In the mid-1840s, German farmers became the first settlers of present-day Gruene, Texas. Ernst Gruene, a German immigrant, reached the newly established city of New Braunfels and built a home along the Gruene river. In 1878, Ernst’s son, Henry, built homes that now remain as the Lone Star, Gruene Haus, Gruene General Store, the Gristmill River Restaurant, and the infamous Gruene Hall.

In 1974, Chip Kaufman, an architecture student at UT Austin, discovered Gruene on an afternoon kayak trip. He researched the area and found that a group of real estate developers had purchased the last 200+ acres of the Gruene Estate, including all historic buildings. Kaufman convinced the developers to salvage this piece of Texas history, placing Gruene on the National Register of Historic Places. He soon found new owners with a preservation mindset and Gruene to this very day has kept its rich history alive.