Germans began immigrating to America towards the middle of the nineteenth century. The earliest of them were of Saxon lineage and left Germany to escape the oppression of the regime of Chancelor Otto von Bismarck.

Minnesota had more German immigrants than of any other nationality. They represent various walks of life and religious affiliations. They were usually literate. They came by many different routes. In the 1870's, Northern Pacific Railway Company advertised the Minnesota region through thousands of leaflets distributed by agents in southwestern and northeastern Germany. For the journey to Minnesota, immigrants were advised to take the railroad from New York to Buffalo and then take a boat across the Great Lakes to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From Milwaukee they would take the railroad to La Crosse and get on a steamboat and head up the river to Winona or St. Paul. This was a long difficult trip.

The early Germans first came to Winona County as early as 1854. Most of these came from Indiana and Illinois where they had first settled. At that time Winona County was known as one of the best and most prosperous agricultural and stock-raising counties in Minnesota and this drew the Germans who were mainly farmers. Germans that came later had various skills. Many of them were wealthy. Besides farmers, there were mechanics, pastors, tradesmen, doctors, educators, musicians, and artists. In 1880, there were 10,151 people living in Winona and almost 3,000 of them were Germans. In 1905, only 25 years later, Winona's' population had grown to 20,821. Of those people 6,324 were of German stock. During World War I many Germans living in Winona faced discrimination when the United States and Germany were at war. Because of the large number of Germans in Winona, The German Society was organized in 1925 to aid immigrants and foster German sociability. They had no religious or political aims or affiliations. Their goals were:

1. To foster German sociability.

    

2. To foster German language.

    

3. To assist German immigrants in making this country their home,
   instructing them in the English language, and to help them in times of need.

Because religion was very important to the Germans, they established many churches in Winona. St. Martins German Lutheran Church was established in 1856. Ten years later Reverend Phillip Von Rohr came to be pastor and founded St. Martin's School. St. Martin's Church and school is still located at Broadway and Liberty streets. St. Joseph German Catholic Church was built in 1862. The German Methodist Episcopal church was built in October 1860; the building is now located on the corner of Main and Sanborn streets although it is no longer used by the Methodists. In February 1864 the German Presbyterian church was organized. They built a church at the corner of Fifth and Franklin and it is being used by the Winona Art Group. The German Zion Evangelical Church was organized in 1866 and located in 1888 at its present sight at the corner of West King and South Baker streets. Although these churches were initially organized by the German immigrants, today many nationalities attend these churches. The German culture still plays a role in many of them.

Music was very important to the German culture. There were singing schools and numerous brass bands. The organization which brought a lot of fame to Winona was the Germania Orchestra under the direction of Herman Rohweder. In 1866 the Philharmonic Society was established and the Philharmonic Hall was built turning Winona into a cultural center.

Winona had several German newspapers. The first issue of the "Der Mississippi Bote" appeared on November 5, 1870 and the last issue came out on March 15, 1871. The "Winona Adler" came out on October 9, 1873. In January 1881, Joseph Leicht established the "Westlicher Herold" and there was considerable rivalry between the two papers until Mr. Leicht bought out the "Winona Adler". Mr. Leicht established the "Volksblatt des Westens" in 1899 which was a popular weekly that was mailed nationally. The National Farmer was added in 1902 and it became the largest German farm paper in the United States.

There were many industries and business establishments founded by people who emigrated from Germany. Some are still in business today such as Jones and Kroger and Goltz Pharmacy. Other businesses were a Winona Brick Yards, Winona Packing and Soap Company The Breitlow Funeral Home, The Gilmore Valley Brewery and the Sugar Loaf Brewery later known as Bubs' Brewery. Germans played a very important role in the development of the Winona and the surrounding area and made many contributions.