Dealernews decided to celebrate the historic occasion at one of our favorite Teutonic Tech Emporiums, BMW of Richfield! This German-American heritage holiday commemorates the 13 German Mennonite families from Krefeld who landed in Philadelphia. On October 6, 1683, these families established the first German settlement in the original 13 colonies. They named it Germantown.
To honor the 300th anniversary of German-American immigration and culture into the United States, in 1983 President Ronald Reagan proclaimed October 6th as German-American Day. It was on August 6, 1987, that Congress approved S.I. Resolution 108, designating October 6, 1987, as German-American Day, and it became Public Law 100-104 when President Reagan signed it on August 18. He issued Proclamation #5719 on October 2, 1987, and at this time, the President called on Americans to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. It has been commemorated each year since with Presidential Proclamations.
