Schattel

Schattel, located west of Farm Road 472 and six miles south of Bigfoot in northeastern Frio County, was established as a farming community for Texas German and Bohemian families by William Schattel in 1924. Schattel, a father of thirteen children who had moved from East Bernard (Wharton County), Texas, became the town’s first postmaster when the post office was moved from nearby Miguel, Texas. At the time of the founding of Schattel, the San Antonio Express reported that contracts had been let for the construction of thirty houses as well as plans for “the installation of a filling station and garage,” a new church and school house, blacksmith shop, gin, dance hall, and other structures. William Schattel served as postmaster until his death in June 1927. His son Albert later assumed that duty.

In 1929 the community included a school and some five dwellings, and by 1948 it had three businesses and an estimated population of fifty. The Schattel school district was consolidated with those of Bigfoot and Pearsall in 1949. Schattel reported one business and 130 residents in 1970; it continued to report that population level in 1990, when it also had a town hall. The 2010 census for Schattel recorded a population of thirty.