Damn Dutch : Pennsylvania Germans at Gettysburg / David L. Valuska and Christian B. Keller ; with contributions by Scott Hartwig and Martin Oefele ; foreword by Don Yoder.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Valuska, David L., 1938-

Contributor:

Keller, Christian B.

Hartwig, Scott.

Oefele, Martin.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gettysburg, Battle of, Gettysburg, Pa., 1863.

Pennsylvania Dutch--History.

Pennsylvania Dutch.

History.

Pennsylvania--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Participation, German American.

Pennsylvania.

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Participation, German American.

United States.

Pennsylvania--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Regimental histories.

Regimental histories.

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Regimental histories.

Physical Description:

xix, 236 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Mechanicsburg, PA : Stackpole Books, [2004]

Summary:

Damn Dutch is the first work to highlight the contributions at the Battle of Gettysburg of regiments of Pennsylvania Dutch -- the descendants of eighteenth-century German-speaking immigrants who had developed their own dialect and culture in Pennsylvania -- and post-1820 German-born immigrants. On the first day of the battle, the Union Army's 1st Corps, in which many of the Pennsylvania Dutch regiments served, and the half-German 11th Corps, which had five regiments of either variety in it, bought with their blood enough time for the federals to adequately prepare the high ground -- a sacrifice that proved critical in the end for the Union victory. On the second day, they participated in beating back Confederate attacks that threatened to crack the Union defenses on Cemetery Hill and in other strategic locations. The book focuses on the distinctions and tensions between the two groups -- then lumped together and sometimes referred to as the "Damn Dutch" -- and how their ethnic identities shaped their behavior before, during, and after the battle.

Contents:

Diverse German immigrants and ethnic identity on the eve of the Civil War

German-Americans and the war up to Gettysburg

The Pennsylvania Dutch as first defenders

The Pennsylvania Dutch and "the hard hand of war"

The campaign and battle of Gettysburg

"Fight with what is left"

Pennsylvania's German-Americans, a popular myth, and the importance of perception

The Pennsylvania Dutch fight for "old Dutch Pennsylvania"

After Gettysburg.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 205-231) and index.

ISBN:

0811700747

OCLC:

52554101