The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 48, July 1944 - April, 1945 Page: 146

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

Schreiners. Captain Schreiner's maternal grandfather, whose
name was Bippert, was a staff physician in the French army;
his wife was the former Bobette Greiner, a cultured lady who
had been educated in a Pensionate at Rouem, France.
The family ancestral Castle of Reichestein is still standing
after several centuries, and in 1937 was still in excellent con-
dition considering the ravages of time. It is located a short
distance from the village of Riguewihr in the heart of a large
vineyard. The estate today is called "Buchshof." Certainly
Riguewihr is one of the most fascinating of little wine cities.
Its setting is almost dream-like, because it has so entirely kept
the atmosphere of the Middle Ages and modern times have not
changed its face.2
Captain Schreiner's father was born in Riguewihr on October
1, 1800; his name was Gustave Adolph after the great Swedish
king and soldier. When Gustave Adolph Schreiner reached the
proper age, his parents sent him to Pestalozzi's College in
Switzerland. The fact that Pestalozzi was the father of modern
educational philosophy was to play an important part in Captain
Schreiner's later views on education when he founded Schreiner
Institute at Kerrville in the early 1920's. The Captain's interest
in education reverted back a long time. His uncle, Chretien
Schreiner, served as a professor in Pestalozzi's school for several
years before opening a Pensionate for young people in Ribeau-
ville, France. Later he operated a school in Riguewihr. At the
present time Scott Schreiner, grandson of the Captain, is a
member of the Board of Regents of The University of Texas.
The board of trustees for Schreiner Institute has always had at
least two Schreiners among its membership since its opening.
In 1836 Fritz Schreiner, brother of Gustave Adolph, came
to the New World. He had been a merchant in Riguewihr, and
after settling in New Orleans, Louisiana, again went into
business. Fritz was the first Schreiner to leave the Old World
for the New. The second was Gustave Adolph, who after re-
ceiving his education in Switzerland had become a dentist.4
Dr. Schreiner, sick of the quarrels of the Old World, was
past middle age when he broke off his relationships there
and brought to America his family, consisting of a wife, the
-Marianne Hauser, "The Indomitable Spirit of Alsace," Travel (March,
1938), 31-58.
:"Memoirs of Captain Charles Schreiner," September 22, 1914; these
memoirs are now in the possession of Mrs. A. C. Schreiner, Sr., Kerrville,
Texas.
4The Schreiners seem to have been predominantly doctors and educators.

146