Arrest of Atzerodt

[Laurie Verge]

Bill - I can't remember all the details, but I think there is a reference to George visiting a lady near Georgetown before starting his trek to the frontier in Germantown. Ed Steers, where are you? I didn't go on your Atzerodt Escape Tour because of turmoil in my life at that time, but I think this stop of George's was part of that tour.

Wild Bill & Jonathan - I think the language barrier would depend a lot on whether or not the German language was used in the Atzerodt home when George was growing up. We deal with over 2000 children a year at Surratt House and many of them are Hispanic and Spanish is their primary language in the home. We have other children who actually translate to these as the tour goes along - even though they are being mainstreamed in English-speaking classrooms. My daughter is a mentoring teacher, and I know that there is an alphabet phrase for this -- curriculum based on English as the second language.

My opinion is that, even though he was raised in an English-speaking society, he was probably schooled at home via his native German language. He also had a profession that did not require a great deal of conversation and, therefore, did not become fluent in the language to the point where his accent would disappear.