Gillespie County Historical Society Symposium: “Solving the Mystery of Your Land Heritage” – January 26

Have you ever tried to solve the mystery behind your land heritage in Gillespie County? When looking over the title to your property, have you found a myriad of names which are still a mystery? When involved in land title searches have there been questions which may have been puzzling to you. What is the difference between a land patent and a land grant? Have you ever wondered about the differences in the terrain of the land today compared to the early days of this county?

Gillespie County Historical Society is sponsoring a symposium entitled, “Solving the Mystery of Your Land Heritage” on Saturday, January 26, 2013 to help you find the answers to these and many other questions. The morning sessions begins at 8:45 with coffee, doughnuts and registration in the Social Hall of the Historical First Methodist Church located on the grounds. Entrance is located at 312 W. San Antonio Street. The symposium will feature speakers who can guide the general public to discover the story of the land in the Texas Hill Country and how it was acquired by the German immigrants in the 1840s in the days of the Republic of Texas.

Speakers for the morning sessions are Bill Lindemann, President, Hill Country Land Trust; Kevin Klaus, Information Specialist in the Texas General Land Office Archives and Records Program in Austin, Texas; Mary Lynn Rusche, County Clerk; and Charles Ottmers, Retired Surveyor. The registration fee is $25 to the general public and $20 for students or members of the Gillespie County Historical Society. To pre-register, call 830-997-2835 or register on location on the day of the event.

The morning sessions will conclude with lunch on your own. The afternoon program is a field trip to the Hershey Ranch near Stonewall to observe how the good land management has protected the ecology of the land granted to the early immigrants. The Ranch is located on FM 1623 about five miles past Stonewall.