German Achievements in America: Rudolf Cronau's Survey History (Heritage Classic)

Written by eminent German-American historian Rudolf Cronau, this book is a concise survey of German-American achievements in America based on his previous work, a comprehensive German-language history. Drei Jahrhunderte deutschen Lebens in Amerika (1909).German Achievements in America, originally published in 1916, is a richly illustrated English-language compendium intended to illuminate the basic dates, facts, and events in German-American history. Then, as now, it provides a convenient introduction to German-American history, from the beginnings to the First World War. There are many chapters discussing in detail the German-American contributions to politics, agriculture, industry, commerce, physical education, science, publishing, literature, music and arts. Given the author’s education at the art academy in Düsseldorf, this work is especially good in the insight it brings to the arts, music and literature of German-Americans. This book also contains one of the first chapters on the topic of German-American women. Of special interest, given the time when the book was written (World War I), is the final chapter entitled “The Future Mission of the German Element in America.” This basic history has been edited and provided with a new introduction and a selective bibliography by Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann, an internationally recognized scholar in the field of German-American Studies.

Dr. Don Heinrich Tolzmann is the author and editor of numerous books on German American history and culture. He has received many awards, including the Federal Cross of Merit from Germany, the Ohioana Book Award, the German-American of the Year Award, and the Outstanding Achievement Award of the Society for German-American Studies. Now retired, he served as curator of the German-Americana Collection and director of the German-American Studies Program at the University of Cincinnati. Currently he is president of the German-American Citizens League of Greater Cincinnati, curator of the German Heritage Museum of Cincinnati, and also historian of the Covington-Cincinnati Suspension Bridge Committee and the Steuben Society of America.