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Book Review: Heritage On Stage: The Invention Of Ethnic Place In America's Little Switzerland, Cheryl Ganz

Swiss American Historical Society Review

Yodeling, alphoms, cowbells, Wilhelm Tell, cheese, chalets, and cantonal flags conjure up either nostalgic images of a romantic Swiss folklore culture in the pre-industrial world or a visit to the Wisconsin town of New Glarus, popularly known as "America• s Little Switzerland." A visitor from Basel remarked that New Glarus seemed "more Swiss than Switzerland." Steven D. Hoelscher argues that the community invented "ethnic place" by its continual reinterpretation of ethnicity and by its reshaping of "Swissness" over time through its landscapes, museums, festivals, and cultural performances. It is this conspicuous construction of American ethnic heritage, identity, and place that …