The Order of the Sons of Hermann, also known as Hermann Sons and by its German name as der Orden der Hermann's Soehne or Hermannssöhne, was formed as a mutual protection society for German immigrants in New York City on July 20, 1840.[1][2]
The order provides low-cost insurance and mutual aid and has historically promoted the preservation of German language and traditions.
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The Sons of Hermann was formed by Dr. Philip Merkel, George Heiner, John Blatz, A. Auer, R. Schwendel, W. Kohler, and Philipp Germann on the Lower East Side,[2][3] in response to anti-German prejudice during a period of heavy German immigration to the United States.[4] It was an offshoot of the Odd Fellows.[5] By 1848 the organization had grown to six groups with 800 members, and on December 25, 1848, a national grand lodge was formed in Milwaukee.[1] Hundreds of lodges were organized during the nineteenth century; by 1895 there were about 30,000 members.[2] A German-language account ten years after that mentions affiliates in Canada and in Germany itself.[6] However, like all things German, the order declined sharply in popularity with the outbreak of World War I.[7]
German Jews participated fully in the Sons of Hermann; the order's insurance fund was led by Jacob Brandeis and Rabbi Emanuel Gerechter, the former also directing the order's choral group in Milwaukee.[8]
Harmonia Lodge No. 1 in San Antonio was the first Sons of Hermann lodge to offer its members non-profit life insurance (proposed in 1873).[9] Starting on July 1, 1875, the national organization required members to purchase a life insurance policy.[10] This is now a major feature of membership; ritual initiation is not required.[11][12]
Under the leadership of Julius Berndt, then national secretary, the Sons of Hermann paid for an American monument to Hermann modeled on the Hermannsdenkmal in Germany. It was completed in 1897 and is located in New Ulm, Minnesota, where Berndt was head of the local chapter.[13]
In 1861 the first lodge in Texas, Harmonia Lodge No. 1, was organized in San Antonio. On March 27, 1890, the Texas grand lodge was formed, consisting of Harmonia Lodge of San Antonio and seven other lodges in Austin, Taylor, Temple, Waco, La Grange, Brenham, and Houston, with a combined membership of 242. 92 more lodges were formed in the next year. In 1896 the first sister lodge for women was dedicated in Sherman, and in 1920 the first mixed lodge for both men and women, in San Antonio. In 1920 the Order of the Sons of Hermann in Texas, which by then was wealthier and had more members than all other lodges elsewhere in the United States combined, declared itself independent of the national order.[1]
The Texas order phased out the German language in favor of English by 1937. By 1965 only half the membership was of German heritage, and by 1994 membership was open to all.[1] Membership grew as restrictions were lifted.[11]
The Texas order currently claims more than 74,000 members in more than 140 lodges.[10]
The Texas order has operated a retirement home in Comfort since 1916[14] and summer youth camps, also on property it owns in Comfort, since 1954. Local lodges offer scholarships to students in their communities.[1]
The Sons of Hermann Hall in Deep Ellum, Dallas was built in 1910 by the four Dallas lodges and is currently used by two lodges as well as being available for rent.[15] It is currently a popular venue for the local music scene.