TO OUR READERS
Following a decision of the Executive Committee of our Society, Volume
XXXIII of The Report bears the additional notation A JOURNAL OF
GERMAN
-AMERICAN HISTORY. This will not come as a surprise to many
of our faithful friends nor to researchers who succeeded in locating material
about other states in past issues of The Report despite the fact that most
library catalogues listed them only under "Maryland."
We are fully aware of the difficulties which the rather erratic number-
ing system for earlier volumes has presented to librarians. Initially The
Report was issued annually, with the first number in 1887. The last of
these "Annual Reports," Volume XV, appeared in 1901. From that date on
they appeared at irregular intervals. Volume XVI was issued in 1907, but
it contains also brief statements regarding the Society's annual business
comprising vols. XVII, XVIII, XIX, XX, XXI and XXII; thus instead
of being listed as XVI, this volum ought to be entitled: The Report, vols.
XVI-XXII. From 1907 to 1929 no volume was issued. Vol. XXIII ap-
peared in 1929, XXIV in 1939. From 1939 to the present, nine volumes
have appeared at approximately three-year intervals. We are gratified to
note that several libraries have begun to include The Report in their
analytical cataloguing.
The value of such a procedure becomes evident from the content of the
present Volume XXXIII which contains the first comprehensive history
of the Germans of Columbus, Ohio. Our Society is privileged in presenting
these results of painstaking research by Professor La Vern J. Rippley of
St. Olaf College. We gratefully acknowledge our indebtedness to sponsors
in the Midwest who are listed elsewhere. Special thanks are due to Pro-
fessor Dieter Cunz of Ohio State University for his untiring concern with
this particular project. It is evident that the illustrations created by Mr.
Donald L. Dodrill of Columbus greatly enhance the article.
Lastly, this volume presents a bibliography of materials on German
settlement and immigration in Virginia. The Society hopes to offer such
basic tools for future studies in less known fields of Americana Germanica
from time to time.
The customary report of the Secretary on the activities of the Society
since 1966 and the memorial tributes will appear in Volume XXXIV of
The Report.
K W.
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