Herff Farm Listed as one of Texas' MEP

PRESERVATION TEXAS NAMES HERFF FARM IN BOERNE TO ITS SEVENTH ANNUAL LIST OF TEXAS' MOST ENDANGERED HISTORIC PLACES

Sites in Travis, Harris, Kendall, Hood, Llano and Dickens Counties Included on 2010 List

AUSTIN, TEXAS...Herff Farm, a historic farmstead in the German-settled Texas Hill Country in Kendall County, is one of seven sites that Preservation Texas, Inc., has named to its seventh annual list of Texas' Most Endangered Historic Places.

Preservation Texas officials announced the selections on the steps of the Texas State Capitol on February 4.

In 1852, Dr. Ferdinand Herff (1820-1912) acquired large tracts of land at the confluence of Menger and Cibolo Creeks.  Eventually, the farmstead grew to be 10,000 acres.  Dr. Herff, a physician based in San Antonio, maintained the farm as a summer home until 1894, when his son, Charles, moved from San Antonio to manage the property until the early 1920s.  In 1935, George and Erma Rozelle purchased 68 acres from Charles Herff's son. 

Today, the 62-acre Herff Farm is part of the Cibolo Nature Center in Boerne, and is a key element in the Cibolo Conservation Corridor, a collaboration among a variety of partners aimed at protecting four miles of Cibolo Creek and its watershed.  The property was last occupied in the mid-1980s.  The family home, a two-story, limestone structure built in 1883, remains intact along with agricultural and domestic structures.  In 2007, the Cibolo Nature Center began the acquisition of the Herff Farm in its efforts to protect and preserve the land and water for people and wildlife.

"As an organization devoted to protecting and learning about nature, we're eager to explore the ways that preserving our historic and cultural heritage aligns with our mission of conserving wildlife," said Carolyn Chipman Evans, executive director of the Cibolo Nature Center. "With so many historic places found on or adjacent to natural lands, this is a challenge faced by historic preservation and wildlife conservation organizations around the country. We're looking for partners who can help us plan and implement a program that allows preserving history, culture and nature to enhance and enrich each other."

"Herff Farm is both a natural and historic treasure, and an important part of our state's agricultural heritage," said Susan Lassell, president of Preservation Texas, Inc., a statewide partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.   "Like the other places on our 2010 endangered list, it reflects the increasing awareness across our state of the importance of preserving places that have played important roles in the history of our state. By calling attention to them now, we want to encourage residents to act while there's still time."