In Back to the Future three doc Brown says his last name was von Braun until his dad changed it in WW1. Was having a German last name much of liability in WW1 era America?

by grapp
thisisredrocks

Library of Congress: German - Shadows of War - Immigration...

World War I created mass discrimination toward German-speakers in the US. It came from the top levels of US government — with even President Woodrow Wilson criticizing "hyphenated Americans" — and led to a purge of German education and even incidents of violent attacks. Street and town names, the names of business, and last names too were changed to sound "more American."

The article linked is meant for the secondary classroom, so I'd call it an easy read that very completely answers your question. It's one part of a larger section on German immigration to the US and, if you're interested, there's more to dig into.

TL;DR?

President Woodrow Wilson spoke disapprovingly of "hyphenated Americans" whose loyalty he claimed was divided. One government official warned that "Every citizen must declare himself American--or traitor."

"Others changed the names of their businesses, and sometimes even their own names, in an attempt to conceal German ties and to disappear into mainstream America. Ironically, and contrary to Wilson's opinion about divided loyalties, thousands of German Americans fought to defend America in World War I, led by German American John J. Pershing, whose family had long before changed their name from Pfoerschin."

deadweight212

Is that supposed to hint that Doc Brown is related to Wernher Von Braun?

parles

This is only one anecdote, but the Philadelphia hospital previously known as the German Hospital of the City of Philadelphia changed its name to Lankenau Hospital in 1917, which corroborates that name changes to avoid German affiliation were not without precedent at the time.