1883: Why Germany Banned Swimming
Warning: the following contains SPOILERS for 1883.
1883 is filled with all sorts of historical facts about the late 19th century—including the fact that it was apparently illegal to swim in Germany at the time. This spelled trouble for the caravan of German, Romani, and American settlers being led by Shea Brennan (Sam Elliot), Thomas (LaMonica Garrett), and James Dutton (Tim McGraw) across the Wild West. During the first half of 1883 season 1, various members of the caravan had already died because of bandit attacks, rattlesnake bites, smallpox and cholera, and many of the other dangers that seem to be ever-present in the frontier. In 1883 season 1, episode 3 “The Crossing,” as the caravan prepares to cross the dangerous Brazos River, the laws that prevented the German settlers from learning to swim back home now threaten their survival.
As the leader of the German settlers Josef (Marc Rissmann) explains, not only was it illegal to swim, the bodies of those who drowned were even whipped before they were buried, as punishment for getting in the river in the first place. The caravan leaders manage to find a relatively shallow part of the Brazos River for the intended crossing. James and Margaret Dutton (Faith Hill) make their way across the river earlier than the rest of the group, not just to secure their own family, but also to be able to provide a safety rope for the others. Despite this, as 1883 is based on the true stories of pioneers in the late 19th century, many of the immigrants drown in the Brazos River because they don't know how to swim.
Related: 1883: What [SPOILER]'s Death Means For Elsa's Future
1883's depiction of the plight of German immigrants is based on historical facts–but not from the 19th century.
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