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June/July 2001
Old Heidelberg
By Pete Henault
From across the Neckar, in the old Roman part of the city, it is easy to see why so many millions have fallen in love with
Heidelberg. One's eyes are drawn inevitably to the nine graceful arches of the hand-sculptured sandstone bridge which leads to the old city gate. The gate is guarded by two round white towers and beyond these
towers one sees the brightly-tiled roofs of Old Heidelberg nestling below a dense forest of oaks, maples and beech trees that climb steeply for 1500 feet to the Königstuhl, or "King's Throne." The
Königstuhl is the second highest of thousands of rounded green mountains and hills that make up Germany's Oldenwald. To the right of the city gate is the great slate roof and tall tower of the cathedral-like
Heiliggeistkirche.
Rising above all, and encircled by the forest of the Königstuhl, is Heidelberg's famous castle. It tops the cityscape much as a
jeweled crown tops the head and robed shoulders of an emperor. Like the bridge and church tower, it is made of the delicate red sandstone that distinguishes the Oldenwaldfrom other mountain ranges of Germany.
The castle's color varies from tan to reddish brown depending on weather and sun shadows and, on cloud-free days as the sun sets, this crown of the city turns orange and then vibrant gold.
With this first glimpse of Old Heidelberg, you will feel the urge to cross the bridge and explore beyond the gate. If you love
art and architecture, enjoy intimate dining in historic settings, cannot resist browsing in shops with never-seen treasures, or if you simply yearn for a simpler quieter time long gone, you will quickly be
overwhelmed by Heidelberg's offerings. You are likely to begin by wandering the Hauptstraße, a mile-long pedestrian zone fronted by elegant Baroque houses adorned with balconies and statues.
You could easily spend a day enjoying the discoveries of this single street. Sooner or later, you will decide to climb the steep
path to the castle. You may have already noticed the castle is different from any other you have known. There are the usual towers and ramparts to hold back enemies but there are also exposed façades as grand
as the great châteaux of France.
Approaching closer you discover that some of the buildings are no more than shells -- ruins, apparently, of former palaces. What
sort of castle is this?
Munich Beer Gardens
Sit, Sip and Socialize in an outdoor gathering place
By Tom Bross
Beer-drinking is popular in Munich – indeed, Bavaria’s capital city ranks as Germany’s beer capital.
However, many people think the truest experience of quaffing the local brew necessitates crowded oompah-loud surroundings. That
is what you get in the famous, cavernousHofbräuhaus beer hall and during each year’s Oktoberfest -- an epic bash during which more than a 1-1/2 million gallons of beer (plus 750,000 barbecued chickens and countless thousands of roasted sausages) are consumed over a 16-day period. This year’s Fest begins on Saturday, September 22nd.
In mild weather, you will find a much more peaceful alternative by treating yourself to the casual atmosphere of a beer garden.
This is a low-key form of Bavarian Gemütlichkeit, because the emphasis is on congeniality rather than hell-raising, with no one urging you to chug-a-lug yourself into a state of silliness. The idea is
simply to sit, sip and socialize in a leisurely outdoor gathering place.
About four dozen such havens are scattered throughout Munich. Some are big and cosmopolitan -- the Aumeister, for example, one of four beer gardens in the city’s sprawling Englischer Garten. The Chinesischer
Turm (Chinese Pagoda), also in this central park, has extra-large dimensions, with places for some 8,000 people. Even bigger is the 10,000-seat Hirschgarten, located near Schloss Nymphenburg northwest
of downtown.
Others are more neighborly and intimate, the kind you would have to seek out for the reward of mingling with the locals. One such
is the Max Emanuel Brauerei on Adalbert Strasse -- in Munich’s hip Schwabing district, close to the university and Academy of Fine Arts. The same kind of laid-back folksiness prevails at theHofbraükeller on Wiener Platz, near the Bavarian State Parliament Building. It is across the Isar River, in Munich’s artsy Haidhausenneighborhood.
Riding Germany's Radwege
By Leah Larkin
If you like to ride a bicycle, Germany is about as good as it gets.
Deutschland is crisscrossed with some 40,000 km (24,800 miles) of marked bike routes (Radwege). Many towns have bicycle
lanes marked off on the side of the street or on the sidewalk. Bike routes meander through the woods and/or fields, connecting many German towns. The country's Radweg network now includes 190 long distance routes, with most of the pedaling off road on either paved or gravel bicycle trails. Many German trains, especially regional trains, have special cars for transporting bicycles. And, last but not least, German drivers, for the most part, are courteous and respectful of those on two wheels.
Dan and Pat Blaine, enthusiastic cyclists who live near Stuttgart, moved to Germany ten years ago to take advantage of what Dan
calls "the best biking in the world."
"Germany is very bicycle friendly," says John Hood, a dedicated rider who was stationed in Germany with the Army for
nine years. He is now back in the United States, where he finds "biking on the open roads a risky proposition." He misses those polite German drivers.
Bicycle Bob (my husband, a fanatic bicyclist) and I have pedaled along the Neckar and Rhine rivers, around Lake Constance,
through Munich and Stuttgart. We have followed the Danube from its source in southwestern Germany, some 559 km (about 350 miles) across the country to Passau. We have biked in the Altmuhl Valley, in the Allgau
and in the Black Forest. We have also had some wonderful rides on bike routes in Austria and Switzerland. Most of it has been great.
Weltenburg
The oldest beer garden in the world has been slacking thirst for 950 years, and is located at a Benedictine monastery!
By Sue Grant
Clocks in Bavaria, so it is said, keep a different time. That, no doubt, explains why the year there consists of five seasons:
summertime, autumn, winter, springtime and strong beer time. And where there are time warps, other anomalies follow as a matter of course. So it will come as no surprise to discover that the elements in this
part of the world also come in fives to include beer.
Certainly the crowd of day-trippers waiting to board the pleasure boat in the old Roman town of Kelheim appear to be in their
element. As well they might be.
For the ship will convey them upstream along the winding Danube river, past bizarre rock formations, fir-clad hilltops and stony
beaches, then through the narrow gorge, before rounding the bend to reveal Weltenburg, a Benedictine monastery with a superb beer garden serving pints from its own brewery, the oldest of its kind in the world.
To offer the pilgrim and traveler a hospitable welcome in his centers was perhaps one of St. Columban’s intentions when he left
Ireland to found monasteries on the Continent. Luxeuil in Burgundy was the focal point from which St. Eustace came to lay the foundations for Weltenburg in 617. Under the influence of St. Boniface and with the
support of Tassilo III, the monastery changed to the Benedictine order in the 7th century and has remained so ever since.
It was one of St. Benedict’s golden rules that the monks should be autonomous. Everything that was necessary for everyday life
had to be grown or produced within the monastery walls or on monastic ground.
Zürich
Surprisingly hip, this spotless Swiss city has become a favorite destination for young European clubbers.
By Steenie Harvey
Home to 363,000 people, German-speaking Zürich is Switzerland's largest metropolis as well as its commercial and economic
center. It should be a high profile destination, but for some reason it remains one of those unsung cities that very few people think of visiting, certainly not for pleasure. With the Alps only the faintest
smudge in the far distance, it is rarely anybody's first choice for a Swiss holiday. The city's reputation as a banking powerhouse also tends to make potential vacationers shy away. There is a wide perception
that this "important center of international finance" is starchy, decorous -- and dull as ditchwater.
Until last June, I regarded Zürich as just a transportation hub -- a place to pass through in order to reach the Real
Switzerland of mountain peaks and Heidi-like chalets. Yet places that are not overly dependent on tourism can be refreshing. The fact that it did not get many accolades was rather intriguing. Surely it could not
be all work and no play!
The "Little Big City" turned out to be full of surprises. For starters, I had not expected its waterfront location to
be quite so attractive. Chained fast to the Limmat river, the city arcs around the northern end of the Zürich-See or Lake Zürich. Although the suburbs stretch for miles, the center is neatly compact with both banks of the Limmat arrowing down to Bürklipatz. Here the city quays open out on to some splendid lakeside parks and promenades.
Calendar – June/July 2001
Columbus, OH
June 2: Garten Opening. Germania Singing & Support Society. Music by Fred Ziwick and the International Sound. For more information, call 96140 461-8095.
Harmony, PA
June 2: Historic Harmony House Tour.
Self-guided tour of historically significant or architecturally distinctive buildings begins at Harmony Museum. For more information, call 97240 452-7341.
Pittsburgh, PA
June 2: Seventh Annual Microbrewers Fest.
Hosted by Penn Brewery, more than 30 craft breweries form across PA. Beer sampling, meal, live entertainment, souvenir glass and program. For more information, call 94120 237-9402.
Winston-Salem, NC
June 6: Lunch at MESDA, Hidden Treasures. Old Salem. Mesda Auditorium. Bring a bag lunch. For further information, call 93360 721-7360.
Jessup, MD
June 6 & 17: The Continentals Performance. At Blob’s Park, For further information, call 94100 799- 0155.
Leavenworth, WA
June 22-24: International Accordian Celebration. For more information see www.leavenworth.org or call the Chamber of Commerce at (509)548-5807.
Germantown. WI
June 24: Pommern Tag.
Mequon Park. Good food and drink sponsored by the Pommerscher Verein Freistadt. Pommern heritage with the Freistadt Pomeranian Dancers. Music by the Alte Kameraden. Genealogy help and bookstore. For additional information, call (262) 782-0474.
Columbus, OH
July 3: Bratwurst Festival. Fireworks displkay in germania’s Biergarten. Music by the Tom Katrenich Band. For more information, call (6140 461-8095.
Germany
July 7-8: First Annual European Concours d’Elegance. Car show at Schloss Schwetzingen. See website www.europeanconcours.com for further information.
Marcy, NY
July 13-15: 28th Annual Bavarian Festival: Music and entertainment from Germany, German foods, at Utica Maennerchor, 5535 Flanagan Road. Call (315) 735-5882 for
further information.
Leavenworth, WA
July- Labor Day: Summer Theatre. In Leavenworth, includes The Sound of Music. For further information see www.leavenworth.org or call the Chamber of Commerce at (509)0548-5807.
Minneapolis, MN
July 19-21: Second Annual Ostfriesen Conference.
Sponsored by the Ostfriesen Genealogical Society of America. Guest speaker Günter Faßbender from Tergast, germany speaking on Ostfriesen churches, culture, and history. Mini-sessions on genealogy and research. For more information, call (651) 464-07880 or e-mail lstrong@cornernet.com
Columbus, OH
July 28: Euro-Day.
A collaborative cultural celebration of the Pan-European social clubs and societies of the greater Ohio area. Germania Singing & Sport Society. Music by Bill Antoniak and the Polka heroes. For more information, call 96140 461-8095.
New Bern, North Carolina
Founded by a Swiss nobleman, Christoph von Graffenried, the early 18th-century settlement of Baronie Bernbery was an exception – it thrived against all odds.
by Robert A. Selig
In November 1700, Carlos II, last king of the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg died. For the next 15 years, dozen of
armies crossed the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation, bringing hunger and death, devastation and dislocation. As Germany's population reached pre-Thirty Years' War levels, governments already confronted many
more empty hands and hungry mouths begging for work and food, and the war made matters only worse. All across German-speaking Europe, persecution of religious minorities such as Anabaptists, Mennonites or Amish
increased. Some, such as the Pietists around Francis Daniel Pastorius, founders of Germantown in 1683, left voluntarily. Others were waiting to be deported once a destination had been found. But the hungry and
innocent victims of war, anxious to improve their worldly fortunes wherever fate might lead them, often had neither a place to go to nor money to get there.
During the early years of the century, Britain's North American colonies emerged as a viable destination for all of them. So did
many a promoter and recruiter, some honest, some not, eager to take advantage of potential emigrants. The names of most of these Seelenverkäufer have long been forgotten, their settlement schemes, if ever built, known but to archaeologists or specialists in the field. One of the few exceptions to this rule is a hapless Swiss nobleman by the name of Christoph von Graffenried and his ultimately successful colony of New Bern in North Carolina.
Christoph von Graffenried was born on 15 November 1661, the eldest son of Anton von Graffenried (1639 to 1730) and Katharina
Jenner (+1669), a well-to-do noble family in Bern, a German-speaking Kanton of Switzerland. Following an upbringing appropriate for a young man of his rank and status, in April 1684, Christoph married Regina
Tscharner (1665 to 1731). For the next two decades, the couple and their four sons and seven daughters barely made ends meet until the debt-ridden 41-year-old acquired the lucrative position as bailiff of
Yverton in 1702.
Just as the new bailiff assumed his office, another Bernese named Franz Ludwig Michel was returning home from a voyage to
Virginia (see German Life, June/July 1999) where he had explored settlement possibilities for Swiss emigrants. For the next eight years, Michel and Georg Ritter and Johann Rudolph Ochs, his business partners in Bern, unsuccessfully promoted their plans in Switzerland and in London.
Michel's fortunes changed when he met Graffenried during one of his visits to Bern in 1708. Michel, so Graffenried wrote,
"informed me what a glorious country it is, how cheap, what liberty, what large growth, good business, rich mines and other good things it has. He told me especially what beautiful silver mines he has
found. … [C]onsidering that I was burdened with considerable debts," Graffenried secretly departed for London in May 1709, "leaving to my father, who was financially able to do so, to take charge of
my debts and business."
Graffenried arrived at an opportune moment.
German Chili Powder
Mexican Chili Powder Finds Its Way Into American Homes
Thanks To A "Dash" Of German Ingenuity
By Richard Varr
The spiced, pungent smell of sizzling fajitas delightfully crosses my path as I maneuver through the typical Friday night zigzag
of revelers in San Antonio. A Mariachi trumpet pierces the combustion of excitement on the famous River Walk here; the musicians serenade those chomping on tasty Mexican food plates. Every table here overflows
with chips and salsa -- almost like bountiful cartons of popcorn in a movie theater.
I walk by restaurant after restaurant, occasionally glancing down at the steaming plates of enchiladas and tamales; tacos and
chalupas; burritos and fajitas. I can almost taste the hot, delicious zing of the chili rellenos or the chili-con-carne. I imagine crunching on chips dipped in spicy chili-con-queso. Yes, all my Mexican food
favorites in a city with a distinct Mexican heritage and flavor. Many of them made with chili -- in fact, what would Mexican food be without that hot seasoning?
However, before you say "pass the chili," what might fire-up your curiosity is the fact that the man who developed the
first commercial chili powder -- thus making it readily available in the American kitchen -- was not of Mexican heritage, but a German-Texan. His name was William Gebhardt, and you may have noticed that bottles
of chili powder and other Mexican food products still carry the Gebhardt name. In fact, for more than 100 years, the ingenuity of a German settler has helped spark the proliferation of spicy Mexican food across
states lines and even around the world.
"It was a German man working out of a restaurant behind a saloon in German New Braunfels, Texas, that started cooking chili
and found, according to the popular version, that people liked it and they accepted it."
German-American Destinations
Derby Town Offers Taste of Germany
By David Domine
Known for its "fast horses, beautiful women and smooth whisky," Kentucky does not automatically come to mind when
speaking of German culture in the United States. However, like most parts of this country, the Bluegrass did boast a sizable German population, many arriving after the failed revolutions of the mid 1800s. It
might take a bit of hunting, but in Louisville, the state's largest city, visitors can still find vestiges of a rich Teutonic heritage and visible reminders of an impressive immigrant community. The annual Strassenfest in August and the Maibaum towering outside the Deutscher Gesangverein offer just a glimpse of a rich German legacy in Derby Town.
Visitors to Louisville can spend the night at the area's premier hotel, the Seelbach Hilton (502-585-3200) at the corner of 4th
and Muhammed Ali. Built in 1905 by two entrepreneur brothers from Bavaria, F. Scott Fitzgerald later immortalized this turn-of-the-century marvel in The Great Gatsby. The lobby is a wonderful example of
Beaux Arts elegance, and the premises even boast a proper Rathskeller that should not be missed. Constructed solely of famed Rookwood pottery from nearby Cincinnati, its vaulted arches and good luck penguins
make it the only room of its kind in the world. Upstairs on the mezzanine, in the 1907 gentlemen's club that appeared in several Hollywood films, guests can also enjoy the best in Kentucky fine dining at the
five-diamond Oakroom Restaurant under renowned chef Jim Gerhardt.
St. Louis
By Carolyn Cook
St. Louis is an ancient site for settlement – as many as 40,000 people lived there prior to 1300 A.D. – at the Cahokia Mounds
Historic Site. The settling of the modern city of St. Louis dates to about 1700 when French missionaries established Cahokia on land that had previously been claimed by the Spanish.
This Spanish-French outpost was built on a high bluff and was a perfect site to trade with the Native Americans. The access to the Mississippi also made it the center of the fur trade in America.
When the westward movement started, St. Louis became “the gateway to the west” where supplies and goods were sold to pioneers heading for land or gold. The location on the Mississippi, just below the mouth
of the Missouri River, made it a natural port of entry for good manufactured in the east that were needed for the westward expansion.
Between 1830 and 1840, St. Louis was growing steadily. A major population increase was due to the influx of immigrants that were arriving from Europe. The first wave of Germans came in the late
1820s through the mid-1830s. In 1833 only 18 German families lived in St. Louis, but by 1837, 6,000 Germans made their home there. They came to American to escape crowding – descriptions of the state were
publicized by the Giessen Emigration Society which described St. Louis at the “American Rhineland.”
Leavenworth
By Matt Johanson
What do you call a town that sounds American but looks, feels and tastes German?
Curious, for one thing, but its real name is Leavenworth, a German-styled town on Highway 2 in Washington, about two hours drive east of Seattle.
German-themed attractions such as an annual Oktoberfest, stage productions of The Sound of Music, and a colorful street yodeler are a few of the reasons Leavenworth has become
Washington’s second most popular tourist draw, behind the rainy city with the space needle.
But how is it that rarely a word of German is spoken there? “The thing that’s confusing to some visitors is that Leavenworth is not like Frankenmuth (a Michigan town founded by German
immigrants),” said Laura Jobin, sales manager of Der Ritterhof Motor Inn. “We chose this theme because of our physical likeness to Bavaria.”
Indeed, few if any German-Americans were among the flood of whites who arrived in Washington during the 19th Century, nearly causing the extinction of the Wenatchi, Yakama and Chinook
Indians for whom nearby rivers, lakes and towns are named.
After the Great Northern Railroad built a line through the area in 1892, Leavenworth was named for an investor in a real estate
company that developed the town. But between 1920 and 1950, the town lost the railroad and its sawmill even before the Great Depression hit. Commerce died as quickly as unemployment boomed, and Leavenworth
became known as the welfare capital of Chelan County.
Though the idea seemed odd to some, residents dreamed up a scheme in the mid-1960s to save the town: take on a German theme and try to support the community through tourism.
Oz Fest! Don Your German Specs!
by Marion Amberg
Click your heels! We're off to see the Wizard -- The German Wizard of Oz. This yellow brick road does not begin in Kansas but
Aberdeen, South Dakota.
"No fooling?"
'Tis so, Scarecrow. L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is believed to be based on Aberdeen characters and events. Just look at the thousands who attend Aberdeen's annual Oz Festival, spectators from Germany, even! They are brainier than you look!
"But the cyclone hit Kansas."
Not everything is as it looks, Scarecrow. Baum was a master at turning germs of fact into elaborate fiction. Even his life was a
fairy tale of sorts -- obstacles to be conquered and greatness won. Listen as I tell you his story.
Lyman Frank Baum was born May 15, 1856, near Syracuse, New York, to Cynthia and Benjamin Baum, a German cooper-turned-wealthy oil
man. (Baum's German-American roots were well established; his paternal ancestors had emigrated from the Palatinate in the mid-1700s.)
Scarecrow Scare
Suffering from a defective heart, Frank (as he later called himself) spent a sedentary childhood. He read German fairy tales and
English novels and entertained fey playmates. Naturally, his imagination got the best of him. A scarecrow on his father's farm once triggered a recurring nightmare.
"Happily, Frank always dashed away while the scarecrow waddled after him and finally collapsed into a pile of shapeless
straw," Frank Joslyn Baum wrote about his father in To Please a Child.
"That's me! I was part of his dream!"
Scarecrow, it would be another 40 years before you took shape. Baum's life took many twisters -- er, twists -- before he found
life's calling. He worked in his father's axle-grease business, self-published a book on Hamburg chickens (a German-Dutch bird with brilliant plumage) and peddled crockery.
The Hegeler-Carus Mansion
By Todd Volker
One of the great delights of the midwest is discovering its history. Small towns often look alike, and it takes some persistence to see how they’re different. With a little digging in
history, places in Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin come alive.
The German influence in the midwest is not hard to find. German migrants helped to develop the region’s agriculture and industry, and Germans also played a significant role in forming
important cultural institutions. One especially fascinating point of influence came to rest in La Salle, Illinois, a small city of about 8,000 people, with a sister city, Peru, having a roughly similar
population.
It was in La Salle that two enterprising young German engineers, Friedrich Matthiessen and Edward Hegeler, came in 1858 to found the Matthiessen and Hegeler Zinc Company. Both men were
graduates of the Königliche Bergakademie in Frieburg, Saxony. They learned that lead mine tailings from Mineral Point, Wisconsin along with locally-mined Illinois coal could fuel America’s first
successful zinc spelter. The company was successful from the start, receiving a tremendous boost in fortune from the Civil War, with its urgent need for brass (zinc is a brass component). Both men
became wealthy.
The M & H Zinc Company eventually grew to employ over 1,000 men by 1890. This was a huge enterprise in an era in which most factories employed 10-15 people. The La Salle-Peru area became
known as “Zinc City” and this industry encouraged German, czech and Polish migration to the area, with the zinc company attracting talented engineers and technical assistants.
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