Origins:This small quiet town of Denhawken, Texas is not as popular now as it was back in the 1900's. In 1947 the population was seventy five and a few businesses had been established. Denhawken is located in Wilson County fourteen miles east of Floresville at the junction of State Highway 119 and Farm to Market Road 1347. Between 1895 and 1898 the land was first settled by German farmers when the San Antonio and Gulf Railroad came to the surrouding towns.

Founders: . In 1905 three men decided on a name for the community in which they dwelt and for which the land they had donated for the Community Center or commonly known as the schoolhouse. D.C. Denmark, W.L. Hawk, and Charles Steenken got together and decided the name of the town would be Denhawken; the name includes three letters of each of the men's names. The boundaries for Denhawken area are roughly described as the area within a three and one half mile radius of the school house. Many of the early settlers were the Denmark's, Hawk's, Steenken's, Peters, Wehmeyers, Lambecks, Bohmans, Havelah's, and Stahls. The predominant origins of the residents were German, though the community had families of Polish and Mexican American descent.

Economy: When it came to the economy in 1905 it was mostly farming and ranching, with the rich black soil that is great for farming. Land owners usually divided land by landmarks, like a windmill. The land separating Mrs. LasKowski's land from her neighbors is a large old windmill that still serves its purpose today. As time went by and the community grew Denhawken had established a general store, two blacksmith shops, a saloon, two cotton gins and dairies. One of the blacksmith shops was ran and owned by Benny Linnstaedor the other by Aldon Morgan. Today both blacksmith shops remain, but are no longer in working terms. Benny Linnstaedor the owner of one of the blacksmith shops was the father of the two sons who lost their lives in World War II. The saloon was run by Henry Peters but did not stay in business long. The general store was moved twice before its final resting place. None of the above businesses mentioned are bringing in any form of income today.Cotton was considered to be the "queen" crop at the Richard "Dickie" Stahl farm where cotton has been produced for decades. The Stahl's have several hundred acres of land which they plant and then harvest cotton yearly. He also has a farm out in Gonzales County near the Nixon Livestock auction. He says" as far as he knows, his cotton crop near Nixon is the only cotton planted in Gonzales County, and he knows of no other person in Wilson County who is interested in growing cotton which is the farm commodity for which most area of Texas lands were cleared for in the first place". (Richard Stahl) Helmuth Stahl father of Dickie Stahl has been growing cotton for years in Denhawken. Most of the cotton production had come to an end around the 1930's or 1940's. All the gins in the area either closed down or moved away, because of crop failures and poor prices. A leading cause of this was due to the cotton becoming infected with insects and disease. The Stahl's have been growing cotton off and on since 1962. The Stahl's describe cotton today, as free from insects, light and other problems it once had.

Stories: When talking to community members all recall the times out in the field picking cotton or tending to the cattle. Mrs. LasKowski and Mrs. Stahl both remember helping their husband out in the fields getting ready to pick the cotton then drive to Dilley Devine to a cotton gin or the markets. They say that once Denhawken had established two gins it was more helpful. Once the cotton was hulled all they had to do was then go to the local gin to form into blocks. Mrs. LasKowski also took on the job of running the general store around 1960. She had mentioned that once the original owner, Mr. Hawk could not care for the store anymore then she took over. She was in charge of maintaining, stocking and helping the town's people with purchasing their goods. After a few years she had just gotten overwhelmed by all the work and she then decided it was time to close the store. She now says at her home with her husband. She had mentioned that when her sons graduated from Dilworth Ranch School the class had forty students. She also mentioned that her husband had been in the war but did not mention which one. She said that he was the man who loaded bombs into the airplanes. When he was loading the cargo he had injured his back and was then was honorably discharged.

School: The first schooling for the children where first held in a resident's farm house. Later, the community established a school in1908. Originally the school was called Dilworth Ranch and the mascot was "The Dragon". This two-room school house was soon enlarged for the increase of students. When the school was enlarged they also added a kitchen so the children could eat at school, rather than walk home. The staff included was Mrs. Stahl principal, three school teachers and a cook Anita Lambeck. One teacher was named Obara Hogla. Dilworth School was well known for turning out some of the best tennis players. Behind the school is the original tennis court that is today overgrown and hard to find but residents say that it was made out of cement and was large enough for one to two games at a time. In 1954 the school was joined with the Stockdale Independent School District. The school is still standing today and is owned by the Denhawken Community Club.

Events: The school can be used and rented out for weddings, dances, social events, birthdays, and baby showers. There are two large barbecue gatherings every year. One in October and one around Christmas with all the money raised going to the benefit of the buildings maintenance. The barbecue in October is also in conjunction with the school reunions. The two barbecue gatherings are no longer held but the school can still be used. Due to the lack of maintenance and the age of the building it is slowly taking its toll on the structure.

Church: Most of the residents were of Lutheran faith, with the very first services held in the school house until 1938. In 1936 the members of the church built a Chapel and called it St. John's Lutheran Church. The land, at Farm Road 1347 and State Highway 119 was donated by Mr. William Fordtram for the Church to be built on. The churches design was influence by the German heritage of the community. On November 12, 1938, the first service was held to dedicate the church and the Texas Lutheran College Band provided the music for the ceremony, and a barbecue of one calf and two sheep were provided by the men of the community. In the early days, it was not uncommon for some pastors to service three communities per day and would travel by train or horse and buggy. The founding pastor was Rev. Julius Schroeder. The Reverends Leading up to 2006 is as fallows. Rev. J. Christiansen, C.J. Langhoiz, F. Wiegnan, W. J. Goerner, J. F. Busch, Theo. J. Roth, G.E. Grueber, M. Keller, J.K. Poch, Theo. Winter, S.T. Schroeder, J.A. Pietsch, Theo. Winter, Franklin Brehmer, O.R. Schawe, N.C. Renslo, Victor Schroeder, Franklin Brehmer, A.C. Streng, Kenneth Jones, O.R. Shawe, T.F. Scheffel, and A.W. Doerfler is the reverend from 1983 to present day. The church is still holding regular weekly services with a strong local membership. Dr. Norman A. Beck is an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America pastor, and he serves as the contract pastor of St. John's Lutheran Church. Many improvements have been made on the Sunday school rooms, indoor rest rooms, kitchen furnishings, lights, fans, rural water conditions, and landscaping. Most recently, the church acquired land to enlarge their parking area. The church welcomes visitors every Sunday to attend services.

Interviews: We interviewed Mary LasKowski the wife of Abrose LasKowski. She was born in Floresville, Texas and raised in Kosciusko, Texas. She is the mother of four children only three are still living. During the interview process she mentioned a lot on farming and ranching. She had stated the only thing she knows is how to be a house wife, farmer, and rancher. She knew a lot of information on the teachers of the Dillworth School and about the parties held in the school house. She did not know much other information she said because her husband and her moved from Kosciusko to Denhawken once the town was already established. She did not mention much about race problems but she did say that she did the farming of food and cooking. She was considerd a house wife. At the end of the interview she said that she wished she could help out more but it was so long ago to remember.

Photos: Click here

Cemetery: The need for burial ground soon arose, and Mr. Wilhelm Peters met the demand and donated one acre of land for the purpose of a cemetery. The land was the southwest corner acre of his farm, which was two miles east of the school house. Formally known as Mesquite Prarie Cemetery, it was founded in 1904 by the German formers who had recently moved to the area from Fayette and Lavaca Counties in search of more land for their large families. The first buried was that of Baby Hugo Steenken in 1906. He was one year old and the son of Carl Steenken. The first trustees were Charles Boysen, Jake Maerz, and Carl Steenken. Florentino Quintanilla met with them representing the Hispanic community, who had purchased burial sites in the northern section. This is due to segregation being so prevalent during that time the section that had been purchased was behind the Caucasians in a separate cemetery. Jake Maerz, Charles Boysen, and Carl Steenken paid Mr. Peters twenty dollars for the acre as witnessed by the delayed deed recorded in 1909. Maerz and Steenken each served the association for over forty years. Arnold Lambeck and Erica Wehmeyer were active officers for the next generation spanning over thirty years. In 1983, Arvid Gus, and Wehland Steenken and their sister Ora Mae Fergusion offered a plan for perpetual care, including the matching of funds subscribed by the membership at large. A perpetual care charter was obtained in 1983. The Steenken family made subsequent gifts including the irrigation system, the oak trees, and the plaques. H.R. Dettman has become Forest Master emeritus. (In 1987 to 1988 the board members were as followed Wehland Steenken, H.R. Dettman, Elaine West, Helmuth Stahl, and Gus Steenken.) When Helmuth Stahl and Gus Steenken passed on they were position was replaced by John Stahl and John Wehmeyer. The Fund Trustees were Barbara Johnson, Betty Harborth, and Kent Steenken. The Denhawken Community also dedicated ten oak trees to the memory of: Zilmon Linnstaedor, Leroy Linnstaedor, and Louis Urrabazo. These men gave their lives during World War II in the service of our country

Prospects: Many who live in the area are still as close as in the old days. Every one knows each other and their always willing to help out. When asking where the town is going some say it will soon be gone. Others say it has already disappeared. All that remains of the past is the church, cemetery, school, and one blacksmith shop. Anyone not familiar with the past says they know Denhawken by the intersection on Highway 119. Many travel the highway daily as a rout to the coast and all the towns along the way. The town is slowly merging in with the surrounding town of Stockdale. The more people move to Stockdale the more Denhawken becomes part of the past. Today if you stop by you will see some of the same warm goodwill and fellowship that still remains among the closely knit residents of Denhawken.

Links: Denhawken, Texas

About Wilson County

San Antonio and Gulf Railroad

About Gonzales County

Stockdale Independent School District

Dr. Beck of the Lutheran Church

Wilson County Almanac of 1860. pages. 13 and 21. We found a lot of information about the founders and how the town started to grow.

Handbook of Texas Online. We found information on where the town is located and the population years ago.

A news excerpt. "Cotton is Queen in Denhawken" By: Bernice Brelsford. This helped us a lot on the economy and how cotton played a huge role in it.

Two diffrent Cemetery plaques. These were located in front of the cemetery. They helped us on the origins of the cemetery.

Interview with Mary LasKowski. She told us a lot on the general store and the school.

Talking to Patsy Stahl. She gave us some general information on the history of the town and the pictures.

www.wilsoncountynews.com. This web site has information about the county Denhawken is located in.

www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/SS/eqsdp.html. This has information on the San Antoino and Gulf Railroad.

www.gonzales.tx.us. This site has information on Gonzales county.

www.stockdale.k12.tx.us. This site is about the Stockdale Independent School.

www.tlu.edu. This site was about Dr. Beck one of the pastors of the Lutheran Church in Denhawken.

Three land tilte books from Mrs. Steele and talking to her.

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