.

On Sunday, July 10, 1898 the San Jose Daily Mercury published as story under the headline:

“Turner Willkommen” Beautiful Illuminated Parade.

Address of "Welcome" by Mayor Martin – Reception to the Visitors at Turn Verein Hall.

The San Jose Turn Verein was founded in 1868. The Turners started as an athletic club in Berlin, Germany, in 1811.  The first Turn Verein Club in the United States was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1848.

The motto for these young men and women was: “Sound Mind,Sound Body.” Working to achieve both was a lifetime commitment.

Turner Halls sprang up everywhere in the United States where German immigration flourished. Many of the Turners had been active in the 1848 revolution in an attempt to unite the more than 300 German Countries into one Germany. All these countries had been established after the 30 year war in 1648.

The revolution failed and these highly educated and motivated man and women found their lives in danger and their futures in jeopardy.

They had to leave the country. Many of them came to California since Gold was found about the same time.

San Francisco had its first Turnverein in 1852, Sacramento in 1854 and San Jose in 1868,

The San Jose Turn Verein had its first meeting in a house on Lightson Alley.  In the course of years the society changed several times its quarters until in the year 1885 the hall and gymnasium on Third Street was built at an expense of $18,000.  The San Jose Turn Verein, with 125 members, belonged to the “North American Gymnastic Union”, which had a membership of 45,000.

The society had a singing section, a dramatic section, a gymnastic section, and classes for physical culture of each sex, and of all ages and conditions.  Candidates for admission into the society must have attained their eighteenth year, they must be of irreproachable character, and must be citizens of the United States, or, at least have taken the preliminary steps to become citizens.

One of the chief aims of the S. J. T. V. has been for years, to induce our educational bodies to recognize and obey the demands of our school-attending youth for needed bodily relaxation and exercise, while under the great mental strain to which our latter-day school methods subject them.  Within the last year great cheer and encouragement has come to the members of the society by seeing their wishes realized.  When favored by Superintendent Russel, the Board of Education introduced physical culture into the public schools of San Jose.

 The principals of the society are embodied in the following platform:

 We, the members of the San Jose Turn Verein, propose by our union to aid each other in rearing a people strong in both body and mind.  We recognize in the dissemination of culture and the fostering of ethical and moral principals, the only means of affecting a thorough reform of social, religious and political life.  We strive for the development of the republic on a truly human and republican basis.  We, therefore, oppose most decidedly every attempt to interfere with the liberty of conscience and also all legislative encroachments that are hostile to the perfection and developments of our free institutions.

More than 500 Turners came to San Jose to take part in the competition.

The Turner movement has practically vanished. What is left is a few social clubs throughout the states.

Here are some links which give a pretty good insight into the life and times fo the Turners.

Turnerfest,Saturday, July 9, 1898

Turnerfest, Sunday, July 10, 1898

Turnerfest, July 11,1898

Jahrmarkt, Dec. 15, 1899

Second Night at the Fair,

What is a Verein?

What happened to my German-American Heritage?

Hatred toward Germans, 1918

Turner Lectures

Turners in the Civil War

Turners in the USA, 1830s

Francis Lieber, Karl Follen

Jack La Lanne and the Turners

Paul Knauer, Oakland Turner

Frankfurt Turnerfest, 1908

Declaration of Independenc, first printed in German

More Germ,-Ameri. Inf. regarding the Declaration