2012-1 Remembrances Special Edition1
REMEMBRANCES PUBLICATION SPECIAL EDITION 2012-1
PRESENTED BY: SCHERTZ HISTORICAL PRESERVATION COMMITTEE
Mark Friesenhahn – Comal Settlement Preservationist Employs “Adaptive Use” Land Management Principles
Once, long ago, buffalo roamed freely amidst the grassy plains of south central Texas. North American Indians of several tribes and nations hunted these majestic beasts with the sole purpose
Photos supplied by Dean Weirtz
of providing sustenance, clothing, tools, blankets and all manner of useful implements for daily
living and survival. But the white man’s drive westward pushed the Indians out of these open
and bountiful lands. As the frontiersman sweep into the plains area they quickly began
systematically slaughtering the buffalo until one day the great herds were no more. In their place
eventually were to arrive large ranching operations with cattle herds as well as large farming
operations producing grain, corn and cotton. Just as the Indians were forced to adapt to new and
unfamiliar means of survival after their forceful march to the reservations, so too have more
modern pioneers had to adapt to changing circumstances along the south central plains.
The entire Schertz community was once a part of the great Indian hunting grounds. The Cibolo
(meaning buffalo) Creek was a place where many a stampeding herd of buffalo were forced into
submission by Indian hunters. The fields of the area were once filled with a white blanket of
cotton blossoming in the hot summer sun. Cotton harvests were the time of celebration and
thanksgiving. But just as the buffalo vanished so did the prosperity of the small independent
cotton farmer. The invention of synthetic fabric, boll weevil infestation and large commercial
farming operations contributed to the change. Like the Indians and the 19th century cotton
farmers, every generation since has had to adapt to new conditions and make hard choices as to
land management. One such land manager in the Schertz-New Braunfels (Comal County) area
making history with his choices regarding land “adaptive use” methods is Mark Friesenhahn,
owner of the Comal Pecan Farm, located within the extra territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of Schertz,
Texas at 231 High Creek Road (just off Nacogdoches Road at FM 482).
2
Mark Friesenhahn is the great, great grandson of Anton Friesenhahn who died in 1845 during his
family’s voyage to America from Dalheim, Germany. The Friesenhahn family eventually settled
on farm land situated today within Schertz’ ETJ and then known as the community of Comal.
The Comal Pecan Farm was once a part of the Indian hunting grounds and also a part of the
Friesenhahn family cotton farm that served two or three generations of Friesenhahn farmers.
Mark, two brothers and a sister, share ownership of the family farm with their mother Julia.
Mark’s section of the farm was once under the ownership of his great uncles Vitus and Ferdinand
Friesenhahn. Mark added to the farm in 1978 when he purchased the land where now stands the
pecan orchards. For most of his working life Mark was a career engineer working for a major oil
and gas company in Houston, Texas. After retiring from the company he immediately
transitioned into a consultant contractor and has continued working in that capacity even today.
Mark’s work schedule never allowed time for him to engage in full time farming but he is a man
of extraordinary energy and as such has always been involved in the farm’s maintenance and
repair on a part-time basis. In about 1986-87, Mark formulated a vision of how a portion of his
property might be transformed into something other than pasture land. In 1989, Mark began
planting young pecan trees in hopes of developing a pecan orchard. By 1994, Mark had
completed planting four varieties of pecan trees (Wichita, Cheyenne, Kiowa and Pawnees) on 50
acres of his land. The entire acreage was fully irrigated to protect against the danger of a Texas
drought.
Photos supplied by Mark Friesenhahn
Comal Pecan Farm Historical Development
3
Photo supplied by Mark Friesenhahn
Comal Pecan Farm (May 2009)
Photos supplied by Diana Webb Restored 1900 Barn Mark explaining pecan
Restored 1911 Home farming
Mark’s Pecan Farm occupies a total of 105 acres and retains a great deal of historic character due
to structures that were in place as early as 1900. Two barns, a small farm house, a blacksmith
shop and the former home of Ferdinand Friesenhahn are a part of the farm acreage and date to
the early 1900s. Mark has undertaken to move and restore Ferdinand’s home (see above photo)
to its original state and incorporating it as a wing of a new home construction project he has
managed over the past couple of years. The Comal Pecan Farm was designated as a historic
landmark property by the Schertz City Council in 2011. Mark Friesenhahn has put forth great
effort to preserve and improve his ancestor’s (now his) land. His preservation efforts are a
testament to the respect he holds for the work and achievements of his ancestors. Like those
ancestors, Mark has blazed a new trail and set a high standard of excellence in land management
and historic preservation. The citizens of Comal County and Schertz, Texas can take pride in
knowing such a remarkable steward of the land is among their ranks.
4