German Stores In London

[toffo]

Pals,

I'm busy looking through a book i recently bought called TheFirst World War ( A Photograpic History of WW1, published in 1933) in one photograph it shows a large crowd of people in London looting and smashing up a German shop the index simply refers to it as "riots in London", I have become curious as to what they would have sold at the time, the photo appears to have butcher / poultry type hooks hanging outside, were Germans known to own Butcher / poultry stores in London at that time?

regards

Toffo

[walrus]

Toffo,

The cliche is always the Pork Butcher, but Germans were as likely to be in any other retail field that was open (Okay, maybe not Indian Restaurants*).

Regards

Tom.

* There was at least one in London.

[toffo]

thanks for that Tom, thought the shop appeared to be Butcher type as the hooks suggest.

[Pete1052]

St. Louis Globe-Democrat

April 5, 1918

GERMAN ENEMY OF U.S. HANGED BY MOB

COLLINSVILLE MAN KILLED FOR ABUSING WILSON

Robert P. Prager Taken from Jail and Strung Up to Tree by 300 Men and Boys After Officers are Overpowered

Robert P. Prager, 45 years old, of Collinsville, Ill., a coalminer, charged with making disloyal utterances against the United States and President Wilson, was hanged to a tree on Mauer Heights, one mile west of Collinsville on the St. Louis road, by a mob of 300 men and boys after he had twice escaped mob violence, at 12:15 o'clock this morning.

Collinsville is ten miles northeast of East St. Louis.

Prager was taken from the Collinsville Jail by the mob, which battered down the doors. The prisoner was found hidden under a pile of rubbish in the basement of the Jail, where he had been placed by the police when they had learned that the mob was on the way to the Jail.

The police were overpowered, there being only four on the night force, and the prisoner was carried down the street, the mob cheering and waving flags. The police were not allowed to follow the mob by a guard which had been placed over them.

When led to the tree upon which he was hanged Prager was asked if he had anything to say.

"Yes," he replied in broken English. "I would like to pray.

He then fell to his knees, clasped his hands to his breast and prayed for three minutes in German.

Without another word the noose was placed about his neck and the body pulled 10 feet into the air by a hundred or more hands which grasped the rope.

Before praying, Prager wrote a letter to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Carl Henry Prager, Preston [Dresden], Germany. It follows:

"Dear Parents - I must this day, the 5th of April, 1918, die.

"Please pray for me, my dear parents. This is my last letter.

"Your dear son.

"ROBERT PAUL PRAGER."

Prager was an enemy alien and registered in East St. Louis.

Prager Attended Socialist Meeting Short Time Before He was Lynched

After the mob had returned to Collinsville, several residents at Collinsville who had heard of the hanging went to the scene.

Two unidentified persons were found guarding the body. They would let no one approach and warned whoever came close that they would meet the same fate if they attempted to cut down the body.

The mob took their prisoner from the jail about 10 o'clock last night.

Prager earlier in the evening had attended a Socialist meeting in Maryville, where it is alleged he made a speech in which he uttered remarks which were termed disloyal.

After word had been passed around Maryville, a mob collected there and started a search for the miner. Prager had been informed about that the mob was after him and he escaped to Collinsville. They told of the remarks of Prager and finally a mob of 300 was assembled.

Prager was found on the street in front of his home, 208 Vandalia Avenue. He was marched to the main street, where his shoes were removed and a large American flag was wrapped about his body.

Prager was made to kiss the flag many times and march up and down the street waving two small flags which he carried in his hands.

For fear that violence would result from the mob, the police took Prager from them and placed him in jail.

Mayor Induces Mob to Go Home, but It Reassembles Later

Mayor J. H. Siegel pleaded with the mob and asked them to go to their homes. He had previously

closed all the saloons.

"We do not want a stigma marking Collinsville," said Mayor Siegel, "and I implore you to go to your homes and discontinue this demonstration."

The mob disbanded and the mayor, thinking that everything had quieted down, went to his home.

But a short time later the mob again formed and stormed the jail, taking the prisoner from the police.

This is the first killing for disloyalty in the United States, although many persons have been mobbed and tarred and feathered.

Prager begged for mercy. He said that he was a loyal citizen, and in a signed statement, which he had previously made to the police, he said that his heart and soul were for the United States. He admitted being a native of Germany. He said that he had applied for naturalization papers and that his second papers were waiting for him.

Prager had been in Maryville looking for work. He was a coal miner. He found he could not obtain employment because the union had rejected his application.

On March 22, four men, including a Polish Catholic priest, were tarred and feathered at Christopher, Ill., a mining town eighty miles from St. Louis.

Previous to that time two other men were tarred and feathered in the same mining district. For the past three months many loyalty demonstrations have occurred in an effort to drive disloyal persons from Southern Illinois.

[toffo]

Thanks fo that Pete,

The book shows a "German Spy" being hanged on the Street in Vienna, also The British Army Shooting another, so it appears to be not as scarce as it first seems.

regards

toffo

[MartH]

One of the most famous German establishments to come under scrutiny was the Bechstein Hall. Built by the Bechstein Piano Company in 1901, next to its show room, to display their wares in anger versus the other manufactures, it quickly became famous and beloved by the artists who where also displayed acoustically at their best . It is still regarded as one of the world's great recital hall's and has beautiful acoustics, I have heard recitals there without microphones relying on the beautiful acoustics. This link explains the history during the GW, most interesting: Wigmore Hall History

Oh, and it was renamed the Wigmore hall during the GW.

Regards

Mart

[Michael Johnson]

A lot of Germans emigrated in the last part of the 19th century, especially Roman Catholics who disagreed with Bismark's religious policies.

Among them was my wife's great-grandfather. He became naturalized before the War, and his son served from 1913-19 in the Civil Service Rifles.

[toffo]

Michael,

do you have any info to how they were treat, in their ordinary day to day lives? Ie: were they accepted as part of the community or were they treat with suspicion?

[MelPack]

The Board of Trade was empowered to wind up any business with German connections.

Here is an example from the Gazette in 1916:

TRADING WITH THE ENEMY AMENDMENT

ACT, 1916.

Orders have been made by the Board of

Trade requiring the undermentioned businesses

to be wound up : —

177. C. Bechstein, 32-40, Wigmore Street,

London, W./ Pianoforte Dealers. Controller:

Alexander Alfred Yeatman, 2, Coleman

Street, London, E.G. 5 June, 1916.

178. Walter Sthamer, St. Dunstan's Buildings,

London, E.G., Dealer in Chemicals and

Drugs. Controller: James Frasef, 31, Copthall

Avenue, London, E.G. 5 June, 1916.

179. Westendarp and Co., Dunster House,

Mincing Lane, London, E.G., Dealers in

Ivory. Controller: Thomas Alexander Fox,

79, Mark Lane, London, E.G. 5 June,.

1916. .

180. Badische Co., Limited, 2, Samuel Ogdert

Street, Whitworth Street, Manchester,

Aniline Dyes. Controller: W. E. Mounsey,

3, Lord Street, Liverpool. 2 June, 1916.

181. Bayer Co., Limited, 20 Booth Street,.

Manchester, Aniline Dyes. Controller*

Stanley Pearson, 13, Spring Gardens, Manchester.

2 June, 1916.

182. The Berlin Aniline Co., Limited, 30,.

Princess Street, Manchester, Aniline Dyes.

Controller: Percy Higson, 42, Spring Gardens,

Manchester. 2 June, 1916.

183. Kalle and Co., Limited, 25, John Dalton-

Street, Manchester, Aniline Dyes. Contrailer:

William Eaves, 15, Fountain Street,.

Manchester. 2 June, 1916.

[Kath]

This site may be of interest:

http://www.agfhs.org.uk/

Kath.

[toffo]

thanks melpack / Kath

toffo

[David Filsell]

My late mother-in-law's family name was Kraus. The family changed its name during (or after the Great War) to Cross. The family was in business in London owning - from memory - a butchers and game shop. For some reason there was also a large influx of German bakers to Britain at or toward the end of the 19th century. In the sixties a number of these families remained in business, a number of them too had anglicised, or changed, their names. Quite apart from shop smashing, I suspect that tradesmen with German names were simply boycotted. Additionally there are a number of early war accounts in which German soldiers - generally it seems waiters or hairdressers - called out accross the trenches asking to be remembered to friends in the UK. Overall there do seem to have been many German emigrants to Britain.

[HarryBettsMCDCM]

The Arllt Family of Hamburg had a pre 1914 Tobacconist Shop in Wisbech,Herman their son served in the 6th Bn,The Northamptonshire Regt{With whom he oddly earned the TFEM[numbered 6th Bn.] as it was a Service Bn Not TF}

London's East End had a {as today} varied ethnic community of European & Slav immigrants,so all manner of Shops would have been owned & run by them

[Gunner Bailey]

There had been German people living and working in London for centuries. Cannon Street, in the city was the site of iron foundaries run by Germans, brought to London to make cannons in the 16th century. When the foundations of Cannon Street Station were being dug out, large quantities of iron slag were found as proof of the iron works existence there.

As Michael Caine would say, 'Not many people know that' .

Gunner Bailey

[DaveBrigg]

As mentioned on another thread, a member of our family was fathered by the son of a German baker in Bermondsey, who returned to Germany as war broke out. Sounds like a wise move.