People Need Water, Challenge 1: Westward H20!

Human populations have historically concentrated at sites with available water that are advantageous for commerce, food production, and other aspects of civilization.  Around 1845, German immigrants migrated to New Braunfels, Texas, took advantage of the numerous artesian springs and reliable water power afforded by Comal Springs, as well as the community's position on the road between Austin and San Antonio, to establish a settlement that soon became the commercial center of a growing agricultural area.  Unfortunately, a series of ill-fated events unfolded to threaten the viability of the settlement, including a cholera epidemic that took the lives of several hundred new residents.

Imagine that it is 1852 and that you live in the newly established town of New Braunfels, Texas.  In order to rebuild and grow the community it is necessary to attract new settlers who will establish supply stores, flour mills, textile factories, processing plants, and artisanal and craft shops to serve the growing population and economy of the new state of Texas (Texas became a state in the United States of America in 1845).  In 1852, as the editor of the newly created newspaper, the Zeitung, you produce a full two-page spread to persuade more settlers to come to New Braunfels.  Your advertisement focuses on the presence of abundant artesian springs and the importance of the Guadalupe and Comal rivers as major sources of water power and as transportation routes from Central Texas to the Gulf of Mexico.