Spring Branch

Spring Branch is in the Memorial Villages area of the western edge of Houston in west central Harris County. It began as a religious community settled by German farmers in the mid-to-late 1840s, many of whom owned dairies. Some of the earliest settlers included August Bauer and his wife Emilie from Wiesa, Germany, and Carl Julius Kolbe from Gotha, Germany. Kolbe settled along a spring-fed creek which flowed into Buffalo Bayou, nine miles from Houston. According to local legend, a stranger stopped by Kolbe’s place, and they walked along the creek until they reached the spot where the creek emptied into the bayou. The stranger inquired as to the name of the creek, and Kolbe replied that it did not have one. The stranger then christened it “Spring Branch.”

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.