03193cam a22003253u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003701000130007804000110009104100170010205000090011910000350012824500420016326400510020530000470025633600260030333700260032933800360035550000310039150802090042252020190063153400600265065300230271085600720273385600430280599900190284877784UtSlPG20260610134813.0mcr n260607r20261898utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  a98001184  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aF1061 aBeidelman, William,d1840-190314aThe story of the Pennsylvania Germans 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2026  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier  aRelease date is 2026-01-26  aCarla Foust, Charlene Taylor and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)  aThe story of the Pennsylvania Germans by William Beidelman is a historical account written in the late 19th century. It traces the Germanic roots of Pennsylvania’s settlers from the Alemannic peoples of the Upper Rhine, recounts the Palatinate’s wars and devastations, and explains why large numbers emigrated to William Penn’s province. The work also examines settlement patterns across the colonies, the community’s politics and role in war, and, notably, defends the Pennsylvania German dialect as authentically German. Overall, it blends history, migration, language, and culture to present a cohesive portrait of the Pennsylvania Germans.

The opening of the book states its purpose: to give Pennsylvania Germans a concise account of their origin, history, and dialect, to correct popular misconceptions (especially that “Pennsylvania Dutch” is not German), and to draw on major German and American sources. It then sketches early Germanic history, emphasizing Roman contact, the rise of the Alemanni, and their settlement along the Upper Rhine, before outlining the creation and fate of the Palatinate. A vivid section recounts the Palatinate’s repeated ravaging—especially under Louis XIV—arguing these wars drove mass emigration. Next comes the attraction of Pennsylvania: Penn’s charter, tolerant laws, fair land terms, and treaties with Native peoples, which catalyzed settlement (including German Quakers at Germantown). The narrative surveys the redemptioner system and grim Atlantic voyages, the German preference for fertile limestone valleys, and estimates of their growing numbers. It also briefly maps German dispersal to other colonies and to Ireland, and describes Quaker–government tensions, Christoph Sauer’s influential German newspaper, and the Germans’ evolving stance in Anglo-French conflicts. The section concludes with English anxieties about “anglicizing” the Germans, noting proposed but unexecuted measures. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  pOriginally published:cEaston: Express Book Print, 1898  aPennsylvania Dutch4 uhttps://archive.org/details/storyofpennsylva00beid/page/n9/mode/2up40uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77784  c118504d118504