Castroville, la Petite Alsace du Texas
AATF Spring Meeting in Castroville, March 27, 2010
The Spring Meeting of the Central Texas AATF was held Saturday, March 27, at the Landmark Inn State Historic Site in Castroville, "La Petit Alsace du Texas." 20 members from the Austin, Corpus Christi, and San Antonio areas attended.

Minutes of the Meeting
The day began with breakfast in the dining room of the Vance House at the Landmark Inn, followed by a guided tour of this historic landmark. A short walk brought us to the 17th century Steinbach House (left), transported from Alsace and rebuilt on the banks of the Medina River. Back at the Landmark, we were treated to a presentation by Anne Cirella-Urrutia on Tomi Ungerer, an Alsatian author of children's literature, which included a bilingual interpretation of Ungerer's album "Trémolo" by Anne and Heather Alonzo and a discussion of the challenges of translation. After a delicious lunch, catered by the Medina Valley Café, we held our business meeting and election of our new president, Anne Cirella-Urrutia of Huston-Tillotson University in Austin. To wind up this enjoyable day, we did walking tour of historic Castroville, which included the Moye Center, ex-Convent of the Sisters of Divine Providence, the original and the new Saint Louis churches, and the Paris murals painted on the side of an inn on Houston Square.

Those attending received 6 hours of TEA-recognized CPE credit!
 
 

AATF Spring Meeting in Castroville,
May 15,2004
The Alsatian Restaurant, site of our meeting,
now the Old Alsation Steakhouse & Ristorante		 Eglise Saint-Louis
Following our meeting, we had a two-hour walking tour of Castroville with a local guide. Along the way, one family invited us to walk through their home, which was recently restored with 19th century décor.
Many 19th century homes have been restored and are lived in today.
Arcadius Steinle House - above and below left.      Fancy 19th century hotel - below right
Our friendly local guide filled us in on the history of the Alsatian colonization as we walked.
The restaurant La Normandie, now the Medina Valley Café
The highlight of the walk was the Steinbach House, an early 17th century maison à colombages from Alsace that was transported and rebuilt and furnished in Castroville between 1998 and 2002 with the help of students from Rouffach (Haut-Rhin)and both French and local craftsmen.
The Steinbach House
 

Previous Page       www.castroville.com       Central Texas Chapter

updated September 26, 2010