Contributions of Boerne's Early Women

Life for the pioneer woman was not easy. A woman would help to clear the land and build a cabin alongside her husband. In the spring, gardens were planted. The garden was sometimes the only source of fresh fruits and vegetables. Women were in charge of the farm animals, cooking, cleaning, and managing the children. As was common in the 1800s, women sometimes had numerous children. It was not unusual to have 10-15 children in one family. Women spent many hours canning food for the winter, making fires, sewing the family’s clothing, and smoking meats. Chores started at sun up and continued throughout the rest of the day. It was rare to find a pioneer woman resting during the day. On top of all of this, women were left at the homestead by themselves while the men worked in the fields. Many of them encountered hostile Indians and had to protect themselves and their children without the help of a man.

One woman who lived in Boerne from 1906 to 1911 was Annie Fellows Johnston. Annie was a famous author who penned The Little Colonel novel series. Although she did not live during the pioneer times, she did write a novel, Mary Ware in

Texas, that described life in Boerne during the early 1900s. All of the characters and places in the novel were based on real people and buildings in Boerne. In 1935 a movie, The Little Colonel, was made starring Shirley Temple. This movie was based on Annie Johnston’s books.