Top of page

Notice
Wednesday, January 28, 2026: Due to inclement weather, The Library will open the reading rooms to researchers at 9:30 AM following the one (1) hour delayed arrival for staff.
Chronicling America
National Endowment for the Humanities

Newspaper Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt (Cleveland, Ohio) 1917-1971 Transylvania-American peoples journal

View All Front Pages

About Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt (Cleveland, Ohio) 1917-1971

The Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt (“Transylvania-American Peoples Journal”) was established in Cleveland in 1907 to serve the many German-speaking immigrants from Hungary who had settled in the area during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially known as Die Neue Hiemat (“New Home”), this German-language newspaper changed names twice before becoming the Volksblatt in 1917, and was “devoted to the interests of all German nationalities.” In 1919 it became the official organ of the Central Association of Transylvanian-Saxons in America, and after 1939 it also represented the Central Association and the Singers Association of the Transylvanian-Saxons of America and the Transylvanian-Saxons Juniors Association.

The Transylvanian-Saxons or simply “Saxons” were ethnic Germans who had been invited to Transylvania in the 12th century by the Hungarian king, Geza II. They called Transylvania “Siebenbürg”, meaning “seven towns,” for their original seven settlements. Having lived in Transylvania for centuries, the Transylvanian-Saxons no longer identified as Germans, though they continued to speak the language. In the mid-19th century, nationalism took root in the region, and the ruling Hungarians began a process of Magyarization, attempting to erase the languages and cultures of all non-Hungarians. At the same time, ethnic Romanians were trying to take over Transylvania to include it in a new Romanian state. These were the conditions that led many Transylvanian-Saxons to immigrate to the United States.

Early editors of the Volksblatt included Moritz Weinberger, Joseph Kundtz, and John Reich, before Georg Schneider took over from 1917 to 1952, followed briefly by Walter Eckstein until 1954. Under Schneider, the paper reached a circulation high of 9,600 in 1930 before falling to 4,954 in 1950. The Volksblatt included news from Northeast Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois, and Michigan, as well as national news and international news pertaining to World War II and the postwar world. Local content consisted mainly of event calendars for the social and fraternal clubs the Volksblatt served, church news, and wedding announcements. There were also excerpts from novels and listings of radio programs. An average of one page per issue was published in English. In 1971, the paper became known as the Saxon News Volksblatt , which is still published in Cleveland today by the Alliance of Transylvanian Saxons.

Provided By: Ohio History Connection, Columbus, OH

About this Newspaper

Title

  • Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt (Cleveland, Ohio) 1917-1971

Other Title

  • Transylvania-American peoples journal

Names

  • Schneider, Georg
  • Eckstein, Walter

Dates of Publication

  • 1917-1971

Created / Published

  • Cleveland, Ohio : Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt Pub. Co., 1917-1971.

Headings

  • -  Germans--Ohio--Newspapers
  • -  Germans--Michigan--Newspapers
  • -  Cleveland (Ohio)--Newspapers
  • -  Germans
  • -  Ohio--Cleveland
  • -  Michigan
  • -  Ohio
  • -  United States--Ohio--Cuyahoga--Cleveland
  • -  United States--Michigan--Wayne--Detroit

Genre

  • Newspapers

Notes

  • -  Weekly
  • -  Jahrg. 12, no. 29 (Juni 14, 1917)-Jahrg. 60, no. 19 (May 12, 1971).
  • -  Beginning in May 1954, published in Detroit, Michigan. Cf. Gutgesell, S. Guide to Ohio newspapers, 1974.
  • -  Publishers: Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt Pub. Co., June 14, 1917-June 6, 1935; The Saxon Pub. & Print. Co. Inc., June 13, 1935-Sept. 28, 1950; Press & Plate Co., Oct. 5, 1950-.
  • -  Editors: Georg Schneider, June 14, 1917-Sept. 28, 1950; Walter Eckstein, Oct. 5, 1950-.
  • -  Archived issues are available in digital format from the Library of Congress Chronicling America online collection.
  • -  In German with some columns in English.
  • -  Officiales Organ des Zentral-Verbandes der Siebenbürger-Sachsen in Amerika.
  • -  Saxon news Volksblatt 0894-1165 (DLC)sn 83035423 (OCoLC)9849161

Medium

  • 54 volumes : illustrations ; 59 cm

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Newspaper

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • sn83035274

OCLC Number

  • 9659075

ISSN Number

  • 2689-0658

Preceding Titles

Succeeding Titles

Additional Metadata Formats

Availability

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress believes that the newspapers in Chronicling America are in the public domain or have no known copyright restrictions. Newspapers published in the United States more than 95 years ago are in the public domain in their entirety. Any newspapers in Chronicling America that were published less than 95 years ago are also believed to be in the public domain, but may contain some copyrighted third party materials. Researchers using newspapers published less than 95 years ago should be alert for modern content (for example, registered and renewed for copyright and published with notice) that may be copyrighted. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item.

The NEH awardee responsible for producing each digital object is presented in the Chronicling America page display, below the page image – e.g. Image produced by the Library of Congress. For more information on current NDNP awardees, see https://aj.sunback.homes/ndnp/listawardees.html.

For more information on Library of Congress policies and disclaimers regarding rights and reproductions, see https://aj.sunback.homes/homepage/legal.html

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt Cleveland, Ohio -1971. (Cleveland, OH), Jan. 1 1917. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn83035274/.

APA citation style:

(1917, January 1) Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt Cleveland, Ohio -1971. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/sn83035274/.

MLA citation style:

Siebenbürgisch-Amerikanisches Volksblatt Cleveland, Ohio -1971. (Cleveland, OH) 1 Jan. 1917. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, aj.sunback.homes/item/sn83035274/.