By Don Heinrich Tolzmann
Special to NKyTribune
Cincinnati has a monument in Washington Park in Over-the-Rhine that honors Friedrich Hecker (1811–1881), a well-known Forty-Eighter (48er) who was one of the foremost leaders of the 1848 Revolution in Germany. His descendants, in partnership with the German American Heritage Society of St. Louis, are organizing a tour for the Mayor of Angelbachtal, Germany, Hecker’s hometown, who will be bringing a delegation across the Atlantic Ocean to follow in the footsteps of Hecker here in the USA.
The tour begins in St. Louis where the restored Hecker Monument there will be rededicated. Like other 48ers, Hecker was strongly opposed to slavery and joined the newly formed Republican Party. In 1856 in Illinois, Hecker and Abraham Lincoln were chosen as electors-at-large if John Frémont won the state. During the Civil War, Hecker commanded two regiments: the 24th Illinois Infantry Regiment and then the 82nd Illinois Infantry Regiment.
During the war, Hecker saw action at the Battle of Chancellorsville, where he was wounded, but after recovering, served at other battles, including the Battle of Missionary Ridge.
After the war, he continued to be active in the Republican Party and the German-American press. After his death in 1881, monuments were dedicated to him in St. Louis and Cincinnati, both of which reflect the great popularity he enjoyed among German Americans.
The tour group will proceed from St. Louis to visit the Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois, and discuss the influence of Hecker and other Germans on the founding of the Republican Party and German contributions to the Union Army during the Civil War. The group will then come to Cincinnati, where I will lead a tour for them of Over-the-Rhine, stopping by and explaining the history of Cincinnati’s Hecker Monument in Washington Park.
The monument is not the only connection Hecker has to Cincinnati. On his way west in 1848, Hecker visited Cincinnati, and his visit inspired local 48ers to establish the Cincinnati Turner Society, the first Turnverein in the USA. During the Civil War, the ranks of the 9 th Ohio Infantry Regiment were filled with members of Cincinnati’s Turner Society. Its president, Gustav Tafel, had met with Hecker and other local 48ers in 1848, and that meeting led to the society’s formation.
After a tour of Over-the-Rhine, the group will spend another day of leisure in Cincinnati to explore and enjoy the area. The group begins its tour on September 7 in St. Louis, and concludes September 13th in Cincinnati, having strengthened connections between Hecker’s hometown with St. Louis and Cincinnati.
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). He can be contacted at tenkottep@nku.edu. Tenkotte also serves as Director of the ORVILLE Project (Ohio River Valley Innovation Library and Learning Engagement).
For additional Our Rich History pieces on Cincinnati Germans click here and here.