Mayfete welcomes new harvest season
Mayfete welcomes new harvest season
Written by Pamela Stephenson Wednesday, 07 June 2006
Families gathering for food and games to mark the end of winter and the beginning of harvest has been a tradition in Pflugerville since the Pflugers settled in the area in the late 19th century. Early Maifests, as the German festivals were then known and held in the grove on Gilleland Creek (now the Gatlinburg subdivision on Immanuel Road). When the Schuetzen and Kegel Verein (community hall) was built on land purchased from George Pfluger, grandfather of current resident Gladys Pfluger, a May Feast was held annually in Pflugerville until the early 1940s. In an unusual departure, the community decided to purchase a war bond instead of holding the 1918 Feast.
The longest sustaining MayFete, as it is now known, is at the Richland Community Club, just east of Pflugerville. Since 1947, this festival has been celebrated on Mother’s Day weekend.
“The hall was grandly decorated with crepe paper,” Vernagene (Hebbe) Mott, former Mayfete Queen said, “while the outdoor arches and stage were covered with cut cedar and buckets of bouquets of cut flowers from members’ yards.”
A case in the clubhouse displays the queen’s train which was used for nearly 50 years. Mott says she, too, wore that train in 1958.
The queen is elected by members of the Richland Community Club, except during leap year when the king is elected and chooses his queen. A Tiny Tot’s Queen and King are also crowned. The Queen’s Court dances around the Maypole, weaving vibrant ribbons into a colorful pattern. Custom is that the more beautiful the pattern, the better the fall harvest. Dancing, food and drink are enjoyed by all, well into the night.
More than 30 former queens and kings were present at this year’s 59th Mayfete, including the first queen,Waldine Gonzenbach Wieruscheske. More than 200 members enjoyed the winding of the Maypole ribbons, signifying hope that this will be a year of bountiful harvests.
More about the customs and celebrations of the Pflugerville area will be included in a book being published this fall as part of the Oral History Project of the Friends of the Pflugerville Community Library and its partners.
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