Contented among strangers
Subtitle: rural German-speaking women and their families in the nineteenth-century Midwest
By: Linda Schelbitzki Pickle.
Series: Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Centennial series
Publisher: University of Illinois Press
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Urbana
Language: eng
Number of pages: 311
Subjects: German American women -- Middle West -- History -- 19th century.; Farm life -- Middle West -- History -- 19th century.; Middle West -- Social life and customs.; Middle West -- Rural conditions.
Description: German-Americans make up one of the largest ethnic groups in the United States, yet their very success at assimilating has also made them one of the least visible. What were their experiences? What cultural baggage did they bring with them, and how did it affect their lives in America? How did the German-speaking immigrants differ among themselves, and how did these differences influence their behavior and reactions?

Contented among Strangers attempts to answer these questions by examining the central role German-speaking women played in preserving their ethnic and cultural identity in rural areas of the Midwest. Even while living far from their original homelands, these women applied traditional European patterns of rural family life and values to their new homes in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.

As a result they were often more content with their modest lives than were their Anglo-American counterparts. Through personal recollections - including interesting diary accounts translated by the author, church and community documents, and migration and census data - Pickle reveals the diversity and richness of the women's experiences.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.