Tiny Texas town is ripped in two as newcomers launch new German beer festival to rival historic event: ‘It put tears in my eyes’

A small Texas town has been torn in two by a dispute over rival beer festivals.

Tensions are brewing among locals in Münster, a rural community where German immigrants lived, over competing events that took place over three days in April.

The dispute began over differing opinions over the distribution of proceeds from beer sales during the city’s biggest event of the year – Germanfest – and the influx of tourists to the previously community-oriented event.

For the first time in decades, a rival event with beer, sausages, music and lederhosen-clad natives sprung up on the other side of Division Street on the same weekend.

“It brought tears to my eyes,” local resident William Fisher, 83, told the newspaper New York Times. “Suddenly it seems like the city is in disarray.”

For the first time in decades, a rival event with beer, sausages and music emerged on the other side of Division Street on the same weekend. (Pictured: the new event)

The dispute began over differing opinions on how to distribute proceeds from beer sales during the city’s biggest event of the year, Germanfest, and the influx of tourists to the previously community-oriented event.

Many people who chose the new festival – Party In The Park – said the original party had been overrun by tourists.

Germanfest now attracts around 20,000 visitors annually, something locals say has undermined its authenticity.

It all started in 2018 when the festival moved to a new, spacious indoor space on the outskirts of the city, providing more stalls and more space for visitors.

“It became more of an outsider thing and lost that local flavor,” Leslie Hess Eddleman, a dental hygienist and former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, told the NYT. “They made a big show of it for out-of-towners, but not for us.”

But the final straw for organizers to launch the rival festival was the beer contract, which was about to be renewed.

A local volunteer organization called The Jaycees had been selling the beer for years, while receiving an 80 percent discount for its charitable services.

Germanfest now attracts around 20,000 visitors annually, something locals say has undermined its authenticity

Germanfest launched in Muenster in 1976 and became an instant success, drawing people from nearby Dallas and beyond. It offered tug of war, arm wrestling and beauty pageants

Locals wore traditional German clothes such as dirndls (photo: people enjoying the festival)

But the Münster Chamber of Commerce, which coordinates Germanfest, wanted to renegotiate to achieve a more even distribution in exchange for help with decorating.

“We have 100 percent of the risk,” House Speaker and County Commissioner Matt Sicking told the NYT. “If it rains, we’ll lose everything.”

“We can sit here and moan all day, but it won’t change anything,” he added. “It will work out the way the good Lord wants it to.”

Wayne Klement, 74, a senator from Jaycee, told the newspaper that no one would give in on either side, meaning their only option was to launch “a party of their own.”

Klement said the Jaycees donated $165,000 in donations from the festival last year, mostly to local families in need, but the costs of hosting the event were becoming increasingly expensive.

“We depend on this weekend for our club,” he said.

Several local groups, including the Knights of Columbus and the Boy Scouts, joined the new event and pledged allegiance to the Jaycees.

Germanfest launched in Muenster in 1976 and became an instant success, drawing people from nearby Dallas and beyond. It offered tug of war, arm wrestling and beauty pageants.

Locals enjoyed live music at both events this year, with much of the proceeds going to charities

The most important part, the beer, was delivered by the Jaycees in a large refrigerated truck with a trailer, with enough space for 200 kegs and 32 taps.

Meanwhile, the original event had to find an alternative source for its beers this year.

Posts on social media showed that both events appeared to be well attended, with the usual stalls lined up either side of Division Street.

Münster was founded in 1889 by German Catholic settlers Carl and Emil Flusche, and to this day more than 90 percent of the population is German and Catholic.

Many of the residents still speak German and the traditions played at the festivals are an important symbol of their identity and culture.