agricole (Agricultural College) from Rouffach in the Haut-Rhin department of Alsace, France. They have been assisted by volunteer craftsmen Francois and Jacqueline Deyber of Enshisheim, Edmund Messerlin of Mulhouse, and Rino Bortolini of Ensisheim.
The building was shipped to Texas; it landed at Houston and came by truck to Castroville in January 1998. The plan to locate the house in the Garden of Roots was ruled out after the flood in 1997 covered the garden area, and the new site by the highway was selected.
The house was formerly owned by the Steinbach family. It followed the medieval art of house building, including fachwerk. It is 2-1/2 stories high and has 1,232 square feet of living space. The half-story is a dachzimmer, or loft, an open attic where beds were placed. The framework of the house was erected in 1998 and the following year brick and mortar added to enclose the fachwerk.
In 1999 the Association arranged for the roofing tiles to be shipped to Texas. On February 7, 2000 the students and faculty of the Agricultural School with director Danielle Utard and the president of Association Jardin des Racines, Andre Hartmann, arrived in Steinbach Haus to complete the roof and the landscaping at the garden. The exterior of the house was plastered by the volunteer craftsman in late 2000 and later painted in 2001.
Tour a home from the mid 1600's.
Originally built in Wahlbach, France and reassembled in Castroville in 2002.
The Steinbach Haus is a long way from Wahlbach, France. There you will find the Little Alsace of Texas, and a small Alsatian house originally built between 1618 and 1648 that was relocated to Castroville Texas and made history.
The four year relocation and restoration project was undertaken by the Association Jardin des Racines (Garden of Roots Association) and carried out by faculty and students of the Lycee Agricole (Agricultural College) from Rouffach in the Haut-Rhin department of Alsace, France. They have been assisted by volunteer craftsmen Francois and Jacqueline Deyber of Enshisheim, Edmund Messerlin of Mulhouse, and Rino Bortolini of Ensisheim.
The building was shipped to Texas; it landed at Houston and came by truck to Castroville in January 1998. The plan to locate the house in the Garden of Roots was ruled out after the flood in 1997 covered the garden area, and the new site by the highway was selected.
The house was formerly owned by the Steinbach family. It followed the medieval art of house building, including fachwerk. It is 2-1/2 stories high and has 1,232 square feet of living space. The half-story is a dachzimmer, or loft, an open attic where beds were placed. The framework of the house was erected in 1998 and the following year brick and mortar added to enclose the fachwerk.
In 1999 the Association arranged for the roofing tiles to be shipped to Texas. On February 7, 2000 the students and faculty of the Agricultural School with director Danielle Utard and the president of Association Jardin des Racines, Andre Hartmann, arrived in Steinbach Haus to complete the roof and the landscaping at the garden. The exterior of the house was plastered by the volunteer craftsman in late 2000 and later painted in 2001.
The doors, windows and shutters, which were made in France and sent to Castroville in February 2002, were installed by 10 volunteer Alsatian craftsmen during the following month. Alsatian furniture and other items were donated by individuals from Alsace and placed inside the house, which opened to the public as a tourism and cultural center following the April 8, 2002 Grand Opening.
Bedroom for Adults with ornate headboard.
Bedroom for children. Originally, the walls would have been filled with straw and mud, and plastered.
Original location.
Farm cart sent over with the house.
Working clock from France. It is not wound in order to preserve it.
