German Americans and the Founding of the United States
Feb 12, 2026 | 6pm CST (7 pm EST)
Online Lecture | Speaker: Emily Sneff
The names of German Americans do not often come to mind when we think about the founding of the United States. In fact, some of the “founding fathers” had a negative impression of German communities. But immigrants and people of German ethnicity were deeply involved in waging war with Great Britain, establishing new governments, and cementing the rights of all Americans. This lecture will talk about the role of military leaders, inaugural office holders, and supporters on the home front such as the Muhlenberg family (Peter, Frederick, and Catherine), Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, Michael Hillegas, Mary Ludwig Hays—better remembered as Molly Pitcher—and other men and women whose influence can still be felt today.
The lectures are cosponsored by the Max Kade Institute for German American Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the Friends of the Max Kade Institute, the German Society of Pennsylvania’s Horner Library, and the German Historical Institute-Washington, D.C.
About the Speaker
Dr. Emily Sneff is a scholar of early American history and a leading expert on the Declaration of Independence. She is the consulting curator for exhibitions planned for the country’s Semiquincentennial including The Declaration’s Journey at the Museum of the American Revolution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Window to Revolution: Pennsylvania Germans and the War for Independence at Historic Trappe, Pennsylvania. Her book When the Declaration of Independence Was News will be published in April 2026 with Oxford University Press.