El Castell on the Llano River was recently featured in this article by Texas Hill Country.
By Marcy Stellfox for Texas Hill Country, July 22, 2016
The tiny village of Castell, Texas resides on the banks of the Llano River between the towns of Mason and Llano. In 1842, the then Republic of Texas granted Henry Francis Fisher and Burchard Miller 5,000 acres between the Llano and Colorado Rivers (known as the Fisher-Miller Land Grant) in an effort to encourage settlement of the area. However, Fisher and Miller had a hard time convincing folks to populate the rolling ranchland as most people preferred places with established towns such as Fredericksburg.
Admitting defeat, Fisher and Miller sold the land grant to a German colonization company called Adelsverein, and in 1847 German “freethinkers” successfully established the town.
Today, downtown Castell includes a post office, general store, and abandoned car dealership, but don’t let that stop you from visiting. The tiny, quirky town makes for a great destination to those wishing to escape to a small hamlet for a different Texas Hill Country experience.
