www.rbceonline.org.br
Revista
Brasileira
de
CIÊNCIAS
DO
ESPORTE
ORIGINAL
ARTICLE
The
American
Turners:
their
past
and
present
Annette
R.
Hofmann
PädagogischeHochschuleLudwigsburg,Ludwigsburg,Germany
Received1August2011;accepted28November2014 Availableonline5March2015
KEYWORDS
Turnen; Turnersociety; Germans;
German-Americans
Abstract TheUnitedStateshasbeenanationofimmigrants,whichisreflectedbyits multi-culturalsociety.DifferentimmigrantgroupshelpedshapetheAmericansocietythroughtheir culturesandtraditions.OnegroupwastheGermans;theyrepresentedauniqueandforceful currentinthestreamofimmigrationtotheUnitedStates.IntheirculturalluggagetheGerman immigrantbroughttheirphysicalculturetoNorthAmerica,Turnenwhichwasorganisedinclubs orso-calledTurnvereine.TheAmericanturnermovementhasitsorigininthemid19thcentury, anditisstillorganisedonanationallevel,sincethe1930sunderthenameAmericanTurners. ThisarticlesummarisesthehistoryoftheGerman-Americanturnermovementuntilthe1990s, andwillalsorelatetovariousstagesofAmericanizationwithinthismovement.
©2015ColégioBrasileirodeCiênciasdoEsporte.PublishedbyElsevierEditoraLtda.Allrights reserved.
PALAVRAS-CHAVE
Turnen;
SociedadeTurner; Alemães;
Alemães-americanos
OAmericanTurner:seupassadoeseupresente
Resumo OsEstadosUnidosse constituíramcomo umanac¸ão deimigrantes,portanto,uma sociedade multicultural. Diferentes grupos de imigrantes ajudaram a moldar a sociedade americana através de suas culturas e tradic¸ões. Um destes grupos foi o dos alemães, que representou uma corrente singular e muito forte no fluxo imigratório para os Esta-dos Unidos. Em sua bagagem cultural os imigrantes alemães levaram sua cultura física para a América do Norte: o Turnen, que era organizado em clubes ou nas deno-minadasTurnvereine. Omovimentodos Turner americanostem suasorigensem meadosdo séculoXIXeaindaapresentaumaorganizac¸ãoemnívelnacionalsobonomeAmerican Turn-ers,adotadodesdeadécadade1930.EsteartigoresumeahistóriadomovimentodoTurnen teuto-americanoatéosanosde1990erelataasdiferentesetapasdesuaamericanizac¸ão. ©2015ColégioBrasileirodeCiênciasdoEsporte.PublicadoporElsevierEditoraLtda.Todosos direitosreservados.
E-mail:nettehof@ph-ludwigsburg.de http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rbce.2014.11.020
PALABRASCLAVE
Turnen;
SociedadTurner; Alemanes;
Alemanes-americanos
ElTurnerAmericano:supasadoysupresente
Resumen LosEstadosUnidosseconstituyeroncomo unanacióndeinmigrantes,loquese reflejaactualmenteensusociedadmulticultural.Diferentesgruposdeinmigrantesayudaron adarformaaunasociedadamericanaatravés desus culturasytradiciones.Uno deestos gruposfueronlosalemanes,querepresentaronunacorrientesingularymuyfuerteenelflujo inmigratorioparalosEstadosUnidos.Ensubagajeculturallosinmigrantesalemanesllevaron suculturafísicaparaAmérciadelNorte:elTurnen,queeraorganizadoenclubesoenlas deno-minadasTurnvereine.ElmovimientodelosTurneramericanostienesusorígenesamediadosdel sigloXIXytodavíapresentaunaorganizaciónanivelnacionalbajoelnombreAmericanTurners, adoptadodesdeladécadade1930.EsteartículoresumelahistóricadelmovimientodelTurnen teuto-americanohastalosa˜nosde1990yrelatalasdiferentesetapasdesuamericanización. ©2015ColégioBrasileirodeCiênciasdoEsporte.PublicadoporElsevierEditoraLtda.Todoslos derechosreservados.
Introduction
Until recently the United States has been a nation of immigrants,whichisreflectedtodaybyamulticultural soci-ety. Different immigrant groups from all over the world helpedshapeAmericansociety throughtheirculturesand traditions. One of the biggest immigrant groups is the German-Americans, who, according to the 1990 census, are,withover20%,thelargestethnicgroupintheUnited States(Adams,1993,p.3).Thecultureandtraditionswhich theGermanimmigrantsbroughttotheAmericancontinent tookonnewformsofexpression inthenewenvironment: German-American ones. Some have become part of the Americanmainstreamculture andarenot recognisableas Germaninorigin.
Germancustoms,ritualsandculturalpracticeswere per-petuated in the many societies or ‘‘Vereine’’ which the GermansorganisedintheUnitedStates.Thecontentsoften werealteredtoadapt tothe newneedsof thehost
soci-ety.TheVereinenotonlytransmittedakindofsecurityto
the immigrants, but alsocreated group solidarity.1
Histo-rian Kathleen Neils Conzen describes them as ‘‘nurseries ofethnicities’’ inwhichGerman culturecouldspreadand thushelpformanethniccultureandidentity.2The
German-Americandirectoryofaddresseslisted6586Germansecular societies in the United States in 1916/17. At the end of the 1990s, in Chicago alone, there were still 80 German clubsin existence.3 Throughsuch groups,German culture
is preserved in the United States toa certain degree, as canbeseen inthecelebrationofGermanfestivities,such asthe annualOktoberfest, a Carnivalor theGerman Day. These events mostly take place in cities with formerly hugeGermanimmigrantpopulations.Theyareorganisedby theGermanclubsofthesetowns.
Among the numerous community institutions and soci-etiesfoundedbytheGermansaretheTurnersocieties(
Turn-vereine),whichwereorganisationsforthedevelopmentof
1SeeHobsbawm(1985,p.12).
2SeeLuebke(1974,p.43);Conzen(1989,p.50;58). 3FrankfurterAllgemeine,March12th,1998.
physical education,andoutletsfor German immigrantsto continue their cultural traditions. Their Turner Halls pro-videdasocialcentrewithlecturesandlibraries.
Tothisdayover700Turnersocietieshaveonceexistedin theUnitedStates.Hardlyanyoneknowsthatsome Turnvere-inearestillinexistence.Thispapershallprovideaninsight onhowandwhytheTurnersfirstcametotheUnitedStates andintothehistoryoftheGerman-AmericanTurner move-ment. It willalso show howthe German-AmericanTurner movement is presently structured.Aspecial focuswillbe put onthe Americanizationof the Turners into American Turners.
ThebeginningsofTurneninGermany
The Turner movement has its origins in 18th- and 19th-centuryGermanyandwascloselyconnectedwith intel-lectual streams and the political, social and economic changesoftheperiodsuchastheEnlightenment,theFrench Revolution,thenewpoliticalorderinEuropeandtechnical advancement.Inthiscontextideasabouttheeducationof thepeople,inwhichnationalunity,patriotismandthe readi-nesstofightfor one’s‘‘fatherland’’playedaspecialrole, rose. GermanTurnen,largely developedby Friedrich Lud-wigJahn(1778---1852),wassuchanidea.4Thegoalsofthe
TurnersweretheliberationfromFrenchoccupation,which followedthedefeatofthePrussianarmyintheNapoleonic Wars,theoverthrowofthefeudalorderandanendtothe divisionof Germanyintomany smallstates infavour of a one-nationstate.Thus,theTurnersplayedanimportantrole intheGermannationalistmovementandinthewarsof lib-eration;manyparticipatedactivelyinthefightagainstthe Frenchoccupyingforces.
TurnenwasintroducedbyJahnasacomprehensiveterm for physical exercises. It not only included exercises on apparatus, as developed by philanthropists such as Guts
Muthsbutalsogamesandso-called‘‘exercisesforthe peo-ple’’(volkstümlicheÜbungen)(likerunning,jumping,lifting andclimbingaswell asfencing,swimmingandwrestling). Althoughsomeoftheapparatusisstillusedinmodern gym-nasticsandthe‘‘exercisesforthepeople’’showsimilarities withtoday’strack-and-fielddisciplines,thenormsand val-ues, the intentions, principlesand the contexts of Jahn’s Turnendiffer fundamentally from moderngymnastics and sport.
ThecradleofTurnenwasBerlin,whereJahnandhis fol-lowerssetupthefirstgroundsforTurnen(Turnplatz)onthe so-calledHasenheidein1811,anareaoutsidethecity dur-ingthosedays.TodayitisaparkwithinBerlin.Fromthere theTurnermovementrapidlyspreadthroughoutthestates of the German Confederation. These gymnastics grounds that soon spread became meeting points for young men, whowantedtoparticipateinphysicalactivitiesandgames, celebrate festivities (Turnfeste) and go together on trips
(Turnfahrten).Anditwasaplacetodiscusspolitics.
Initially, the Prussian authorities supported the Turner movement,inpartbecausetheyhopeditsgymnastics,which seemedtostrengthenbothbodyandmindoftheyoungmen, wouldbeofgreatuseinthewarsofliberation.However,in 1819duringtheeraofrestorationafterNapoleon’sdefeat, TurnenwasbannedinPrussiasinceitwaspartofthe nation-alistmovement,whichwasnowconsideredathreat.Under the‘‘CarlsbadDecrees’’ theGermanrulerswererequired to suppress any opposition movement whatsoever.5 The
Turners,too,alongwithnationalisticfraternities(
Burschen-schaften),wereclassed asforcesofopposition sincethey
wereagainstGermanparticularismandthusagainstthenew politicalorderoftheGermanConfederation.Insome Ger-manstates,Turnplätzewereclosedandaperiodensuedin which Turnen wascompletely banned (Turnsperre). Jahn, accusedofhavinglinkswithpersonssuspectedofdisloyalty oftheauthoritiesandsubversion,wasarrestedinJuly1819 andincarceratedforfiveyears(HofmannandPfister,2004, p.11---14).
During the ‘Ban of Turnen’ boys and young men could stillparticipatein‘‘gymnastics’’ at someschools and pri-vate institutions but it was only twenty years later that Turnen asa national movement experienced a revival. In 1842 its ban was officially lifted by a cabinet order and Turnenwasacceptedas‘‘necessaryandindispensablepart of maleeducation’’ in the curriculumof boys’secondary schoolsinPrussia(Krüger,1993,p.73).
InEuropethe1840swasadecadeinwhichliberalideas andpolitical agitation spread.In the Germanstates, too, demands for political rights and national unity became louder, and it was in this period of awakening that the goals and ideas of the Turnerexperienced their revival ---a period in which clubs and societies were founded with democraticstructures,andinwhichTurnersocietiesbecame centresofpoliticaldiscussionsandactivities.Alsothe
var-ious Turnfeste which were held in the 1840s offered a
splendidopportunitytocometogether,exchangeideasand
5The‘‘CarlsbadDecrees’’weremeasuresagreedbythestatesof
theGermanConfederationtosuppresstheliberalanddemocratic constitutionalmovementaswell asallstrivingstowards national unity.
make plans. At the centre of these festivities were not only gymnastic competitions but also political discussions anddeclamations,whichmostlyendedwiththedemandfor ‘‘freedomandequality’’.6
Afterthesuccess oftheliberalmovementintheMarch Revolution of 1848, the Turners thought they could fulfil theirdreamsandgoals.Theconcessionsoftheauthorities andthe callfor a national assemblyin thePaulskirche in Frankfurtseemed tohave removed thebarrierstoforma liberalnationstate.Becauseofthisthepoliticalactivities oftheTurnerclubsincreasedinthespringof1848andthe Turnermovementplayedanimportantroleintherevolution of1848/49, partlybecausetheTurnersocieties had phys-ically fit, disciplined and politically committedmembers. Jahn had already recommended replacing the mercenary army by a people’s army. Now the attempts at arming thepeopleweresupportednotonlybyagreatmajorityof
theTurnerbutalsobyalargepartofthepopulation.Inmany
clubsTurnermilitiawereestablishedwhichstoodpartlyfor themaintenanceoflawandorderandpartlyforthe republi-canidealsandtheconstitutionoftheReich(Neumann,1968, p.30---45).
However, in the summer of 1848, various crises, upheavalsandarmedconflictsweakenedtherevolutionary movement. The constitution of the Reich ( Reichsverfas-sung),which was not proclaimed until March1849, could notbeputintoeffectwithoutmilitaryforce.ManyTurners, defendingtheconstitutionwithweapons,wereinvolvedin thefighting.
TheattitudesoftheTurnerstowardstherevolution dif-feredprofoundly.Somewere‘‘mereTurners’’;otherswere politicalactivists.KarlBlind,aTurnerfromMannheim,for example,emphasisedinJanuaryof1848: ‘‘Ourpurposeis revolution (...) Each Turner is a revolutionary’’, adding:
‘‘Even dagger, blood and poison should not be spared in thedecisivemoment’’(Wieser,1996,p.37).Especiallythe TurnersinBadenandWuerttembergdefendedtheidealsof therevolution:‘‘Freedom,educationandprosperityforthe people’’(Reppmann,2003).
After the failure of the revolution, many Turners had toleave theirhome countrybecauseimprisonmentor the death penalty awaited them. Thus, some emigrated to Switzerland,andsomeleftfromtheretosettleinEngland ortheUnitedStates(Krüger,1993,36---97).
Cunz(1966, p.11) referstotheseindividualsfromthe 1848Revolutionasa‘‘newtype’’ofGermanimmigrant.As BarneystatedinhisdescriptionoftheForty-Eighters,they were different from earlier German immigrants because they possessed not only a classical education and had a strong interest in politics, but also because of their youthfulness7 and physical fitness gained from Turnen:
‘‘(...) in general being male, in histwenties, unmarried,
in excellent physical condition through training in gym-nastics, classically educated, politically enlightened and motivated, notwithout some economic means, and quite
6OntheroleoftheTurnersinthe1948/49Revolution see,for
exampleNeumann(1968)andKrüger(1996).
7Zuckerpointsoutinhisdescriptionof242Forty-Eighterswho
likely,disposedtowardsreturningtoGermanyatalatertime tosupportagaintheforcesofrevolutionagainstthehated Germanprincesandtheinfluenceoftheircorruptpower’’ (Barney,1982,p.63f).
TransferofGermanTurnentotheUnitedStates
The political refugeesof the 1848 revolution in Germany werenotthefirstpersonswhobroughtTurnentotheUnited Statesaspartoftheirculturalluggage.Turnenhadalready beenintroducedtoeducationalinstitutionsinNewEngland intheearly1820sbytheGermanpoliticalexilesKarlBeck, KarlFollenandFranzLieber,whohadallbeenfollowersof Jahn(Geldbach,1975,p. 341---342;p.360---370).However, itssuccess lastedonly a few years.It was onlya quarter ofacenturylater---in1848---thatthefirstTurnerclubsor societieswerefoundedintheUnitedStatesbythoseTurners whohad leftGermany inthewake ofthe1848 revolution whichhadbroughtafewthousandpoliticalrefugeestothe UnitedStatesfromGermany.8
The politicaland socialstructuresof theUnitedStates werecompletelydifferentfromthoseexistinginGermany. It was a young nation, founded in 1776 with a demo-cratic constitution. It was also a country of immigrants, evenifwithanAnglo-Saxonpredominance. Fromthevery beginningTurnenintheUnitedStateshadadifferentfate thaninGermany. Ontheone hand,itmust beconsidered thatTurnenwasa physicalculture oftheGermans, trans-portedtoa countrytowhich other immigrantgroups had broughttheirsystemsofexercisesandsport.Ontheother hand,itshouldnotbeforgottenthatitwasdemocratically and socialisticallyoriented Turners that had toemigrate, whichis reflected inthe political goals of thefirst Amer-icanTurnersocieties and their umbrellaorganisation,the ‘‘SocialistischeTurnerbund’’,foundedofficiallyin1851.The Turnermovement sawitself as a ‘‘nursery for all revolu-tionaryideas’’ which hastheir origins in a rationalworld view.9TheTurnerspromotedasocialismthatconcentrated
ontherightsandfreedomsoftheindividual,10andopposed
monarchy and the religious indoctrination of the people. Interms of thesocio-political circumstances prevailing in the United States, this meant that they fought American nativism,thesystemof slaveryaswell asthetemperance andSabbath-daylaws.11 UntiltheoutbreakoftheCivilWar
(1861---1865)theTurnersocietieshadastrongpolitical ori-entation. Their political attitudes reflected the opinions ofthefreethinkers,ananti-religiousmovementthat advo-catedrationalism,scienceandhistory.AlthoughtheTurners hadGermanroots, theyconsidered themselveswithinthe traditionof the American intellectuals Thomas Paine and
8It is almost impossible to arrive at an exact number of all
the‘48ers’whoemigratedtotheUnitedStates.Sourcesestimate thatnomorethan3000---4000personsemigratedforpurely polit-icallyreasonsbetween1847and1856(seeRehe,1996,p.13---15; Reppmann,1994,12---13).
9SeetheConventionProtokolloftheSocialistische Turnerbund
from1859/60.
10 TheTurn-Zeitung(December1st,1851)printedanarticlewith
thetitle‘‘SozialismusunddieTurnerei’’.
11 SocialistTurnerbundofNorthAmerica,Constitutionsadoptedat
theirconventionatBuffaloSept.24---2.7Buffalo,1855.
Walt Whitman,whoembodied political andreligious free-dominanenlightenedAmerica.Acloseconnectionbetween the‘‘Turners’’andthe freethinkerscan beobserveduntil thetwentiethcentury.
In the 19th and early 20th centuries the Turner soci-etieswere‘‘nurseriesofethnicities’’.AccordingtoConzen theywereplaceswhereGermanorratherGerman-American culture and traditions were fostered, as can be seen in theirsocialandculturalactivities.Duringtheirfirstdecade the Turnvereineofferedphysical education classes --- Ger-man Turnen.Their TurnerHalls, placesin which not only the German language but also German customs and cel-ebrations were preserved, provided a social centre with politicaldebates,lectures,Sundayschoolsandlibrariesfor the further educationof the German emigrants, and the attachedrestaurantsor barswerepopularplaces for
Ger-manGemütlichkeit.12BesidesfosteringGermancultureand
nationalism, the Turners also tried to establish a bridge between the old culture and the new by offering English languageclasses andstronglysupportedAmerican citizen-ship amongtheirmembers toaccelerate theirintegration into the everyday life of American mainstream society.13
In1851thefirstNationalGymnasticFestival(Turnfest)was organised,whichwasacompetitiveaswellasasocialevent. Justlikeotherethnicgroups, theGermanshadtofight thehostilityofnative-bornAmericanswhodidnotapprove ofthehighrateofimmigrationintheircountry.Especially intheMidwest,Turnerswerephysicallyattackedonseveral occasions. To defend themselves they were urged by the
Turnerbundtotakeupshootingandothermilitaryexercises
intheirphysicalprogramme.Lateron,duringtheAmerican CivilWar,theycouldprofitfromtheseexercisesintheir mil-itaryservice(Hofmann,2001,p.140).Uptothebeginning ofthetwentiethcenturyself-defence(Wehrturnen)inthe formoffencingwaspartoftheTurners’physicalcultureand couldalsobefoundattheTurnfeste.14
Despitetheattacksbythenativistmovement,the Turn-ersexpressedtheirpoliticalopinionsintheAmericanpublic sphere. Most of the Turners supported the political goals of theRepublicansduring the1850sand60s. Thissupport resultedintheestablishmentofLincoln’sbodyguardduring hisfirstinaugurationaswellastheformingoftheTurner reg-imentsatthebeginningoftheCivilWarin1861.Beforethe outbreakoftheAmericanCivilWarin1861therewereover 130Turnersocieties intheUnited States(Hofmann,2001, p.148---161).
Inthepostbellumyearsaneraofreconstructionstarted not only for the American South but also for the Turner movement. The Socialistic Turnerbund, which hadceased to exist during the war years, was reorganised under a new name in 1865, namely, Nordamerikanischer Turner-bund. In these years the United States experienced a big German influx, coming to a peak in 1882 with over 250,000newcomers(Doerries,1986,p.300).The German-AmericanVereinswesen tookadvantageof thisinflux, and
12 For further details see also Spears and Swanson (1988, p.128---129)andRader(1990,56---60).
13 EventodayAmericanTurnersdemandAmericanorCanadian
cit-izenshipoftheirmembers.SeeMetzner(1989,p.51).
sodidtheTurners.InmanyAmericancitiesnewTurner soci-etieswerefounded; othersenlargedtheir membership.In theseyearsachangeintheTurnermovementfrompolitical towardsmoreculturalandeducationalvaluescanbenoted (PumroyandRampelmann,1996,introduction).Oneofthe maineducationalgoalsoftheTurnerbundwasthe introduc-tionoftheirphysicaltrainingprogrammesinpublicschools. Anotherimportanttasktheunionhadtofaceafterthewar wastheopeningoftheirsocietiestowomen.Turnenforgirls hadalreadybeenintroducedinthe1850s;exerciseclasses forwomenweresetupthreedecadeslaterandbecamevery popular.Startinginthe1860smanysocietiesalsoestablished
Women’sAuxiliariesoverthenextdecades.
With the growing popularity of Turnen the need for physicaleducators or‘‘Turnlehrer’’ rose,too,anda
Turn-lehrerseminar,whichlaterbecametheNormalSchoolofthe
AmericanGymnasticUnion,wasestablishedin1866bythe
Turneruniontoeducateprofessionally-trainedinstructors.15
Todaythisinstitutionisintegratedinthephysicaleducation departmentof theIndianaUniversityPurdue Universityat Indiana(IUPUI)inIndianapolis.
ThepeakoftheAmericanTurnermovementwasreached in 1894. At that time 317 societies existed with approx-imately 40,000 members, more than 25,000 children and around3000womenparticipatingin theactivityclasses.16
This boom had ceased by World War I, a time when the radical andsocialistic tendenciesin theTurnermovement hadalsodeclined.Onereasonforthisdeclinewasprobably thegenerationshift,sincemostofthe‘‘forty-eighters’’and pioneersofsocialreformswerenolongeralive.
AssimilationandAmericanizationoftheTurners
Americanization is a special kind of transformation. It expresses a process of social and cultural change and therebyresultsinanassimilationandadaptationto Ameri-cancultureaswellasanacceptancebythehostsociety.17
ThusAmericanculture,valuesandhabitsareadaptedbya personoragroup.
Over the years an assimilation process became visible amongtheGerman population,especiallywiththegrowth oftheAmerican-borngenerations.Thesenewergenerations were nolonger fluent in German and to a certainextent had losttheir cultural affinityto andinterest in the land of theirancestors. This developmenttowardsassimilation andAmericanizationwasalsointensifiedbytheanti-German
15 In1880Dr.H.M.StarkloffofSt.Louis,chairmanoftheexecutive
committeeoftheTurnerunion,expressedthedesireoftheTurners tofindanewfieldofinvolvement:‘‘Howwoulditbeifweshould workwithallourmighttointroducephysicaltrainingintothepublic schoolsofthiscountry?Wecouldnotconceiveofamorebeautiful giftthanthistobestowupontheAmericanpeople.’’Thus,cities withalargeGermanpopulationintroducedturneninpublicschools (seeHartwell,1886).Healsostatesthatthiswasthesecond insti-tutionintheUnitedStatesinwhichonecouldbecomeaphysical educationteacher.ThefirstonewasDioLewis’NormalInstitutefor PhysicalEducation,foundedin1861inBoston.
16 See,NordamerikanischerTurnerbund(1896)orBarney,(1991,p. 3)andPumroyandRampelmann(1996,p.289).
17 SeeHäderle(1997,p.20)andGleason(1980,p.39)andKazal (1995,440).
politicsoftheAmericangovernmentintheyearsbetween 1914and1918.ManyAmericanswithaGermanbackground were accused of lacking loyalty to the American nation. Thisanti-Germanhysteriafoughteverythingthatwas Ger-man,especiallytheGermanlanguageandGermanculture: ‘‘Kulturof the Kaiser’skind notto bepromoted (...)’’ or
‘‘TheGermantonguehasnoplacein America(...)’’were
slogansthatcouldberead ina Cincinnatinewspaper(Ott andTolzmann,1994).Thisresultedinvandalism,a prohibi-tionoftheGermanlanguageinschoolsanduniversities,the eliminationofGermanjournalsandnewspapers,thebanof Germancomposersfromconcerthalls,theclosingof Ger-mantheatres and the Americanizationof German names, whetherof persons, streets, towns, organisations or soci-eties(Luebke,1974,p.248---250).
Theanti-GermanfeelingsduringtheyearsofWorldWar Ihadadecisiveinfluenceonthechangeofidentityofthe German-Americansandwithit,ontheTurners.The German-Americanethnic communitycollapsed;the group identity becamemoreprivateinitsexpressions.18However,the
num-berofTurnersocietiesandmembershipremainedconstant duringtheyearsof WorldWarI.The declinestartedafter thatwar, andended in 1943when lessthan 100 societies withonly16,000Turnersbelongedtotheunion.19
In these decades between the wars the Turner move-mentalsounderwentanAmericanizationprocess,whichis illustratedbythelossofGermanastheofficiallanguagein protocolsandthe‘‘AmerikanischeTurnzeitung’’.Byandby thesocietiesalsoAmericanizedtheirnamesbydroppingthe Germanparts.TheNordamerikanischeTurnerbundchanged itsnamein1938into‘‘AmericanTurners’’(AT).Threeyears earlier, Turnerpresident George Seibel officially declared thatthe American Turnermovement ‘‘has been the most AmericanofallAmericanassociations’’;thenewsloganof theTurners became ‘‘Turnerism is Americanism’’.20 Thus,
duringWorldWarIIacompletelyAmericanizedTurner move-mentshoweditsloyaltytotheAmericangovernment.
AfterWorldWarIIthenumberofsocietiesdidnotrise, butinthe1950sthemembershipnumbersclimbedto25,000 again,organisedinapproximately80 societies.Onecause for this rise certainly was the new wave of immigration, whichbroughtmorethan500,000Germanimmigrantstothe UnitedStatesbetween1950and1959(Adams,1993,p.6).
TheAmericanTurnersattheendofthe 20thcentury
At the beginning of the new21 millennium, in 2002,
there were still 58 societies22 with approximately
18Conzen(1984,p.32).
19SeeStatisticalReportsoftheNordamerikanischerTurnerbund
andAmericanTurnersbetween1914and1943.
20Annual Report of theNordamerikanischer Turnerbund (1925,
p.11;1935,p.3)andAnnualReportoftheAmericanTurners,(1938, p.6).
21Parts of thisempirical studyhave already been published in Hofmann(1999,p.79---108).
22In2011therewereonly54TurnerSocieties.Themembership
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
1865 1870 1884 1890 1895 1900 1908 1910 1915 1920 1939 1960 2000 Year
Number of societies
Figure1 Numberofsocietiesbetween1862and2000.
0 5000 10 000 15 000 20 000 25 000 30 000 35 000 40 000 45 000
1890 1900 191 0
1920 193 0
194 0
1950 1960 1970 1980 199 0
2000 Year
Mem
b
er
s
Figure2 Numberofmembersbetween1890and2000.
12,000 members23 that were affiliated to the umbrella
organisationAmericanTurners,butnotallofthemshowed any remnants of German-American culture. The typical
Turnverein does not exist anymore. Besides the athletic
programmesocial get-togethersdominateassociationlife. Political discussions and the spread of German culture havelost theirsignificance.The former German-American societies have growninto multi-ethnical societies, mostly withmembersfromdifferentEuropeanimmigrantgroups.
For over 150 years the Turnvereine have been part of the American world of sport. In 1998 the first American Turner societies celebrated their 150th anniversary, and in 2011 the 53th national Turnfest was organised by the AT, in St. Louis. The Turners were among the first to introduce physical education to American schools, and they founded the second institution in the United States in which physical education teachers or Turnlehrer were trained.TodaytheAmericanTurnersaremembersin Amer-icansportfederations,USAGymnasticsandUSAVolleyball (Figs.1and2).
Hofmann (2001) conducted a study about the struc-ture of the AmericanTurnersocieties at the closeof the 19thcentury.Atthattimetherewerestill59societieswith approximately13,000 membersthat belongedtotheAT.24
Theresultsindicatethroughthemembershipstructuresthat thereisnotypicalTurnersociety.Everysocietypresentsan individualpicture,beginningwiththenumberofmembers,
23 AmericanTurners:Geographical Directoryof Societies. 2002.
UnpublishedinformationandnumbersoftheAT.
24 AmericanTurners:GeographicalDirectoryofSocieties.(1999); Hofmann(2001,p.269---300).
theprograms,andthedistributionofthemembersbyage and ethnic heritage. Because of the relative heterogene-ityofthesocietieswhoparticipatedinthesurvey,itisnot possibletodrawgeneralconclusionsaboutthesociety struc-tures.Atbest,thesocietiesofthestudycanbeputintofour categories,withsomeoverlap25:
1. Ethnic-orientedsocieties,
2. Non-ethnic,social-orientedsocieties, 3. Recreationalsports,social-orientedsocieties, 4. Competitivesports-orientedsocieties.
The ethnic category includes societies which primarily recognise German traditions and culture in their
Vere-insleben(11%).ForthemembersoftheseTurnersocieties,
their Turnvereinrepresentsakind of Heimatvereinin the group of non-ethnic,social societies (5%). Forthese soci-eties, a recreational sports program is of noimportance. Themembersareethnicallymixed;however,memberswith aGermanheritageareinthemajority.Thisisthesamefor the other categories. The majority of societies surveyed, (78%),belongtothethirdcategorywhichmeanstheyhave a recreationaland social program.26 Here,gymnasticsfor
children,golf,bowlingandballgamesdominatetheathletic offerings.Otherkindsofrecreationsuchastrack-and-field, tennis,dancingorfitnessandhealth-orientedexercise pro-gramsexistonlyinafewsocieties.Thus,itcanbeconcluded thatfor themajority ofmembers,social aspectsand net-workingelementsplayaroleintheirdecisiontooffercertain sportsoractivities.‘‘Lifetime’’sportssuchasgolfand bowl-ingcanbepursuedatveryadvancedagesandthusmeetthe needsofoldermembers,who,inmanysocieties,constitute the majority of members.27 Five percent of the societies
that participatedin thissurveybelongtothe competitive sports-orientedcategory.TheseTurnvereineoffer gymnas-tics for children and adolescents and they participate in competitions organised by USA Gymnastics. The question begs tobe asked whether it makes sensefor them tobe ATmembers.
ThemajorityoftheAmericanTurnersocietiesstilloffer asportsorrecreationalprogram;however,theycannotbe viewed as an organisation which offers a vast sports and exerciseprogram. Thesocial componentrankshighin the remainingsocieties,whichcanbeattributedtothe histor-ical origins of the Turners. In the early decades of their existence,theyservedascentreforphysicalactivitiesand theyalso werea centre for socialget-togethers or meet-ingsforGermanimmigrants.This socialcomponentwasof greatsignificanceandhasprevailed,thoughinasomewhat differentform.
25 Thefollowinginformationisbasedonthe37Turnersocieties
whocompletedaquestionnaire.
26 Among these societies, only those that offer more than two
sportswereincluded.
27 In the1940 May issue of theATT, volleyball for seniors and
ReflectionsontheAmericanizationofthe AmericanTurners
AmericanizationinthecaseoftheTurnermovementmeans the acceptance of the American constitution, adaptation toAmericanvalues,traditions,rituals andsymbols witha simultaneous decline of expression of German culture. In closerelationtotheAmericanizationoftheTurnersisalso theacceptanceof membersofnon-German originin their societies,andtherequirementofhavingAmerican citizen-ship. But there is another side tothis process aswell. It isnotonlyexpressedbyalossofGerman-Americanethnic identityandculture.Americanizationalsomeansaholding ontotraitsoftheTurnerscultureandtheirdemonstration by spreading them into a multicultural American society (Hofmann, 2010, p. 24---26). Some examples have already beenmentioned.
Bycontinuingnotonlycertainritualsandcustomsfrom the ‘‘old’’ country, but also by adapting to new ones, in this case, American ones, new traditions arise, which are adjustments tothe new, unfamiliar circumstances of the American host society. According to EricHobsbawm’s theory of ‘‘invented traditions’’, traditions are invented, constructed andinstitutionalised.They havecertain prac-tices and rules which either become a ritual or are of symbolicnature.Bymeansofrepetition,certainnormsand valuesthatarelinkedwiththesetraditions ariseand con-tinuityinregardtothepastdevelops(Hobsbawm,1995,p. 1f).Throughthedevelopmentofnewsymbolsandtraditions theTurnerstookupanewidentity.Thiscanalsobeseenin theacceptance of newsymbols, whicharenot relatedto the German tradition.One of thesesymbols is thediscus thrower,whichbecametheofficialsymboloftheATinthe secondhalfofthe1930s.
Otherexamplesarethenationalconventionsandother big events of the Turners which are held under the Star-Spangled Banner and sometimes opened by the American nationalanthemandthePledgeofAllegiance.28TheTurners
arealsopurposelytryingto‘‘invent’’newtraditionssuchas
aNationalAmericanTurnerDay,whichTurnerpresidentEd
Coltoninitiatedin1993,orthecompositionoftheAmerican
TurnerMarch.29
When discussing the Americanization of the Turn-ers, the ‘‘Lady Turners’’30 should not be forgotten.
Especially the appearance of the ladies auxiliaries during thelate19thcenturyandtheirexistenceuntiltodayhave tobeconsideredinthelightofthespecialcircumstancesof animmigrationcountry,suchastheUnitedStates.On the onehand,theseladies´clubsofferedopportunitiesforfemale German immigrants toexchange problems, meet friends, fosterGerman cultureand alsosupportthe‘‘male Turner societies’’throughtheirhelpinvariousways.Ontheother
28 Thesourcesmentionthisritualatleastsincethe1950s.Latelyit
wasperformedatthesesquicentennialcelebrationsofthe Cincin-natiCentralTurners,whichwereconnectedwiththe67thnational conventionoftheATinAugust.
29 SeeAmericanTurnerTopicsvol.40(1993),2f.andvol.41(1994),
3,10f.
30 ThisishowfemaleTurnermembersorladyauxiliarymembers
callthemselves.
hand,theriseof ladyclubsingeneralisananswer tothe socialconditionsintheUnited States.Herethesocialnet isnotverywellsupportedbythegovernment,andrelieson volunteerorganisations,manyofthemfoundedinthe19th century.The ladiesauxiliaries of the Turnersstill support notonlytheTurners,butalsodonatetheirtimefor differ-entkinds ofvolunteer workand engagein differentlocal affairs.
Throughout the Turners’ history these women showed theirloyaltytotheworldoftheirmen,whorespectedthe ladiesandintegratedthemintheVereinsleben---however, without a right to vote. Later, in the twentieth century, mostsocietiesacceptedfemalesasmembers.Certainlythis wasnotonlyforreasonsofgenderequality;inmanycases femalemembershipwasneededfor financial reasons.But still,someAmericanTurnvereineheldontotheirtraditionof beingexclusivelymalesocieties.Notuntilthe1990sdidall societiesacceptwomen.Thepercentageoffemalesinthe ATisnotknown;accordingtotheinformationtheempirical studyyielded,itisprobablylowerthanthemale percent-age.Here it becomesobvious that theAT is atraditional organisation.
ThefactthatthemajorityoftheTurnersocieties belong-ing to the AT are over 100 years (and some even over 150years)oldand theactualcontentofthe Vereinsleben
--- physical turnenand especiallythe social component of
turnen --- did not change much in the course of its
his-tory are further reasons why the AT can be described as
a Traditionsverband. Although the political tendencies of
theTurner movement weakenedafter a few decadesand laterentirelydisappeared, thesocietiesstillsticktotheir social,culturalandathleticoffers.Thesehavechangedand adaptedAmericancontentsand forms.The attractiveness
ofturnen(gymnastics), whichwasanexpression ofa
spe-cificGermanbodyandmovementculture,wasreducedafter theturnofthecentury.Especiallyduringthesecond Amer-icanizationperiod,‘‘sport’’---especiallyteamsports---was takenupbythesocieties.Thiswasananswertothechanged membership,which hadahigherpercentageof American-bornmembers,theirneedsandtheAmericanenvironment. Althoughtodaymanysocietiesstilloffergymnasticsfor chil-drenandyouth,itisofnomoresignificancefortheiradult members.
The socialpart oftheassociational life isstillofgreat significance. But it changed as well. In the 19th century itespeciallyofferedthepossibilityforGermanimmigrants tocommunicate, andthus helped strengthen theirethnic identification.Presently most societies arestillplaces for communication --- which takes place in their bar areas ---butitisnolongerexclusivelyforGerman-Americans.They havea‘‘neighbourhoodor communityfunction’’for Euro-peanAmericansandfulfiltheirsocialneeds(Doerries,1986, p.190).
whichareincludedinthecompetitionsatthenational turn-festeveryfouryears,aswell.
Conclusion
Americanization can be interpreted as acculturation and assimilation into American society. It occurs at political, cultural and religious levels. Demographic developments alsoplayarole.IntheGerman-AmericanTurnermovement, thisprocessisreflected intheTurners’recognition ofthe AmericanConstitution,adoptionofAmericanvaluesand tra-ditions, lifestyles and symbols. But Americanization does notmeanmerelytheabandonment, assimilationor weak-eningofethnicidentityandculture,ratheritisalsoseenin thepreservation,integration,anddemonstrationofspecific traitsofGermanculture,e.g.,elementsofthe
Turnverein-skultur,itsvaluesandidealsandintegratingthemintothe
multiculturalAmericansociety.
MostoftheTurnersocietieshavebeentransformedinto leisure sport and social societies for European-Americans that could also exist under a different name. The mem-bersof the individualsocieties follow the same interests andgoalswhichtheirsocietyfulfilsthroughitsoffers.These offersareadaptedtothepresentmembers.Stillthenumber ofTurnersocietiesandTurners hasbeendiminishing since the1960s.31
ManyoftheformerGermany-AmericanTurnersocieties have developed into multi-ethnic societies, with mostly members fromdifferent European immigrantgroups. The pressure of American society to Americanize the Turner movementwasstrongerthantheinfluencetheTurnershad onAmericansociety. This can be seen, onthe one hand, bytheirbondagetocertaintraditionsandTurnersymbolsof Germanheritageandidentityandontheotherhand,intheir adoption of American values and adaptation to American society.TheTurnvereineadaptedtothenewcircumstances; theyweretransformed.However,it shouldnotbe forgot-ten that the ancestors of the Americans witha Germans past,whointhe1990swerethebiggestethnicgroupinthe UnitedStates,havecontributedtothebuildingofan Amer-icanculture,andanAmericanNation,althoughthetraces arehardlynoticeabletoday.Sincethebeginningofthe20th centurytheTurners havelost theirinfluence onAmerican physical education, and since the late 1960s the Turners cannotbe found onAmerican Olympicgymnastics’ teams anymore.TheTurnershavebecomeaminoritygroupinthe Americanworldofsport.Thetransformationand American-izationoftheTurnersocietiesresulted intheirinvisibility, andtheirfutureisuncertain.
Conflicts
of
interest
Theauthorsdeclarenoconflictsofinterest.
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