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Swiss Turners Gymnastics

A few men and women, for the most part from German-speaking cantons, initiated this remarkable Swiss community in the mid-1830s. Thousands who followed in their footsteps participated actively in the development of a vibrant new city, branding it with a distinguishable style of efficacy and progressivism. The immigrants and their progeny prospered and distinguished themselves in respective fields of science, commerce, art, and industry. They helped launch Charlie Chaplin's career, formulated coumarin applied in flavorings and perfumes, wrote a frequent guide for 19th-century immigrants, and helped shape the nation's banking industry. Among their finest were Milwaukee's introductory archbishop, a world-renowned surgeon, an elected governor, an influential radical "free-thinker," a kindergarten pioneer, a wine grower, a successful whiskey distiller, and a prolific architect.

About the AuthorMaralyn A. Wellauer-Lenius authored the firstborn English-language Swiss genealogy manual, Tracing Your Swiss Roots (1979); was the publisher and editor of The Swiss Connection: a Genealogical and Cultural Newsletter (1993 to 2003); and holds a master's in education. She has lectured on Swiss genealogy all around North America since the 1970s and was a founder of the Swiss Center of North America (New Glarus, Wisconsin). Wellauer-Lenius is a life fellow member of the Swiss American Historical Society and recipient of their esteemed Paroz Award (1998).

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