BGuthrie Photos: DC -- German-American Heritage Museum

DC -- German-American Heritage Museum:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Recognize anyone? If you recognize specific folks (or other stuff) and I haven't labeled them, please identify them for the world. Click the little pencil icon

underneath the file name (just above the picture). Spammers need not apply.

Slide Show: Want to see the pictures as a slide show? [Slideshow]

Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

Help? The Medium (Email) links are for screen viewing and emailing. You'll want bigger sizes for printing. [Click here for additional help]

Share: Facebook Twitter Digg
[1] GAHM_151010_01.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[2] GAHM_151010_06.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[3] GAHM_151010_08.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[4] GAHM_151010_14.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[5] GAHM_151010_18.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[6] GAHM_151010_21.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[7] GAHM_151010_25.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[8] GAHM_151010_28.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[9] GAHM_151010_31.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)
[10] GAHM_151010_37.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)	[11] GAHM_151010_43.JPG Medium (Email) (Bigger?)

Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. GAHM_151010_01.JPG: "Remember always that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt, US President, 1933-1945
2. GAHM_151010_06.JPG: "Remember always that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt, US President, 1933-1945 "Few people have blended so completely into the multicultural tapestry of American society and yet have made such singular economic, political, social, scientific and cultural contributions to the growth and success of these United States as have Americans of German extraction." -- Ronald R. Reagan, Proclamation establishing the German-American Day, October 6th, 1987 "For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness... We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this earth." -- President Barack Obama, Inaugural Address, January 20th, 2009
3. GAHM_151010_14.JPG: Willkommen in Hockemeyer Hall Built in 1888 by the German immigrant John Hockemeyer, the home of the German-American Heritage Museum is itself a testament to the achievements of German-American immigrants in the United States. The Community: The Victorian townhouse "Hockemeyer Hall" is part of the Penn Quarter, historically a vibrant district of Washington DC, which was originally settled by German immigrants. Hockemeyer Hall specifically was a fine residence in this neighborhood, which proclaimed both the economic coming of age of the German community, and also John Hockemeyer's status within that community. Most importantly, though, it became a vital social center for Washington's German-American community. In the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries, the townhouse was in a prime location. Situated just a block away from the fashionable Seventh Street business district, it boasted a close proximity to a number of prominent German institutions within the community. The Washington Journal Office, for example, lay just across the street at 710 6th Street, while Sietz's Rathskeller could be found just a short walk around the corner at 511 7th Street, and the Masonic Temple, which was built by the German-born architect Adolf Cluss, was located not far away at 9th and F Streets. Hockemeyer's Hall was constructed as a well-appointed clubhouse that included a library, meeting room, and billiard room. The Hall served as a headquarters and meeting place for a wide variety of clubs and fraternal groups, such as the "Business Men's Club," the "Schuetzen Verein," and the "Jolly Fat Men's Club." John Hockemeyer also hosted a group called the "Buena Vista Pleasure Club," which used the hall for dances and banquets. After John Hockemeyer's death, however, the business of the hall declined rapidly. In 1900 it hosted a Union Veterans League encampment. Reflecting the transition from the Nineteenth Century ethnic clubs, Hockemeyer Hall was soon leased to a group called the "Federal Union" as an explicitly commercial venture. In 1901, it was renamed "Federal Union Hall," and served as a venue for meetings of state societies.
4. GAHM_151010_18.JPG: Street scene on G Street between 1913 & 1918
5. GAHM_151010_21.JPG: John Hockemeyer (1844-1899) John Hockemeyer was born in Germany in 1844. Together with his parents, he immigrated to the United States as a young boy and moved to Washington, DC at the age of 15. After serving for the Union in the Civil War, Hockemeyer became a wealthy merchant in the grocery, coffee roasting, and meat businesses, which helped him solidify his position as a leader of Washington's prosperous German-American community. He served as an officer and president or multiple German-American clubs. John Hockemeyer died at the age of 55 on August 22, 1899. His funeral was held with Masonic honors.
6. GAHM_151010_25.JPG: Reviving the Roots: On October 17, 2008, the German-American Heritage Foundation of the USA acquired Hockemeyer Hall to establish the German-American Heritage Museum of the USA. With the help of a committed network of supporters and a successful fundraising campaign, the GAHF renovated the interior and exterior of the neglected building. In opening the German-American Heritage Museum at Hockemeyer Hall, the GAHF has brought the building back to its truest roots by re-establishing it as a vital center of German-American life.
7. GAHM_151010_28.JPG: Photo of Hockemeyer Hall in 2004 (left) and in 2009 (right) after the renovation.
8. GAHM_151010_31.JPG: "Mr. Hockemeyer was a veteran of the civil war and served with distinction throughout the conflict. He helped to organize the Business Men's Club and owned the building in which it was located." -- The Washington Post, August 22, 1899, pg 10
Multi Column: Number of columns of thumbnails to appear per page (normally defaults to 3): [1 col] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]
Wikipedia Description: German-American Heritage Foundation of the USA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The German-American Heritage Foundation of the USA (GAHFUSA) is a national non-profit organization that promotes German language, culture, and heritage in the United States and works toward preserving the history of Americans of German ancestry in the building the United States. It is a national membership organization through which Americans of German heritage and language work together on issues of common concern. The organization supports a number of special projects including the German-American Friendship Garden located on the Mall at Constitution Avenue in Washington, DC, and the care of the grave of Carl Schurz in Tarrytown, New York. The organization's national headquarters are in Washington, DC.

Goals:

The GAHFUSA is dedicated to preserve, educate, and promote the cultural heritage of Americans of German-speaking ancestry and to be a voice of German-Americans in cultural and public policy debates in the USA. Its goals include:

* Sharing a positive image of Americans of German-speaking heritage by focusing on their historical contributions to American society.
* Strengthening the ethnic awareness and cooperation of German Americans.
* Promoting the German language and culture.
* Cultivating German American friendship and cooperation.
* Supporting cooperative efforts among German-Americans and their organizations.

Activities:

The organization honors the outstanding contributions of German-speaking Americans through its Distinguished German-American of the Year Award, which is presented at the annual Council of 1000 Award and Fundrasing Gala.

The Foundation works with the White House, government agencies, the German Embassy, and other organizations throughout the United States to elevate recognition for the contributions of Americans of German heritage.

Each year since President Ronald Reagan first declared October 6 German-Amer ...More...
Bigger photos? To save server space, the full-sized versions of these images have either not been loaded to the server or have been removed from the server. (Only some pages are loaded with full-sized images and those usually get removed after three months.) I still have them though. If you want me to email them to you, please send an email to guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can email them to you, or, depending on the number of images, just repost the page again will the full-sized images.
Directly Related Pages: Other pages with content (DC -- German-American Heritage Museum) directly related to this one: [Display ALL photos on one page]:
- 2022_DC_GAHM: DC -- German-American Heritage Museum (3 photos from 2022)
- 2010_DC_GAHM: DC -- German-American Heritage Museum (15 photos from 2010)
Same Subject: Click on this link to see coverage of items having the same subject: [German American Heritage Foundation] [Display ALL German American Heritage Foundation photos] [Museums (History)]
2015 photos: Equipment this year: I mostly used my Fuji XS-1 camera but, depending on the event, I also used a Nikon D7000. I retired from the US Census Bureau in god-forsaken Suitland, Maryland on my 58th birthday in May. Yee ha! Trips this year: a quick trip to Florida. two Civil War Trust conferences (Raleigh, NC and Richmond, VA), and my 10th consecutive San Diego Comic-Con trip (including Los Angeles). Ego Strokes: Carolyn Cerbin used a Kevin Costner photo in her USA Today article. Miss DC pictures were used a few times in the Washington Post. Number of photos taken this year: just over 550,000.
Connection Not Secure messages? Those warnings you get from your browser about this site not having secure connections worry some people. This means this site does not have SSL installed (the link is http:, not https:). That's bad if you're entering credit card numbers, passwords, or other personal information. But this site doesn't collect any personal information so SSL is not necessary. Life's good!
Limiting Text: You can turn off all of this text by clicking this link: [Thumbnails Only]
Photo Contact: [Email Bruce Guthrie].