SGAS News Release ...
Cincinnati, Ohio
May 1999
The Society for German-American Studies held its 23d annual symposium in New Ulm, Minnesota 22-25 April 1999 with a record attendance of over 300. The meeting site offered a chance to see New Ulm, a city with a strong German heritage in evidence throughout the city. New Ulm was founded in 1854 by the "Chicago Land Society," and was joined by a group of Turners from Cincinnati in 1857. A large group of German-Bohemians also immigrated to New Ulm sometime later. Although early on, settlers and Native Americans traded, later misunderstandings caused the town to be twice attacked by the Dakotas in 1862. New Ulm was a city many SGAS members had read about and this year got to know.
Forty-three lectures were presented in sixteen sessions with usually three sessions running concurrently. Highlighted again this year were numerouspresentations about the Forty-Eighters and the 1848 Revolution such as Prof. Gerhard Weiss' "Poets on the Barricades: Literary Aspects of 1848." Presentations relating to the New Ulm area included ones about the artist Anton Gag, the Turner Wilhelm Pfdnder, and the German-Bohemian settlement of New Ulm. A presentation by Paula Weber on brewing in California included beer tasting. In addition there was a session in which authors read from their poetry or fiction.
Numerous exhibits such as that of the German Bohemian Society of New Ulm, and exhibits of books and media publications available for purchase could be browsed between sessions.
On Friday afternoon the "Jacob Nix Platz" located at Minnesota and 3d Streets was dedicated and a plaque unveiled. Jacob Nix, an immigrant from Bingen am Rhein and a Forty-Eighter who had to flee Germany, was a key figure in the defense of the New Ulm settlers during the Dakota uprisings of 1862. The program included a concert by the Martin Luther College Band, a welcome by Mayor Bert G. Schapelkahm and three cannon salvos to salute Captain Jacob Nix and all the defenders of New Ulm. Four descendants of Jacob Nix from as far away as California were introduced, and the address was presented by Don Heinrich Tolzmann.
Tours on Saturday afternoon to numerous sites of New Ulm included the Brown County Historical Society Museum which featured a special immigration exhibit, the cemetery with interesting old tombstones, and the Schell Brewery, among others. Those who toured the museum were able to see and hear a "Dudelsack" being played. The final event was a German "Waldler" Mass at the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity on Sunday.
At the gala banquet on Friday, Second Vice-President Dolores Hoyt presented the 1999 SGAS Outstanding Achievement Award to both Bradford Miller and Gary C. Grassl, past and present presidents of the German-American Heritage Society of Greater Washington, D.C. for their research in German-American history in general and specifically for their work to establish a historic marker documenting the presence of Germans at Jamestown, Va. The award states, "Bradford Miller and Gary C. Grassl's cooperative and coordinated grass roots approach serves as a model for bringing national recognition and preservation of the German-American contribution to the American heritage mosaic."
The award recognizes not only the many years of research, but also the difficult negotiations with local, state and national agencies, which all claim jurisdiction over the Jamestown and Williamsburg area, that had to be done by Brad Miller and Gary Grassl; Brad with his diplomatic and administrative skills negotiated with the official authorities, and Gary presented the documentation of his research to historical and archeological institutions. Their cooperative effort finally was successful and the historic marker was erected in 1977 with the following words:
The first Germans to land in Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in Virginia, arrived aboard the vessel Mary and Margaret about 1 October 1609. These Germans were glassmakers and carpenters. In 1620, German mineral specialists and saw-millwrights followed, to work and settle in the Virginia colony. These pioneers and skilled craftsmen were the forerunners of the many millions of Germans who settled in America and became the single largest national group to populate the United States. Denis Warta, a New Ulm City Council member described the need to encourage the passage of H.Con.Res. No.89, a concurrent resolution in the U.S. Congress submitted by Mr. Minge. This resolution would establish the Hermann Monument and the Hermann Heights Park in New Ulm as a national symbol for the contributions of Americans of German heritage. Passage of this legislation is important for the preservation of the monument built by the Sons of Hermann on a hill overlooking New Ulm. It is the second largest copper monument in the United States, exceeded in size only by the Statue of Liberty, which is about 4.5 times as large. SGAS supports this effort.
Next year's SGAS Symposium will highlight the topic: emigration to America through Bremerhaven. It promises to be an important meeting. For the first time SGAS will meet outside the United States. Dirk Schroeder and other members of coordinating organizations in Germany have already prepared the details of a wonderful program for those who wish to sign up to attend the meeting in Bremerhaven in the year 2000. Many SGAS members signed up at the New Ulm meeting.
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