Steuben Society of America
Founded in May 1919, the Steuben Society of America was named after Frederick von Steuben. The founders of the Steuben Society were a small group of German Americans in New York City that was suffering from considerable anti-German sentiment following World War I.
To combat this anti-German sentiment, these individuals wished to create a fraternal organization that would pique the curiosity in and celebrate the numerous social, cultural, political, and scientific contributions of German Americans to American society.One of the primary aims of this organization was to promote and retain a sense of pride and dignity in the heritage of German Americans. The Steuben Society further provided a uniform identity that represented the millions of Americans of Germanic descent, often in an official capacity. With this in mind, the organization promoted tolerance, duty, justice, and charity as its cornerstone principles. The Steuben Society explicitly condemned vig- ilantism and aimed to uphold the civil rights of all American citizens.
In order to show its American patriotism, the Steuben Society supported the elimination of immersion language programs, recognizing English as the predominate language in the United States. The organization does, however, strongly advocate studies in German-language education, not only for purposes of identity but also because the German language initially possessed a reasonable level of importance in international matters, especially in the fields of the natural sciences and philosophy. In order to permit greater European immigration, the Steuben Society urged changes in U.S. immigration policies.
The Steuben Society’s main symbol is a circle of the U.S. national colors—red, white, and blue. In the center is a black disc that produces the additional combination of black, red, and white.
These were the three colors found on the German flag prior to 1933. Thus, all four colors combined signify the patriotic interconnection German Americans have with the United States and Germany.The Steuben Society is involved in a number of civic and cultural activities throughout the nation. It supports the Boy Scouts of America, the Statue of Liberty restoration project, and awards scholastic prizes for academic achievements in the German language and American history. One such award is the “von Steuben Award for an Essay in German” presented by the United States Naval Academy for the best essay in German by a midshipman of the first, second, and third classes.
The Steuben Society’s most famous activity is arguably the German American Steuben Parade in New York City. Beyond this it was significant in establishing October 6 as German American Day in recognition of the first German immigrants to settle on the North American continent in 1683. The holiday was first officially recognized in 1983.
Christopher Brooks
See also Steuben, Friederich Wilhelm von;
World War I and German Americans
References and Further Reading
Steuben Society of America. “German Day:
In Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the Arrival in America of the First Group of German Settlers under the Leadership of Franz Daniel Pastorius and the 200th Anniversary of the Valiant Fight Made by John Peter Zenger for the Freedom of Press.” Madison Square Garden, December 6, 1933.
------. At www.steubensociety.org/ (cited January 20, 2004).