Wurstfest Marker
Wurstfest is an annual fall “Salute to Sausage” celebration that takes place on the
Wurstfest grounds in Landa Park in New Braunfels, Comal County,
Texas. It is a non-profit
corporation designed to promote local commerce, especially through tourism, and preserve the
community’s heritage.
In 1961, when the celebration was conceived, New Braunfels had 19 commercial sausage making businesses in the city. Dr. E.A. Grist, veterinarian and meat inspector, felt it would be appropriate to honor this industry with a festival. Sausage making had been a local German tradition since the founding of the city.
In 1845 Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels from Germany bought a parcel of land with strong freshwater springs. These springs played a vital part in the development of the City of New Braunfels.
For many years, different industries made use of the water power from the springs. In 1967, six years after the first Wurstfest was held, the Wurstfest Association of New Braunfels decided to utilize the historic area near the Landa Street entrance to Landa Park for their annual ten-day celebration of German heritage.
During the past fifty years, thousands of sausage lovers have come to Wurstfest to celebrate the community’s German heritage, knowing that they are benefiting hundreds of local merchants and civic organizations.
This write-up is based on an approximate sixteen-acre site located at the Landa Street entrance to Landa Park in New Braunfels, Texas. More specifically, the site is between Landa Street, Landa Park Drive, Elizabeth Street and the Comal River (water from the millrace in the Dry Comal River bed). For the past fifty years the main activities of the annual ten-day November Wurstfest “Salute to Sausage” celebrations have taken place in this area. See the 2016 photo on page two for a map of the site under consideration for the historical marker. The photo shows only the historic permanent structures and only the locations of the temporary tents usually used during the celebrations.
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