Harshbarger line: Conrad Mentzer 1734-1781

We know a little more about Conrad than about some of our other German or almost German ancestors.  He was born May 21, 1734 in the tiny village of Hagsfeld, now part of Karlsuhe.  It's located on the border between Germany and France, directly north of Switzerland.  It was probably a multilingual town although the records seem to be in German.  His parents were Johannes and Catharina Mentzer (Meyntzer), although there are disputes about the maiden name of his mother.  She was either a Weyl or a Spirgi, depending on the source you look at.  Johannes had three children from his first marriage, and two from his second.  All but the oldest son, Johan, emigrated to Pennsylvania in 1751, with their father and mother/step-mother.  Conrad was 17 at the time. Since John Mentzer was a burgher in Hagsfeld, it is unlikely that the family had to be indentured to pay for their passage to Philadelphia.  Likely they stayed in Germantown for at least a few weeks, but they probably soon moved on to perhaps Lancaster County, to claim land and begin to plant crops and establish roots.

We know that Conrad was in Lancaster County by 1759, when the first known child was born to Conrad and his wife, Catherine Elizabeth Huebschmann.  The Huebschmann family settled around Ephrata, and this is where we find Conrad, first in Warwick Township, then in Cocalico township, and finally in East Cocalico township.  

He acquired land but I'm not sure how much of it may have been inherited, and how much was outright purchase.  I found tax records showing him with 80 acres, then 100, and then 200 acres shortly before his death.  Some of this land was uncleared and thus taxed at a lower rate than the cleared land.  He had a few farm animals-2 horses, 2 cows, and 5 sheep on one of the tax forms, which was not impressive but also not dirt poor.  As his children grew and left home, less would have been needed to support the familyl.

Records are found for the Mentzers in Warwick Township, at the Lutheran church (now ELCU) formerly known as Brickerville.  This was a German speaking congregation, established before the Mentzers arrived on the scene.  

We don't know much about Conrad's military service, but he was the age to be involved in, at a minimum, protecting his neighborhood during the French and Indian war, and all through the period leading up to and including the Revolutionary War.  Lancaster County was considered frontier at the time, and settlers thronged to Lancaster for "safety", (Some went further east). So far, I've not found a record that lists him (there is a Conrad Mentzer of Lancaster County but the records seem to be from just after his death) but the record may be out there "somewhere". 

Conrad and Elizabeth had at least seven children together.  He died at a relatively young age, 47, in 1781, and six children survived him.  In the will, he calls himself a yeoman, and he leaves his wife one third of the estate until son John comes of age, and then the estate is to be divided among the six children, with John to get an additional 20 pounds.  The land was to be appraised and then divided fairly, but proceeds from the sale were to be balanced except for the 20 pounds.  Each daughter was to receive some items,  The children were considered to be "of age" at the age of 14, when they were to learn a trade.  An inventory was ordered but I have not yet seen a copy of that.  He wrote the will on August 10, 1781 and it was probated August 18, so either the illness was sudden or he delayed writing the will for some reason.  

Elizabeth remarried, to Peter Zeller, and lived until 1796, long enough that even the youngest of her children were in their late teens.  

I'd sure like to find Conrad's name in a military roll somewhere, so we would know for certain what part he may have played in securing freedom for his adopted country.  Regardless, he was one of those early settlers who came to a new land, helped settle it, and supported his family and his country through taxes.  He may well have supplied the Revolutionary War troops with food, hay, or other goods to help them through tough situations like Valley Forge.  Wouldn't you like to know these details, too?

The line of descent is:

Conrad Mentzer-Catherine Elizabeth Hibschmann

John Mentzer-Margreth possibly Scherb

Conrad Mentzer-Elizabeth Tullepan

Catherine Mancer-Lewis Harshbarger

Emmanuel Harshbarger-Clara Ellen Harter

Grover Harshbarger-Goldie Withers

Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Beeks

Their descendants