The+German+American+48ers+in+Davenport


 * The German-American 48ers in Davenport**
 * Original Author: Amanda Bollmann, ENG299 FL10**
 * Revision Author:**

During the years of 1848-1850 in the Schleswig-Holstein province of Germany, a war was fought against Denmark for political freedom and national unity. After failure to win a battle for religious, political, and intellectual freedom on their own land, hundreds of Germans from the Schleswig-Holstein area immigrated to America to start anew. One of the places they chose was Davenport, Iowa.

The “Forty-Eighters” of Davenport, Iowa, were political refugees. “The political refugees were mostly men of considerable intelligence and education, of enthusiastic and energetic temperaments...with ideals to which they were ready to devote their activities, as was proven by the fact itself that they had risked their homes, their possessions, and in many cases their liberty and lives in order to change the political condition of their country” (Tolzmann 6). Hearing about Davenport and the surrounding area from advertising agents, and reading about the city in letters to family and friends, many immigrants chose Davenport as their new promise-land. Preceding the actual “Forty-Eighters,” “two hundred and twenty-seven Germans landed in Davenport between April and December, 1847, coming from Schleswig-Holstein to the United States usually by the route from Hamburg to New Orleans and then up the Mississippi River” (Johnson 4).

Although this large number of German immigrants who arrived on the banks of Davenport during 1847 were successful and prominent citizens, only one man of these early immigrants was influential enough to be categorized as a true “Forty-Eighter.” Mathias J. Rohlfs, another native of Schleswig, was elected to the Iowa General assembly as Representative from Scott County. Rohlfs later served as treasurer of Scott County, on the Iowa Board of Immigration, and as president of the free German school society. Although not technically a “Forty-Eighter” in accordance to the date he arrived in America, “Rohlfs was a typical forty-eighter in his untiring promotion of liberal and democratic ideas, of educational facilities for youth and adults, and in his wariness of infringements on personal liberties” (Johnson 5).

The “true Forty-Eighters,” or those who were veterans of the 1848-1850 war between Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark, mostly arrived to America during the early 1850’s seeking political refuge. Davenport turned out to be a receptive city for their political ideals. “To the Radicals who landed upon our shores liberty meant a great deal more than merely a certain form of government and a certain system of laws” (Tolzmann 8). The Forty-Eighters brought liberal education and secular ideas to the city of Davenport. These “Freedom Fighters,” as they were also called, stood for just that: freedom. They believed every individual deserved the right to his or her beliefs and ideas, and that public education should be free from religious teachings and practices. Although they advocated for every individual’s right to beliefs, the typical Forty-Eighter “was convinced that all kinds of religion were merely the figments of the human imagination, all equally untrue. Belief in the existence of a deity was of the same character. These men were very far from the modest attitude of a modern agnostic. They simply //knew// that there was no God” (Tolzmann 41).

In addition to their secular teaching practices and non-religious political ideals, the Forty-Eighters were great proponents for the abolition of slavery and for the women’s suffrage movements. After losing their own battles in Germany, the Forty-Eighters enthusiastically joined in these pre-existing political movements that were quickly growing in America and in need of strong voices. “The struggle for the abolition of slavery was the means of drawing the greater part of the refugees who came after 1848 away from their hopes of renewed revolutions in the Fatherland, their anti-ecclesiastical warfare, and their dream of an ideal state. Many of them threw themselves into that struggle with an ardor equal to that with which they had struggled for the freedom of their native country ten years before” (Tolzmann 9). The Forty-Eighters seemed to understand what these political movements were striving to achieve, and proved to be a powerful voice and a powerful vote for these progressive groups.

Two powerful members of the Forty-Eighters deserve to be recognized for their commitment to the political movement in Schleswig-Holstein and their influence on the city of Davenport. Hans Reimer Claussen and Theodor Olshausen were members of the original delegation who were dispatched “to Copenhagen to confer with the monarch and his ministers about the demands of the Schleswig-Holsteiners” (Johnson 8). After the failure to gain independence for Schleswig-Holstein, the King of Denmark exiled these two men. In 1851 they fled with their families to America in search of a better life. Claussen went straight to Davenport, Iowa, and Olshausen joined him there in 1856. Olshausen only stayed long enough to become editor of //Der Demokrat// newspaper for a short time, spread support for Abraham Lincoln, and help publish a brochure on immigration to Iowa. Like many Forty-Eighters, Claussen stayed in Davenport for good. He learned English quickly and was admitted to the bar, served as a State Senator from 1869-1873, and eventually passed on his political knowledge and law firm to his son, Ernest. Ernest Claussen became a successful politician, and served as mayor of Davenport for a record seven consecutive terms (“American” 5). Along with many fellow German-Americans, Claussen would call Davenport his permanent home. “These Schleswig-Holsteiners were sedentary people, persistent, headstrong, occasionally slow, but shrewd. The determination with which they made Davenport their new home and America their new country made them successful in their professions and in their cultural and political ambitions” (Johnson 11).

The German-American “Forty-Eighters” were a group of strong-minded, big-hearted people, determined to succeed in life. After fighting a losing battle for their political, religious, and intellectual ideals in Germany, they came to America searching for another try. These political refugees were intellectual, educated, and excited to express their worldly views. Davenport, Iowa became home to many of these revolutionaries. They brought new ways of teaching, grew successful politicians, and provided an ever-growing influence in Davenport’s society. The Forty-Eighters helped voice the concerns of American-specific movements as well, joining in the fight to abolish slavery and gain rights for women. These German immigrants, with the experience of revolution, the voyage to a new land, and the desire for freedom, helped make Davenport, Iowa the thriving metropolis it is today. The German-American “Forty-Eighters” were revolutionaries, veterans, thinkers, learners, and teachers. They brought to Davenport the heart and spirit of a people searching for freedom, and Davenport delivered this freedom back to them.

American Schleswig-Holstein Heritage Society and The Schuetzenpark Gilde. “The Davenport Forty Eighters.” Davenport: 2008. Print, Oration. Johnson, Hildegard Binder. "German Forty-Eighters in Davenport." //Iowa Journal of history and Politics.// Vol. 44, No. 1. January (1946): 1-60. Print. Tolzmann, Don Heinrich. //The German-American Forty-Eighters 1848-1998//. Indiana: Indiana University, 1997. Print.
 * Works Cited**

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