What are some cities in the "Hills County", by/in the mountains? (El Paso: crime, new home)

[eptex]

Originally Posted by irwin

Interesting. I've never heard of any racist incidents in Fredericksberg; it is really an art town with a lot of antiques and other unique shops. A lot of tourists go there for the day so "outsiders" are common. I would think they would be happy for anyone to come and shop, but I'm not black either so I wouldn't be able to specifically compare the situations. There are certainly some racist towns in Texas, but I think that's more in East Texas.

Generally the Hill Country is pretty liberal as compared to the rest of the state. It's a nice area and Fredericksberg is really one of the better small towns left in Texas. Many of the other towns have become rest stops and gasoline stations on the highways with the old main street decaying. Thankfully, that never happened to Frederickberg.

Hi! I pretty much agree with Irwin here. We've been to the Marble Falls Boat Races in the summer and on the way back we stop in Fredericksburg for lunch or dinner. Some of our friends are mexican, and everyone of us has only good memories about Fredericksburg. Same service for whites and mexicans.

In fact, I was looked at as being too critical by some Germans there because I still have a German accent myself and I just asked a question in a so-called German bakery. They were not very nice to me. After that I kept my mouth shut and even had my husband order my meals because I didn't want to stick out of the crowd.

So much for the race thing......

[texasborn]

Originally Posted by lifertexan

I've never heard of any overt racism there,but Fredericksburg has a very high percentage of true ethnic Germans living there,so there may be something to it.The German names around there are not just for show,it really is a German town.Regardless of any racism,they are very clannish.Anyone whose grandparents weren't born there is an outsider,unless you are from a strong German descent.

Lifertexan, thanks for the info on Fredericksburg. I can trace my mother's side of the family back to the NordRhein region of Prussia, sailed from Bremerhaven, and landed at Indianola, TX, and my GG Grandfather's baptism papers are still in Germany, so.... MAYBE I'd be tolerated, if not accepted. My father's side was Scots/Irish; that'll probably be a strike against me. I took German in HS, but forgot everything (my Grandpa always thought I was speaking a dialect, so I wasn't able to practice my classroom DEUTSCH.) I guess I should take a second look at Fredericksburg. I am not clannish, but would like to be welcomed. I still don't know if I'd pass the litmus test. What do you base your conclusions on? Do they interview prospective newcomers?

[lifertexan]

What do you base your conclusions on? Do they interview prospective newcomers?

My mom lived there a number of years ago, and loved the town and the HC setting, but said it was extremely clannish. There are also some German areas around here, mostly farming communities. They are all pretty clannish themselves. Not that they are rude or unfriendly, you are just never really accepted as a true part of the community by the majority. Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to move to Fredericksburg, and I don't have any German blood. You will always find a few friends, and German communities in Texas generally have better schools, less crime, and are overall just better places to live, imo.

[Trainwreck20]

My folks have retired to an area just north of Fredericksburg, and they love it out there; however, Lifertexan pretty much nailed it - it is 'clannish' (I was going to say cliquish, but have no idea how to spell it :P). My parents have been out there for close to 10 years, and it took a good part of that to be absorbed into the local culture. In truth, they are really part of the new retiree culture out there, which is a growing group of people.

If you have school age kids, especially elementary, you will be able to integrate very quickly/easily, imho. The real cliques are more of the older generation and there is really no concerted effort to exclude 'newcomers', it just happens. If I could find the right employment out there, I would be out in a heartbeat to raise my kids.

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by Trainwreck20

My folks have retired to an area just north of Fredericksburg, and they love it out there; however, Lifertexan pretty much nailed it - it is 'clannish' (I was going to say cliquish, but have no idea how to spell it :P). My parents have been out there for close to 10 years, and it took a good part of that to be absorbed into the local culture. In truth, they are really part of the new retiree culture out there, which is a growing group of people.

If you have school age kids, especially elementary, you will be able to integrate very quickly/easily, imho. The real cliques are more of the older generation and there is really no concerted effort to exclude 'newcomers', it just happens. If I could find the right employment out there, I would be out in a heartbeat to raise my kids.

On the outskirts of Fredericksburg sounds great to me as I don't want to live in the hustle and bustle of the town with all the tourists. Maybe I'll fit in well should that be where I decide to retire as I'm a full-blooded German. I wouldn't need to worry about the "clanish" even if that were so. Things like that don't bother me. Anyway, whatalady said it isn't so anyway. One never know until one lives in an area just what goes on.

May I ask to what area north of Fredericksburg your folks retired? I really want an area that is hilly. Is it Willow City? If so, is it pretty and hilly? I know there are many parts of the HC that are probably more hilly than Gillespie County, but I'm being really fussy.

I don't want crowded or potentially crowded areas, I'm concerned with crime and am checking into ethnicity. There are some areas in the HC that actually have a higher comfort index level regarding humidity although they don't differ greatly unless one is in Leakey, Utopia, Medina, and the like. A few points might make a difference as I do not do well in humidity.

I was very interested in Vanderpool and Tarpley, but I couldn't believe the property taxes. I thought where I live in Texas is bad, but those little towns are twice as much as I pay now.

Thanks.

[texasborn]

Originally Posted by lifertexan

My mom lived there a number of years ago, and loved the town and the HC setting, but said it was extremely clannish. There are also some German areas around here, mostly farming communities. They are all pretty clannish themselves. Not that they are rude or unfriendly, you are just never really accepted as a true part of the community by the majority. Personally, I wouldn't hesitate to move to Fredericksburg, and I don't have any German blood. You will always find a few friends, and German communities in Texas generally have better schools, less crime, and are overall just better places to live, imo.

Again, thank you! I DO know exactly what you mean when you say not being accepted as part of the community. I think my diluted German blood would not be enough to be accepted. When I make my last move, I do not want to simply be tolerated by a community (I have experienced that before), I want to be welcomed. I am more than my blood line, and if that is essential, I think it would not be a good move for me. I lived in a small Dutch town in NW Washington State, and it was not enough that I looked like them, sounded like them, worked and paid my bills, and was a contributing member of the community, I still was not accepted because I was not from that county. Being tolerated is not what I want in my last home. Your feedback was much appreciated in that you have knowledge (vicarious) of the area. Also, I have read that others have expressed the same point.

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by KewGee

On the outskirts of Fredericksburg sounds great to me as I don't want to live in the hustle and bustle of the town with all the tourists. Maybe I'll fit in well should that be where I decide to retire as I'm a full-blooded German. I wouldn't need to worry about the "clanish" even if that were so. Things like that don't bother me. Anyway, whatalady said it isn't so anyway. One never know until one lives in an area just what goes on.

May I ask to what area north of Fredericksburg your folks retired? I really want an area that is hilly. Is it Willow City? If so, is it pretty and hilly? I know there are many parts of the HC that are probably more hilly than Gillespie County, but I'm being really fussy.

I don't want crowded or potentially crowded areas, I'm concerned with crime and am checking into ethnicity. There are some areas in the HC that actually have a higher comfort index level regarding humidity although they don't differ greatly unless one is in Leakey, Utopia, Medina, and the like. A few points might make a difference as I do not do well in humidity.

I was very interested in Vanderpool and Tarpley, but I couldn't believe the property taxes. I thought where I live in Texas is bad, but those little towns are twice as much as I pay now.

Thanks.

Whoops! In my quote above, I said whatalady, but I meant TexasGerman. Sorry!

[Trainwreck20]

May I ask to what area north of Fredericksburg your folks retired? I really want an area that is hilly. Is it Willow City? If so, is it pretty and hilly? I know there are many parts of the HC that are probably more hilly than Gillespie County, but I'm being really fussy.

They are near Willow City, but on the other side of Hwy 16 off Eckert Rd. They have ~25 acres of their own and can't see a house from their yard, I don't think (although there are some pretty obnoxious high tension lines in the distance, but power is useful). There was 11 acres right next to them that was recently be considered for sale, but the guy decided to keep it. He plans to retire and build there sometime down the road. My dad runs his sheep on his land and the neighbors, so they are all ag-exempt. There is a large hill behind them (with two houses on it somewhere), and several more hills in the area that are too steep for easy construction. Enchanted Rock is just barely visible on a clear day in the fall (when there are no leaves on the trees).

I was looking at buying the 11 acres when the guy was considering selling some or all of it, but we did not even get down to a price before he changed his mind. Looking in the area, it would probably be between 10k and 15k per acre (with improvements - fencing, gates, small barn). This area is really nice, and I would like to get some land out here, but it is essential to me that I can keep an ag exemption, since the taxes will kill me otherwise. Adjacent to my folks would have been grand!

As for crowd - hardly any out in the area they are in. There is an exotic game ranch of several thousand acres (?) across the street, so no crowd there. There is a deer processing place a few miles down the road, so there is some back and forth during hunting season. My wife loves to ride her bike out there because of the lack of traffic and the general congeniality of the drivers. If you look at Willow City, you night have the nightmare traffic in the spring due to wildflower season, depending on your exact location.

As for crime, not much occuring out that far from FBurg. They did have some HS kids out there 'spotlighting' 'coons, which turns out is not a crime. Folks called the sheriff because they thought they were shooting into the game ranch for exotics....

[KewGee]

Thanks, Trainwreck, for the information. I can't wait to check it out very soon, that area as well as a few others.

[looking for new home]

To live in the mountains (of Tx) you have to live in N.M. - it's something that Tx only has in name, like the Palo Pinto Mountains west of Ft. Worth.