John G. Cullmann

Who was John G. Cullmann?

John Gottfried Cullmann was a German businessman and political activist who emigrated to the United States as a result of his financial ruin related to participation in the Revolution of 1848. Born in Frankweiler in the Rheinpfalz in what was then the Kingdom of Bavaria, Cullmann was the son of a school principal. At the age of 13, he began attending the Zweibrücken Polytechnic Institute, taking a degree in engineering. He married the daughter of a wealthy banking family, Josephine Low, and settled in the town of Neustadt, founding an export business there.

Cullmann became involved in revolutionary activity in Neustadt during the Revolution of 1848, and following the Bavarian crown's suppression of the rebellion with assistance from the Prussian Army, his business fell apart and he lost much of his wealth. In the years afterwards, he was able to re-establish himself but again lost his fortune following speculation during the Dano-Prussian War. Ruined in Germany, he began to look abroad for opportunity. His sights settled on the United States. However, at the time the American Civil War was ongoing, and fearing conscription, Cullmann temporarily settled in London in 1864.