Max Kade Institute Friends Newsletter

VOLUME 12 NUMBER 1 • SPRING 2003

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN–MADISON, 901 UNIVERSITY BAY DR., MADISON, WI 53705

WHAT’S INSIDE: A scene from the Two new books forthcoming Holyland from MKI monograph series. region in Page 2 east-central Wisconsin.

Fitchburg, home to “Karl of ,” sought-after Photo courtesy of Beth Schlemper Plattner. Page 3 Building identity in Decorative book bindings on By Prof. Beth Schlemper has always had the greatest propor- display at UW–Madison. German immigration has had a tion of Germans in its population, Page 4 profound and lasting impact on the but also because of the ubiquity of Friends announce fall . Indeed, more people their presence. heritage trip to Germany. in this country claimed German Among the most distinctive Page 6 ancestry in the 1990 census than any German settlements in Wisconsin is Friends Profile of Mary and other. Of all the states of the Union, one that since at least 1898 has William Seeger. the German legacy is perhaps most been known as the Holyland. The Page 6 evident in Wisconsin. This is in large district, which is primarily in Fond Book Review: The Blessed part a result of the fact that the state Continued on page 10 Place of Freedom: Euro- peans in Civil War America. Page 7 Remembering MKI Friend Sue Stoddard

Collection By Fran Luebke joined the Board in the Feature: The Friends of the Max spring of 2000 and served Health and Kade Institute lost not only as secretary of the Board medical a member of the Board of for the past two years. advice Directors but a dear friend Our association with Sue books. began through a serendipi- Pages 8–9 with the death of Susan Stoddard on January 13, tous discovery in her 2003. Sue died of breast Sue Stoddard parents’ home. A number of cancer at age 59. She 1943–2003 Continued on page 4 2

ANNUAL MEETING MKI set to release May 8, 2003 two more books This year’s Friends annual meeting and By Eric Platt dinner will be held on Thursday, May 8, 2003 The Max Kade Institute’s monograph series is in the Pyle Center’s Alumni Lounge, pleased to announce the release of two books this 702 Langdon Street, Madison. spring: German-Jewish Identities in America edited 4 p.m. Annual Meeting, Room 320 by Christof Mauch and Joseph Salmons and The 5–8 p.m.: Reception, Dinner, and Speaker Dictionary of Mennonite Low German by Jack The after-dinner featured talk will be on Thiessen. “Wisconsin’s German Population and the German-Jewish Identities in America examines Civil War,” by Dr. Richard Zeitlin. the changing political, social, and cultural contexts that Dr. Zeitlin is director of the Wisconsin led German Jews to take on many different identities Veterans Museum and is an adjunct teacher of in nineteenth- and twentieth-century America. It U.S. military history at the University of covers topics ranging from the relationship between Wisconsin–Madison. He is the author of German and Eastern European Jews in America to the Germans in Wisconsin and a number of other development of B’nai B’rith and German Jews’ role in books and articles, mostly on state and local the building of modern American show business. history as well as military affairs. The contributors to this volume are as diverse as To register, contact Antje Petty by email the topics they cover. Although most of the chapters ([email protected]) or by phone (608) 262- are by historians, there are also ones from a linguist, 7546. theater and literature professors, and even an award- We look forward to seeing you ... and bring winning documentary filmmaker. a friend! German-Jewish Identities in America is co- published with the German Historical Institute in Wash- ington, DC, and is available in hardcover for $29.95. Those Friends more interested in language than history might want to check out the monograph series’ other new book, The Dictionary of Mennonite Low The Newsletter of the Friends of the Max Kade Institute for German. This dictionary, which will be the most German-American Studies is published quarterly at the detailed one available for Mennonite Low German University of Wisconsin–Madison. The Newsletter is edited available, contains entries for over 25,000 words and produced by Nicole Saylor with the assistance of the Newsletter Committee of the Board of Directors and is ranging from Äajdatjs (lizard) to Resse’rieta (prank- printed by Great Graphics, Inc. The Newsletter appears ster) and Zyreen (siren). Many include colorful quarterly in March, June, September, and December. examples taken from popular sayings and poetry that Submissions are invited and should be sent directly to: illustrate how native speakers in areas as far-flung as Max Kade Institute Russia, Canada, and Latin America continue to use for German-American Studies the language today. 901 University Bay Drive The Dictionary of Mennonite Low German is Madison, WI 53705 Ph: (608) 262-7546 Fax: (608) 265-4640 available in hardcover for $39.95. For more informa- Any submissions via e-mail may be directed to tion about this and all our other publications, please [email protected]. visit the publications portion of our webpage: http:// Visit the Max Kade Institute on the csumc.wisc.edu/mki/Publications/ World Wide Web at: 1.PublicationsFrames.htm http://csumc.wisc.edu/mki To order by phone call (773) 568-1550. On-line orders: http://www.wisc.edu/wisconsinpress/order.html 3 ‘Karl of Germany’: Plattner Kunst in Wisconsin

By Antje Petty To his friends and customers, he is known as “Karl of Germany,” which leaves no doubt about his country of origin. Karl Lechten, who grew up in Bremen/ Gröpelingen and came to the United States in 1966, has done many things in life, but it is for his most recent endeavor, his Plattner work, that he is now recognized around the world. A Plattner (from the German word Platte ‘plate’) is someone who makes steel plate armor suits, a craft of Photos courtesy of Karl Lechten great practical importance in Above: Karl works in his shop located in the basement of his Fitchburg home. Below: Peter and Lydia Moric, who were married in April 2002 in medieval Europe but of notably Strecno castle, Slovakia, hired Karl to design wedding-day armor. less significance in today’s society. This begs the question: What is a able demand for suits of armor for master Plattner doing in twenty- display purposes in this country. first century Fitchburg, Wisconsin? Upon researching the subject, The answer is intertwined with the Karl learned to his surprise that fascinating story of Karl’s life. very little quality armor was still While still living in Germany, made anywhere in the world. Items Karl had trained as a hairdresser were either rare and expensive with the intention of eventually originals from the Middle Ages, taking over the family business. sold only by specialty auction When he decided to migrate to the houses, or cheap mass produc- United States he initially planned on tions. Karl, recalling his father’s continuing to work in his trade. But motto, “What you don’t know, you only a few months after his arrival, can always learn,” decided to Karl — still a German citizen — acquire the knowledge to pursue was drafted into the U.S. military. the craft himself. He contacted one After three years of service, which of the very few Plattners in included a tour of duty in Vietnam, Germany and was able to appren- Karl came to Madison, where his tice with him — an apprenticeship wife had found a teaching job. in the old guild tradition, where the century, steel-plate armor had Here he opened a chain of four apprentice has to stay with the replaced chain armor, which had successful hair salons. However, master for two years and pay for become useless against the new after two decades in the hairstyling the privilege of learning the trade. weapons of the day: crossbows business, Karl was ready for In the years since his appren- and long bows. In those days, the something new. He had always ticeship, Karl has perfected his main centers of the craft were been fascinated by medieval armor skills and has become one of a Nuremberg, Landshut, Augsburg, and decided to go into the armor very few specialists worldwide in import business, sensing consider- Renaissance armor. In the fifteenth Continued on page 11 4

Stoddard from page 1 other people would find historical “treasures” in their more than one hundred letters written between 1848 homes, she never missed the opportunity to make and 1865 to Jacob Sternberger, her paternal great- appeals for donations to the Max Kade Institute. grandfather. Sternberger left German-speaking Whether in public programs or private meetings, her Bohemia after the failed 1848 Revolution and settled probing curiosity, creative suggestions or ideas, and in Wisconsin. The letters were written in the old enthusiasm for the mission of the Institute sparked German script,, which can no longer be deciphered by spirited discussions and imaginative solutions. most readers today. Sue was able to find a friend, Dr. Her greatest gifts to us were personal. When she Walter Lewinnik from Merrill, who could translate walked into a room, it came alive with her smile. She some of the letters. It soon became evident that they displayed personal warmth, seemingly boundless were of great historical significance and needed to be energy, and cheerfulness and fortitude in the face of preserved and made accessible to scholars. A historian illness. She lent strength to those who needed it, friend suggested that Sue consider donating them to the comforted those in distress, applied her great intellec- Max Kade Institute. Following her friend’s advice, Sue tual abilities to numerous organizations, and served as wrote: “Hopefully these letters will help us understand an example of a great human being to all who knew the failed 1848 Revolution from yet another historical her. In appreciation of Sue’s service, last spring the and political perspective, as well as provide linguistic Friends announced the establishment of the and intellectual information from this time, and give us a Sternberger Fund to help underwrite the translation picture of the struggles faced by those who came to find and transcription of her donated letters. a new life.” The letters are archived at the Max Kade Anyone wishing to contribute to this fund may Institute and are being translated and will be made contact Antje Petty [email protected] or Mark Louden available to the public on the web through the Institute’s [email protected] at the Max Kade Institute, (608) special digital library collection. 262-7546. Sue will be deeply missed, and the staff The letters were just the first of many donations and Friends of the Max Kade Institute send their Sue made to the Institute. Sue was tireless in promot- deepest sympathy to her husband, Steve, and family. ing the Institute across the state. Convinced that many Fran Luebke is president of the MKI Friends. News in Brief Events Calendar Decorative bindings on display Antje Petty is giving a talk, “Beyond Reci- The University of Wisconsin–Madison Library pes: A Look at Immigrant Life through System has produced an electronic exhibit that high- German American Cookbooks,” at 7:15 lights the splendid artistry of German decorative p.m., Wednesday, April 2, at Madison Area bindings during the period from roughly 1870 to 1920. Technical College (Truax campus), Rm. 120. The Art of Books—German Decorative Trade Bindings contains color images of more than seventy- German Consul General Dr. Alexander five beautifully designed covers and title pages repre- Petri will speak about “Trans-Atlantic senting various artistic styles, including the exuberantly Relations between Germany and the U.S.” curving lines and floral motifs of Jugendstil and the at 2:30 p.m., Thursday, April 3, at 206 sleek geometric patterns of Art Deco. The virtual Ingraham Hall, UW–Madison. exhibit may be viewed at: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/ 1711.dl/DLDecArts.GerDecBind. Goethe Institute Director Rüdiger van Many of the German-language books in the Max den Boom will give an informational talk Kade Institute’s Published in North America collection about the Goethe Institute in Chicago at a also have strikingly illustrated covers. If you would like noon brown bag luncheon on Thursday, to browse the collection, please call MKI Librarian April 10, 336 Ingraham Hall. Kevin Kurdylo at 262-7546. 5 Director’s Corner Stoddard’s legacy lives on at Max Kade Institute By Mark Louden, MKI Director We started this year off on a very sad note with the tive assistant, Lisa Blochwitz, recently accepted a new passing of our dear friend and Max Kade Institute position in the Limnology department. Even though Friends Board member, Sue Stoddard. (See the Lisa was with us just since August, she did quite a bit memorial article on page 1.) Sue was one of the MKI’s to keep our day-to-day operations here at the Key- most tireless advocates, and her energy, spirit, and stone House running smoothly. We miss Lisa and wish personal warmth will be missed by all of us who knew her well in her new position. her. Her presence at the Institute, however, endures. If you’ve read the newspapers or seen the news As many of you know, three years ago Sue do- lately, you will undoubtedly have heard about Gover- nated an amazing collection of letters and other nor Doyle’s proposed budget, which includes substan- personal documents from the family and friends of her tial cuts to funding for the UW System. You might great-grandfather, Jacob Sternberger, a “48er” who wonder what impact this might have on the MKI. Due emigrated to Wisconsin in the mid-nineteenth century. to the fact that nearly all of our operating expenses are The Sternberger Collection contains a wealth of first- covered from sources other than state-allocated funds, hand information about life in Central Europe during we hope that any direct effects of the budget cuts will that time, immigration to North America, and early be minimal. However, the sluggish economy has taken Wisconsin history. These letters were written in the old its toll on our endowment income, so we are redou- German script, so transcribing and translating them bling our efforts in the areas of grant writing and involves a fair bit of work. After Sue’s passing, the publications. This spring the MKI and CSUMC have Stoddard family generously named the MKI a recipi- submitted two major grant proposals, and our MKI ent of contributions in Sue’s memory so that we might monograph series has six new titles that are close to see the transcription and translation of the Sternberger entering production. Collection to completion. I am very happy to report And now more than ever we depend on the that several of Sue’s friends and relatives have now support of our Friends, in all senses of the word. helped us to realize our goal. We have employed two Thanks in large part to the Friends, our financial gifted and hardworking graduate students from the situation is secure, and we look forward to building UW–Madison German department, Kristen our programming in the future. At present we are Reifsnyder and Kimberly Miller, to work on the developing some very exciting projects to take “on the documents. We look forward soon to making these road” across Wisconsin, which you’ll be learning more fascinating documents accessible to the public and about in coming newsletters. scholars alike. This is a wonderful tribute to Sue and As always, I am deeply grateful to all our Friends everything she has done for the MKI. for their ongoing support for the MKI. I wish you all a I have another transition to report. Our administra- very happy spring!

The Friends of the Max Kade Institute Board of Directors:

Rose Marie Barber, Milwaukee Antje Petty (ex-officio), Madison Robert Bolz (Vice President), Madison Karyl Rommelfanger, Manitowoc Dennis Boyer, Dodgeville Mark Louden (ex-officio), Madison Charles James, Madison Kent Salomon, Appleton Fran Luebke (President), Brookfield Jeanne Schueller, Watertown Bob Luening (Treasurer), Madison William Thiel, Eau Claire 6 Friends to sponsor heritage tour to Germany Join us September 10-18, 2003, for our MKI home of many immigrants who settled in Wisconsin's Friends inaugural tour through several regions of “Holyland.” We will also visit Liblar, the birthplace of Germany that sent many early immigrants to Wiscon- Carl Schurz, and continue on to Bonn. After visiting sin. After arriving in Frankfurt, this historical and Cologne, Osnabrück, and Bremen, we will follow the cultural tour will begin by exploring villages of Weser to Bremerhaven to explore the port from which Rheinhessen with Dr. Helmut Schmahl, a German many of our ancestors departed for America. Dr. historian well-known to Wisconsinites. The tour will Wolfgang Grams, the tour coordinator, has extensive continue on to the Palatinate, the cities of Worms and experience arranging tours. Tours will be led by Mainz, and include a Rhine River cruise. We will also English-speaking guides. An upcoming mailing will travel along the River as we enjoy our tour at provide more details about the trip. For more the height of the wine festivals. Further stops will information contact Friends President Fran Luebke include and the region, the ancestral via email at [email protected].

Friends Profile Michigan couple has longtime ties to MKI By Regina Smith Bill (Wilhelm) and Mary Seeger, both life mem- Madison. In addition to teaching, Mary has been a dean bers of the Max Kade Institute Friends, have been at GVSU for 30 years; currently she is the dean of part of Grand Valley State University in western Academic Resources and Special Programs, which Michigan almost since the very beginning. They came means that she is in charge of all academic matters that to the fledgling institution from UW–Madison in 1965 affect undergraduates. Mary previously taught linguistics to help develop the foreign language department at in the English Department for many years, and still the behest of GVSU’s first president, James teaches one or two German courses a year, as well as a Zumberge, who had been Bill’s geology junior seminar in the Honors College. professor at the University of Michigan. The Seegers are very active in the They completed their Ph.D.’s in 1970, “We wish community, and they have held leadership during the same week as the shootings at desperately that roles in many different organizations Kent State, and they both remember [the MKI] had reflecting their wide-ranging interests. student protests on campus. existed when we They are life members of the Society for Bill, who grew up in Grand Rapids as were students.” German-American Studies, for which they the son of German restaurateurs, spoke hosted the 25th Symposium in 2001. Bill is German at home, and didn’t learn English — Mary Seeger also a past president of the Grand Rapids until he entered school, during World War Historical Society and the Michigan II, at a time when German was not a very chapter of the American Association of welcome language in America. He attended the Teachers of German. Mary has served on the board of University of Michigan for his B.A. and M.A., and the Swedish-American Heritage Society, as well as then switched to the UW–Madison after a year at the serving for six years as the president of the Girl Scout University of Bonn. Bill helped develop the German Council; she is the current president of the Greater curriculum at GVSU, and is one of the few full Grand Rapids Women’s History Council. As for their professors in the Modern Languages Department. membership in the MKI Friends, Mary notes: “we wish Mary, who is of Scandinavian descent, added desperately that [the MKI] had existed when we were German to her linguistic interests after a high-school students.” exchange in Germany, and studied both Swedish and Regina Smith is an assistant professor of German German at the University of Minnesota and the UW– at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich. 7 Book Review Exploring the role of European immigrants in the Civil War Mahin, Dean B., The Blessed Place of Freedom: Europeans in who did enlist in the Union army in a higher propor- Civil War America. Washington: Brasseys, Inc., 2002. tion to their percentage in the Northern population. By Kerry Dobbins Despite this, support for the Union was not universal Dean B. Mahin’s most recent work, The Blessed among the Germans, who were divided along religious Place of Freedom, takes on an ambitious project, to and regional lines. Mahin’s statement that “the Ger- synthesize the massive amount of primary and second- mans usually accepted conscription without protest” is ary information on European involvement in the Civil out of place with his failure to mention any of the War and condense it into a single volume that is just predominantly German Catholic draft riots that broke shy of three hundred pages. The task is monumental, out in Wisconsin, while devoting two and a half pages considering the scope of the work, which includes not to the Irish Catholic riots in . only Europeans who emigrated to the United States, This type of imbalance plagues the book, and but also those who came over for the duration of the Mahin spends another two and a half pages discussing conflict, as either combatants or observers. Consider- a rather minor incident in which sixteen Germans were ing the goals of the book, it might not be surprising killed while attempting to evade the Confederate draft then that the execution is somewhat flawed. in Texas. Although a fascinating and little-known Mahin’s work is not an academic text, and the episode, the detailed account Mahin provides is out of author doesn’t claim otherwise. Meant for genealogists line with his stated goal of providing a general survey or armchair historians, Mahin has organized the book of European experiences. In a similar vein, Mahin into two types of chapters. The first type details the makes a half-hearted attempt to guess at the motiva- experiences of the various ethnic groups, consisting of tions of immigrants arriving during the war years, a chapter each devoted to the Germans, Irish, British, especially in the case of Germans who offered to join and French, with another chapter devoted to the the Union army in return for free passage to America, smaller populations of immigrant groups. Other chap- which he takes to indicate support for the Union. The ters are what Mahin calls “topical” chapters, detailing chapter reduces the issue of immigration from each the reactions of Europeans to events during the war. country to a few short paragraphs and is the weakest There are two other clear divisions within the book in the book. that are not used as organizational elements — first, Even if Mahin had been more successful in the between Europeans immigrants and those who were execution of his goals, the usefulness of these types of only in the country during the war, and second, be- histories themselves might be questioned. The myriad tween combatants and observers, both in America and reasons the immigrants gave for enlisting on either side abroad. of the conflict mirror those in James McPherson’s Trying to place all these diverse groups under the What They Fought For, a slim, general volume about umbrella of “European” is problematic, since not only the motivations of combatants on both sides. Perhaps does it divide the book into many short chapters (some one of the most telling quotes comes from the French only five pages long), but it places the author in the commander of the Fifty-fifth New York regiment position of having to paint his picture in very broad when describing his French immigrant troops: “Under strokes, relying on general descriptions of so-called fire, when nobody saw them, they did neither better national characteristics. He quotes Ella Lonn’s obser- nor worse than the others.” The Blessed Place of vation that “the mass of Germans were patient, philo- Freedom suffers most from its lack of focus, which is sophical, plodding men,” a sweeping statement that a shame because with its clear writing style and survey was critiqued in 1952 and seems even more out of presentation, it has the potential to be widely read by place fifty years later. This is always the danger with the general public, which after all, is what more books that summarize large amounts of data, however historians should strive for. Mahin’s work seems somewhat unfocused in this Kerry Dobbins is a graduate student in the regard. His sympathies clearly lie with the Germans, UW–Madison History Department. 8 Collection Feature Medical advice books for German-Americans

By Kevin Kurdylo, MKI Librarian

The Max Kade Institute Library tion; there are many more that contains many advice books for the could not be included here. To preservation of health and the view these books, or any others in treatment of illness published for use the MKI Library, please contact by German-speaking citizens of the Kevin Kurdylo at (608) 262-7546 late nineteenth century. These books or [email protected] to make an reveal a great deal about the prevail- appointment. ing ideas of the time on numerous topics, including health, disease, diet, exercise, sex, mental health, and Das Buch der Mütter, welches moral living. Indeed, in several of the auch die Väter gerne lesen books the living of a moral life and werden. Cleveland: Lauer & the development of strong character Mattill, 1888. 492 pp., ill. are inextricably linked to good Intended as a “useful friend and a corporeal health. And often the counselor for mothers in the basic advice for the preservation of education of their children and in health is sound, as in the chapter on the administration of their house- Health in Der goldne Wegweiser: holds,” this book includes advice Ein Führer zu Glück und on maintaining health and treating Wohlstand (The Golden Signpost: A illness, as well as this interesting Guide to Happiness and Prosperity): information about death: “Zu den Hauptbedingungen der The proper way to carry an “Manchmal findet ein Loslösen des Gesundheit gehören: Reine Luft, unconscious person, from Geistes vom Leibe schon vor dem Ein Freund in der Noth, 1898. angemessene Nahrung, passende Tode statt. Das Bewußtsein Wohnung und Kleidung, Reinhaltung schwindet, der Geist schaut und und Abhärtung des Körpers, Bewegung und Schlaf.” hört Dinge einer andern Welt, nach kurzer Zeit kehrt “Among the main requirements for health are: pure air, das Bewußtsein zurück, der Sterbende kann oft noch proper nutrition, suitable housing and clothing, cleanli- erzählen oder andeuten, was er gesehen und gehört ness and tempering of the body, exercise, and sleep.”) hat, um bald endgültig aus dieser Welt abzuscheiden.” A great deal of the therapeutic advice presented in (“Sometimes a separation of spirit and body occurs these books relies on herbal lore, no doubt incorporat- before death. Consciousness fades, the spirit sees and ing advice passed down for centuries. The German hears things from another world, after a short time edition of Dr. Chase’s Recept-Buch und Haus-Arzt, consciousness returns, and the dying individual can oder praktische Lehren für das Volk (Dr. Chase’s often still tell or hint at what was experienced before Recipe Book and Household Physician, or Practical leaving this world for good.”) Knowledge for the People) is a veritable treasure chest of information with formulas for everything from curing Dr. Ward’s Wegweiser. Winona, MN.: J. R. rheumatism, bandaging wounds, and treating bee stings Watkins Medical Co., 1898. 48 pp., ill. to making soap, washing windows, and cleaning Mainly an advertisement translated from English, this clothes. Below are listed a few of the health-related booklet includes testimonials from users of such books in the MKI Published in North America collec- products as Dr. Ward’s Vegetablisches Continued on page 9 9

Collection feature from page 8 cludes correspondence from patients of the German schmerzstillendes Liniment (Vegetable Anodyne Medical Institution. Liniment), Petro-Carbo Salve, Gen-De-Can-Dra für das Blut (a tonic bitters), Improved Condition Pulver Bock, Karl Ernst. Das Buch vom gesunden und (a powder apparently used to treat horses and other kranken Menschen: Ein bewährter und vollständ- livestock), and kleine Leberpillen (Cathartic Liver iger Führer zur Erhaltung und Pflege der Gesund- Pills). heit sowie zur Heilung des kranken Körpers. Milwaukee: Brumder, 1880. vi, 359 pp. Ein Freund in der Noth, ein Freund bis zum Tod: Gesundheits-Winke fürs Haus. Eddy, Mary Baker. Science and Health with Key New York.: Metropolitan to the Scriptures = Lebensversicherungs- Wissenschaft und Gesundheit Gesellschaft, 1898. vi, 89, ill. mit Schlüssel zur Heiligen Issued by a life insurance com- Schrift. Boston: Trustees under pany, this guide covers accidents the will of Mary Baker G. Eddy, and injuries, child care, specific 1875. xii, 697 pp. poisons and their antidotes An authorized translation of the (including standing someone on teachings of Christian Science, his/her head for one or two this book alternates pages in minutes if they’ve breathed in too English and German. much chloroform), and general house hygiene. Faber, Dr. Schutz, Hilfe und Beistand. Milwaukee: Brumder, Homöopathischer Familien- 1896. ix, 338 pp., ill. Arzt für Familien, Farmer, Includes information on the Reisende, Missionäre, Pioniere, health-preserving and curative und Laien im Allgemeinen. benefits of “home gymnastics” Chicago: Deutsche and massage. Homöopathische Central- Apotheke, 1887. 79 pp. Herzog, Maximilian. Deutsch- The homeopathic method for Amerikanischer Hausarzt: Ein medizinischer Rathgeber für dealing with the maintenance of The skeletal system, from Dr. Faber’s health and the curing of illness, Schutz, Hilfe und Beistand, 1896. Haus und Familie bei Unfällen which includes the belief that a und Erkrankungen. Chicago: substance that would cause specific symptoms in a Laird & Lee, 1895. 253 pp., ill. healthy person when taken in its raw form will also alleviate those symptoms in an ill person when cor- Künzle, Joh., comp. Gesunder Körper durch rectly prepared and administered. Heilkräuter: Winke und Ratschläge über Heilung von Krankheiten. Hammond, IN: Hammond Book Der Rettungs-Anker, zuverlässiger ärztlicher Co., n.d. 96 pp. Rathgeber bei allen Krankheiten, Schwäche- Alphabetical list of ailments with herbal and nutritional Zuständen und functionellen Störungen der cures. Includes a list of botanicals in German with Zeugungs-Organe beider Geschlechter. 110th ed. English translations. New York: Deutsches Heil-Institut, 1916. x, 233 pp., ill. This book has a great deal to say about the ill effects Querner, Emil. Der Selbstarzt, oder, Doctor und of onanism (masturbation) for both genders, segues Apotheker im eigenen Hause. 4. Auflage. Allentown, into the horrors of venereal diseases, and even in- PA: Trexler & Härtzell, 1886. 192 pp. 10

A map of the villages in the Eifel from which many of the emigrants came.

Holyland from page 1 region for emigrants to the Holyland. du Lac County and partially in Calumet County, Reasons for migrating from this part of Rhenish consists of several rural German Catholic communities Prussia varied, but emigrants were most often moti- connected by religion and place of origin. With vated by economic factors. They left in search of placenames such as Johnsburg, Mount Calvary, improved economic conditions, particularly with the Marytown, St. Peter, St. Cloud, St. Anna, St. Joe, hope of procuring better land for agricultural pur- and Jericho, there is little mystery on the surface as to poses. During the nineteenth century, crop failures, why the district has its nickname. The real meanings of land scarcity, and changes in industry contributed to a the sobriquet “Holyland” are far more varied and rising tide of emigration from the Vulkan Eifel. The nuanced than one might expect at first glance. Kreise (districts) Daun and Adenau were particularly Several factors seem to contribute to the idea of the hard-hit and contributed many immigrants to the Holyland of east-central Wisconsin and serve as clues Holyland. to the meaning of this place: The emigrants from the The earliest group of emigrants from the Eifel, who Eifel, who began arriving during the 1830s, and their left between 1830 and 1860, formed the strong descendants; the Catholic Church, including both nucleus of German settlement in the region. A second German and Irish Catholic members; the activities of wave of emigration from the Eifel to the Holyland the Capuchin Order of the Catholic Church; the began in the 1860s and continued into the 1870s. This networks of social organization that bond members of is evident in the expansion and growth of new parishes the community; and contemporary images of the that took place during those decades. For the most region all seem to work together to reveal and to part, settlers who arrived in the area in the latter part of perpetuate its identity. The borders of the Holyland are the nineteenth century seemed to have a clearer sense best represented as an abstract layering of the images of destination than the earlier pioneers. For example, generated from each of these pieces of the puzzle. Johann Steffes, who was listed in the 1860 and 1870 In my research I have traced the immigration and manuscript pages of the United States Census and who settlement of Germans from the Eifel to Wisconsin’s farmed land in Section 30 of the Town of Marshfield, Holyland during the nineteenth century. The majority of already knew about several families from the Eifel living these early settlers came from small villages and in this region of Wisconsin prior to emigration. Thus, hamlets in the Vulkan (or Hohe) Eifel region of Steffes, like so many others, settled in a region where Rhenish Prussia, more specifically from places such as friends and family awaited him. , , Boos, , Engeln, Günderath, Endorsements from friends and relatives who had , Lind, Mannebach, Nitz, , , already immigrated to the United States prompted , Ulmen, , and Zermüllen. The many to leave their homes in the Eifel in search of parish of Retterath was an especially significant source Continued on page 11 11

Plattner from page 3 metallurgical techniques, such as the use of mercury in and Innsbruck. Here, Plattners invented a technique the gilding process, are now known to pose health to harden the steel, thus allowing for a thinner armor, and environmental hazards, so Karl resorts to more greatly reduced weight, and increased mobility. At the modern methods. same time, Italian Plattners developed a variety of For those customers who do not need a whole suit techniques to decorate the steel. By etching, gilding, of armor, Karl can make just shields or helmets. Also, embossing, enameling, or blackening the family crests in embossed copper, steel, they turned suits of armor into silver, or etched steel are popular. works of art. Is anybody actually wearing Karl In short, to create a beautiful and Lechten’s suits of armor? Yes and no. functional suit of armor you need a Most of Karl’s work is adorning number of distinct skills, or as Karl puts museums, corporate offices, or the it, “you have to be an artist, a plumber, private homes of people who want a and a seamstress at the same time.” The distinctive and unusual showpiece. making of a suit of armor is a painstaking However, a year ago Karl made a full- process. First, the customer is measured, body suit of armor for the wedding of and a paper pattern is made. Then, every a young Slovakian businessman. The steel plate is hand cut, embossed, deco- fairytale wedding was held in Strecno rated, nailed, and connected with layers Photo courtesy of Karl Lechten Castle, in one of Slovakia’s oldest and of rivets and leather to allow for maxi- Etched morion, half armor. most famous castles, with the entire mum mobility. wedding party dressed in sixteenth- Despite the unavoidable practical and mechanical century garb and the groom wearing his special suit considerations, Karl sees himself first and foremost as throughout the event. an artist. While his work is inspired by history, every While suits of plate armor have lost their original one of his pieces is a handmade original, using tradi- practical significance, they still generate a lot of tional techniques whenever possible. Guided by texts interest in the twenty-first century. Thanks to expert and pictures from the Middle Ages (for example Plattners like Lechten, the centuries-old craft of woodprints depicting Emperor Maximilian I’s Court armor-making has been preserved, transported half- Armor Shop in Innsbruck), Karl has made his own way around the world, and elevated to a fascinating copies of traditional tools. However, some of the old art form in its own right.

Holyland from page 10 religious traditions were maintained also. For in- better opportunities. This process, known commonly stance, just as popular in the Holyland as it was in the as chain migration, resulted in the nearly transplanted Eifel was the remembrance of the dead on All Souls communities that formed in the Holyland. Clearly, the Day, which culminated in a procession headed by a human geography associated with these emigrants local priest to the cemetery, where he sprinkled and from the Eifel was carried over to the Holyland. For blessed individual graves. example, agriculture played a dominant role in the Emigrants from the Eifel had a significant impact on economy and culture of the Eifel, and this connection the construction of identity of the Holyland of east- to the land was evident in the Holyland as well. Their central Wisconsin. They shared experiences that commitment to this way of life is reflected in the contributed to both the settlement process and to a maintenance of family farms in this region. common regional sense of identity in Wisconsin. Their Along with the establishment of agricultural commu- pre-migration experiences in the Eifel provided them nity life, immigrants from the Eifel in the Holyland with an economic and cultural foundation upon which remained tied to their cultural traditions. As their to build their lives in Wisconsin. numbers increased in the region east of Lake Beth Schlemper is an assistant professor in the Winnebago throughout the nineteenth century, so too Department of Geography-Geology at Illinois did the presence of the Catholic Church. Specific State University.