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By Don Heinrich Tolzmann
Special to NKyTribune
Henry F. Farny (1847–1916) is well known for his paintings of the American West, especially those focusing on the American Indian such as “The Song of the Talking Wire.” Not so well known, and much fewer in number, are the sketches he completed depicting German-American themes. His family’s background is also in need of clarification.
Farny was born in Ribeauville (German: Rappoltsweiler), a town in Alsace known for its fine Alsatian wines. Alsace is the historically German-speaking province sandwiched between France and Germany, which has often been a bone of contention between the two. Linguistic maps for the 19th century show that the language spoken where Ribeauville/Rappoltsweiler is located was the German dialect called Alsatian: Elsässisch, or Elässerditsch.
Technically, Alsatians were French citizens, but ethnically and linguistically German. Therefore, Farny’s family tree, like that of other Alsatians, displays German names. His great-grandparents, for example, were Johann Georg Farnÿ and Anna Catharina Farnÿ, nee Meyer. The umlaut disappeared in America, a common occurrence among immigrants, but the pronunciation was retained. Aside from Alsace, the surname also occurs in Germany and Switzerland
Farny’s family immigrated to America in 1853 for dissenting political reasons during the autocratic regime of Napoleon III. Alsatians had also disliked his uncle, Napoleon I. The French Revolution, followed by the Napoleonic era, caused great suffering in Alsace. According to Goethe, many families “abandoned their property in the region and fled across the Rhine in order to escape the afflictions threatening everyone of distinction.”
The Farny family first settled in Warren, Pennsylvania, near a Seneca Indian reservation. In 1859 the family moved to Cincinnati, which by 1860 had a population of German stock (German-born and their children) that numbered one-third of the total population of 161,044. Alsatians simply blended into the German element, making their numbers difficult to trace.
However, one of the most prominent Alsatians in Cincinnati was Michael Werk (1807–1893), who came to the United States in 1830. He founded a highly successful business manufacturing soap and candles, and later produced sparkling and Catawba wines as well. Werk Road honors his legacy on Cincinnati’s west side.
Farny and family must have felt at home in Cincinnati given its German heritage. His sister, Leonie, even married a German immigrant, Rudolph Wurlitzer, founding father of the Wurlitzer Company. It imported and manufactured musical instruments and ultimately became well-known for its Wurlitzer jukeboxes.
Rudolph and Leonie’ son, Farny R. Wurlitzer, said when his uncle and grandmother got together: “They talked in Alsatian. I couldn’t speak it, but I could understand.” German dialects differ, and the Wurlitzer family, originating in Saxony, could have readily understood the Alsatian dialect, but not been able to converse in it.
Farny went abroad several times, studying at Paris, Düsseldorf, Munich, Strassburg and Vienna. His multicultural background no doubt assisted his travels abroad, while his artistic abilities were certainly enriched. German-American artists such as Frank Duveneck, John Twachtman, and John Hauser were among Farny’s many local artist friends. Hauser was influenced by Farny and his paintings of American Indians, leading him to visit various Indian reservations in the American West, and complete numerous paintings of them.
In Cincinnati Farny frequented Wielert’s Cafe and Pavilion, the largest and most popular German saloon and biergarten in Over-the-Rhine. It was founded by Heinrich Wielert (1836–1892), a German immigrant from Hannover, who served in the American Civil War as a member of the 106th Ohio Vol. Infantry Regiment, a German-American regiment commanded by Gustav Tafel.
Farny’s sketch of Wielert’s shows the biergarten filled with friends and families enjoying the Gemütlichkeit of what was advertised as “A Strictly First-Class Family Resort.” His sketch appeared in D.J. Kenny’s Illustrated Cincinnati (1875), along with his sketches depicting familiar biergarten figures: the “Over-the-Rhine Waiter,” the “Sausage Man,” and the “Wiener Wurst Man.” A colorized lithograph of the Wielert’s sketch also appeared.
Farny’s “The Silent Guest” is an oil painting (1878) that captures the pensive image of a memorable figure, a frequent guest at local biergartens. It shows a veteran of the Napoleonic wars, nursing a glass of beer while perhaps reminiscing over past experiences. Given Farny’s Alsatian roots, he must have caught his attention.
Perhaps Farny’s earliest depiction of German-American life was his sketch of “The Turner Festival at Cincinnati, Ohio, September 4, 1865 – Exercises at Parker’s Grove,” which appeared in Harper’s Weekly (vol. 9, 1865, p. 521). The Turners were members of the Turnverein, a society formed by participants in the 1848 Revolution in Germany. Many of them served in the 9th Ohio Vol. Infantry Regiment, one of Cincinnati’s German-American units during the Civil War, and were no doubt celebrating the Union victory at the festival that Farny so finely sketched.
Farny’s sketches of German-American life are fewer in number than his portrayals of Native American life, but equally interesting and informative. His focal point, a more lucrative one no doubt, centered on the latter, and with it he attained great success as an artist. Fortunately, he sketched a few scenes that provide glimpses of the German-American life he experienced in Cincinnati. It remains to be seen if there are any more such sketches.
Don Heinrich Tolzmann is a nationally and regionally noted historian of German Americana. He has written and edited dozens of books, and contributed to many others, including The Encyclopedia of Northern Kentucky.
Paul A. Tenkotte, PhD is Editor of the “Our Rich History” weekly series and Professor of History at Northern Kentucky University (NKU). To browse ten years of past columns, see: nkytribune.com/our-rich-history. Tenkotte also serves as Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Engagement). He can be contacted at tenkottep@nku.edu.