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Arion Singing Society letter book and ephemera, 1858-1870, 1907-1936

Extent:
0.13 linear feet (1 box)
Abstract:
The Arion Singing Society (Gesang-Verein) was founded in 1857 by singers who had seceded from the Liedertafel der Deutschen Freien Gemeinde (later known as Harmonie), a singing society that began under the auspices of the Independent German Congregation of Philadelphia. This collection comprises a letter book of Arion, covering the period 5 May 1858 to 1 June 1870, and various ephemera dating from 1907 to 1957, including concert programs, one concert ticket, and four souvenir programs related to an annual bal masqué, or masked ball, that was a tradition of the society since 1865.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Otto Brauch papers, 1912, 1917-1919

Extent:
0.05 linear feet (1 folder, 7 items)
Abstract:
Otto Brauch was an immigrant from Hamburg, Germany, who settled in Philadelphia some time before 1917, and was working for the Hamburg-American Line in 1918. The collection of 7 items includes an identification card and insurance fund membership card related to his employment; a letter from the United States Immigration Service, 1917; and three items addressed to him in 1919, from his brother Carl Brauch, who was a prisoner of war at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, and returned home to Hamburg that year.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Deutsch-Amerikanischer Zentralbund von Pennsylvanien, Philadelphia branch, records, 1909-1941 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.21 linear feet (1 box, 18 folders)
Abstract:
This collection contains records of the Philadelphia branch of the Deutsch-Amerikanischer Zentralbund von Pennsylvanien (DAZB), also known as the German-American Central Alliance, or the German-American Federation, of Pennsylvania. The federation existed from 1899 until 1941; from 1901 to 1918 it was part of the National German-American Alliance, which it had helped to found. These extant records mainly comprise materials related to activities of the School Committee, which promoted German language learning, and learning about German-American culture, among German-American youth. Included are minutes (with financial reports), correspondence, fliers, and educational materials, dated 1909 to 1933. The remaining materials are ephemera, including a flier related to the fifth anniversary of the women's auxiliary, in 1932, and programs for German Day celebrations in 1940 and 1941. A few fliers bear texts composed by Adolph Timm and Max Heinrici concerning the preservation of...(see more)

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Edna Fern papers, circa 1905-1941

Extent:
0.13 linear feet (1 box)
Abstract:
Clippings and typescripts of writings by the German-American author Edna Fern (pseudonym of Fernande Richter), who was active in St. Louis, Mo. Two photographs are included, one of the author and one of her husband Georg Richter.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Frauenhilfsfond records, 1914-1922, 1924

Extent:
0.17 linear feet (1 box + 3 legal-size folders)
Abstract:
The Frauenhilfsfond was the women's auxiliary of the Hilfsfond (Relief Fund), a German-American charitable organization in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, devoted to war relief and humanitarian aid in German-speaking areas overseas during and after the First World War. The Frauenhilfsfond was essentially an umbrella group of German-American women's organizations in the Philadelphia area that coordinated the women’s efforts related to the relief work. The collection contains the complete minutes of the group from August 1914 until March 1917, as well as a record of donations received from March 1915 to April 1917. It also includes a log of homemade knitted items produced for overseas relief from October 1919 to March 1920, as well as a few items dated in the early 1920s related to campaigns to feed destitute children in German-speaking areas in Europe, efforts that were led by the American Friends Service Committee. The records dating from after 1917 appear to overlap with the activities...(see more)

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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German Associated Nationality Group of the American Red Cross War Fund Campaign. Records, 1943-1945 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.1 linear feet (5 folders)
Abstract:
This collection contains the records of the German Associated Nationality Group, a committee of the Southeastern Pennsylvania chapter of the American Red Cross that led a fundraising effort within the German-American community in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during World War II, from 1943 to 1945, as part of the Red Cross War Fund campaign. Included are minutes of meetings (12 March to 12 May 1943); invitation letters to meetings (July 1943 to April 1944); two appeal letters (1944, 1945), including related Red Cross campaign ephemera; committee membership lists; lists of donors and donations; and two clippings from German-language newspapers.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Oscar Guthmann family papers, circa 1914-1940

Extent:
0.05 linear feet (1 folder, 7 items)
Abstract:
Oscar Guthmann was a German seaman, born in Hamburg, in 1894, who later apparently settled in New York City. The collection comprises a 1921 copy of Guthmann's birth certificate, and 6 photographs, including one that is on a postcard addressed to a German, Hans Lüders, who was interned at the Knockaloe Aliens Camp on the Isle of Man, England, during World War I. Another photograph depicts a sailboat, or yacht, named Jacinta, at dock, and is inscribed on the verso with the name and address of Chase Adams of Dearborn, Michigan.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Harmonie Singing Society records, 1855-1918 (bulk) 1855-1957 (inclusive)

Extent:
2.0 linear feet (7 boxes + 3 oversize folders)
Abstract:
The collection contains the records of the Harmonie Singing Society of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, founded in 1855, and originally known as the Liedertafel des Deutschen Freien Gemeinde (Liedertafel of the Independent German Congregation); it changed its name to Harmonie in 1869, when it reestablished itself separate from the congregation. A Women's, or Ladies' Chorus (Damen-Chor) was founded in 1857. The records include minutes dating from the founding in 1855 until December 1918, with a gap during the years 1876 to 1885; a certificate of incorporation of 1892; ephemera from the late 1890s; a scrapbook of newspaper clippings documenting the 50th anniversary celebration, in 1905; correspondence related to the 60th anniversary celebration, in 1915; anniversary concert programs (1925, 1939, 1940, and 1949); and several songbooks used at regional singing festivals of the Nordöstlicher Sängerbund (1903-1957).

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Krutzke family papers, circa 1860s-1934, 1948-1969

Extent:
0.33 linear feet (2 boxes)
Abstract:
This collection consists of correspondence, photographs and memorabilia from the Krutzke (Krutzky) family. The correspondence is mostly addressed to Herbert Krutzke and his wife, Luise (Louise) Krutzke (née Greger), German Americans who came from East Prussia and lived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The correspondents are family members and several friends living in Germany. The correspondence falls into two time periods, 1911 to 1934 and 1948 to 1969. The memorabilia includes an art work, partly sewn, with a handwritten text, created by a German child in school, in the 1860s or early 1870s.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Women's Auxiliary of the German Society of Pennsylvania (Frauen-Hilfsverein) records, 1900-2013 (inclusive)

Extent:
6.25 linear feet (5 paige boxes)
Abstract:
The Women’s Auxiliary of the German Society of Pennsylvania was founded in 1900 to serve as an additional charitable arm of the Society, with particular emphasis on charity for families in distress in the Philadelphia area. Since its founding in 1764, the German Society had provided charitable assistance to German-speaking immigrants in the community, especially those newly arrived in the country. With German immigration on the decline in the early 20th century, the Women's Auxiliary assumed the greater portion of the Society's charitable work. After the First and Second World Wars the Auxiliary engaged in war relief to German speaking lands directly and in cooperation with Quaker relief agencies. As state and federal government undertook more and more welfare work in the city, the auxiliary charter was changed in the 1950s to provide scholarship aid to students who majored in German language study. The records include annual reports, charters, bylaws, minute books, treasurer’s...(see more)

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Austro-American Relief Society records, 1916-1942 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.83 linear feet (5 boxes + 1 oversize folder)
Abstract:
Records of the Austro-American Relief Society of Philadelphia, Pa., mainly documenting its charitable work from 1916 to 1941, including fundraising in behalf of war relief for Austro-Hungarian and German civilians and prisoners of war during and after World War I. The collection includes financial records, membership and donor lists, inventories, correspondence, ephemera, and clippings.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Deutscher Klub und Technischer Verein records, 1884-1939 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.9 linear feet (5 boxes)
Abstract:
Records of two Philadelphia societies, the Deutscher Klub (German Club), founded 1874, and the Technischer Verein von Philadelphia (Technical Society of Philadelphia), founded 1872. The Technischer Verein first became affiliated with the Deutscher Klub in 1896, and met at the latter society's clubhouse. In 1910 the two societies merged administratively; and in 1928 they finally published a newly revised constitution and by-laws for the combined organization, which was called Deutscher Klub und Technischer Verein. The collection includes Technischer Verein records from 1884 to 1926; Deutscher Klub minutes from 1888 to 1898; and minutes of the combined organization from 1922 to 1937, with one item dated 1939. Also included is ephemera dating from 1927 to 1933, inlcuding items from the Women's Auxiliary of the organization, and from the National Association of German-American Technologists, which from its beginnings in 1884 was closely aligned with the Technischer Verein von Philadelphia.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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H. H. Fick autobiography, circa 1935

Extent:
0.13 linear feet (1 box)
Abstract:
The collection comprises a scrapbook containing clippings of an autobiography written by Heinrich H. Fick, a German-American educator, writer and poet, born in Lübeck, who spent much of his professional life working in the public school system of Cincinnati, Ohio, and who was noted for his leading of the training program for German teachers, and his development of the bilingual German-English curriculum. His career there spanned the 1890s until 1918. The work, entitled "Zwischen Anfang und Ende: mein Leben" (Between the beginning and the end: my life), was published in installments in the Chicago German-language newspaper Sonntagpost, not long before Fick's death, in 1935. Fick tells of both his personal and his professional life, and also, at times, about current events, such as the assassination of President Lincoln, the Chicago fire of 1871, and German-American festive occasions. Included, at the back, is an obituary of Fick, which describes his funeral, in the...(see more)

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Germania Männerchor records, 1877-1975 (bulk) 1877-c1975 (inclusive)

Extent:
1.5 linear feet (1oversized flat box)
Abstract:
The Germania Männerchor of Philadelphia is one of the oldest German-American singing societies (founded on February 21,1853). This collection comprises meeting minutes, a cashbook, and ephemera including programs, a photograph, and audio recordings of the Germania Männerchor on a vinyl record, with materials spanning from the year 1877 to circa 1975. The specific items include a volume of minutes and accounts spanning the years 1877 to 1887, a cashbook spanning the years 1888 to 1814, concert programs, a photograph of the members of the Germania Männerchor circa 1932, and audio recordings of the 75th anniversary concert on a vinyl record.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Frederick W. Haussmann scrapbook, circa 1921-1925

Extent:
0.3 linear feet (1 volume/box + 6 folders)
Abstract:
Scrapbook kept by Frederick W. Haussmann, from approximately 1921 to 1925, related to his recreational and volunteer activities in Philadelphia, especially concerning the United Singers of Philadelphia (Vereinigte Sänger von Philadelphia), an umbrella organization of German-American choral societies, and the related regional group, Nordöstlicher Sängerbund, as well as the charitable organization Hilfsfond, which raised funds for humanitarian aid to Germany following the First World War. The volume also includes a section devoted to obituary clippings on German Americans in Haussmann's milieu.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Otto Welden literary manuscripts, circa 1860-1902 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.93 linear feet (4 boxes)
Abstract:
Handwritten copies of works by German-American author Otto Welden (pseudonym of P. J. Reuss), mostly produced at Welden's direction, with some material in his own hand. Comprises two volumes of poetry, three dramatic works, and two novels. Includes works that were published only in periodicals; some may not have been published in any form.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Anita Schade scrapbook, 1891-1957 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.5 linear feet (2 boxes)
Abstract:
This scrapbook documents the activities of Anita Schade and spans the years 1891 to 1957. A large portion of the materials are related to the German Literary Society which she founded in Washington, D.C., 1901. There is also content from several other organizations she was involved with, including the German Dramatic Society, the Goethe Society of America and the Shakespeare Club.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Scrapbooks on German Americans, 1905-1938 (bulk) 1885-1943 (inclusive)

Extent:
2.0 linear feet (5 boxes)
Abstract:
Eight scrapbooks of newspaper clippings related to German Americans and German-American issues, dating from 1885 to 1943, and concentrated in the period 1905 to 1938. Most of the clippings are from the New Yorker Staats-Zeitung, the New Yorker Herold, or the New York Times. Subjects include international news, general news, politics, obituaries, bequests, business, singing clubs, religion, and poems. The obituary clippings primarily cover prominent German Americans of the time and some Germans.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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German Society of Pennsylvania Agentur records, 1854-1938 (bulk) 1847-1947 (inclusive)

Extent:
10.0 linear feet (52 boxes)
Abstract:
72 volumes of handwritten ledgers, indexes, logs, reports, and letter books, recording the efforts of the Agentur to help needy German immigrants and Philadelphia residents of German origin over a period of a hundred years. Valuable biographical information for local history, social history, labor history, immigration research, genealogy.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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German Society of Pennsylvania Foreign Relief Committee records, 1919-1925, 1929

Extent:
0.5 linear feet (2 boxes + 1 oversize folder)
Abstract:
This collection contains the records of the German Society of Pennsylvania's Foreign Relief Committee, which from late 1919 through 1922 contributed humanitarian aid to the populations of Germany and Austria in the wake of the First World War. Most of the aid was distributed through the American Friends Service Committee. The collection contains correspondence, appeals, reports, financial records, and ephemera. The correspondence includes letters from 78 charitable organizations in Hamburg, Germany, that applied for distributions of donated sacks of flour in 1919; and nine letters written from various parts of Germany in 1922 during the period of inflation. The Foreign Relief Committee was comprised of an all-male committee of the Society and a committee of the Society's Women's Auxiliary, whose greatest contributions were in the form of knitted and sewn items produced by the members at weekly gatherings. Also included is a 1929 letter from the Deutsche Liga der freien...(see more)

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Max Heinrici manuscript and photographs, circa 1936-1939

Extent:
0.83 linear feet (2 boxes)
Abstract:
The collection contains an unpublished manuscript by Max Heinrici, and several photographs of him in his later years. The manuscript (approximately 460 leaves) tells the history of the German Society of Pennsylvania from 1915 to 1935, and was intended as a continuation of an earlier history of the Society that Heinrici had published in 1917, co-authored by Oswald Seidensticker. It includes biographical sketches of prominent Society leaders, and lists of its officers and board of directors for the period. The text gives perspectives on the experiences of German Americans in the era of the First World War, and contains material on charitable relief work carried on by German Americans in Philadelphia to benefit Germany and Austria-Hungary during and after the war.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Henry Voelcker, Catherine Rabe, and Frederick Martin Rabe family papers, 1871, 1879

Extent:
0.2 linear feet
Abstract:
The collection consists of 12 letters written by Henry Voelcker, of Philadelphia, to his wife, Catherine Voelcker (later: Catherine Rabe), over several months during a trip to Germany, in 1879, along with a small notebook containing a draft of another letter. Henry and Catherine were both German immigrants, and the destination of Henry's trip was Durkheim, Germany, his hometown; he was very ill at the time and died shortly after his return to Philadelphia. The collection also includes a diary (partly resembling an autograph album) belonging to Frederick Martin Rabe, whom Catherine later married. Rabe, also a German immigrant and resident of Philadelphia, wrote the diary in 1871 when he was living in Lawrence, New South Wales, Australia.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Junger Männerchor records, 1892-1966 (bulk) 1892-1966 (inclusive)

Extent:
1.7 linear feet (4 hollinger boxes + 1 oversized folder)
Abstract:
The Junger Männerchor of Philadelphia is one of the oldest German-American singing societies (founded on February 22,1852). This collection comprises membership records, ephemera, memorabilia, songbooks, sheet music, and audio recordings of the Junger Männerchor, with dated materials spanning from the year 1892 to 1966. The specific items include two member books (1906, 1911), concert programs, concert tickets, an issue of the society’s own periodical "Der Adler" (Oct. 1902), a preservation copy of a historical volume authored by J.F. Anton and published in 1902, and an extensive collection of songbooks and sheet music used by the society.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Philadelphia Turngemeinde collection, 1883-1958 (inclusive)

Extent:
0.17 linear feet (1 box + 1 oversize folder)
Abstract:
Collection of miscellaneous records as well as ephemera of the Philadelphia Turngemeinde (also known as the Philadelphia Turners), one of the oldest German-American Turner, or gymnastics clubs in the United States, founded in 1849. The records include a letter dated 1900 from Turngemeinde vice president Louis F. Schuck to the Academy of Music; an original manuscript (4 leaves), dated 1911, by member Casper Fischer, telling the history of the organization from the founding until 1899; and a guest register for events of the club from 1956 to 1958. The ephemera include invitation letters, program and admission ticket to the dedication ceremony of the new Turngemeinde hall in 1883 and the first two leaves of the Philadelphia newspaper Vereins und Logen Zeitung for 20 May 1899 containing the report of the Turngemeinde's 50th anniversary celebration.

Held at: German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library [Contact Us]

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Henry Shmith scrapbooks, 1950-1975 (bulk) 1924-1979 (inclusive)

Extent:
2.5 linear feet
Abstract:
Henry Shmith (also spelled Heinrich Schmitz and Henry Schmidt) was born on August 21, 1899 in Germany. Shmith traveled extensively, working as a professional chef at many locations in the Delaware Valley region of the United States and frequently returning to Germany for visits. He settled in Glen Mills, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, where he passed away in 1982. The Henry Shmith scrapbooks, 1924-1979 (bulk 1950-1975), consist of about 20 volumes compiled by Henry Shmith, with photographs as well as clippings, ephemera, stamps, greeting cards, and letters. The scrapbooks, heavily annotated by Shmith, mostly in German with some English, focus on areas in the Delaware Valley or in and around Germany (including Spiegelau).

Held at: Delaware County Historical Society [Contact Us]

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