Von Steuben Day
The day is generally considered the German-American event of the year, and many participants wear tracht costumes, including dirndls and lederhosen, to celebrate their heritage.
Every year on the third Saturday in September, German-Americans celebrate the Annual Steuben Parade on Fifth Avenue and an Oktoberfest-style beer fest complete with food and live music in Central Park.
[1] In 2007, German-Americans celebrated the 50th anniversary of this affair and welcomed former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as Grand Marshal and former German chancellor Helmut Kohl as Guest of Honor.
It is led by cadets representing the German Language Club of the Military Academy of West Point, which General von Steuben founded.
For many years, the parade has had a solid Bavarian theme, dominated by men wearing lederhosen, women in dirndl, and groups dancing the traditional Schuhplattler.
The Grand Marshals in 2009 were Congressman Michael McMahon, Fox 5 TV reporter Linda Schmidt, A&P Chairman Christian Haub, and Parade Co-founder Ted Dengler.
In previous years, Grand Marshals included Hollywood star Ralf Möller, NYSE CEO Duncan Niederauer and Col. Gail Halvorsen, the "Candy-Bomber" from the 1948–49 Berlin Airlift.
In 2007, celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the German-American Steuben Parade, the Grand Marshal was former US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, born in the Franconia region of Bavaria in Germany.
Former Grand Marshals include Donald Trump, Siegfried & Roy, George Steinbrenner, Carol Alt, Michael Bloomberg, Eric Braeden, John Roland, Louis Freeh, Norbert Schramm.
Among the Guests of Honor have been three German presidents: Walter Scheel, Richard von Weizsäcker and Johannes Rau, as well as other dignitaries from the political and economic fields, including state prime ministers Erwin Teufel, Kurt Biedenkopf and Bernhard Vogel.
Past winners include: Nicole Radske[2] (2006), Christina Rom[3] (2007), Melissa Gratzl[4] (2008), Virginia Kovak[5] (2009), Stephanie Russell-Kraft[6] (2010), Denise Manukian[7] (2011), Kirsten Mueller[8] (2012), Kristina Kren (2013) Stefanie Kraker (2014) and Samantha Hart (2015).
The cornflower is the official flower and the logo of the German-American Steuben Parade of New York City, as it widely grows in both Germany and the United States.
In addition, the Cornflower was the national Flower of Prussia since its introduction by Kaiser Wilhelm I to honor his mother Queen Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and because of its color (prussian blue).
After the parade, participants are welcome to join the Oktoberfest held by the Bavarian Volksfest Verein on the grounds of the United German-Hungarian Club.
Drunk History, season 2 episode 8 "Philadelphia", as retold by Nick Rutherford features David Cross as Baron von Steuben.
