GERMAN-AMERICAN STUDIES CONFERENCE HELD
Amana, IA, 2002
Amana,
one of the seven towns of the Amana Colonies in Iowa, was the location of
the recent Society for German-American Studies' 26th Annual Symposium. The
conference was coordinated by Bill Roba, Scott Community College, Davenport,
Iowa with the help of the Amana Heritage Society.
The Society for German-American Studies encourages the scholarly study of the history, language, literature, and culture of the German element in North America, that is immigrants and their descendants from German-speaking areas of Europe. About 200 people attended the conference sessions which were held in the Museum of Amana History and in the meeting rooms of the Amana Church from 18-21 April. At the annual symposium SGAS members presented and discussed their current research.
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This year there were two keynote addresses. The first, on Friday by Dirk Schroeder of Bremerhaven, Germany was: "Terror Against America, How Did Germany and the Germans React, and What does This Mean for German-American Relations." On Saturday Peter Hoehnle, a member of the Colony spoke on "The Amana Experience." As a direct descendant of Amana settlers, he gave a lively and informative description of life in the Colonies then and now. Scholars presented research on a wide range of topics, from: Gottfried Duden, Francis Lieber, and Maximilian von Wied, to: Ernst Toller's correspondence and Thomas Mann's exile politics. |
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Prof. Dr. Guy Stern was the recipient of the 2002 Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Field of German-American Studies. The award was presented to him at the annual banquet on Saturday, and he then spoke on "Carl Schurz in Michigan." |
| Amana was chosen as conference location because of its German-American historical significance. The Amana Colonies consist of seven towns located in close proximity to one another on 26,000 acres of farm land. Amana was built by The Community of the True Inspiration, a pietist religious group. The Community was formed in 1714 in Himbach Germany and in 1842 emigrated to America, first to Ebenezer, New York; then in 1855 they migrated to Iowa. The Amana Colony is one of the major and longest lasting utopian colonies in America. After 89 years, in 932 the members voted to end the communal system. |  |
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On Saturday afternoon SGAS members toured the Amana towns. Many of the oldest houses are of sandstone from a nearby quarry. Other buildings are of brick or unpainted wood. For the early settlers replacing wood siding was less expensive buying paint for the wood. |
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SGAS members then visited the Church of the New Jerusalem at the near-by site of the short-lived Jasper Colony which existed in the 1850s and whose Swedenborgian members were primarily Germans. On Sunday morning many members attended the German language church service in Middle Amana before heading home. The next SGAS conference will be held in Baltimore, Maryland, 14-17 April 2003. The conference coordinator is Randall Donaldson, Loyola College in Maryland. The particular focus of the symposium will be the eastern seaports used by arriving German immigrants. |
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
Frances Ott Allen
(513) 556-2964 or 451-9233
allenfo@email.uc.edu
Publicity Director
Society for German-American Studies
Return to Max Kade/SGAS Home Page
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Created: 2002, CGH Updated: 17 November 2007, BAS Comments to: IUPUI Max Kade German-American Center, mkgac@iupui.edu This page sponsored and maintained by IUPUI University Libraries. URL: http://www.ulib.iupui.edu/kade/amana2002report/amana2002report.html |
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