This is a good time to discuss the Hans Herr House in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It just happens that I will be on duty there today giving tours. A month ago, when I was leading tours, we had a couple from Germany and then a family of four from France. It is not unusual to have foreign visitors. The Hans Herr House has been written up and recommended in both a German tour guide book and in a French tour guide book. One unusual thing is that each of these parties had not yet been in the United States for twenty-four hours when they came to the House. And if you allow me to judge, I do believe they were satisfied that the tour book recommendations were justified. The French party was a challenge because the two youngest ones, one a preschooler and one just into the school system, did not speak a word of English. (That is even-steven, as I do not speak a word of French.) The German woman protested that she did not speak English, but she actually spoke some, and I gave her a writeup in German. We actually got along fine by substituting a few German words such as Wiedertaufen for Anabaptist.
What does any visitor find of interest at the House? There is quite a mixture of things, but perhaps the most obvious one is that it gives some insight into how people lived then. I like to emphasize that it was a dream for a do-it-yourselfer. If you did not do it yourself, then you generally went without. If you wanted a poured concrete arch over your basement, then you started with fundamentals and proceeded from there.
I usually give visitors a measure of the origins of Anabaptist thought so that they will know why the Germans came. And perhaps I tell them some of the difficulties they encountered along the way. Some of the people who come have never heard of Anabaptists, or Mennonites, or Amish, though it is very few that have not heard or seen the Amish in Lancaster County. Some of the people are well acquainted with the history, since they grew up in one of those traditions. So, some of the time it is "preaching to the choir".
There are artifacts that were found on the property. It usually gets the attention of the audience when you show them a coin with the picture of Charles II on it. Of course, I may have to explain that Charles II came after Charles I, but only after a Cromwellian interlude. (Of course you know it was Charles II that created the Northern Neck. Could it be called a "Neck" after his father?) A George II coin was after 1727. A Mexican, or more truthfully a Spanish coin, is also in the collection. Many people are surprised that Spanish coins were almost coins of the realm in the colonies here. Virginia specified some of its fees in terms of Spanish coins. And I do the bit about a Spanish coin being cut into eight parts.
Then, I like to have guessing games for audience participation. Where did Christian Herr buy his German family Bible? Where was the "Martyr's Mirror" printed? What is the utensil on the table holding a reed? What is the tool with a long handle and a heavy stick of wood swivelled on the end of it?
(02 Jun 01)
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.