| German Immigrants started to arrived in the late 1840's
and 1850's as refugees from the unsuccessful revolutions of 1848.
The leaders of the revolution who fled, were men of culture and distinction
who became the leaders of Newark's German population. Three of these
men were Dr. Louis Greiner, a Munich lawyer who broke out of prison
to emigrate, Rev. Frederick August Lehlbach, who fled a fifteen year
prison sentence and Dr. Fridolin Ill, who lost his medical practice
because of the side he supported, fled the county and resumed his
practice in Newark. The bulk of the German immigrants became factory
owners and workers, jewelry makers, and brewery owners and workers.
They mainly settled in the HILL section, which at that time was
the wooded region lying to the west and northwest of downtown Newark,
the Sixth Ward. Today the approximate borders of this land are High
Street, Clinton Ave, Irvine Turner Ave., and Springfield Ave. This
area was recreated as a German Village, including beer gardens,
singing societies and turnvereins (Athletic Clubs). By 1865, one
third of Newark's population was either German or of German heritage.
The custom of visiting beer gardens and singing on Sundays, along
with their belief in public aid to parochial schools drew the ire
of the Anglo-Saxon townspeople. The German immigrants worked hard
all week with Sunday afternoon being their only time for relaxation
and enjoyment.
The initial housing for the immigrants was in the form of decaying
barns, carriage houses, warehouses, breweries and the other old
dilapidated structures of the city.
The names of the famous German Brewers of Newark were Hensler,
Krueger, Feigenspan, Schalk, Trefz, and Laible. Some less famous
ones were Frielinghaus (my great-great-grandfather), Traudt and
Rumpf. The largest brewer in Newark was a Scotsman, Peter Ballantine,
but he concentrated on making the light lager beer enjoyed by the
Germans instead of the heavy English ale of his ancestors.
For more information on this subject, see the books used for this
page:
Clara Maass, a Nurse, a Hospital, a Spirit" by John T. Cunningham
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