Peter Engelmann was a German American

German American

German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...

 educationist, writer and founder of the German-English Academy , today University School of Milwaukee

University School of Milwaukee

The University School of Milwaukee is a private pre-kindergarten through secondary preparatory school located on in River Hills and Milwaukee, Wisconsin...

).

Biography

Engelmann studied at the University of Heidelberg and at the Humboldt University of Berlin

Humboldt University of Berlin

The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...

. During the revolution of 1848/49

Revolutions of 1848 in the German states

The Revolutions of 1848 in the German states, also called the March Revolution – part of the Revolutions of 1848 that broke out in many countries of Europe – were a series of loosely coordinated protests and rebellions in the states of the German Confederation, including the Austrian Empire...

 he identified with the republican

Republicanism

Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, where the head of state is appointed by means other than heredity, often elections. The exact meaning of republicanism varies depending on the cultural and historical context...

 movement in Germany, and wrote for the Prussian revolutionary paper Freier Demokrat (free democrat) for a while in 1849. In the same year, he emigrated of necessity to the United States, where he found work on a farm in Marshall, Michigan

Marshall, Michigan

Marshall is a city located in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is part of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 7,459. It is the county seat of Calhoun County...

. In 1851 he moved to Oshkosh, Wisconsin

Oshkosh, Wisconsin

As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...

, and then to Milwaukee, where he was engaged by the Milwaukee Schulverein as principal of the German-English Academy, which he worked for until his death. In 1873 he established the first kindergarten of the academy, and instituted instruction in singing, gymnastics, and drawing. In he founded the Wisconsin Natural History Society. The collection of this institution was transferred to the Milwaukee Public Museum

Milwaukee Public Museum

The Milwaukee Public Museum is a natural and human history museum located in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The museum was chartered in 1882 and opened to the public in 1884; it is a not-for-profit organization operated by the Milwaukee Public Museum, Inc. MPM has three floors of exhibits...

in 1882. Engelmann was also active in several organizations of freethinkers, wrote numerous articles, and lectured before liberal and scientific societies.