FAQs

What is the Fredericksburg Convention & Visitor Bureau?
The Fredericksburg Convention and Visitor Bureau is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit corporation funded by lodging tax collected by the City of Fredericksburg and Gillespie County. The organization is governed by a 13-member board of directors representing the local hospitality industry and is headquartered at the Visitor Information Center at 302 East Austin Street in downtown Fredericksburg, Texas. The staff of the FCVB is tasked with marketing Fredericksburg and Gillespie County as a premier travel destination on the regional, national and international stage thereby creating a positive impact on the local economy and the quality of life here.  

Where can I get more information on visiting Fredericksburg?
The Fredericksburg Convention & Visitor Bureau operates the Fredericksburg Visitor Information Center to answer visitor questions, provide visitor resources, including maps, event calendars and brochures, and serve as a friendly welcome to Fredericksburg. The VIC offers free parking and WIFI, public restrooms, and a 10-minute overview video of everything to see and do in town. 

Where can I get more information on living in Fredericksburg?
The Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce provides resources for individuals looking to relocate to Fredericksburg. 

Where can I get more information on opening a business in Fredericksburg?
The Gillespie County Economic Development Commission works to encourage, enhance and promote managed economic development in the county.

ABOUT VISITORS TO FREDERICKSBURG

From where are the most frequent visitors to the Fredericksburg area?
Fredericksburg welcomes on average 60 percent of its visitors from Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin, and from cities around Texas and surrounding states.  Frequent international visitors travel from Canada, Mexico, Germany, England and Japan. To learn more about the visitors to Gillespie County, click here

ABOUT FREDERICKSBURG

What are the current population figures for Fredericksburg and Gillespie County?
Population figures as of the 2010 United States Census show:
Fredericksburg – 10,530
Gillespie County – 24,837

What are the predominate industries for the area?
Medical, tourism and agriculture

Why is the National Museum of the Pacific War located in Fredericksburg?
The National Museum of the Pacific War originated from the Nimitz Museum which was established in Fredericksburg in honor of the men and women who fought during WWII with Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet, and Fredericksburg native.  His grandparents owned the Nimitz Steamboat Hotel where Nimitz spent some of his childhood.  This iconic structure, with its boat-like exterior, exists today on Main Street.  Over time the hotel was converted to the Nimitz Museum where it is now a part of the 6.5-acre National Museum of the Pacific War complex that includes the recently updated (2009) George H. W. Bush Gallery.  The museum is operated by the Texas Historical Commission and the Admiral Nimitz Foundation, currently headed by General Michael W. Hagee, USMC (Ret), 33rd Commandant of the United States Marines.

How did Enchanted Rock get its name?
Enchanted Rock, with its distinctive pink granite, dates back almost one billion years and is considered to be formed from the outcrop of a volcano.  Early Native Americans who lived in this area considered this batholith, the nation’s second largest behind Stone Mountain in Georgia, to be haunted because it made mysterious crackling sounds.  Geologists have since theorized that the sound emanated from the granite swelling from the heat during the day, and retracting during the cool of the night.  Enchanted Rock is located 18 miles north of Fredericksburg on RR 965 (off Main Street onto Milam Street).

ABOUT TEXAS WINE COUNTRY

How many area wineries are there?
The Texas Hill Country is emerging as a wine destination, with more than 50 wineries and tasting rooms located in Fredericksburg and Gillespie County.

What are the viticultural areas in the Texas Hill Country?
According to the Texas Department of Agriculture, the Texas Hill Country has three viticulture areas:  Bell Mountain, Fredericksburg and Hill Country.

ABOUT FREDERICKSBURG HISTORY

In which year was Fredericksburg founded?
The city of Fredericksburg was founded in 1846 by 120 German immigrants who traveled to Texas from Germany to secure land purchased through the Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas, known as Mainser Adelsverein.  Each settler was promised a plot of land in town and 10 acres in the vicinity of the settlement in exchange for settlement in the vast wilderness that was Texas.

From where in Germany did the early settlers come from?
Fredericksburg’s ancestors came from different kingdoms of Germany.  The first groups bound for Fredericksburg left Germany in 1845 with the first wave arriving in Texas in 1846 and groups continued arriving until the mid 1850s.  Some of the 19 kingdoms from which the settlers came include:  Saxony, Nassau, Hannover, Westphalia, Thüringen, Nederlands, Prussia, and the Rhineland.

Is German still spoken in Fredericksburg today?
With the city’s founding fathers from Germany, German was predominately spoken in Fredericksburg until the 1940s, although today English is the main language.  A version of the early German language is still spoken today in some households in Fredericksburg; however, that language is peppered with English words as many later generation words, like microwave and car, for example, didn’t exist when the first settlers traveled to Texas.

Who is considered to be the founding father of Fredericksburg and for what is he most famous?
Founding father Baron Otfried Hans von Meusebach, who later changed his name to John O. Meusebach, led the settlers to the Fredericksburg settlement.  He was known for originating a peace treaty with the Comanche Indians, early inhabitants to the land where Fredericksburg was settled.  This treaty is considered to be the only treaty with Native Americans in the United States that is still unbroken today.  The treaty was signed in March of 1847.

Why is Main Street so wide?
Main Street was designed to be wide enough to allow oxen carts to be turned around.

What is a Sunday House?
Sunday Houses are small, in-town houses that the early settlers used when they traveled from their farms outside Fredericksburg to town on weekends for supplies, fellowship, and Sunday church services.  Architecture frequently included a second story used as sleeping quarters, outside staircases, and lean-to kitchens at the rear of the structures.  Good examples of Sunday Houses in Fredericksburg can be found at the Pioneer Museum and on the 400 block of West San Antonio Street.

What is the Vereins Kirche that is located at the Marktplatz?
The Vereins Kirche (or VK as some locals call it) was built soon after the arrival of the first German settlers, and stands as a tribute to the courage and vision of Fredericksburg’s founders.  It was the first public building in the town, and served as a town hall, school, and a church for all denominations.  This is also the original site of the Pioneer Museum.  The original building was demolished in 1896, but local citizens long dreamed of rebuilding it – a dream that came true in 1935 when a gala celebration was held to dedicate the new structure as a pioneer memorial.  Today, this much-loved symbol of our German heritage is centrally located in the Marktplatz.  Inside, exhibits introduce visitors to the stories of Fredericksburg’s past.

What is the significance of the Maibaum located at the Marktplatz?
The Maibaum (or Maypole) symbolizes the history of this community.  Erected in 1991, the decorative pole stands proudly with several tiers – each tier significant to this community, from the peace negotiations between the Comanche Indian tribes and the German pioneers (bottom level) to the importance of agriculture (specifically grapes, peaches and cattle) and the ships that carried the early settlers from Germany.  Each tier tells a story.

Where was Lyndon B. Johnson born?
Our nation’s 36th president, Lyndon B. Johnson, was born 16 miles east of Fredericksburg at the family ranch located outside Stonewall.  The Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park is open to the public for free.