Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent records Ms. Coll. AA 231 Finding aid prepared by Violet Lutz. Last updated on April 14, 2013. German Society of Pennsylvania, Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library 2013.04
Table of Contents Summary Information...3 Biography/History...4 Scope and Contents... 5 Administrative Information... 6 Related Materials... 7 Controlled Access Headings...7 Organizations, companies, and individuals heading subscriber lists... 8 Collection Inventory... 10 Correspondence...10 Subscription lists, forms, and related correspondence... 10 Reports... 11 Clippings, ephemera, miscellaneous...11 Liberty Loan posters...12 - Page 2 -
Summary Information Repository German Society of Pennsylvania: Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library Creator Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent. (Philadelphia, Pa.) Creator Schmidt, Louis H. Title Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent records Call number Ms. Coll. AA 231 Date [inclusive] 1918-1919 Extent 0.21 linear feet (1 box + 6 posters + 1 oversize folder) Language English Language of Materials note In English, with some German Abstract This collection contains the records of the Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent, a committee that coordinated the campaign for the purchase of Liberty Bonds among German Americans in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1918, during the First World War. Liberty Bonds were issued by the United States government to finance the American war effort. These records were kept by Louis H. Schmidt, treasurer of the Committee, and pertain mainly to the Third and Fourth Liberty Loans, with inclusion of a few subscription lists related to the fifth loan, issued in 1919 and known as the Victory Liberty Loan. The collection contains correspondence, subscription forms, lists of subscribers, reports, clippings, and ephemera, including Liberty Loan - Page 3 -
volunteer buttons and six posters promoting the purchase of Liberty Bonds. Cite as: Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent records, Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library, German Society of Pennsylvania Biography/History Following the entry of the United States into the First World War in April 1917, one of the methods used to finance the war effort was the issue of bonds by the United States Treasury under the Emergency Loan Act. A total of four loans, called 'Liberty Loans' were issued in the course of the war, the fourth in September 1918. The bonds that were purchased were referred to as 'Liberty Bonds.' A fifth loan, issued after the war, in April 1919, was known as the Victory Liberty Loan. The loans amounted to over 21 billion dollars. The bonds of the various issues were long-term bonds paying interest rates of between 3.5 and 4.75%. The purchase of Liberty Bonds was understood as a demonstration of patriotism, and was vigorously promoted by community leaders and specially formed committees throughout the country. All of the loans were oversubscribed. German Americans and Liberty Bonds In some instances the pressure to support the war effort by conforming to an ideal of American unity, or 'superpatriotism,' developed hand in hand with an intolerance for any expressions of ethnic particularity, especially in the case of German Americans, since their homeland was now at war with the United States (Luebke 218-220, 225-265). An atmosphere of intolerance toward any kind of German-American distinctiveness had already taken root back in 1915, before the entry of the country into the war, upon the sinking of the British ocean liner Lusitania by a German submarine in May 1915, with the death of over a thousand people, including 128 Americans (Pfleger 40). In the face of intensifying intolerance or outright hostility toward German culture and language in American life, many German-American organizations across the country disbanded or experienced a sharp decline in membership during the war. Those that continued in existence were eager to confirm their American identity and loyalties by emphasizing explicitly patriotic activities such as the support of Liberty Bond drives (Luebke 270, 284). German-American support was not particularly strong for the first Liberty Loan but gained momentum in response to the second Liberty Loan issue in October - Page 4 -
1917 (Luebke 273). The concerted efforts on the part of leaders and spokespersons of German-American newspapers, organizations, and churches to stress patriotic attitudes and activities had the effect of dampening, although not completely diffusing hostility toward German Americans by the summer of 1918 (Luebke 286). The Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent In the Philadelphia area, the Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent took part in the third and fourth Liberty Loan campaigns. The treasurer and secretary of the Committee, Louis H. Schmidt (b. 1868) and Franz Ehrlich, Jr. (b. 1878), respectively, were active members in the German Society of Pennsylvania. Ehrlich was vice president of the Society at the time (he served from 1916 to 1920). Louis Schmidt, who held the rank of captain in the Pennsylvania National Guard, had served on the Society's committee responsible for social events (Vergn?gungsausschuss) since 1913; later, he was president of the Society, from 1923 to 1942. This German-American Liberty Loan committee was part of the Foreign Language Division of the Liberty Loan Organization of the Third Federal Reserve District. The division included committees for 19 different nationalities, with German Americans, Italian Americans, and Polish Americans accounting for the largest shares of purchases. In its final report for the Fourth Liberty Loan, the Foreign Language Division of the Third Federal Reserve District describes its work as aiming to "promote the Fourth Liberty Loan among the people of foreign birth and descent and to cultivate a friendly relationship between the older Americans and the newer immigrants by bringing them into common play and work for the same cause of the country" (p. 36) References Fourth Liberty Loan, Foreign Language Division, Third Federal Reserve District: Report of C. A. Sienkiewicz, Executive Secretary. Philadephia, October 1918. Typewritten. (See Folder 8.) Luebke, Frederick C. Bonds of loyalty: German Americans and World War I. Dekalb, Ill.: Northern Illinois University Press, c1974. Pfleger, Birte. Ethnicity matters: a history of the German Society of Pennsylvania. Washington, D.C.: German Historical Institute, 2006. Scope and Contents The collection contains the records of the Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent, a committee that coordinated the campaign for the purchase of Liberty Bonds among German Americans in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1918, during the First World War. Liberty Bonds were issued by the United States government to finance the American war effort. These records were kept by Louis H. Schmidt, treasurer of the Committee, and pertain mainly to the Third and Fourth Liberty Loans, - Page 5 -
with inclusion of a few subscription lists related to the fifth loan, issued in 1919 and known as the Victory Liberty Loan. The collection contains correspondence, subscription forms, lists of subscribers, reports, clippings, and ephemera, including Liberty Loan volunteer buttons and six posters promoting the purchase of Liberty Bonds. Also included is a copy of the report issued for the Fourth Liberty Loan, Foreign Language Division, Third Federal Reserve District. A miscellaneous item found with the records is related to the Philadelphia Turngemeinde (Philadelphia Turners), a prominent German-American gymnastics organization. The item is a broadside entitled "Philadelphia Turngemeinde Honor Roll, World War, 1917-1918," giving a list of approximately 330 names. Administrative Information German Society of Pennsylvania, Joseph P. Horner Memorial Library 2013.04 Finding aid prepared by Violet Lutz. Sponsor The processing of this collection was made possible through generous funding from the Max Kade Foundation, as part of the grant project "Retrieval and Cataloging of the German-American Experience, 1918-1960." Access Restrictions This collection is open for research. Use Restrictions Copyright restrictions may apply. Please contact the German Society of Pennsylvania with requests for copying and for authorization to publish, quote or reproduce the material. Immediate Source of Acquisition note Gift of Louis H. Schmidt. - Page 6 -
Related Materials Related Archival Materials note Louis H. Schmidt, the treasurer who kept the present records, was active in several organizations concerned with humanitarian war relief on behalf of Germany and Austria during and after the First World War, the records of which are held at the German Society of Pennsylvania: Hilfsfond records, 1914-1925 (Ms. Coll. 28). (Schmidt was president.) Relief for German Children of the Lost Provinces of Germany and Austria records, circa 1924-1928 (Ms. Coll. 29) United Singers of Philadelphia records, 1880-1935 (Ms. Coll. 15). Especially: Scrapbook on war relief efforts (Box 22), created by Schmidt, as chair of the press committee for a charitable concert held in 1915. The digitized World War I Posters collection of the Library of Congress (http://www.loc.gov/pictures/ collection/wwipos/) contains Liberty Loan posters, including the six found in the present collection (they can be located by title). Controlled Access Headings Form/Genre(s) Broadsides (notices) Buttons (information artifacts) Clippings (information artifacts) Correspondence Financial records Fliers (printed matter) Posters Printed ephemera Reports Subscription lists Geographic Name(s) - Page 7 -
Philadelphia (Pa.) Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent records Subject(s) German Americans Liberty bonds World War, 1914-1918 Organizations, companies, and individuals heading subscriber lists Third Liberty Loan G. A. Bisler, and G.A. Bisler, Inc. Brentmore Knitting Mills Cambria Silk Hosiery Co. Carmel German Presbyterian Church C. F. Rummp & Sons Ehrlich family (Franz Ehrlich, Antonie Ehrlich, and Henrietta Ehrlich, with various designations) Emanuels' Evangelical Church / Rev. C. E. Bast E. Michellbach & Sons Evangelical Salem's Gemeinde First German Baptist Church / Hermann Kaaz, pastor German Club and Technical Society [=Deutscher Klub und Technischer Verein] German Lutheran Kreuzkirche / Rev. E. C. Metzenthin German Presbyterian Church of Peace Henry Rohner, and Henry Rohner Co. Homestead Farms Kreuznacher S?ngerbund / Jacob Weiss, secretary Ladies Aid of the German Society of Pennsylvania [=Women's Auxiliary of the German Society of Pennsylvania] Living Water Mission / Rev. Christian Klenk St. John's Evangelical Church / Rev. E. M. Glasow St. Markus (St. Mark's) Evangelical Reformed Church / George A. Scheer, pastor St. Matthew's Evangelical Lutheran Church St. Paulus Gemeinde, Evangelisch-Reformed / Rev. Paul Sommerlatte, pastor Emil Schnell Second German Baptist Church / S. A. Kose, pastor Fourth Liberty Loan Arion Singing Society G. A. Bissler, and G. A. Bisler, Inc. C. F. Rumpp & Sons - Page 8 -
Homestead Farms Louis Walther Manufacturing Co. William H. Ritter, and his companies: P. J. Ritter Co.; Ritter Loan & Specialty Co.; Owensboro Conservation Co. Emil Schnell Anthony J. Zeits Victory Loan (1919) Beneficial Union Bridesburg Lodge, No. 37, Independent Order of Odd Fellows (I.O.O.F.) / Ernest Pommer, secretary Louis Hillemann William C. Munch Joseph Nager Philadelphia Quartett Club Henry Rohner, and Henry Rohner Co. Subscription lists/reports with loan issue unidentified Joseph Drucker & Co. Ostendorff's Restaurant Ernest Schlipp Steph. Lippert (firm) - Page 9 -
I. Correspondence Collection Inventory I. Correspondence, 1918-1919. Folder Correspondence of the Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent, Philadelphia, 1918-1919. In English. 6 items. Correspondence to and from Louis H. Schmidt, treasurer, and Franz Ehrlich, secretary, mostly with the following officers of the Liberty Loan Committee Foreign Language Division: Joseph Buffington, chair, and Casimir A. Sienkiewicz, executive secretary. One item is a circular letter of the National Woman's Liberty Loan Committee. Also included is the original folder cover of the collection file, labeled: "Liberty Loans Subscriptions for U.S.A. Bonds! 3d and 4te [sic] / Louis H. Schmidt Treasurer, 1231 Market St., Philadelphia, Pa.". 1 II. Subscription lists, forms, and related correspondence, 1918-1919. Folder Third Liberty Loan, 1918. Includes lists, forms or correspondence from 24 organizations, companies, or individuals. 2 Fourth Liberty Loan, 1918. Includes lists, forms or correspondence from 8 organizations, companies, or individuals. 3 Victory Liberty Loan (fifth Liberty Loan), 1919. Includes lists, forms, or correspondence from 7 organizations, companies, or individuals. 4 Loan issue unidentified, undated (circa 1918-1919). Includes lists or correspondence from 4 organizations, companies, or individuals. 5 - Page 10 -
III. Reports III. Reports, 1918-1919. Folder "Final report of the Third Liberty Loan Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent," by Captain Louis H. Schmidt, Treasurer, 11 May 1918. Typescript, 6 pages. 6 "Final report, Third Liberty Loan Committee, Americans of German Birth or Descent," 16 May 1918. Broadside (43 x 27.5 cm.). Additional subscriptions and revised totals printed in red ink; text in box at bottom highlights the value of the free space for advertising provided by the German-language newspaper "Philadelphia Gazett-Democrat" ( Philadelphia Gazette-Demokrat). Note: extra copy, folded, also included in Folder 6, above. See GAC Oversize Box 4 "Final report, Fourth Liberty Loan, Committee of Americans of German Birth or Descent," 2 December 1918. Typescript, 6 pages. Paper covers wanting. 7 Bound volume: Fourth Liberty Loan, Foreign Language Division, Third Federal Reserve District: report of C. A. Sienkiewicz, Executive Secretary; foreword by Hon. Joseph Buffington, United States Circuit Judge, Philadelphia, October 1918. Typewritten, 40 pages. 8 IV. Clippings, ephemera, miscellaneous, circa 1918, undated. Folder Clippings, April-October 1918. 4 items. In German and English. Acid-free photocopies. Pertaining to the Third and Fourth Liberty Loans, especially the German-American contribution.. 9 Clipping: Advertisement in German-language newspaper Philadelphia Demokrat (Gazette- Demokrat; 18 April 1918): "Taten, nicht Worte, beweisen Loyalit?t. Kauft Liberty Bonds." Original clipping (47.5 x 16.5 cm). See also acid-free copies in Folder 9, above. See GAC Oversize Box 4 - Page 11 -
V. Liberty Loan posters Ephemera: Third Liberty Loan volunteer buttons (pins), [1918]. Seven buttons, of two designs: "Third Liberty Loan Volunteer" encircling American flag (6 pins); and "Third Liberty Loan" encircling liberty bell (1 pin). Included are paper attachments designed to be inserted in back of the button, resembling red, white and blue ribbons, with center ribbon reading: "Volunteer". 10 Ephemera: Fourth Liberty Loan flier, "Subscribe 4th Liberty Loan, honor emblem," circa 1918-1919. 3 copies. In red and blue on white background, with illustration of a flag (four vertical blue stripes on white rectangle, on red background). Publishing information: Reg. U.S. Pat. Off. / Forbes, Boston; 14-B. 11 Miscellaneous item: Address list, undated. Typescript, 2 leaves. Includes 53 German-, Austrian- or Swiss-American organizations in Philadelphia, with street address and the name(s) of one or two officer(s), usually the secretary. 12 Miscellaneous item: Broadside (36.5 x 24 cm.), "Philadelphia Turngemeinde Honor Roll, World War, 1917-1918," undated. Alphabetical list of approximately 330 names. See GAC Oversize Box 4 V. Liberty Loan posters, circa 1918. Box See GAC Scope and Contents note Gallery Box 2 This series contains 6 Liberty Bond posters. The first one ("Buy Liberty Bonds"), depicting Abraham Lincoln, does not refer to a specific issue of bond. The other five posters (arranged alphabetically by title) specifically refer to the Third Liberty Loan, which was issued in April 1918 and superceded by the Fourth Liberty Loan in September 1918. "Buy Liberty Bonds / That the government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth" [head-and-shoulders portrait of Abraham Lincoln in profile], circa 1918. "Are you 100% American? Prove it! Buy U. S. Government Bonds / Third Liberty Loan" [words in frame with eagle above and stars and stripes draping], 1918. - Page 12 -
V. Liberty Loan posters "Fight or buy bonds / Third Liberty Loan" [female figure holding flag, with soldiers in background]. Image signed: Howard Chandler Christy, 1918. "Over the top for you / Buy U.S. Govt. Bonds / Third Liberty Loan" [soldier with American flag], 1918. "Remember! The flag of liberty / Support it! / U. S. Government Bonds / 3rd Liberty Loan" [immigrant family], 1918. "Ring it again / Buy U. S. Gov't bonds / Third Liberty Loan" [Liberty Bell, colonial scene], 1918. - Page 13 -