NEEDVILLE

Fort Bend County

Marker is on SH 36, 250 ft. N of Junction with FM 1236, in Needville [1972]

The town of Needville had its beginning in 1892 when settler August Schendel opened a general store here, on his land. Blacksmith shop, cotton gin, and room for a post office had been added by 1894, when Schendel was appointed the first postmaster.

He suggested naming the place "Needmore" because it needed more of everything, but another town already had that name.

Slowley the village became a trade center. The first church service was held in 1891; and a school was opened by 1897.

The early economy, based on stock-raising and farming, was altered radically with the discovery of oil, natural gas, and sulphur, in the 1920 and 30.  


NeedvilleArea Dance Halls were for more than just dancing

By Jay Roussel and Bradley Stavinoha

When most people think about the halls that we have in Needville, such as the SPJST or Knight of Columbus Halls on Highway 36, they think spaces to host fundraisers or wedding receptions, but few appreciate how central the halls were to the social life of this area throughout the 20th century. Today, fewer and fewer towns have their own halls since the cost for sustaining them often outweigh their revenue, but not long ago, the hall was the place you were likely to meet your future husband or wife, it was the place where you held community meetings, a place for exercise, and even the location where local residents paid their home and life insurance premiums.

Recent transplants may wonder why Needville has two halls right next to each other. Even though those halls look modern, their history goes way back. The original SPJST hall was built in 1912 on the same property as the current hall. The SPJST hall was built next to the “Needville Round Hall” which was two years older. The Needville Round Hall was an architecturally fascinating building, very different from the area’s other halls. The Round Hall, sometimes called the American Legion Hall, was torn down in 1950. The Knights of Columbus Hall is on that property now. If any residents have any clear pictures of the Needville Round Hall, please send them to Bradley@needvilleinsurance.com .

Note: Jay Roussel and Bradley Stavinoha are both Ft. Bend County Historical Commissioners and collaborate on a number of research and preservation projects. If any readers have any stories they want chased down, contact one of them and suggest a story.


  Read more               FAIRCHILDS CREEK       

CEDAR CREEK        DEER CREEK


NEEDVILLE, TEXAS-POSTMASTERS

Schendel, Aug., 14 Apr 1894

Winston, Johnnie, 18 Apr 1898

Schendel, Aug., 31 Oct 1901

Meyer, Herman, 12 Feb 1904

Lehman, Wm. F., 18 Jly 1911

Snedecor, Chas. I., 11 Aug 1924 (Acting postmaster)


 

Cesinger Cemetery  

 Located 2 mi. south of Needville on SH 36, then 3 mi. northeast on Roesler Rd. to Zamanek Rd. [1992]

Frederick and Anna Cesinger brought their family to this area to live in 1891. They bought a 320-acre tract of land, and two years later deeded 160 acres to their son, George. In 1894, when George's sister Philipina died just one month before her eighth birthday, he set aside one acre of land for a family burial ground. Among the interments here are those of Cesinger and related family members and neighbors. Although owned and maintained from 1909 to 1928 by the german Evangelical Emmanuel Church in Needville, the graveyard later was returned to Cesinger heirs.


Needville Methodist Church     

Located in the town of Needville at North & Church St.

Originally the German Methodist Episcopal Church, North, of Needville, this congregation traces its history to 1892. The Rev. Jacob Ott, a pioneer Methodist missionary, founded the church. Early worship services were held in private homes. The congregation purchased five acres of land near Needville in 1896 and built its first sanctuary the following year. In 1927 they moved to Needville and built the present sanctuary. Church services and records were in the German language until the 1930s. The name was changed to Needville United Methodist Church in 1968. Incise on base: Funded by the Estate of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Bacica


Needville Methodist Church Cemetery   

 Located1 mi. SE of Needville on SH 36, then 1.25 mi. north on Needville-Fairchild Rd. to Padon Road

Located on land purchased by the Needville German Methodist Church from the State of Texas in 1896, this small cemetery began in 1903, when the infant son of the church's pastor, William Sievers, and his wife Alma was buried near the church building. By 1905 children of the Busch and Kielman families also were buried here, and the Zich family began burying relatives in the graveyard in 1907. Adjacent to the Needville Public Cemetery, this plot has historically been used by members of the Methodist church, which moved into the town of Needville in 1927. Incise on base: Funded by the Estate of Mr. and Mrs. Ben Bacica


Snake Creek Cemetery and Church                                               

 Needville [1985]

Tombstones in this cemetery reflect early settlers who lived in Snake Creek community: Hodges, Boon, Boone, Darst, Davis, Gill, Armstrong, Hartgraves, Hughes, Kennelly, Scott, Simpson, Smith, Snedecor, Sims, Tarver, West. Two veterans of the Battle of san Jacinto, Emory H. Darst and John P. Gill are buried here, as are several Confederate veterans. Land for the graveyard was granted in the 1850s by william Cole and by Peter L. West, who is buried here. A community church west of the cemetery served residents many years until destroyed during a 1932 hurricane.

 


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