Title: Building Institutions, Shaping Tastes | German | Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress
Headings: Building Institutions, Shaping Tastes
Building Institutions, Shaping Tastes
Content: Building Institutions, Shaping Tastes | German | Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress
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Building Institutions, Shaping Tastes
As Germans became one of the predominant immigrant groups of the 19th century, it was only natural that they would come to have a powerful influence over the development of American culture. Some German contributions to U.S. life are easy to pinpoint--sauerkraut, for example, or the tuba, or the national fondness for light, fizzy beer. However, the German influence on life in the United States runs much deeper, influencing many of the institutions, traditions, and daily habits that many today think of as being quintessentially American. For example, the U.S. education system, from the lowest grades to the highest, would be unrecognizable without ideas championed by German immigrants. German culture has long cultivated a strong commitment to education, and Germans brought this dedication with them to their new home. In 1855, German immigrants in Wisconsin launched the first kindergarten in America, based on the kindergartens of Germany. Germans introduced physical education and vocational education into the public schools, and were responsible for the inclusion of gymnasiums in school buildings. More important, they were leaders in the call for universal education, a notion not common in the U.S. at the time. German immigrants also brought their reforming zeal to America's recreational life--it can even be argued that Germans invented the American weekend. Before the arrival of the Germans, many communities in the American colonies observed a Puritan sabbath, with an emphasis on rest and family time spent at home.