New Wehdem is off Highway 36, eight miles northwest of Bellville in northern Austin County. New Wehdem was established on a stage route connecting Nelsonville and Bleiblerville to Brenham. In 1883, the place was named New Wehdem because many settlers came from Wehdem, Germany. By the early 1930s, a number of residents from nearby Wehdem had moved into the vicinity. After World War II, the locale was on maps as New Wehdem.
A Lutheran Church, St. Jacobi, later named St. James, was organized in 1869 with a sanctuary dedicated in 1871. The current structure dates to 1928. The 1925 school building became the church education building in 1965.