Bohemia is a region of modern day Czech Republic. It is bordered by Bavaria to the West, Saxony to the North, Poland to the Northeast, and Austria to the South. During the time of the Holy Roman Empire, Bohemia was it’s own kingdom until 1526, when it came under Austrian rule by the Hapsburg Monarchy. Prague was even capital of the Holy Roman Empire at one point! Under Hapsburg rule, Bohemia became increasingly more German, with the German language being spoken predominantly. In 1848, many Czech nationalists revolted and wanted to restore Bohemia as Czech and independent, apart from Austria. The revolution failed and Bohemia did not become independent until after WWI, when it became know as Czechoslovakia.
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| Pamphlet in German extolling the climate and soil of Wisconsin |
My 4th great-grandfather Martin Woodruff came to the States in 1854, from Bohemia. This would have been right after the revolution. Perhaps he was a proud Czech nationalist and decided to join the waves of Czech immigrants heading to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Immigrants flooded into Wisconsin beginning in the 1840s. According to the US Census of 1860, over 7,000 Czech settlers lived in Wisconsin, with Milwaukee being one of the earliest Czech settlements. Wisconsin developed an active advertising campaign in order to attract settlers. Wisconsin often advertised in foreign newspapers and sent out pamphlets.
aspen mitchell 