Editing Turners

{{Short description|German-American gymnastic club members}}
{{about|German-American gymnastic club members|the unincorporated community|Turners, Missouri|the New Zealand automotive retailer|Turners Automotive Group}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2018}}

[[File:Milwaukee Bundesturnhalle.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Gymnastics room in [[Turner Hall (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)|Turner Hall, Milwaukee]], {{Circa|1900}}]]
[[File:Bundesturnfest Milwaukee 1893.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|3,000 Turners performed at the Federal Gymnastics Festival in Milwaukee, 1893.]]

'''Turners''' ({{langx|de|Turner}}, {{IPA|de|ˈtʊʁnɐ|lang|De-Turner.ogg}}) are members of [[German-American]] gymnastic clubs called '''Turnvereine'''. They promoted German culture, [[physical culture]], and liberal politics. Turners, especially [[Francis Lieber]] (1798–1872), were the leading sponsors of gymnastics as an American sport and the field of academic study.

In Germany, a major gymnastic movement was started by ''Turnvater'' ("father of gymnastics") and nationalist [[Friedrich Ludwig Jahn]] in the early 19th century when Germany was occupied by [[Napoleon]]. The ''Turnvereine'' ({{IPA|de|ˈtʊʁnfɛɐ̯ˌʔaɪ̯nə|lang|De-Turnvereine.ogg}}; "gymnastic unions"; from German ''turnen'' meaning “to practice gymnastics,” and ''Verein'' meaning “club, union”) were not only athletic but also political, reflecting their origin in similar ethnocentric "national<!--not necessarily nationalist in its dirty sense. Other languages did not use the word 'nationalist'.--> gymnastic" organizations in Europe (such as the Czech [[Sokol (sport organization)|Sokol]]), who were participants in various national movements for independence. The '''Turner movement''' in Germany was generally [[Liberalism|liberal]] in nature, and many Turners took part in the [[Revolutions of 1848 in the German states|Revolutions of 1848]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.ohio.edu/chastain/rz/turnvere.htm |author=Claire E. Nolte |title=The German Turnverein |publisher=Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions |access-date=January 9, 2011}}</ref>

[[File:St-louis-german-turner-shooting-club-medium.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Group portrait of the St. Louis, Missouri Turnverein in 1860]]

After the failure of the 1848 Revolution in Germany, the Turner movement was suppressed, and many Turners left Germany, some emigrating to the United States, especially to the [[Ohio River|Ohio Valley]] region, [[Wisconsin]], [[Missouri]], and [[Texas]]. Several of these [[Forty-Eighters]] went on to become [[Union Army|Union soldiers]], and some became [[History of the United States Republican Party|Republican]] politicians.<ref>Gruen, Mardee. "Milwaukee Turners, local Jews go back 141 years." ''Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle'' April 29, 1994; p. 6, col. 1</ref> Besides serving as physical education, social, political, and cultural organizations for German immigrants, Turners were also active in public education and labor movements.<ref name="Hofmann">{{cite web |url= http://www.iupui.edu/~hoyt/Hofmann.htm |author=Annette R. Hofmann |title=150 years of Turnerism in the United States |publisher=Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Max Kade Center |date=August 3, 1998}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |author=John B. Jentz |title=Turnvereins |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Chicago |access-date=July 20, 2019 |url= http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1277.html}}</ref><ref name="LeCompte">{{cite web |url=http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/vnt02 |author=Mary Lou LeCompte |title=TURNVEREIN MOVEMENT |publisher=Texas State Historical Association |access-date=January 9, 2011}}</ref> They were leading promoters of gymnastics in the United States as a sport and as a school subject.<ref>{{cite book |author1=George Eisen |author2=David Kenneth Wiggins |title=Ethnicity and Sport in North American History and Culture |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=fmSj2rzCcvoC&pg=PA28 |year=1995 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |page=28|isbn=9780275954512 }}</ref> In the United States, the movement declined after 1900, and especially after 1917.<ref>Annette R. Hofmann, "Transformation and Americanization: The American Turners and their new identity." ''International Journal of the History of Sport'' 19.1 (2002): 91-118.</ref>

== History in the United States ==
[[File:American Turners stamp, Scott 979.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.9|Postage stamp commemorating the hundredth anniversary of the American Turners]]

The Turner movement was preceded by the first wave of gymnastics in the United States in the 1820s, led by Germans, such as [[Charles Beck]] and [[Charles Follen]], and Americans, such as [[John Neal]]. Beck opened the first gymnasium in the U.S. in 1825 at the [[Round Hill School]] in Northampton, Massachusetts.<ref>{{cite book |last=Leonard |first=Fred Eugene |title=A Guide to the History of Physical Education |publisher=Lea & Febiger |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, New York |year=1923 |url= https://archive.org/details/guidetohistoryof00leon/ |pages=232–233}}</ref> Follen opened the first college gymnasium and the first public gymnasium in the States in 1826 at [[Harvard College]] and in Boston, Massachusetts, respectively.<ref>{{cite book |last=Leonard |first=Fred Eugene |title=A Guide to the History of Physical Education |publisher=Lea & Febiger |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, New York |year=1923 |url = https://archive.org/details/guidetohistoryof00leon/ |pages=235–236}}</ref> Neal was the first American to open a public gymnasium in the U.S. in Portland, Maine in 1827.<ref>{{cite book |last=Leonard |first=Fred Eugene |title=A Guide to the History of Physical Education |publisher=Lea & Febiger |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, New York |year=1923 |url= https://archive.org/details/guidetohistoryof00leon/ |pages=227–250}}</ref> He also documented and promoted these early efforts in the ''American Journal of Education''<ref>{{cite book | last = Leonard | first = Fred Eugene | title = A Guide to the History of Physical Education | publisher = Lea & Febiger | location = Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and New York, New York | year = 1923 | url = https://archive.org/details/guidetohistoryof00leon/ | oclc = 561890463 | pages = 235–250}}</ref> and ''[[The Yankee]]'', helping to establish the American branch of the movement.<ref>{{cite news | last = Barry | first = William D. | date = May 20, 1979 | title = State's Father of Athletics a Multi-Faceted Figure | work = Maine Sunday Telegram | location = Portland, Maine | pages = 1D–2D}}</ref>

The ''Turnvereine'' made a contribution to the integration of German-Americans into their new home. The organizations continue to exist in areas of heavy German immigration, such as [[Iowa]], [[Texas]], [[Wisconsin]], [[Indiana]], [[Ohio]], [[Minnesota]], [[Missouri]], [[Syracuse, New York]], [[Kentucky]], [[New York City]], [[Sacramento]], and [[Los Angeles]].

About 1000 Turners served as Union soldiers during the Civil War. Anti-slavery was a common element, as typified by [[Carl Schurz]]. Many Republican leaders in German communities were members. They provided the bodyguard at Abraham Lincoln's inauguration on March 4, 1861, and at his funeral in April 1865. In the [[Camp Jackson Affair]], a large force of German volunteers helped prevent Confederate forces from seizing the government arsenal in [[St. Louis]] just prior to the beginning of the war.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.mcwm.org/history_germans.html |author=Scott Williams |title=THE ROLE OF GERMAN IMMIGRANTS IN CIVIL WAR - MISSOURI |publisher=The Missouri Civil War Museum |access-date=January 10, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120303013738/http://www.mcwm.org/history_germans.html |archive-date= March 3, 2012}}</ref>  After the Civil War, the national organization took a new name, ''Nordamerikanischer Turnerbund'', and supported German-language teaching in public high schools, as well as gymnastics. Women's auxiliaries were formed in the 1850s and 1860s. The high point in membership came in 1894, with 317 societies and about 40,000 adult male members, along with 25,000 children and 3000 women.<ref>Steven A. Reiss, ed., ''Sports in America from Colonial Times to the Twenty-First Century: An Encyclopedia'' (2011) pp 913-916.</ref>

In the 1904 Olympics several competitors represented various Turners organizations in Missouri, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York, and some of the teams at the Olympics were sponsored by Turners organizations.

Like other [[German-American]] groups, the Turners experienced suspicion during [[World War I]], even though they now had very little contact with Germany. German-language instruction ended at many schools and universities, and the federal government imposed restrictions on German-language publications. The younger generation generally demanded the switch to the exclusive use of English society affairs, which allowed many Turner societies to continue to function.<ref name="Hofmann" />

[[Cultural assimilation]] and both World Wars with Germany took a gradual toll on membership, with some halls closing and others becoming regular dance halls, bars, or bowling alleys.<ref name="LeCompte" /> As of 2011, 54 Turner societies still existed around the U.S. The current headquarters of American Turners is in [[Louisville, Kentucky]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.americanturners.com/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx |title=Welcome to American Turners |publisher=American Turners |access-date=January 9, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://archive.today/20110406032743/http://www.americanturners.com/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx |archive-date=April 6, 2011}}</ref>

In 1948, the [[US Post Office]] issued a 3-cent [[commemorative stamp]] to mark the 100th anniversary of the movement in the country.

The Turnverein in Sacramento, founded in 1854, claims to be the oldest institution within the city still in existence.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sacramentoturnverein.com/ |title=Homepage of the Sacramento Turnverein |access-date=June 13, 2019}}</ref> The Turnverein Vorwaerts of [[Fort Wayne, Indiana]], owned the [[Hugh McCulloch House]] from 1906 until 1966.<ref name="SHAARD">{{cite web |url= https://secure.in.gov/apps/dnr/shaard/welcome.html |title=Indiana State Historic Architectural and Archaeological Research Database (SHAARD) |publisher=Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology |format=Searchable database |access-date=July 1, 2015}} ''Note:'' This includes {{cite web |url = https://secure.in.gov/apps/dnr/shaard/r/1d859/N/Hugh_McCulloch_Home_Allen_CO_Nom.pdf |title=National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Hugh McCulloch House |access-date=July 1, 2015 |author=Karen Anderson |date=November 1979}} and Accompanying photographs.</ref>{{rp|2}}  It was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1980.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a|dateform=mdy}}</ref>

== Gallery ==
=== Vintage photos of the Milwaukee ''Turnverein'' ===
<gallery perrow="5">
File:Milwaukee Turnverein 1866.jpg|1866
File:Milwaukee Gymnasium 1869.jpg|1869
File:Milwaukee Turners 1875.jpg|1875
File:Milwaukee Turners 1879.jpg|1879
File:Milwaukee Turnverein.jpg|1915
</gallery>

=== Other Wisconsin Turners in 1915 ===
<gallery perrow="5">
File:Kenosha Turners.jpg|Kenosha
File:Madison Turners 1915.jpg|Madison
File:Madison Turners 1915 - Bears.jpg|Madison Bears (seniors)
File:New Holstein Turners.jpg|New Holstein
File:Sheboygan Turners.jpg|Sheboygan
</gallery>

=== Monuments in the United States ===
<gallery perrow="5">
File:Friedrich Ludwig Jahn monument in Forest Park - plaque.jpg|Jahn Monument in St. Louis, Missouri
File:Davenport, Iowa Turngemeinde Monument.jpg|Davenport, Iowa Turngemeinde Monument
</gallery>

=== Jahn Monument in Berlin with memorial plaques from American ''Turnvereine'' ===
<gallery perrow="5">
File:Jahn-Denkmal in der Hasenheide.jpg|The Berlin monument
File:Gedenktafel aus Chicago.jpg|Chicago, 1861
File:Gedenktafel aus Cincinnati.jpg|Cincinnati, 1865
File:Gedenktafel aus Philadelphia.jpg|Philadelphia, 1861
File:Gedenktafel aus Washington.jpg|Washington, D.C., 1911
</gallery>

=== Turner Halls ===

<gallery perrow="5">
File:LYRIC THEATER, BOONVILLE, COOPER COUNTY, MO.JPG|Turner Hall<br />[[Boonville, Missouri]]
File:Buffalo, Iowa Tuner Hall.jpg|Turner Hall<br />[[Buffalo, Iowa]]
File:Chicago Pilsen Turner Hall.jpg|Pilsen Turner Hall, [[Chicago, Illinois]]
File:Turner Hall (Cincinnati).jpg|Central Turner Hall (1848), [[Cincinnati, Ohio]]
File:Germania Singing and Sport Society.jpg|Germania Singing and Sport Society, [[Columbus, Ohio]]
File:Central Turner Hall Davenport, Iowa.jpg|Central Turner Hall (1888), [[Davenport, Iowa]]
File:East Turner Hall Davenport, Iowa.JPG|East Turner Hall (1891), Davenport, Iowa
File:Nw turner hall davenport iowa.jpg|[[Northwest Davenport Turner Society Hall|Northwest Turner Hall]] (1882), Davenport, Iowa
File:Dubuque, Iowa Turner Hall.jpg|Turner Hall<br />[[Dubuque, Iowa]]
File:Turner Hall Duluth.jpg|Turner Hall (1888), [[Duluth, Minnesota]]
File:Eldridge Turn-Halle.jpg|[[Eldridge Turn-Halle]], [[Eldridge, Iowa]]
File:Elgin Turners, Elgin, IL.png|Elgin Turners<br />[[Elgin, Illinois]]
File:Galena Il Galena Historic District Turner Hall and FD1.JPG|Turner Hall<br />[[Galena, Illinois]]
File:Holyoke_Turnverein%2C_South_Holyoke.jpg|Holyoke Turner Hall<br />[[Holyoke, Massachusetts]]
File:Independent Turnverein, Indianapolis.jpg|Independent Turnverein<br />[[Indianapolis, Indiana]]
File:South Side Turnverein Hall.jpg|[[South Side Turnverein Hall]] (1900), Indianapolis, Indiana
File:Indianapolis Turner Hall.jpg|South Side Turnverein Hall, Indianapolis, Indiana
File:(Southside Turnverein, Indianapolis) by Rudolf Schwarz (1899) Control IAS IN000118.jpg|Detail, South Side Turnverin Hall, Indianapolis, Indiana
File:Germania Turnverein Lancaster.JPG|Germania Turnverein, [[Lancaster, Pennsylvania]]
File:Turner Hall Madison.jpg|Turner Hall (1868), [[Madison, Wisconsin]]
File:Turner Hall Milwaukee 2014.jpg|[[Turner Hall (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)|Turner Hall (1882), Milwaukee, Wisconsin]]
File:Milwaukee Turnverein gymnasium.jpg|Interior ca. 1910, Turner Hall, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
File:Turners Hall New Orleans.jpg|Turners Hall (1868)<br />[[New Orleans, Louisiana]]
File:New Ulm Turner Hall.jpg|Turner Hall<br />[[New Ulm, Minnesota]]
File:La MaMa Annex 66 East 4th Street.jpg|Turn-Verein, East 4th Street, [[New York, New York]]
File:(King1893NYC) pg572 CENTRAL TURN-VEREIN, 211 EAST 67TH STREET.jpg|Central Turn-Verein, East 67th Street, New York, New York
File:TurnerHallOpenDoor.jpg|[[Turner Hall (Postville, Iowa)|Turner Hall]] (1914)<br />[[Postville, Iowa]]
File:Rock Island, Illinois Turnhalle.jpg|Turnhalle<br />[[Rock Island, Illinois]]
File:Riverside, New Jersey Riverside NJ Turners Hall.jpg <br />[[Riverside, New Jersey]]
[[File:Riverside NJ Turners Hall.jpg|thumb]]
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[German-Americans in the Civil War]]
* [[WMWG-LP]]: Owned by the Milwaukee Turners
* [[George Brosius]]
* [[Forty-Eighters]]
* [[Sokol (sport organization)|Sokol]], a comparable movement for Czechs in Central Europe (Austria-Hungary) and the United States

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* [[Bob Barney|Barney, Robert Knight]]. "German Turners in America: Their Role in Nineteenth Century Exercise Expression and Physical Education Legislation." in  Earle F. Zeigler ed., ''American Sport and Physical Education History (to 1875)'' (1975): 116+. [http://www.earlezeigler.com/ebook/AmericanSportPhysical.pdf#page=117 online]
* [[Bob Barney|Barney, Robert Knight]]. "Knights of Cause and Exercise: German Forty-Eighters and Turnvereine in the United States during the Antebellum Period." ''Canadian Journal of History of Sport'' 13.2 (1982): 62-79.
* [[Bob Barney|Barney, Robert Knight]]. "America's First Turnverein: Commentary in Favor of Louisville, Kentucky." ''Journal of Sport History'' 11.1 (1984): 134-137. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/43609303 online]
*Hoyt, D. J. (1999). ''A strong mind in a strong body: Libraries in the German-American Turner movement.'' New York, NY: Peter Land.
* Kramer, William M., and Norton B. Stern. "The Turnverein: A German Experience for Western Jewry." ''Western States Jewish History'' 16 (1984): 227.
* Metzner, Henry. ''A brief history of the American Turnerbund'' (1924) [https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryofam00metz online]
* Pfister, Gertrud. "The Role of German Turners in American Physical Education," ''International Journal of the History of Sport'' 26 (no. 13, 2009) 1893-925
* Pumroy, Eric, and Katja Rampelmann. ''Research guide to the Turner movement in the United States'' (Greenwood, 1996).

== External links ==
*[http://www.americanturners.com/ Website of the American Turners]
*[https://louisvilleturners.org/ Website of the Louisville Turners - Only Turners with Circus Program]
*[https://archives.iu.edu/catalog/mss030 American Turners Records, 1853-2017] at [[Indiana University Indianapolis]]
*[https://ulib.iupui.edu/digitalcollections/TurnerTopic American Turner Topics newsletter]
*[http://www.LATurners.com/ Website of the Los Angeles Turners with history, photos, newsletters, and links to other Turners Organizations]
* The [http://www.hsp.org/files/findingaidmss172amturners.pdf American Turners, Wilmington Records] and the [http://www.hsp.org/files/findingaid3056roxborough.pdf Roxborough Turners Records], including by-laws, correspondence, minutes and photographs, are available for research use at the [[Historical Society of Pennsylvania]].


{{Commonscat|American Turners}}

{{Physical culture}}
{{Gymnastics in the United States}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Turner halls|*]]
[[Category:German-American history]]
[[Category:German-American culture]]
[[Category:German-American organizations]]
[[Category:American Civil War political groups]]
[[Category:Gymnastics organizations]]
[[Category:History of gymnastics in the United States]]
[[Category:Physical culture]]
[[Category:Politics and sports]]
[[Category:Sports organizations established in 1848]]
[[Category:People associated with physical culture]]