Harshbarger line: The family of Benedict Kepner 1714-1778

 The story of Benedict starts out on a confusing note, with his name.  He is referred to as both Benedict and Bernard Kepner, with some showing his name as Benedictus Bernard.  The records I have seen all refer to him as Benedict, so that is the name I will use. He is the son of Johannes Bernard and Anna Barbara Schlagman, born in Sulzfeld, Baden-Wuertemburg, in what is now Germany.   The second point of confusion is when and where he was married.  His wife is listed as Maria Salome Weicker, the daughter of Johan George and Anna Barbara Elisabeth Daecher Weicker.  Supposedly they were married in 1734 in Berk, Berks County, Pennsylvania.  However, there are immigration records for Benedict Kepner from 1764.  Is this the same man?  Did he return to Germany for some reason as an older man, and if so, why?  And the final question is whether the last three children he is credited with were his, or whether they may have belonged to his son or another Kepner entirely.  They were born too late to have been the children of Maria Salome, as she was born in 1721 and the last three children were born in or after 1766.  (Plus, there is a gap of several years between the last child who appears plausible and the supposed last three.)  So there are still a lot of questions swirling around this family.  

Benedict and Maria Salome's children are shown on some trees as being born in Berks County and others as being born in Germany.  There is documentation for at least some of the children in Berks County, so I will use that as the birthplace of all until I find records indicating otherwise.  

The first born, or first surviving, child was Johannes Jacobus, born in 1737.  He may have married Maria Christina Strauss, the daughter of Johann Albrecht and Margaret Zerbe Strauss.  Their children include Anna Maria, Elizabeth, Samuel, Benjamin, Jacob, John, David, Susan, Margaretha, and Elizabeth.  

There may be a Jacob, born in 1741.  If so, it's possible that the Johannes Jacobus mentioned above died early and this Jacob is the one who survived to marry Maria Christina.  One of these two died in 1836 in Millerstown, Perry County, Pennsylvania, it appears.  

Next was Andreas Bernard, born also in 1741 but not noted as being a twin.  He married Maria Elizabeth Lindemuth or Lindemood, the daughter of George and Maria Anna Drach Lindemood.  He is shown as having 19 children with three or more different wives, so I need to do more research on him and will write more about this family in my next post.  As of now, it's possible that his children may include Bernard, Bemjamin, Savilla, Maria Salome, Andreas, Anna Catherine, John, Magdalena, Andrew, Anna Maria, Samuel, George, Esther, Benedict, Appolonia, Moses, Henry, Maria Magdalena, Susanna, Isaac, and Jacob.  

Anna Barbara, the first known daughter, was born in 1743.  She married Henry Shoemaker, the son of Jacob and Elizabeth Roberts Shoemaker.  Their children are Christian, Henry, Benjamin, Mary (known as Molly), Hannah, Jacob, Ann Elizabeth, George, Samuel, Susanna, and possibly another Samuel.  I'm skeptical of the two Samuels because they have different birth dates and death dates, but perhaps one was named for one person and one for another.  Both lived into adulthood.  Anna Barbara died in 1817 in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. 

Hanna or Hannah Kepner was born in 1745.  She married Franz Roth, also known as Francis Rhoads, the son of Franz Wilhelm and Ann Margaret Grimm Roth.  Their children are Maria, Francis, Henry, John, Daniel, Peter, Hannah, Jacob, and Mary (Molly) Magdalena.  Hannah died in 1843 in Selingsgrove, Snyder County, Pennsylvania.  

Next was Maria Margareth, born in 1746.  She married Charles (also seen as Carl/Karl) Shoemaker, who was also the son of Jacob and Elizabeth Roberts Shoemaker.  Their children are Jacob, Mary, Walter, John, another Mary, Charles, Sophia, Margaret, Benjamin, and Anna.  She died in 1831 in Windsor, Berks County, Pennsylvania.

There may or may not have been a son Benjamin, born about 1747.  Several trees list him, but he seems to be confused with one or another of his brothers or cousins and I am not, at this point, sure that he existed.  

Sevilla was born in 1749 and married Johann Philip Strauss, the son of Johann Albrecht and Anna Margareth Zerbe Strauss.  Their children inclule Margaret, Jacob, Elizabeth, Susanna, Johannes, Philip, David, Catherina, Sidney, and Mary (Polly).  She died in 1805 in Mifflin County, Pennsylvania.

There was a break of about six years before the next child was born,  Perhaps Maria Salome was ill, or perhaps there was one or more unsuccessful pregnancies, because the next child we know of is Mary Magdalena, born in 1755. She first married John Uhil, whose ancestry is not known to me.  They had one son, John.  In 1780, she married Godfrey Feister, the son of George Gottlieb Pfisterer and an unknown mother.  Their children are Jacob, Henry, Mary, Daniel, Maria Sarah, Godfrey, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Susanna, Charles, and Sophia.  She died in 1832 in Muncy, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania.

There was a child Elizabeth, born in 1757.  Most trees report her death as having occurred in 1831 in Muncy, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania.  I have not found that record, nor have I found any record of her after her birth.  At this point, I don't know whether she lived to adulthood, nor do I know whether she ever married.  She is another mystery to be solved by someone, sometime.

There are three more children attributed to this couple, but I have doubts.  Benedict, Katherine, and Eva Rosina were born between 1766 and 1775.  Maria Salome would have been 45 in 1766, and her last previous child was born in 1757.  It seems likely that these children belong with another Kepner family.

Several of the men mentioned here, sons and sons in law of Benedict and Maria Salome, served in one capacity or another during the Revolutionary War.  Most of them left Berks County, their birthplace, to go further west, although they all stayed in Pennsylvania.  Benedict and his many children and grandchildren helped build America.