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Large sections of southeastern Pennsylvania and upstate New York attracted German immigrants in the period before the American Revolution.

Large sections of southeastern Pennsylvania and upstate New York attracted German immigrants in the period before the American Revolution.

The first German settlement in Pennsylvania was founded in 1683. The tide of German immigration to Pennsylvania swelled between 1725 and 1775, when they comprised a third of the population. The Pennsylvania Germans were called "Pennsylvania Dutch" by English speakers who mistranslated  "Deutsch" ("German") as "Dutch". They were comprised of Lutherans, Reformed, Moravians, Mennonites, Amish, and other religious sects,  and they developed a rich religious life with a strong musical culture. There were few German Catholics or Jews in America before the 1830s.

The first German settlement in Pennsylvania was founded in 1683. The tide of German immigration to Pennsylvania swelled between 1725 and 1775, when they comprised a third of the population. The Pennsylvania Germans were called '''"Pennsylvania Dutch"''' by English speakers who mistranslated  "Deutsch" ("German") as "Dutch". They were comprised of Lutherans, Reformed, Moravians, Mennonites, Amish, and other religious sects,  and they developed a rich religious life with a strong musical culture. There were few German Catholics or Jews in America before the 1830s.

The German farmers were renowned for the highly productive animal husbandry and agricultural practices. Politically, there were inactive until 1740, when they joined a Quaker-led coalition that took control of the legislature, which generally supported the [[American Revolution]]. Fries's "Rebellion" was a rural protest movement among Pennsylvania Germans in 1799 against the direct federal tax on land and houses imposed by the [[Federalist Party]] in 1798 to pay for a threatened war against France.  The resistance was in part a revolt of the Kirchenleute (Pennsylvania Germans of Lutheran and German Reformed background) against the Sektenleute (members of the pacifist Moravian and Quaker denominations, whom the Federalists favored with positions as tax assessors and collectors). The leaders of the rebellion were restrained and kept the protest movement under control, even withdrawing the protesters before the movement got out of hand. Some were convicted but President [[John Adams]] gave them pardons.

The German farmers were renowned for the highly productive animal husbandry and agricultural practices. Politically, there were inactive until 1740, when they joined a Quaker-led coalition that took control of the legislature, which generally supported the [[American Revolution]]. Fries's "Rebellion" was a rural protest movement among Pennsylvania Germans in 1799 against the direct federal tax on land and houses imposed by the [[Federalist Party]] in 1798 to pay for a threatened war against France.  The resistance was in part a revolt of the Kirchenleute (Pennsylvania Germans of Lutheran and German Reformed background) against the Sektenleute (members of the pacifist Moravian and Quaker denominations, whom the Federalists favored with positions as tax assessors and collectors). The leaders of the rebellion were restrained and kept the protest movement under control, even withdrawing the protesters before the movement got out of hand. Some were convicted but President [[John Adams]] gave them pardons.