Biesele, Rudolph Leopold, 1886-1960

Rudolph L. Biesele was born January 29, 1886 in York's Creek, Texas and died in Austin on January 4th, 1960. A full-time history professor at the University of Texas at Austin, with a passion for his German heritage, he devoted most of his life to the research and writing of early German settlements in Texas.

In his youth, Biesele was educated in Guadalupe County public schools. He received his teaching certificate from Southwest Texas State Normal School (now Southwest Texas State University) in 1905. He then attended the University of Texas (UT) in Austin where he received a B.A. (1909) and M.A. (1910) in German. Biesele taught German and Civics at Corsicana High School, and history at Waco High School, before moving to Austin in 1924. At UT Austin he earned a PhD in History (1928); the subject of his dissertation was The History of the German Settlements in Texas 1831-1861 . In 1929 the University of Alabama hired him to teach Latin American History; he returned to UT Austin History Department in 1930 as a temporary substitute for C.W. Hackett. Later in that year Biesele moved once more, and became chairman of the Department of History and Social Science at Louisiana Polytechnical Institute. He returned to Austin in 1931 where he remained for the rest of this life. His initial appointment at UT Austin was as an associate professor in the history department; after ten years, he was made a professor in 1941 and retired as professor emeritus in 1957.

Biesele's The History of German Settlements in Texas 1831-1861 (1930) is a definitive publication on the subject, built on years of extensive research, correspondence, and contextualization. He was invited to publish for journals such as the Handbook of Texas and to speak locally at graduations and meetings, and for events such as anniversary celebrations for New Braunfels and Seguin. As a professor, he supervised over 100 master's theses, some of which he saved, proving true the opinion that Biesele was whole-heartedly devoted to his students. From 1937-1957, Biesele served as associate editor of the Southwestern Historical Quarterly, and was on the editorial board of the Journal of Southern History from 1943-1946. He was affiliated with several associations, including the Southwest Social Science Association, the Texas State Teachers Association, and was an executive council member of the Texas State Historical Association.

Biesele garnered a New Braunfels Lodge of the Order of Sons of Hermann's educational award, the Hermannssöhne Stipendium, to support his studies in German literature, then later received a fellowship for the study of History in 1926. In 1969, the New Braunfels Conservation Society awarded him a posthumous plaque of appreciation. Biesele married Anna Emma Jahn September 3, 1910, and fathered four children with her. He was devoted to the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Austin, of which he was a founding member, served as an elder, and taught Sunday School classes. He died in Austin, January 4, 1960.

From the guide to the Rudolph Leopold Biesele papers A2010. 0030., 1820-1959, (DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University)

Dr. Rudolph Leopold Biesele (1886-1960) earned his bachelor's, master's, and PhD degrees from the University of Texas, where he taught in the history department until retiring in 1957. His major area of research lie in German-Americans of Texas.

From the guide to the Rudolph L. Biesele Papers, 1844-1848, 1927-1939, (Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin)