German-Texan Heritage Society, The Journal, Volume 32, Number 3, Fall 2010 Page: 164
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164
German Day in Texas
The 9th of October this year has been pro-
claimed German Day in Texas by Governor
Rick Perry. An annual German Day proclama-
tion by the Texas Governor has been a tradition
since 1963, when German Day was officially
designated by Governor John Connally to be
reinstated after many years without a day honor-
ing German-Texans.
In 1889 the city of Houston paid tribute to the
heroic German pioneers, and an annual com-
memoration and festival took place there for
many years. Germans were honored annually in
other Texas cities as well. A Dallas newspaper
article from 1893 tells of Dallas residents cele-
brating German Day that year to commemorate
the anniversary of the October 6, 1683 arrival of
German colonists and the founding of German-
town, Pennsylvania, the first permanent German
settlement in what became the U.S. These an-
nual celebrations were held around Texas until
about 1910.
In 1963 the nonprofit Texas German Day
Council was founded in Dallas to resume the
annual Texas custom of celebrating German
Day. Founding Chairman and German Honor-
ary Consul Gershon Canaan won the support of
Governor Connally for an official German Day
in Texas, and that year the Governor signed a
proclamation designating October 6 as the day.4xans omeWrniain U lL ic ave played an inporumti roe in building
i. Star State we know and love today. Drawn to Texas by pioneer
hann Friedrich Emss persuasive letters about the fertile soil, a mild
mate, and abundant fish and game of his adopted homeland. German
ikis began arriving steadily in the i830s. By 1850. Merman pioneers
!le cnLribuLions of thesc settlers helped lay the Ioundauon of the
r State and have taken rmot in the ie' uniauec eture
Lr 5i.I. ItiatI;4 Lj 1 4 41; U ' L Pa L kCI U LU tIl 'Ii.:L. 1i
ctober as German Day, celebrating German-Americans' rich
ritage and the prominent role they have played in Texas. I encourage all
-,ans to recognize the many contributions German-Americans have made
I'herelfore, 1, R ick Perry, Governor of Texas, do hereby proclaim
arman Davignition whereof.
In official rcognition whcreof,
I hecby afix my signume thL% h
26" day o lMay, 2010.The Texas German Day Council sponsors the ' ]I
German Pioneer Ball in the Dallas area around
October 6 each year to celebrate German Day in
Texas and to honor its mission of commemorat-
ing the settlement of Germantown, Pennsyl-
vania, acknowledging the contributions of Ger-
mans and persons of German ancestry throughout Texas history, as well as encouraging German-American culture
exchange and building bridges of friendship between Germany and the U.S.Over the years, the German Pioneer Ball has honored numerous German-Americans and Germans with U.S. con-
nections, as well as Texas and German cities. In 2009 the city of Arlington (Texas) and its sister city Bad K6nig-
shofen (Bavaria) were honored for their strong partnership dating back to 1951.
This year's German Pioneer Ball will be on Saturday, October 9, at the Sheraton Grand DFW Hotel in Irving. Th
48th annual Ball will honor the city of Fort Worth and its German sister city Trier. If you would like to be a part o
this year's German Day in Texas celebration, please see the Texas German Day Council web site at
www.GermanDayInTexas.com for further information and for ordering tickets.is
fSubmitted by Martha Liehsel, Whitney
all
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German-Texan Heritage Society. German-Texan Heritage Society, The Journal, Volume 32, Number 3, Fall 2010, periodical, Autumn 2010; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1507480/m1/12/?q=%22~1~1~1%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting German-Texan Heritage Society.