Shelby is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

Austin County, Texas Austin County is a rural, agricultural dominated county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,167. Its seat is Bellville. The county and region was settled primarily by German emigrants in the 1800s. Austi ...

, United States. According to the

Handbook of Texas The Texas State Historical Association (TSHA) is an American nonprofit educational and research organization dedicated to documenting the history of Texas. It was founded in Austin, Texas, United States, on March 2, 1897. In November 2008, the ...

, the community had a population of 175 in 2000. It is located within the Texas German belt region, a region stretching from Sealy in the east to Fredericksburg in the west, settled by German emigrants. To this day, Austin County has a large German Texan population and many people still speak German.

Geography

Shelby is located at the FM 389 and FM 1457 crossroads in far northwest Austin County. The community is northwest of

Industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

via State Highway 159 and FM 1457.

Round Top Round Top or Roundtop may refer to: Communities * Kirkwood, California, formerly Roundtop, a census-designated place * Round Top, Pennsylvania, a community adjacent to the Gettysburg National Military Park * Round Top, Texas, a town * Roundtop, Wes ...

is northwest on FM 1457. Brenham is to the northeast on FM 389. Harmonie Hall and the Shelby Volunteer Fire Department are located a short distance to the southwest on FM 389, while the town cemetery can be found a few hundred yards to the south at FM 1457 and Voelkel Road. It is also located northwest of Bellville.

History

Otto von Roeder was the first settler in Shelby in 1841. The community was named for David Shelby, one of The Old Three Hundred under Stephen F. Austin. Shelby would become the home of many

Adelsverein The ''Mainzer Adelsverein at Biebrich am Rhein'' (''Verein zum Schutze Deutscher Einwanderer in Texas''; "Society for the Protection of German Immigrants in Texas"), better known as the ''Mainzer Adelsverein'' (; "Nobility Society of Mainz"), orga ...

colonists in 1845, but it was founded a year before that organization was formed in Germany, and three years before the Adelsverein sent its first colonists to Texas. Von Roeder had emigrated to Texas from

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

in the 1830s and was not affiliated with the Adelsverein's colonization efforts and established a

grain mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separate ...

in 1841. Because many of the German settlers spoke Latin, it is believed to be part of the

Latin Settlement A Latin settlement (German: ''Lateinische Kolonie'') is a community founded by German immigrants to the United States in the 1840s. Most of these were in Texas, but there were "Latin Settlements" in other states as well. These German intellectuals, ...

communities populated in Texas at that time. The community became known as Rödersmühl or Röders Mill. August Vogelsang then bought the mill in 1845 and several German families surnamed Vanderwerth, Rothermel, and Ohlendorf immigrated to the area. A post office was established at Shelby in 1846 and remained in operation until 1912. A singing society was founded in the community in 1852. It expanded in 1867 that attracted other German singing groups throughout the state and was named in honor of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

n soldiers who died during the Seven Weeks War. It had 75 residents in 1884, and its businesses included three

saloons Saloon may refer to: Buildings and businesses * One of the bars in a traditional British pub * An alternative name for a bar (establishment) * Western saloon, a historical style of American bar * The Saloon, a bar and music venue in San Francis ...

, three general stores, two

cotton gin A cotton gin—meaning "cotton engine"—is a machine that quickly and easily separates cotton fibers from their seeds, enabling much greater productivity than manual cotton separation.. Reprinted by McGraw-Hill, New York and London, 1926 (); ...

s, a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

and a

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maker. A

Lutheran church Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

was then built in the community in the 1880s, followed by a hotel in 1896. Its population grew to 248 in 1904. It dropped to 200 and remained at that level throughout

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. This caused further population loss in the community and the closure of several businesses. Its population was reported as 175 in 1992 through 2000. An agricultural society and a band were founded in the community. A tombstone of Vogelsang and his family is in the community cemetery.

Education

The community's first school was established in 1854. It had two schools by 1884. Most of its first settlers were from well-educated, middle-class families promoting the arts and sciences. Today, the community is served by the Bellville Independent School District.

References

{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Texas Unincorporated communities in Austin County, Texas Greater Houston Latin Settlement Populated places established in 1841 1841 establishments in the Republic of Texas