Thursday, September 2, 2021

Harshbarger line: Is Adam Koch 1758-1816 ours?

 I usually write blog posts with a great deal of certainty.  Sometimes, years later, I've found information that convinced me I had the wrong guy (or gal) and I've had to go back and make corrections.  That's part of genealogy, making mistakes and learning from them.  So, I've learned enough to say up front that I'm not absolutely convinced that Adam Koch is ours, but it seems likely enough that I'm going to put it out here and see if I get feedback correcting and guiding me.  

The man I'm looking for is the father of Henry Cook, born 1794 in Berks County, Pennsylvania, (possibly in the area that became Schuylkill County) who died in 1861 in Whitley County, Indiana.  Henry married Catherine Whetstone and they lived in Stark County, Ohio for something over 30 years before moving on to Whitley County.  Henry named his surviving sons Henry, William, and Joseph, although two sons, each named John, died early.  Those are the clues that I have.

Since Henry would have been a young man when he went to Stark County, it is possible that some of the many Cooks in 1830 were his relatives-brothers, cousins, uncles, maybe even a father.  Henry isn't listed in the 1830 tax list, but Adam, Benjamin, George, Jacob, John, Mary, Michael, Moses, Peter, Rudolph, Thomas, and William are.  Of the list, only Adam and Peter are listed on the 1820 census as being old enough to be a father to Henry.  I've not found any information about Peter, but there is information about several Adams, actually known as John Adam Koch in his early life.  

The Adam Koch I see listed most frequently was born in Berks County, Pennsylvania on March 16, 1758, and died in 1816 also in Bern Township, Berks County, Pa.  So he couldn't be the one on the 1820 Ohio census or the 1830 tax list in Stark County.  However, he did have a son named Henry, although I've been unable to find a birth date for him.  This Adam is buried at Belleman's Church Cemetery, Centre Township, Berks County, and is listed as a Revolutionary War veteran. 

My current theory is that the Adam of Berks County may be the father of the Adam of Stark County, and that Henry may be a son of the older Adam and a younger brother of the younger Adam.  But I am having a hard time finding any document that ties the two together.  I haven't found a will for either Adam, nor have I found land records.  

This is basically a plea for help.  Is someone reading this willing to help work on this puzzle, or perhaps has someone already solved it?  Henry Cook needs a father! 

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