I've written before about Johann Conrad Reber, born December 10, 1751. I mis-stated his place of birth, for in researching his father, I find that his parents were already in Pennsylvania by the time Conrad Jr. was born.
So let's look at this father's life and we may gain some insights into the younger generation also. Johann Conrad Refer, the father and immigrant, was born in March of 1723 and christened on March 23 of that year. He was the son of Johan Bernhard and Annia Maria Ahl Reber, and was born in Langenselbold, Darmstadt, Hessen, Germany. The town may have been more of a village at the time, but it was probably larger than some of the other towns that our German ancestors came from. Still, economics of the time meant that land was scarce and our Conrad decided to come to America in 1746.
We don't know where he lived at first. Germantown was a first stop for many of the immigrants of the time, but he was soon in Tulpehocken township, Berks County. It is not known whether he had family there but it's quite possible. He married Anna Margaret Conrad on August 1, 1750, and the couple set to work to build a family. It's likely that they built their own home, which can still be seen today, or at least, there are pictures of it. It's a small log cabin and it's hard to see how they raised 7 children in such a small space, so maybe this is their first home, or their last one.
Conrad may have wondered whether he had made the right choice in settling in Tulpehocken township because that area was hard hit by attacks from the native Americans for several years during the French and Indian War. There is a long list in one of the Berks County history books of those who were killed, captured, and wounded, and it is sobering indeed to read it. Most likely Conrad was in a militia to protect his family and his neighbors. This was a Lutheran or Reformed family, not Mennonite or Amish, so fighting was permissible to them. There seem to be no nearby settlements that the family would naturally have gone to, so they may have gone to Reading, which would be quite a trip, especially with young children, but there was a greater degree of safety there.
We can also wonder about Conrad's thoughts regarding the Revolutionary War. He was 52 years old when it broke out, which was probably old to be doing much soldiering. But he may have been involved in providing or transporting supplies to the Americans. His son Conrad apparently fought so his father would have had some feelings about the matter. Mostly, though, he farmed.
Conrad farmed to support his family, and on some of the tax lists, there are also the initials "g.m." I haven't found a key for this but I'm guessing this might have been "grist mill". On tax lists, Conrad is generally taxed more than most of his neighbors, but not as much as some. On one such list, I believe from 1789, he is shown as owning 200 acres, 4 horses and 5 cattle. Sometime during his later life, he seems to have moved from Tulpehocken township to Bethel Township, but probably did not move far. The two townships are adjoining.
There are varying dates for Conrad's death, from 1786 to 1796. The inventory was presented in 1796, and there wouldn't have been minor children to delay the probate, so I'm guessing he died shortly before September 24, 1796. He is buried at Zion Church Cemetery at Strausstown. It's not known when Anna Margaret died but it was apparently after her husband. The records I found of his will are not clear but it looks like his estate was valued at about 224 pounds.
You can see copies of his signature and of the picture I referred to at www.bergergirls.com, if you'd care to look.
The line of descent is
Johann Conrad Reber-Anna Margaret Conrad
Johann Conrad Reber-Mary Margaret Pontius
Mary Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kenery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Beeks
Their descendants
Showing posts with label Buchtel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Buchtel. Show all posts
Friday, May 1, 2020
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Harshbarger line: Where was George Essig in 1840?
Perhaps I should start at the beginning, with the "who" of george Essig. He was the son of Simon and Juliana Margaretha Schneer Essig, and was born, some say in Adams County, Pennsylvania, on October 19, 1794. This would make some sense, as his father, Simon Essig, is believed to have been the only one of his family to have escaped an Indian attack, near Emmitsburg, Maryland, before the Revolutionary War. The two locations are near each other.
Simon and Juliana moved on to Stark County, Ohio, and raised their rather large family there. George was one of 14 children born to the couple. His parents were on the 1810 tax rolls for Stark County, and it is reported that Simon was in Plain Township, Stark County, planting an orchard as early as 1806. It appears that all but possibly one of the children in George's first family had been born before the move from central Pennsylvania to central Ohio was made. What a trip that must have been! george would have been eleven or twelve years old at the time, so he would have been old enough to help with whatever needed to be done. He would also have been old enough to remember both Pennsylvania and the trip.
There is a tradition that George served in the War of 1812 along with his brothers Jacob and Adam. I have not found any evidence of George's having served, but tradition says that he was injured by Indians (fighting on the side of the British) near Put-in-Bay, Ohio. Sometimes these stories are true and sometimes not, so take it with a grain of salt until records are found verifying this. It is beyond doubt that the Essig family would have felt threatened by the events of the war. Fort Meigs was not constructed until 1813, and it was 156 miles away from Canton, the nearest town to where the Essigs lived. If George wasn't a soldier in the war, he would probably have been in a local militia, and certainly would have been prepared to protect his family from stray Indian raids.
After the war was over, George married Catherine Shollenberger (various spellings), daughter of Peter and Susanna Shollenberger, on September 6, 1816. We can trace the couple in the 1820 census, when there were two children, and the 1830 census, when there were 7 children under the age of 20 (officially) or under the age of 14 (actually). We know George owned land in 1828 in Plain Township, Stark County.
Then George seems to go missing from the records. A George Essig purchased public lands in Dekalb County, Indiana in 1840 and up through 1852. I do not know whether this is our George or not. It is possible, whether or not this was our George, that the family was traveling somewhere in 1840 and thus was missed in the census. I found a George Essick in the 1840 census in Davidson County, North Carolina, but the ages were off and it doesn't seem likely this was our George. Some families just get missed, or are hiding within another family and so don't get named in the early censuses.
We do know that George and Catherine were in Whitley County, Indiana by 1850. That year's census shows them with 4 children still at home, ranging in age from 13 to 20. Some of the older children live near by, having started their own households. (According to his will, there were 11 children living at the time of George's death.) By 1860, George and Catherine are living in Columbia City, where he still is listed as a farmer. An eleven year old boy named Washington Payne is living with them. I don't yet know who he is, whether he is someone living there to help care for them or whether he is part of the extended family.
George died on April 11, 1866. Although he is not shown as having any land in the 1860 census, his will gives land to his son Joseph and to son David, after the death of his wife Catherine, and to each of his other children $35, which Joseph is to pay at the rate of $10 per year. Catherine lived until June 19, 1872. They are buried at Oakgrove Methodist (Redbrush) Cemetery near Larwill, Indiana, which was near the land they owned and farmed.
There is undoubtedly more to George's story. He left Pennsylvania, arrived in Ohio when it was basically frontier, helped build Stark County, and then came to Whitley County while it was still early in that county's history, probably again clearing land and farming as his father and his father before him had done. He would certeinly have stories of his own to tell!
The line of descent is:
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Beeks
Their descendants
Simon and Juliana moved on to Stark County, Ohio, and raised their rather large family there. George was one of 14 children born to the couple. His parents were on the 1810 tax rolls for Stark County, and it is reported that Simon was in Plain Township, Stark County, planting an orchard as early as 1806. It appears that all but possibly one of the children in George's first family had been born before the move from central Pennsylvania to central Ohio was made. What a trip that must have been! george would have been eleven or twelve years old at the time, so he would have been old enough to help with whatever needed to be done. He would also have been old enough to remember both Pennsylvania and the trip.
There is a tradition that George served in the War of 1812 along with his brothers Jacob and Adam. I have not found any evidence of George's having served, but tradition says that he was injured by Indians (fighting on the side of the British) near Put-in-Bay, Ohio. Sometimes these stories are true and sometimes not, so take it with a grain of salt until records are found verifying this. It is beyond doubt that the Essig family would have felt threatened by the events of the war. Fort Meigs was not constructed until 1813, and it was 156 miles away from Canton, the nearest town to where the Essigs lived. If George wasn't a soldier in the war, he would probably have been in a local militia, and certainly would have been prepared to protect his family from stray Indian raids.
After the war was over, George married Catherine Shollenberger (various spellings), daughter of Peter and Susanna Shollenberger, on September 6, 1816. We can trace the couple in the 1820 census, when there were two children, and the 1830 census, when there were 7 children under the age of 20 (officially) or under the age of 14 (actually). We know George owned land in 1828 in Plain Township, Stark County.
Then George seems to go missing from the records. A George Essig purchased public lands in Dekalb County, Indiana in 1840 and up through 1852. I do not know whether this is our George or not. It is possible, whether or not this was our George, that the family was traveling somewhere in 1840 and thus was missed in the census. I found a George Essick in the 1840 census in Davidson County, North Carolina, but the ages were off and it doesn't seem likely this was our George. Some families just get missed, or are hiding within another family and so don't get named in the early censuses.
We do know that George and Catherine were in Whitley County, Indiana by 1850. That year's census shows them with 4 children still at home, ranging in age from 13 to 20. Some of the older children live near by, having started their own households. (According to his will, there were 11 children living at the time of George's death.) By 1860, George and Catherine are living in Columbia City, where he still is listed as a farmer. An eleven year old boy named Washington Payne is living with them. I don't yet know who he is, whether he is someone living there to help care for them or whether he is part of the extended family.
George died on April 11, 1866. Although he is not shown as having any land in the 1860 census, his will gives land to his son Joseph and to son David, after the death of his wife Catherine, and to each of his other children $35, which Joseph is to pay at the rate of $10 per year. Catherine lived until June 19, 1872. They are buried at Oakgrove Methodist (Redbrush) Cemetery near Larwill, Indiana, which was near the land they owned and farmed.
There is undoubtedly more to George's story. He left Pennsylvania, arrived in Ohio when it was basically frontier, helped build Stark County, and then came to Whitley County while it was still early in that county's history, probably again clearing land and farming as his father and his father before him had done. He would certeinly have stories of his own to tell!
The line of descent is:
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Beeks
Their descendants
Monday, December 24, 2018
Beeks and Harshbarger Christmas, 1918
Christmas 100 years ago...What was it like for those family members who were alive then? In many ways, we can only guess whether they had a bountiful Christmas or were lucky to get (or give) an apple or orange. But we do know they had family...Boy, did they have family!
We can only begin to imagine Christmas Day in 1918 for Wilbur Beeks. He was in Russia, and had been since early August, as part of what was supposed to be a second front against Germany but ended up being part of the Russian revolution. By now, he had mostly recovered from his wounds received September 27, and was operating with his unit again. We can only hope they had some pause for a Christmas celebration. Wilbur's wife of a little over four years, Cleo Aldridge Beeks, had a little bundle of joy to enjoy at Christmas. After having buried two babies, one in 1915 and one in 1916, Kenneth Eugene Beeks was having his first Christmas (he would have only one more) and enjoying the day as much as a baby of almost six months can.
Cleo would have had her choice of places to celebrate. I don't know where she was living then. She may have lived in Andrews, as that is where the birth record for Kenneth states,. If so, she could have been living the life of a single Mom while Wilbur was away. Or she could have been living with her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. Harvey was 65 and his wife was 60. In 1920, the Aldridges were living on Berry Street in Andrews, and Harvey was a laborer at the lumberyard. The Aldridges were already raising two grandchildren, but probably would have had room for a daughter and grandson, too, if needed. There were six surviving Aldridge children including Cleo, so the family gathering, wherever it was held, would have included many Aldridge grandchildren, nieces and nephews to Cleo. Maybe she didn't have enough time to really miss her husband that day.
Or she may have been staying with, or at least visiting, the home of her in-laws. John, 51, and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, 48, that day. In 1920, they were living on Main Street in Andrews, and he was a section man on the interurban line. Two of their children, Charity and Chester (Bud) were living with them, as was David Wise, Elizabeth's father, who was 81 years old. And there was another Beeks family member to visit, Mary Wise Beeks, Wilbur's grandmother, the widow of William Beeks. She was 78 years old, but lived in a home she owned on East Washington Street in Lagro. Her son Martin lived with her. Mary and William had several children, some still living, so presumably there was a large Beeks Christmas celebration somewhere.
One other thing about the Beeks Christmas celebration: Cleo herself turned 22 on Christmas of 1918.
The Harshbargers in Whitley County also had lots and lots of family. Grover Harshbarger by now was mostly recovered from the bout with "Spanish influenza" that had knocked him for a loop and out of the military earlier that year. He may have been living with his father then, but by 1920 he was living with his sister Maud, her husband, daughter, son in law, grandchild, and at least two other lodgers, relationship not determined although another of the 'lodgers" had the surname Harshbarger. Grover was a logger at a saw mill. Both his parents, Emanuel and Clara Ellen Harter Harshbarger were still living. listed as in the same household, in Thorn Creek, Whitley County, Indiana. (This was significant because there had been an earlier divorce action and I never found whether or not it was withdrawn, Apparently it was.) Emanuel was 64 and Clara was 61. They had at least three other children still living, so if they hosted a Harshbarger family Christmas the farmhouse they lived in would have been crowded.
Goldie Withers was 17 and single, likely living with her parents, William H and Della Kemery Withers. Her sister Sue, three years older, was married but probably came home for Christmas. By 1920, both girls were gone, but 1918 would have been a family year. Della's parents were still alive and in Whitley County, too, and they have a large family. Adam, 72, and Nancy Fanny Buchtel Kemery, also 72, were farmers in Columbia Township, Whitley County. They had two adult children living with them in 1920, but others were grown and away from home so there were likely grandchildren at the Kemery household that day, too.
All of the families I've visited here had good support systems. In the case of Cleo Aldridge Beeks, that was probably needed and she learned her lessons well, as she cared for many aging relatives during her lifetime. But Christmas 1918 for all would have been a time of hope, with the war (except for Wilbur and the thousands of others still fighting in Russia) over. And one other thing-Christmas Day 1918 brought just a little bit of snow to northern Indiana, .6 of an inch but enough to qualify for a "White Christmas".
We can only begin to imagine Christmas Day in 1918 for Wilbur Beeks. He was in Russia, and had been since early August, as part of what was supposed to be a second front against Germany but ended up being part of the Russian revolution. By now, he had mostly recovered from his wounds received September 27, and was operating with his unit again. We can only hope they had some pause for a Christmas celebration. Wilbur's wife of a little over four years, Cleo Aldridge Beeks, had a little bundle of joy to enjoy at Christmas. After having buried two babies, one in 1915 and one in 1916, Kenneth Eugene Beeks was having his first Christmas (he would have only one more) and enjoying the day as much as a baby of almost six months can.
Cleo would have had her choice of places to celebrate. I don't know where she was living then. She may have lived in Andrews, as that is where the birth record for Kenneth states,. If so, she could have been living the life of a single Mom while Wilbur was away. Or she could have been living with her parents, Harvey and Margaret Catherine Dunham Aldridge. Harvey was 65 and his wife was 60. In 1920, the Aldridges were living on Berry Street in Andrews, and Harvey was a laborer at the lumberyard. The Aldridges were already raising two grandchildren, but probably would have had room for a daughter and grandson, too, if needed. There were six surviving Aldridge children including Cleo, so the family gathering, wherever it was held, would have included many Aldridge grandchildren, nieces and nephews to Cleo. Maybe she didn't have enough time to really miss her husband that day.
Or she may have been staying with, or at least visiting, the home of her in-laws. John, 51, and Elizabeth Wise Beeks, 48, that day. In 1920, they were living on Main Street in Andrews, and he was a section man on the interurban line. Two of their children, Charity and Chester (Bud) were living with them, as was David Wise, Elizabeth's father, who was 81 years old. And there was another Beeks family member to visit, Mary Wise Beeks, Wilbur's grandmother, the widow of William Beeks. She was 78 years old, but lived in a home she owned on East Washington Street in Lagro. Her son Martin lived with her. Mary and William had several children, some still living, so presumably there was a large Beeks Christmas celebration somewhere.
One other thing about the Beeks Christmas celebration: Cleo herself turned 22 on Christmas of 1918.
The Harshbargers in Whitley County also had lots and lots of family. Grover Harshbarger by now was mostly recovered from the bout with "Spanish influenza" that had knocked him for a loop and out of the military earlier that year. He may have been living with his father then, but by 1920 he was living with his sister Maud, her husband, daughter, son in law, grandchild, and at least two other lodgers, relationship not determined although another of the 'lodgers" had the surname Harshbarger. Grover was a logger at a saw mill. Both his parents, Emanuel and Clara Ellen Harter Harshbarger were still living. listed as in the same household, in Thorn Creek, Whitley County, Indiana. (This was significant because there had been an earlier divorce action and I never found whether or not it was withdrawn, Apparently it was.) Emanuel was 64 and Clara was 61. They had at least three other children still living, so if they hosted a Harshbarger family Christmas the farmhouse they lived in would have been crowded.
Goldie Withers was 17 and single, likely living with her parents, William H and Della Kemery Withers. Her sister Sue, three years older, was married but probably came home for Christmas. By 1920, both girls were gone, but 1918 would have been a family year. Della's parents were still alive and in Whitley County, too, and they have a large family. Adam, 72, and Nancy Fanny Buchtel Kemery, also 72, were farmers in Columbia Township, Whitley County. They had two adult children living with them in 1920, but others were grown and away from home so there were likely grandchildren at the Kemery household that day, too.
All of the families I've visited here had good support systems. In the case of Cleo Aldridge Beeks, that was probably needed and she learned her lessons well, as she cared for many aging relatives during her lifetime. But Christmas 1918 for all would have been a time of hope, with the war (except for Wilbur and the thousands of others still fighting in Russia) over. And one other thing-Christmas Day 1918 brought just a little bit of snow to northern Indiana, .6 of an inch but enough to qualify for a "White Christmas".
Friday, June 30, 2017
Harshbarger line: Wendell Essig: How did I miss him?
Actually, I don't think I missed him. In my more rational moments, I wonder if I should write about Wendell at all, because most of what we "know" about him doesn't seem to be proven. Some of it is in outright dispute. But these stories are so good I am going to write about them anyway, hoping that someone, someday, will be able to prove or disprove these family stories. If they are true, then this ancestor is worthy of honor and respect, and we need to at least pass the stories along. If they aren't true, let's determine that, too!
So...Wendell Essig was born in Bern Canton, Switzerland, the son of Wendell and Juliana Margaretha Trachsell or Troxell. At an early age he spent time in mining in "Rhine Phals". The story doesn't indicate whether he did this voluntarily or whether he was forced into it. Either scenario is possible, as he may have been trying to help support his family. The position seemed to work in his favor, because he later served 7 years in the Prussian army. Again, I don't know if this was voluntary or whether he has drafted. During at least part of that time, he was one of the imperial body guards, and was present at the coronation of Frederick the Great in 1740. (There should be records of his service, shouldn't there? As of now, I don't know how to research to find them.)
Here is where the stories diverge. The story, apparently from son Simon, is that his father arrived in Baltimore in 1750, and shortly thereafter married Anna Marie Matte. Not too long after that, they settled in the general area of Hagerstown, Maryland. I'll get to the rest of the story later.
The second version is that Wendell arrived in 1749 in Philadelphia and went to Northampton County, where he is on tax records in 1772 and church records (Dryland Union Church, Nazareth twp, Northampton County) through Easter of 1782. Jacob Essig and George Essig are also in the church records there, although there is nothing to prove relationships. So that is one story.
The "rest of the first story" is that Wendell and his family were massacred by native Americans in or before 1772, and Simon was the sole survivor. He would have been no more than 18 at the time. Simon survived because he was away from home at the time. Some family historians discount this tale because they haven't found evidence of native American massacres near Hagerstown I've read enough history to know that families in the Cumberland Valley were driven back many many miles before they found a safe haven like Hagerstown, so I tend to think the attack very well could have happened, even without any specific report mentioning the Essig name. Germans clearly were in the area, and the native Americans were active in trying to push the settlers back, during this time period. Still, some sort of proof would be nice to have.
If the story isn't true, why would someone make it up? Was it possibly a misunderstanding many years later of the experience of the family of Simon's wife's family? Her mother's first husband had been killed by the Indians, in Northampton County, Pennsylvania and if one of Simon's children was reporting this story, perhaps he or she had heard it as a young child and forgotten the details as the story was told. I'm not sure we will ever know.
Wendell and Eva Maria are said to have had four children, Simon, Adam, Jacob and George, not necessarily in that order. The 1772 or earlier death doesn't allow for a 1782 church record in Pennsylvania. Either there were two families with similar names and naming patterns, or one of these tales is incorrect. I don't believe anyone has located wills or estate papers in either location, so I will let you be the judge-two men, or one?
The line of descent is:
Wendell Essig-Anna Maria Matte
Simon Essig-Juliana Schnerr
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
So...Wendell Essig was born in Bern Canton, Switzerland, the son of Wendell and Juliana Margaretha Trachsell or Troxell. At an early age he spent time in mining in "Rhine Phals". The story doesn't indicate whether he did this voluntarily or whether he was forced into it. Either scenario is possible, as he may have been trying to help support his family. The position seemed to work in his favor, because he later served 7 years in the Prussian army. Again, I don't know if this was voluntary or whether he has drafted. During at least part of that time, he was one of the imperial body guards, and was present at the coronation of Frederick the Great in 1740. (There should be records of his service, shouldn't there? As of now, I don't know how to research to find them.)
Here is where the stories diverge. The story, apparently from son Simon, is that his father arrived in Baltimore in 1750, and shortly thereafter married Anna Marie Matte. Not too long after that, they settled in the general area of Hagerstown, Maryland. I'll get to the rest of the story later.
The second version is that Wendell arrived in 1749 in Philadelphia and went to Northampton County, where he is on tax records in 1772 and church records (Dryland Union Church, Nazareth twp, Northampton County) through Easter of 1782. Jacob Essig and George Essig are also in the church records there, although there is nothing to prove relationships. So that is one story.
The "rest of the first story" is that Wendell and his family were massacred by native Americans in or before 1772, and Simon was the sole survivor. He would have been no more than 18 at the time. Simon survived because he was away from home at the time. Some family historians discount this tale because they haven't found evidence of native American massacres near Hagerstown I've read enough history to know that families in the Cumberland Valley were driven back many many miles before they found a safe haven like Hagerstown, so I tend to think the attack very well could have happened, even without any specific report mentioning the Essig name. Germans clearly were in the area, and the native Americans were active in trying to push the settlers back, during this time period. Still, some sort of proof would be nice to have.
If the story isn't true, why would someone make it up? Was it possibly a misunderstanding many years later of the experience of the family of Simon's wife's family? Her mother's first husband had been killed by the Indians, in Northampton County, Pennsylvania and if one of Simon's children was reporting this story, perhaps he or she had heard it as a young child and forgotten the details as the story was told. I'm not sure we will ever know.
Wendell and Eva Maria are said to have had four children, Simon, Adam, Jacob and George, not necessarily in that order. The 1772 or earlier death doesn't allow for a 1782 church record in Pennsylvania. Either there were two families with similar names and naming patterns, or one of these tales is incorrect. I don't believe anyone has located wills or estate papers in either location, so I will let you be the judge-two men, or one?
The line of descent is:
Wendell Essig-Anna Maria Matte
Simon Essig-Juliana Schnerr
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Friday, June 16, 2017
Harshbarger line: One more ancestor, Joseph Seiler 1687-1739/40
Joseph Seiler was not an immigrant and I really don't have enough information about him to write a post. But I've found some hints and they tie in with what I've learned while researching other Harshbarger line families, so I'm willing to put these ideas (not my own) out as a hypothesis.
Joseph Jacob (or possibly Jacob Joseph) Seiler was born in 1687 in Wilstein, Germany, a small town
that currently does not seem to be on a map. His father's name was Joseph, and it's unsure which name our subject used. Typically, if his name was Joseph Jacob he would have gone by the name of Jacob and documentation seems to support this, but many online sites call him Joseph.
The interesting thing to me is that this was a Mennonite family, but we don't know how long the family had been followers of Menno Simons. For one thing, Joseph Jacob had at least six children, born in four different cities. This would not be typical of a German line, but indicates that he owned no land and that he either may have been ejected from each village, or forced to leave for economic reasons. Either scenario is typical of the Mennonites of the time, who were heavily fined and harassed by local authorities, due to pressure from above.
The other item that points to a Mennonite belief system is that Joseph had a book printed in 1571, written by Menno Simons, and Joseph had hand-written in it the names of his 7 children, where they were born, (Wilstig, Sembauch, Obermelingen, Ischbach), their birth date, and the astrological sign they were born under. Apparently at least at this time the astrological sign was an important factor in the Mennonite life.
I've seen speculation that this family may trace back to Emmental, Switzerland but no real evidence this is the case. If true, again it would tie in with what we've learned of the Swiss Mennonites who were forced out of Switzerland and into a life of poverty in Germany. It makes sense.
The only other thing I can tell you about Joseph Jacob is that he died January 19,1739/40 in Milsbach, Germany. It is uncertain whether more will ever to found about this family, because the Mennonites lived mostly "under the radar", except for the tax collector. But perhaps with persistence, and cash, more could be learned and we would know whether this family also traces back to Switzerland. We do know two of his sons came to America, and that is what matters most in our family history!
The line of descent is:
Joseph Jacob Seiler-Anna
Daniel Seiler-Hanna Gerber
Catherine Sayler-Johannes Buchtel
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder
Nancy Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William H. Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Joseph Jacob (or possibly Jacob Joseph) Seiler was born in 1687 in Wilstein, Germany, a small town
that currently does not seem to be on a map. His father's name was Joseph, and it's unsure which name our subject used. Typically, if his name was Joseph Jacob he would have gone by the name of Jacob and documentation seems to support this, but many online sites call him Joseph.
The interesting thing to me is that this was a Mennonite family, but we don't know how long the family had been followers of Menno Simons. For one thing, Joseph Jacob had at least six children, born in four different cities. This would not be typical of a German line, but indicates that he owned no land and that he either may have been ejected from each village, or forced to leave for economic reasons. Either scenario is typical of the Mennonites of the time, who were heavily fined and harassed by local authorities, due to pressure from above.
The other item that points to a Mennonite belief system is that Joseph had a book printed in 1571, written by Menno Simons, and Joseph had hand-written in it the names of his 7 children, where they were born, (Wilstig, Sembauch, Obermelingen, Ischbach), their birth date, and the astrological sign they were born under. Apparently at least at this time the astrological sign was an important factor in the Mennonite life.
I've seen speculation that this family may trace back to Emmental, Switzerland but no real evidence this is the case. If true, again it would tie in with what we've learned of the Swiss Mennonites who were forced out of Switzerland and into a life of poverty in Germany. It makes sense.
The only other thing I can tell you about Joseph Jacob is that he died January 19,1739/40 in Milsbach, Germany. It is uncertain whether more will ever to found about this family, because the Mennonites lived mostly "under the radar", except for the tax collector. But perhaps with persistence, and cash, more could be learned and we would know whether this family also traces back to Switzerland. We do know two of his sons came to America, and that is what matters most in our family history!
The line of descent is:
Joseph Jacob Seiler-Anna
Daniel Seiler-Hanna Gerber
Catherine Sayler-Johannes Buchtel
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder
Nancy Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William H. Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Friday, April 21, 2017
Harshbarger line: Yost Gingrich, probably ours
I say probably because I'm not100% convinced that the Burkholder tree I've been working on is correct. And Yost (Josef, Joseph) comes from that tree. His daughter Maria or Mary married Adam Burkholder, and they had several children together. Here's the problem: Joseph Burkholder was born in 1783. His father, Adam, who married Maria or Mary was born in about 1728. I've seen all sorts of dates for Maria's but averaging them out, I'm guessing about 1745. Now, it wouldn't be impossible for a woman of that age to have a son of Joseph's age (giving birth at somewhere around age 40), but there's another problem. Joseph Burkholder doesn't seem to be mentioned in his supposed father's (1728-1800) will, unless I'm missing something.
There could be an explanation for the will omission, but since Joseph was only 17 at the time of Adam's death, I'm wondering if we are actually missing a generation here, and it was one or another of Adam's sons who was actually Joseph's father. Regardless, I'm going to post what little I've learned about Yost because I think that based on names and location, Yost is probably the great grandfather, if not the grandfather, of Joseph Burkholder. Obviously, more work needs to be done on this line.
Yost Gingrich is variously reported as having been born in "Europe", "Germany" or "Bern Canton, Switzerland." My guess is that if he wasn't from Switzerland, then his parents were, because there is every indication that this was a Mennonite family, and many if not most Mennonites can be traced back to Switzerland. The specific locality in one tree is given as "Konsfinger, Bern, Switzerland" and he would have been born sometime about 1720 or so. Apparently the actual record hasn't been located yet, or else his parents, Johannes and Anna Sherk Gingrich, were living under the radar of the state church, which is also possible.
Yost is the only child I'm aware of. He married Anna Huber, daughter of Jacob and Anna Leininger Huber, in about 1740 in Seftigen, Bern, Switzerland. Again, documents seem to be lacking or at least not yet known to me. We don't know for sure when Yost came to America because some trees show that his children were born in Germany (or Switzerland) and some show them as being born here. He and Anna did have at least 8 children, though, with birth dates generally given in the 1740s and 1750s.
When Yost came to America, he apparently settled in that part of Lancaster County that would later become Amwell Township, Lebanon County, Pa. He purchased land from and beside Michael Baughman, and by 1771 was taxed for 240 acres, a mill (probably a grist mill), four horses and four cows. In roughly 25 years, he had done rather well for himself and his family. He died on or shortly before March 5, 1776 and is probably buried on the family farm. Maria outlived him by many years and died in 1813 in probably Franklin County, Pennsylvania.
This isn't much to go on, especially since I'm not sure of the exact relationship between Joseph Burkholder and Yost Gingrich. However, it is another tie in to Bern Canton, Switzerland, another story of Mennonite trials and blessings, and another reason to honor the efforts of these ancestors to come to America to build a new life. I hope to update this post when I've figured out the correct relationship, so for now consider this a work in progress.
The line of descent would be
Yost Gingrich-Anna Huber
Maria Gingrich-Adam Burkholder
possibly another Burkholder generation
Joseph Burkholder-Elizabeth Miller
Barbara Burkholder-Benjamin Buchtel
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William A Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
There could be an explanation for the will omission, but since Joseph was only 17 at the time of Adam's death, I'm wondering if we are actually missing a generation here, and it was one or another of Adam's sons who was actually Joseph's father. Regardless, I'm going to post what little I've learned about Yost because I think that based on names and location, Yost is probably the great grandfather, if not the grandfather, of Joseph Burkholder. Obviously, more work needs to be done on this line.
Yost Gingrich is variously reported as having been born in "Europe", "Germany" or "Bern Canton, Switzerland." My guess is that if he wasn't from Switzerland, then his parents were, because there is every indication that this was a Mennonite family, and many if not most Mennonites can be traced back to Switzerland. The specific locality in one tree is given as "Konsfinger, Bern, Switzerland" and he would have been born sometime about 1720 or so. Apparently the actual record hasn't been located yet, or else his parents, Johannes and Anna Sherk Gingrich, were living under the radar of the state church, which is also possible.
Yost is the only child I'm aware of. He married Anna Huber, daughter of Jacob and Anna Leininger Huber, in about 1740 in Seftigen, Bern, Switzerland. Again, documents seem to be lacking or at least not yet known to me. We don't know for sure when Yost came to America because some trees show that his children were born in Germany (or Switzerland) and some show them as being born here. He and Anna did have at least 8 children, though, with birth dates generally given in the 1740s and 1750s.
When Yost came to America, he apparently settled in that part of Lancaster County that would later become Amwell Township, Lebanon County, Pa. He purchased land from and beside Michael Baughman, and by 1771 was taxed for 240 acres, a mill (probably a grist mill), four horses and four cows. In roughly 25 years, he had done rather well for himself and his family. He died on or shortly before March 5, 1776 and is probably buried on the family farm. Maria outlived him by many years and died in 1813 in probably Franklin County, Pennsylvania.
This isn't much to go on, especially since I'm not sure of the exact relationship between Joseph Burkholder and Yost Gingrich. However, it is another tie in to Bern Canton, Switzerland, another story of Mennonite trials and blessings, and another reason to honor the efforts of these ancestors to come to America to build a new life. I hope to update this post when I've figured out the correct relationship, so for now consider this a work in progress.
The line of descent would be
Yost Gingrich-Anna Huber
Maria Gingrich-Adam Burkholder
possibly another Burkholder generation
Joseph Burkholder-Elizabeth Miller
Barbara Burkholder-Benjamin Buchtel
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William A Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Friday, March 10, 2017
Harshbarger line: John Buchtel 1733-1809
We are fortunate to have a good amount of information about John. He is also known as Johannes, but it seems that most of the records about him refer to him as John. Henry Meyer in volume 8 of the Pennsylvania-German magazine does a wonderful job of telling John's story, making it easy for us to imagine him and proud for us to honor him. I recommend that you get a copy of the magazine (it's on Google, at no cost) in order to get a full sense of the man and his family. This is necessarily shortened.
John was born in late 1732 or early 1733 in Linsenhofen, Wuerttemburg, Germany. This alone makes him different from many of our ancestors, because he wasn't Swiss and may not have suffered religious persecution. He and his family were Lutheran, Well, actually he may have been a bit of a free thinker, but mostly he was Lutheran. His family had lived in the little village for at least five generations, going back to Petrus Buchtel who was born there in 1610. For references, it's near Stuttgart, Germany, and has a population of about 2500 people, but that's about all I've been able to find about it. John's parents were Johannes and Lucia Ehhalt Buchtel, and he had a sister and quite probably other siblings.
John came to America in 1753, possibly because war seemed to be brewing at home. He was single when he arrived here, and had little in the way of material goods. He served an indentureship to pay off the cost of his passage, and married Catherine Seiler or Scheler, a neighbor who was also working to pay off her indenture. They were married December23,1760 and first went to live in Snyder County. Later they moved to Brush Valley, in what is now Centre county, and this is where they made their forever home.
John and Catherine had at least 9 children, and all of the family members are considered to be pioneers of Centre County. they had to clear their land while keeping an eye out for wolves, bears, and even panthers. By 1792, the year they apparently moved to Brush Valley, the threat from the native Americans was pretty much over, but there were still many dangers to overcome. John farmed and planted apple trees as well. His grapevines were not as successful, and I don't understand the slang in the article that explains why. It is apparent that the failure was not due to lack of work on John or the family's part. John was also a cooper (made barrels, buckets, and pails) and a mechanic, and as the Valley filled up, or as travelers passed, his skills were much needed. He seems to have been well educated, or self-educated, with particular interests in mathematics, astrology (common at this time period) and philosophy. As already stated, he was a Lutheran but not a regular church goer. It is said that ministers went to him in order to learn.
John several times mentioned that he would not die in his bed and that prediction came true one unnoted day in 1809. He was standing in the doorway to his house, and fell down dead. Some of the Buchtel children wanted to move on to Ohio, perhaps because they weren't given enough land to survive on in their father's will (that is just speculation on my past). In 1812, all but two of the children, plus Catherine herself, set off for a new home near Uniontown, Stark County, Ohio, and Catherine died there in 1813. The trip was probably quite difficult for her.
There is a picture in the article of a home that Solomon Buchtel built in Brush Valley near Rebersburg. It is probably not standing any longer, but it looks like it would have been a nice farm home at the time it was built.
I admire John Buchtel and would like to learn more about him. One thing I'm really curious about is where he got his education, and what his parents hoped that he would do with it. Did they want him to become a pastor or a schoolteacher? And what inspired him to continue his learning while he was so busy doing the back breaking work of farming and breaking in new land?
The line of descent is:
John Buchtel-Catherine Seiler
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder Long
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
John was born in late 1732 or early 1733 in Linsenhofen, Wuerttemburg, Germany. This alone makes him different from many of our ancestors, because he wasn't Swiss and may not have suffered religious persecution. He and his family were Lutheran, Well, actually he may have been a bit of a free thinker, but mostly he was Lutheran. His family had lived in the little village for at least five generations, going back to Petrus Buchtel who was born there in 1610. For references, it's near Stuttgart, Germany, and has a population of about 2500 people, but that's about all I've been able to find about it. John's parents were Johannes and Lucia Ehhalt Buchtel, and he had a sister and quite probably other siblings.
John came to America in 1753, possibly because war seemed to be brewing at home. He was single when he arrived here, and had little in the way of material goods. He served an indentureship to pay off the cost of his passage, and married Catherine Seiler or Scheler, a neighbor who was also working to pay off her indenture. They were married December23,1760 and first went to live in Snyder County. Later they moved to Brush Valley, in what is now Centre county, and this is where they made their forever home.
John and Catherine had at least 9 children, and all of the family members are considered to be pioneers of Centre County. they had to clear their land while keeping an eye out for wolves, bears, and even panthers. By 1792, the year they apparently moved to Brush Valley, the threat from the native Americans was pretty much over, but there were still many dangers to overcome. John farmed and planted apple trees as well. His grapevines were not as successful, and I don't understand the slang in the article that explains why. It is apparent that the failure was not due to lack of work on John or the family's part. John was also a cooper (made barrels, buckets, and pails) and a mechanic, and as the Valley filled up, or as travelers passed, his skills were much needed. He seems to have been well educated, or self-educated, with particular interests in mathematics, astrology (common at this time period) and philosophy. As already stated, he was a Lutheran but not a regular church goer. It is said that ministers went to him in order to learn.
John several times mentioned that he would not die in his bed and that prediction came true one unnoted day in 1809. He was standing in the doorway to his house, and fell down dead. Some of the Buchtel children wanted to move on to Ohio, perhaps because they weren't given enough land to survive on in their father's will (that is just speculation on my past). In 1812, all but two of the children, plus Catherine herself, set off for a new home near Uniontown, Stark County, Ohio, and Catherine died there in 1813. The trip was probably quite difficult for her.
There is a picture in the article of a home that Solomon Buchtel built in Brush Valley near Rebersburg. It is probably not standing any longer, but it looks like it would have been a nice farm home at the time it was built.
I admire John Buchtel and would like to learn more about him. One thing I'm really curious about is where he got his education, and what his parents hoped that he would do with it. Did they want him to become a pastor or a schoolteacher? And what inspired him to continue his learning while he was so busy doing the back breaking work of farming and breaking in new land?
The line of descent is:
John Buchtel-Catherine Seiler
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder Long
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Friday, February 24, 2017
Harshbarger line: Introducing Barbara Burkholder Long Buchtel Kemery
We found her! We found Barbara Long, the most recent brick wall ancestor that I couldn't locate. Dawna Morton, a distant cousin, found the clue that allowed us to begin to learn her story, and I can't thank her enough. There is still more to learn, but I wanted to share my excitement at "finding" her, and my admiration for what must have been a remarkable woman.
Barbara was actually born a Burkholder, not a Long. Her father was Joseph Burkholder (in some records showing as Barkholder) and her mother may have been Elizabeth Miller. I haven't found the for sure documentation of that yet, but Barbara's youngest brother, Hiram's mother was Elizabeth Miller. She was born in 1826 somewhere in Ohio, probably Portage County but it could have been elsewhere.
The first mention we can find of her is in an every youth census of Portage County taken in 1838. This book lists all, or nearly all, of the youth in the county who were between the ages of 4 and 30, and it lists them by school district. So in Suffield School District #4, there is Joseph Barkholder with the following children: Joseph Barkholder Jr., Eliza Barkholder, Barbary Barkholder, and Eva Barkholder. (Joseph Jr. later married Catherine Miller, who is listed on the same page as a daughter of Barbary Miller. There is also a parent named Anthony Miller on the page, and he needs to be investigated further as he could possibly be related to Elizabeth Miller).
The next we know of Barbara is her marriage license, just two years later. It can be found on FamilySearch, and clearly shows her to be fourteen years old at the time of the marriage license on Augut 13, 1840. So the approximate birth date we have for her of 1826 is correct, although I still don't think the Georgetown, Brown County location showing on the internet is correct. She was marrying a Thomas Long, who was 21 years old. Elizabeth Burkholder, Barbara's mother, was there and gave consent to the marriage.
We don't know why a fourteen year old girl was marrying a 21 year old man, nor why it was her mother who gave permission and not her father. Speculation would be that it was the honorable thing to do, to get married, and that father did not approve, but that is only speculation. At any rate, the two married. They had a baby who died in 1842. I'm unable to locate my notes that gave the name of the child and how old he was when he died, but there exists a slight possibility that Barbara was pregnant with this child when she married Thomas.
Another piece of the puzzle that is missing at the moment is what happened to Thomas. Either the marriage failed or Thomas died, but I can't say which at this point. My guess is that Thomas died, because Barbara and her second husband were married March 24, 1844 and they named a son Thomas, presumably in remembrance of Thomas Long. Benjamin Buchtel was 38 years old when he married, and his bride was 18. I've looked for an earlier marriage record for Ben, as he was known, but have not located one. This may have been his first marriage.
In 1850, the family, under the name indexed as Booken, is listed in Brimfield, Portage County, Ohio. There were already three children in the family, Joseph Jr, Betsey, and Fannie. Also living with them was Susan Long, aged 76. I am thinking this may be Thomas's mother. She would have had Thomas when she was 43 years old, which is well within the realm of possibility. I need to trace her further to fill in that part of the puzzle.
Joseph Burkholder and family moved to Whitley County, Indiana sometime around April of 1854, when he purchased land. Joseph Jr and his wife Catherine were there also, as was an as yet unplaced Michael Burkholder. He was in Portage County in 1850 aged 28, so he may well be a son of Joseph Sr also. Ben and Barbara Buchtel show up in Whitley County in February of 1860, when he purchased land, and were there for the 1860 showing 6 children. One more would join the family in a few years.
It may have seemed from the outside that things were going well for Ben and Barbara, but in March of 1871 she filed for divorce. Now, in those days, divorce was not as common as it is now and usually it was the man who filed. Barbara still had children at home, and as far as I know now had no visible means of support. She did, however, have about a dozen witnesses who testified on her behalf, showing that Ben had become an alcoholic, beat her often, the most recent time with a club, and had several times threatened to kill her. One wonders whether she was injured or had bruises to show the court, because she apparently filed shortly after the club beating. She was promptly granted a divorce, and also maintained custody of Solomon, aged 14, and Evie, who was 6 and blind.
Somehow, Barbara provided for herself and the two children, perhaps assisted by some of her other children. Benjamin didn't change his will, and when he died on or before January 10,1872, she inherited land from him. Roughly two years after the divorce, she married Daniel Kemery, who was not only a neighbor but the father in law of her daughters Margaret, who was married to Alexander Kemery, and Fannie, who was married to Adam Kemery. Daniel was 15 years older than she was, but would have provided security for herself and the children. We can hope it was a love match, also, because Barbara had had a hard life.
Barbara was apparently loved by the Kemery children and grandchildren because in some of the Kemery obituaries, she is listed as the mother of the children, when she was clearly the stepmother. It is possible that grandchildren of Daniel provided the information and they may not have known Daniel's first wife, Susan or Susanna Essig. At any rate, Daniel died in 1877. Barbara died within the next two years, because in a March 1879 deed Adam Kemery, her son in law, describes her as deceased, of Whitley County, and she had died intestate.
That is what is known of Barbara Burkholder Long Buchtel Kemery. She died in her early 50's, perhaps of hard work, stress, and the effort of giving birth to at least eight children. She'd moved to a new state As I sit back and look at her life, I just have to admire her. When she gathered up her courage to get a divorce, and rounded up witnesses who told her story for her, she became more than a typical woman of her time. I am not really a feminist, but I sure admire courage, and I would describe her as courageous. I'm so glad I got to know her this much, and would love to know more.
(Besides the sources mentioned in this post, I've also referred to divorce papers, wills, and deeds found in the Whitley County File Management department and the recorder's office, and the census records of 1840, 1850, 1860, and 1870. It's been fun putting most of this together, after Dawna gave me a push in the right direction!)
The line of descent is:
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers,
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Barbara was actually born a Burkholder, not a Long. Her father was Joseph Burkholder (in some records showing as Barkholder) and her mother may have been Elizabeth Miller. I haven't found the for sure documentation of that yet, but Barbara's youngest brother, Hiram's mother was Elizabeth Miller. She was born in 1826 somewhere in Ohio, probably Portage County but it could have been elsewhere.
The first mention we can find of her is in an every youth census of Portage County taken in 1838. This book lists all, or nearly all, of the youth in the county who were between the ages of 4 and 30, and it lists them by school district. So in Suffield School District #4, there is Joseph Barkholder with the following children: Joseph Barkholder Jr., Eliza Barkholder, Barbary Barkholder, and Eva Barkholder. (Joseph Jr. later married Catherine Miller, who is listed on the same page as a daughter of Barbary Miller. There is also a parent named Anthony Miller on the page, and he needs to be investigated further as he could possibly be related to Elizabeth Miller).
The next we know of Barbara is her marriage license, just two years later. It can be found on FamilySearch, and clearly shows her to be fourteen years old at the time of the marriage license on Augut 13, 1840. So the approximate birth date we have for her of 1826 is correct, although I still don't think the Georgetown, Brown County location showing on the internet is correct. She was marrying a Thomas Long, who was 21 years old. Elizabeth Burkholder, Barbara's mother, was there and gave consent to the marriage.
We don't know why a fourteen year old girl was marrying a 21 year old man, nor why it was her mother who gave permission and not her father. Speculation would be that it was the honorable thing to do, to get married, and that father did not approve, but that is only speculation. At any rate, the two married. They had a baby who died in 1842. I'm unable to locate my notes that gave the name of the child and how old he was when he died, but there exists a slight possibility that Barbara was pregnant with this child when she married Thomas.
Another piece of the puzzle that is missing at the moment is what happened to Thomas. Either the marriage failed or Thomas died, but I can't say which at this point. My guess is that Thomas died, because Barbara and her second husband were married March 24, 1844 and they named a son Thomas, presumably in remembrance of Thomas Long. Benjamin Buchtel was 38 years old when he married, and his bride was 18. I've looked for an earlier marriage record for Ben, as he was known, but have not located one. This may have been his first marriage.
In 1850, the family, under the name indexed as Booken, is listed in Brimfield, Portage County, Ohio. There were already three children in the family, Joseph Jr, Betsey, and Fannie. Also living with them was Susan Long, aged 76. I am thinking this may be Thomas's mother. She would have had Thomas when she was 43 years old, which is well within the realm of possibility. I need to trace her further to fill in that part of the puzzle.
Joseph Burkholder and family moved to Whitley County, Indiana sometime around April of 1854, when he purchased land. Joseph Jr and his wife Catherine were there also, as was an as yet unplaced Michael Burkholder. He was in Portage County in 1850 aged 28, so he may well be a son of Joseph Sr also. Ben and Barbara Buchtel show up in Whitley County in February of 1860, when he purchased land, and were there for the 1860 showing 6 children. One more would join the family in a few years.
It may have seemed from the outside that things were going well for Ben and Barbara, but in March of 1871 she filed for divorce. Now, in those days, divorce was not as common as it is now and usually it was the man who filed. Barbara still had children at home, and as far as I know now had no visible means of support. She did, however, have about a dozen witnesses who testified on her behalf, showing that Ben had become an alcoholic, beat her often, the most recent time with a club, and had several times threatened to kill her. One wonders whether she was injured or had bruises to show the court, because she apparently filed shortly after the club beating. She was promptly granted a divorce, and also maintained custody of Solomon, aged 14, and Evie, who was 6 and blind.
Somehow, Barbara provided for herself and the two children, perhaps assisted by some of her other children. Benjamin didn't change his will, and when he died on or before January 10,1872, she inherited land from him. Roughly two years after the divorce, she married Daniel Kemery, who was not only a neighbor but the father in law of her daughters Margaret, who was married to Alexander Kemery, and Fannie, who was married to Adam Kemery. Daniel was 15 years older than she was, but would have provided security for herself and the children. We can hope it was a love match, also, because Barbara had had a hard life.
Barbara was apparently loved by the Kemery children and grandchildren because in some of the Kemery obituaries, she is listed as the mother of the children, when she was clearly the stepmother. It is possible that grandchildren of Daniel provided the information and they may not have known Daniel's first wife, Susan or Susanna Essig. At any rate, Daniel died in 1877. Barbara died within the next two years, because in a March 1879 deed Adam Kemery, her son in law, describes her as deceased, of Whitley County, and she had died intestate.
That is what is known of Barbara Burkholder Long Buchtel Kemery. She died in her early 50's, perhaps of hard work, stress, and the effort of giving birth to at least eight children. She'd moved to a new state As I sit back and look at her life, I just have to admire her. When she gathered up her courage to get a divorce, and rounded up witnesses who told her story for her, she became more than a typical woman of her time. I am not really a feminist, but I sure admire courage, and I would describe her as courageous. I'm so glad I got to know her this much, and would love to know more.
(Besides the sources mentioned in this post, I've also referred to divorce papers, wills, and deeds found in the Whitley County File Management department and the recorder's office, and the census records of 1840, 1850, 1860, and 1870. It's been fun putting most of this together, after Dawna gave me a push in the right direction!)
The line of descent is:
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Burkholder
Fannie Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers,
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
Oh, what a happy dance! Field trip to Ohio
Husband and I took a field trip to the area of Richland County, Morrow County, and Knox County Ohio last week. I researched for four wonderful days (while husband watched a lot of movies) and here is a list of the wonderful treasures I brought back with me:
*Death record for Mary Elizabeth Hetrick Black, died Dec.1, 1862 of typhoid fever. The gem? In the remarks section "Truly a pious woman."
*Article "The Mansfield that Was" from the September 28, 1971 News Journal about the town of Bellville, mentioning founder Robert Bell. I think "The Mansfield that Was" was the name of a column.
*Plat of Bellville, Ohio from 1900
*Original Blat of Bellville, plus a brief history of the town, from a 1975 book published by the OSU Department of Architecture.
*A lead on where to fid the actual marriage records of Thomas Knott and Hannah Bell, but time ran out.
*Richland, Ohio, marriage record (not the documents, just the record) for marriage of Mr. Joseph Withers and Miss Ann Montgomery, by Elijah Clark, J.P. on September 23, 1852.
*Map of West Perry Township, Morrow County, Ohio, showing location of land of Abraham Hetrick. Not sure of date.
*Copy of Abraham Hetrick deed to John Wirick,
*Copy of Abrham Hetrick and Mary E Hetrick deed to Hiram Cravin dated December 14, 1859. Need to research this but is likely the son of our Abraham who was married to Sarah Lemmon.
*Abraham Hetrick deed to Levi Lucas Feb. 22,1850
*Record of marriage of March 12, 1839, Isaac Hetrick to Elizabeth Black by L. or S. B. Leiter
*Guardian bonds for Isaac Hetrick (also L.S. and Ezra Hetrick, December 9, 1863 for minors Alice Hetrick and F. Owen Hetrick, per the estate of Peter Black, deceased, of Noble County, Indiana. These were the minor children of Peter and Elizabeth Black Hetrick.
*Copy of Deed of Abraham Hetrick to Isaac Hetrick, March 13, 1856, land in Richland County, sum of $3000 dollars.
*5 pages from the Index of Deeds of Richland County, showing transactions with Robert Bell as grantor of land in Bellville (mostly).
*Copies of original plat of Bellville 1815 and Bell's addition 1826.
*Copy of Deed of John Bell and Hanna Bell to Benjamin Crummell, for $150
*Copy of deed of various Shirk family members to Peter Black, Richland County Ohio, $1000 November 25, 1834.
*Copy of deed for John Carey, Admr to Isaac Hetrick, March 21, 1854 showing order to sell at auction, sold for $1108.50; Then on January 18, 1855 Isaac Hetrick sold the same land to John Carey Junior for $1200.
*Copy of deed from Robert Bell and Hannah his wife to trustees of the M.E. church, for $20, dated January 15,1833 and recorded August 19,1836.
*Copy of deed from Peter Black and wife Martha to Jacob Biddle for $5500; 160 acres, April 4,1853, recorded November 7, 1854. Isaac Hetrick was a witness.
*Copy of Deed from Abraham Hetrick to Justice Frary, August 18, 1849; no mention of wife so hard to know which Abraham this was.
The above were found in Richland County, Ohio court records and a few in Morrow County.
In Knox County, Ohio, where I'd hoped to find more about Joseph and Mary Gearhart Withers, I found only what may or may not be clues:
*Bond of Christopher Mosley with John Ely and John Gearhart as witness, guardian to John and Mary Ann Gearhart, who were the children of Aron Gearhart, deceased. dated October 21, 1845.
*Then just 8 days later, guardian bond of John Higgins, Asher F. Ely and Joseph Shinaberry, as guardians of Aaron Gearhart, Mary Ann Gearhart, and William Gearhart.
*Several pages of estate records for Aron Gerhart, including inventory and sale records. Aron apparently died close to July 10, 1845. He may be a brother or other relation to Mary Gearhart Withers???
And then, from the Ohio Genealogy Society Library at Bellville, Ohio, a wealth of material:
*A chart of the Ulrich Ruble family
*The obituary of Andrew Farmer, who died in Columbia City, Indiana in 1897, mentioning his early years.
*A short history of Johnsonville Community, (Morrow County, Ohio) mentioning Abraham Hetrick as an early resident and as a veteran of the War of 1812.
*A transcription of the will of John Wyatt, who died in 1799 in Franklin County, Va.
*A transcription of a quitclaim deed from Jane Farmer widow of William to Adam Black, September 18, 1839.
* A transcript of the marriage bond for William Farmer and Jane Wyatt, October 21,1799, Franklin County, Va.
*A transcript of a deed from Franklin County, Va. from William Farmer and Jane to Joseph Bolin, June 25, 1813.
*Transcript of the will of Mathew Farmer, written 18 December 1834 and probated October 23,1845 in Miami County, Ohio.
*Copy of Deed for sale of Andrew Farmer's share of Mathew Farmer Estate, September 18, 1839. Various other persons are mentioned and the deed was recorded in Allen County, Indiana and Clark County, Ohio.
*A possible clue to Lemuel Dunn, who may have had a brother James. James was born in Monongahela County, Virginia and came to Brown County, Ohio about 1800.
*From "A History of Summit County, by Perrin, 1881, more than a full page of stories about the Keplers, brothers Andrew and John.
*A copy of the will of Alexis Lemmon, written January 12, 1825 and proved July 15, 1826.
*Copies of the family record section of a Bible purchased by Alexis Lemmon in 1803 in Annapolis, Md, listing his children's births, marriages, and some deaths.
*Copy of the will of Jesse Finch of Belmont County, Ohio, dated February 9,1824 and probated September 8, 1829.
*Pages from "History of Morrow County", by Baskins, 1880, mentioning Abraham Hetrick as a trustee in 1817 in Perry Township, and also mentions Hetrick residing there at the time of Perry's victory on Lake Erie.
*Part of Chancery Court proceedings of April 11,1840, regarding a deed not given to a purchaser, and naming (apparently) all of Robert Bell's living descendants.
*Copy of Washington County, Pennsylvania Deed of Thomas and Hanna Rees to John Brown, land in Frederick County, Md dated January 1, 1793.
*Transcript of deed from Thomas Rees to Jonathan Garber, showing land was warranted to Jonathan Garber February 28, 1805; dated April 7, 1806 and showing Thomas as living in Fairfield County, Ohio as of that date.
*Transcript of deed from Thomas Rees Sr. of Fairfield Co. Ohio to Thomas Rees Jr. of Washington County, Pa. February 23,1810.
*Copy of bond and appraisal papers for Thomas Rees, dated January 30, 1812 in Fairfield County, Ohio.
*Copy of deed of heirs of Thomas Rees (many) to Mathew Ewing, August 29, 1812.
* Copy of Rees names from Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, Volume VI, page 425; showing marriage of Thomas Rees son of Morris and Rah, and Margaret Rees, daughter of Thomas and Margaret in 1763, plus many other entries.
*Copies of two letters with information about the (van) Gundy family.
* An article from The Pennsylvania German, no date found, about the Buchtel family, and pages of a passenger list showing Johannes Buchtel's arrival in Philadelphia in 1753.
Obviously, each and every page that I've found needs to be read and analyzed and recorded properly, but do you see why I am doing my happy dance? This was all found in four days, with time out for cemetery visits, a newspaper interview, and serendipitous meetings. I'll write more about all that in my next post!
*Death record for Mary Elizabeth Hetrick Black, died Dec.1, 1862 of typhoid fever. The gem? In the remarks section "Truly a pious woman."
*Article "The Mansfield that Was" from the September 28, 1971 News Journal about the town of Bellville, mentioning founder Robert Bell. I think "The Mansfield that Was" was the name of a column.
*Plat of Bellville, Ohio from 1900
*Original Blat of Bellville, plus a brief history of the town, from a 1975 book published by the OSU Department of Architecture.
*A lead on where to fid the actual marriage records of Thomas Knott and Hannah Bell, but time ran out.
*Richland, Ohio, marriage record (not the documents, just the record) for marriage of Mr. Joseph Withers and Miss Ann Montgomery, by Elijah Clark, J.P. on September 23, 1852.
*Map of West Perry Township, Morrow County, Ohio, showing location of land of Abraham Hetrick. Not sure of date.
*Copy of Abraham Hetrick deed to John Wirick,
*Copy of Abrham Hetrick and Mary E Hetrick deed to Hiram Cravin dated December 14, 1859. Need to research this but is likely the son of our Abraham who was married to Sarah Lemmon.
*Abraham Hetrick deed to Levi Lucas Feb. 22,1850
*Record of marriage of March 12, 1839, Isaac Hetrick to Elizabeth Black by L. or S. B. Leiter
*Guardian bonds for Isaac Hetrick (also L.S. and Ezra Hetrick, December 9, 1863 for minors Alice Hetrick and F. Owen Hetrick, per the estate of Peter Black, deceased, of Noble County, Indiana. These were the minor children of Peter and Elizabeth Black Hetrick.
*Copy of Deed of Abraham Hetrick to Isaac Hetrick, March 13, 1856, land in Richland County, sum of $3000 dollars.
*5 pages from the Index of Deeds of Richland County, showing transactions with Robert Bell as grantor of land in Bellville (mostly).
*Copies of original plat of Bellville 1815 and Bell's addition 1826.
*Copy of Deed of John Bell and Hanna Bell to Benjamin Crummell, for $150
*Copy of deed of various Shirk family members to Peter Black, Richland County Ohio, $1000 November 25, 1834.
*Copy of deed for John Carey, Admr to Isaac Hetrick, March 21, 1854 showing order to sell at auction, sold for $1108.50; Then on January 18, 1855 Isaac Hetrick sold the same land to John Carey Junior for $1200.
*Copy of deed from Robert Bell and Hannah his wife to trustees of the M.E. church, for $20, dated January 15,1833 and recorded August 19,1836.
*Copy of deed from Peter Black and wife Martha to Jacob Biddle for $5500; 160 acres, April 4,1853, recorded November 7, 1854. Isaac Hetrick was a witness.
*Copy of Deed from Abraham Hetrick to Justice Frary, August 18, 1849; no mention of wife so hard to know which Abraham this was.
The above were found in Richland County, Ohio court records and a few in Morrow County.
In Knox County, Ohio, where I'd hoped to find more about Joseph and Mary Gearhart Withers, I found only what may or may not be clues:
*Bond of Christopher Mosley with John Ely and John Gearhart as witness, guardian to John and Mary Ann Gearhart, who were the children of Aron Gearhart, deceased. dated October 21, 1845.
*Then just 8 days later, guardian bond of John Higgins, Asher F. Ely and Joseph Shinaberry, as guardians of Aaron Gearhart, Mary Ann Gearhart, and William Gearhart.
*Several pages of estate records for Aron Gerhart, including inventory and sale records. Aron apparently died close to July 10, 1845. He may be a brother or other relation to Mary Gearhart Withers???
And then, from the Ohio Genealogy Society Library at Bellville, Ohio, a wealth of material:
*A chart of the Ulrich Ruble family
*The obituary of Andrew Farmer, who died in Columbia City, Indiana in 1897, mentioning his early years.
*A short history of Johnsonville Community, (Morrow County, Ohio) mentioning Abraham Hetrick as an early resident and as a veteran of the War of 1812.
*A transcription of the will of John Wyatt, who died in 1799 in Franklin County, Va.
*A transcription of a quitclaim deed from Jane Farmer widow of William to Adam Black, September 18, 1839.
* A transcript of the marriage bond for William Farmer and Jane Wyatt, October 21,1799, Franklin County, Va.
*A transcript of a deed from Franklin County, Va. from William Farmer and Jane to Joseph Bolin, June 25, 1813.
*Transcript of the will of Mathew Farmer, written 18 December 1834 and probated October 23,1845 in Miami County, Ohio.
*Copy of Deed for sale of Andrew Farmer's share of Mathew Farmer Estate, September 18, 1839. Various other persons are mentioned and the deed was recorded in Allen County, Indiana and Clark County, Ohio.
*A possible clue to Lemuel Dunn, who may have had a brother James. James was born in Monongahela County, Virginia and came to Brown County, Ohio about 1800.
*From "A History of Summit County, by Perrin, 1881, more than a full page of stories about the Keplers, brothers Andrew and John.
*A copy of the will of Alexis Lemmon, written January 12, 1825 and proved July 15, 1826.
*Copies of the family record section of a Bible purchased by Alexis Lemmon in 1803 in Annapolis, Md, listing his children's births, marriages, and some deaths.
*Copy of the will of Jesse Finch of Belmont County, Ohio, dated February 9,1824 and probated September 8, 1829.
*Pages from "History of Morrow County", by Baskins, 1880, mentioning Abraham Hetrick as a trustee in 1817 in Perry Township, and also mentions Hetrick residing there at the time of Perry's victory on Lake Erie.
*Part of Chancery Court proceedings of April 11,1840, regarding a deed not given to a purchaser, and naming (apparently) all of Robert Bell's living descendants.
*Copy of Washington County, Pennsylvania Deed of Thomas and Hanna Rees to John Brown, land in Frederick County, Md dated January 1, 1793.
*Transcript of deed from Thomas Rees to Jonathan Garber, showing land was warranted to Jonathan Garber February 28, 1805; dated April 7, 1806 and showing Thomas as living in Fairfield County, Ohio as of that date.
*Transcript of deed from Thomas Rees Sr. of Fairfield Co. Ohio to Thomas Rees Jr. of Washington County, Pa. February 23,1810.
*Copy of bond and appraisal papers for Thomas Rees, dated January 30, 1812 in Fairfield County, Ohio.
*Copy of deed of heirs of Thomas Rees (many) to Mathew Ewing, August 29, 1812.
* Copy of Rees names from Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, Volume VI, page 425; showing marriage of Thomas Rees son of Morris and Rah, and Margaret Rees, daughter of Thomas and Margaret in 1763, plus many other entries.
*Copies of two letters with information about the (van) Gundy family.
* An article from The Pennsylvania German, no date found, about the Buchtel family, and pages of a passenger list showing Johannes Buchtel's arrival in Philadelphia in 1753.
Obviously, each and every page that I've found needs to be read and analyzed and recorded properly, but do you see why I am doing my happy dance? This was all found in four days, with time out for cemetery visits, a newspaper interview, and serendipitous meetings. I'll write more about all that in my next post!
Friday, September 30, 2016
Harshbarger line: A newspaper article about Simon Essig, 1754-1851
I've written about Simon Essig before, but this find is just to good to not pass along. It was printed in the Canton Daily News of October 1, 1922 and was written by John McGregor. I found it reprinted in the History of Stark County by Herbert t. O. Blue, which was published in 1928. It's not usual to find evidence of a newspaper article for a man who died in 1851. I would love to see the original newspaper article, because it apparently included a picture of the original home of the Essigs, but it's wonderful to find this and to be able to share it with you.
"Simon Essig, Revolutionary Soldier"
" In the pioneer days of this county it was, of course, very sparsely settled, the families being few and far between.
This condition necessarily brought the pioneer families into close social relations and intermarriage was a natural consequence.
In writing of one of these families, it is necessary to write of three old pioneers whose intermarriage is such that we cannot speak of one without bringing them all into our story.
The first of these was the old Simon Essig family, among the earliest of our pioneer families. The original Essig family, so far as our record goes, was that of Wendell Essig, a descendant of whom, named Frederick Essig, was major of the Canton Bern, Switzerland, in 1890. This Wendell Essig was born February 7, 1700, and arrived in this country at Philadelphia September 17, 1749. He was recorded on the ship's books as a Palatine, and it has always been suggested he was a Royal Grenadier of Frederick William, King of Prussia.
Simon Essig, a descendant of of Wendell, came to Stark County from Cumberland County, Pa. in the year 1808 and settled on the farm later known as the Herbruck farm on the Harrisburg Road and now in the city limits.
The illustration above shows the old log cabin erected by Simon Essig on the bank of Middlebranch Creek. There were born to Simon Essig and wife six sons and six daughters and here in the wilderness did Simon Essig and wife rear a family of twelve children whose descendants now number many thousands. Simon Essig died on the farm at the age of 97 years.
His descendants are scattered across the entire United States and hold prominent positions of trust and honor. One of his great grandsons, Hon. Scott Wike of Illinois, was assistant secretary of the treasury under Grover Cleveland and also represented his district in the United States Congress two terms.
Simon Essig was born in 1754 and died in 1852. The last and youngest of Simon Essig's children was Rebecca, who died October 14,1896 at the advanced age of 96 years."
I also have notes under this source that say "Adam Essig and Jacob Essig, War of 1812 soldiers and Simon's sons, are also buried at Warstler's Cemetery."
I need to double check the date of Simon's death, as I show it as March 18, 1851. If my date is wrong, I need to correct it. The name of Simon's wife, mother of twelve children, is Julia Margaret Schnerr or Schneer. She also lived to a good old age, dying in 1844 at the age of 79. Simon's son George, the Harshbarger connection, also served in the War of 1812. He was wounded at Pu-in-Bay in one of the Indian skirmishes.
I've blogged about Simon before but I thought this article was interesting since it reflects some of the stories in the family history, and gives more details about the life of the family. I certainly wasn't expecting to find this when I picked up that particular book!
The line of descent is
Simon Essig-Julia Margaret Schnerr
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
"
"Simon Essig, Revolutionary Soldier"
" In the pioneer days of this county it was, of course, very sparsely settled, the families being few and far between.
This condition necessarily brought the pioneer families into close social relations and intermarriage was a natural consequence.
In writing of one of these families, it is necessary to write of three old pioneers whose intermarriage is such that we cannot speak of one without bringing them all into our story.
The first of these was the old Simon Essig family, among the earliest of our pioneer families. The original Essig family, so far as our record goes, was that of Wendell Essig, a descendant of whom, named Frederick Essig, was major of the Canton Bern, Switzerland, in 1890. This Wendell Essig was born February 7, 1700, and arrived in this country at Philadelphia September 17, 1749. He was recorded on the ship's books as a Palatine, and it has always been suggested he was a Royal Grenadier of Frederick William, King of Prussia.
Simon Essig, a descendant of of Wendell, came to Stark County from Cumberland County, Pa. in the year 1808 and settled on the farm later known as the Herbruck farm on the Harrisburg Road and now in the city limits.
The illustration above shows the old log cabin erected by Simon Essig on the bank of Middlebranch Creek. There were born to Simon Essig and wife six sons and six daughters and here in the wilderness did Simon Essig and wife rear a family of twelve children whose descendants now number many thousands. Simon Essig died on the farm at the age of 97 years.
His descendants are scattered across the entire United States and hold prominent positions of trust and honor. One of his great grandsons, Hon. Scott Wike of Illinois, was assistant secretary of the treasury under Grover Cleveland and also represented his district in the United States Congress two terms.
Simon Essig was born in 1754 and died in 1852. The last and youngest of Simon Essig's children was Rebecca, who died October 14,1896 at the advanced age of 96 years."
I also have notes under this source that say "Adam Essig and Jacob Essig, War of 1812 soldiers and Simon's sons, are also buried at Warstler's Cemetery."
I need to double check the date of Simon's death, as I show it as March 18, 1851. If my date is wrong, I need to correct it. The name of Simon's wife, mother of twelve children, is Julia Margaret Schnerr or Schneer. She also lived to a good old age, dying in 1844 at the age of 79. Simon's son George, the Harshbarger connection, also served in the War of 1812. He was wounded at Pu-in-Bay in one of the Indian skirmishes.
I've blogged about Simon before but I thought this article was interesting since it reflects some of the stories in the family history, and gives more details about the life of the family. I certainly wasn't expecting to find this when I picked up that particular book!
The line of descent is
Simon Essig-Julia Margaret Schnerr
George Essig-Catherine Shollenberger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendants
"
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Harshbarger line: Kemery obituaries
When I did some research at the Whitley County Historical Society a couple of years ago, the fine curator located the obituaries of Adam Kemery and Nancy Fannie Kemery for me. These are from Columbia City, Indiana newspapers but I don't know which one, or ones.
The first is for Adam Kemery, and was printed November 10, 1926.
"Adam Kemery Dies at His Home Tuesday.
Death of Well Known Columbia Township Farmer Occurred at 9:15 Tuesday Evening -Funeral Services From Home Thursday Afternoon.
Adam Kemery, 79 years old last April 15, died at his farm home in Columbia Township at 9:15 o'clock Tuesday night of a complication of illnesses. He had been in failing health since 1917, but was able to be up and around most of the time. Mr. Kemery was up part of the day Tuesday. Before his death he suffered a hemorrhage of the lungs.
He was born in Columbia Township and was a son of Daniel and Barbara Burkholder Kemery. He resided in Columbia township all his life and on his farm for more than forty yers.
Fifty six years ago he was united in marriage to Nancy Fanny Buchtel who preceded him in death on April 22,1925. They have the unusual experience of living to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary.
Mr. and Mrs. Kemery were the parents of seven children, two of whom are dead. Those surviving are Phoebe and Harvey, at home Mrs. Sarah Walters, of Columbia City, Mrs. Della Withers, of Columbia township, and Benjamin Kemery, of Ft. Wayne. Two brothers, John Kemery of South Whitley and Solomon Kemery, of Columbia township, are living.
Funeral services will be held from the home Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. Rev. Wallace will conduct services and burial will be in the Eberhard cemetery."
This one knocks me for a loop. Adam's mother was Barbara Burkholder? Who was she? Why do so many trees state that his mother was Susannah Essig? Am I going to have to knock a whole huge branch of interesting people off this tree? Obviously, I need to go back to my sources and figure out where I went wrong, or why the obituary information is incorrect, whichever it turns out to be. Sheesh!
The obituary for Mrs. Adam Kemery was printed April 23, 1925.
"Mrs. Adam Kemery died at 3:30 o'clock Wednesday afternoon at her home in southwest Columbia township after an illness of two years due to complications during the greater part of which she was confined to her bed.
She was born in Ohio on April 15,1846 and was 79 years and 7 days old. She was formerly Nancy Fannie Buchtel and was a daughter of Benjamin and Barbara Buchtel. She came to Whitley county when a young girl and 56 years ago was united in marriage to Adam Kemery. They were the parents of six children, of hom five are living; namely Phoeve and Haarvey, at home, Benjamin and Mrs. Frank Walter, of Fort Wayne, and Mrs. William Withers of Columbia township One daughter, Cora, is dead. Two sisters, Mrs. William Vapner, of Coldwater, Mich. and Mrs. Margaret Kemery, of Columbia township, and one brother, Solomon Buchtel, of this city, survive."
I found another interesting obituary, for Alfred Kemery, printed at the same time. Alfred was a brother to Adam. However, he is clearly a son of Daniel Kemery and Susan Essig. When he died April 25, 1919 he was 75 years, 11 months, and 5 days old. My theory now has to be that Alfred was the son of Daniel and Susan or Susanna, but perhaps Adam was not. I need to go work on this, obviously. Boy, is my face red!
I would sure like to hear from some Kemery descendents who have this figured out already!
Update: Who was the informant for the newspaper, who identified his or her grandmother or possibly even great grandmother? Daniel had been married to Barbara Long Buchtel in 1872, and that was likely the "grandmother" the informant knew. I think that's likely, and I think the Buchtel name somehow got mangled to Burkholder. I followed Daniel and Susanna in the census from 1850 forward, and I've not found any other Daniel Kemery of the age to be Adam's father.
The line of descent is:
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
The first is for Adam Kemery, and was printed November 10, 1926.
"Adam Kemery Dies at His Home Tuesday.
Death of Well Known Columbia Township Farmer Occurred at 9:15 Tuesday Evening -Funeral Services From Home Thursday Afternoon.
Adam Kemery, 79 years old last April 15, died at his farm home in Columbia Township at 9:15 o'clock Tuesday night of a complication of illnesses. He had been in failing health since 1917, but was able to be up and around most of the time. Mr. Kemery was up part of the day Tuesday. Before his death he suffered a hemorrhage of the lungs.
He was born in Columbia Township and was a son of Daniel and Barbara Burkholder Kemery. He resided in Columbia township all his life and on his farm for more than forty yers.
Fifty six years ago he was united in marriage to Nancy Fanny Buchtel who preceded him in death on April 22,1925. They have the unusual experience of living to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary.
Mr. and Mrs. Kemery were the parents of seven children, two of whom are dead. Those surviving are Phoebe and Harvey, at home Mrs. Sarah Walters, of Columbia City, Mrs. Della Withers, of Columbia township, and Benjamin Kemery, of Ft. Wayne. Two brothers, John Kemery of South Whitley and Solomon Kemery, of Columbia township, are living.
Funeral services will be held from the home Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. Rev. Wallace will conduct services and burial will be in the Eberhard cemetery."
This one knocks me for a loop. Adam's mother was Barbara Burkholder? Who was she? Why do so many trees state that his mother was Susannah Essig? Am I going to have to knock a whole huge branch of interesting people off this tree? Obviously, I need to go back to my sources and figure out where I went wrong, or why the obituary information is incorrect, whichever it turns out to be. Sheesh!
The obituary for Mrs. Adam Kemery was printed April 23, 1925.
"Mrs. Adam Kemery died at 3:30 o'clock Wednesday afternoon at her home in southwest Columbia township after an illness of two years due to complications during the greater part of which she was confined to her bed.
She was born in Ohio on April 15,1846 and was 79 years and 7 days old. She was formerly Nancy Fannie Buchtel and was a daughter of Benjamin and Barbara Buchtel. She came to Whitley county when a young girl and 56 years ago was united in marriage to Adam Kemery. They were the parents of six children, of hom five are living; namely Phoeve and Haarvey, at home, Benjamin and Mrs. Frank Walter, of Fort Wayne, and Mrs. William Withers of Columbia township One daughter, Cora, is dead. Two sisters, Mrs. William Vapner, of Coldwater, Mich. and Mrs. Margaret Kemery, of Columbia township, and one brother, Solomon Buchtel, of this city, survive."
I found another interesting obituary, for Alfred Kemery, printed at the same time. Alfred was a brother to Adam. However, he is clearly a son of Daniel Kemery and Susan Essig. When he died April 25, 1919 he was 75 years, 11 months, and 5 days old. My theory now has to be that Alfred was the son of Daniel and Susan or Susanna, but perhaps Adam was not. I need to go work on this, obviously. Boy, is my face red!
I would sure like to hear from some Kemery descendents who have this figured out already!
Update: Who was the informant for the newspaper, who identified his or her grandmother or possibly even great grandmother? Daniel had been married to Barbara Long Buchtel in 1872, and that was likely the "grandmother" the informant knew. I think that's likely, and I think the Buchtel name somehow got mangled to Burkholder. I followed Daniel and Susanna in the census from 1850 forward, and I've not found any other Daniel Kemery of the age to be Adam's father.
The line of descent is:
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Harshbarger line: Maria Magdalena Kunkle abt 1725-
This post is intended as a tribute to all our female immigrant ancestors. It is much more difficult to trace them back. They usually leave no trace of themselves, and once they are gone from this earth it is up to the family to keep them in their memory. Once their memories are gone, they are gone.
So this story will be incredibly brief. Maria Magdalena Kunkle was born most likely in Germany, came to America, married Johannes or John Sensinger and then after he was killed by Indians, Johann Casper Schnerr. She had at least four children with her first husband and four with her second husband. Dates of the children are not clear so I am only giving her "credit" for children that were noted as born within 9 months of her first husband's death, or after the supposed marriage to her second husband. It it possible that there were more children.
We don't even know when she died, but it is thought she died prior to her husband, who died in 1790. We know that the family were Lutheran, that they lived through exciting times in the New World, with both the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War during their lifetime, and we know that they were a good pioneer family. We know they lived in what became Adams and York County, Pennsylvania.
What we can't know or understand is the amount of hardships she, as all pioneer women, would have suffered. She likely associated only with other German speaking women, and may not have associated with those of the Reform church, as opposed to the Lutheran church. There are many stories of neighbors not speaking to each other for years because of their religious differences, but it must have been difficult to be so isolated. As the children grew and gradually moved away, it must have been a sad time.
I'd love to be able to talk to her, to hear her tell the story of her life. Maybe I am reading too much into the little that is known, maybe she had entirely different emotions than I, 250 years later, think she would have had. But most of all, I'd like to thank her, and all the other unknown women, for doing everything they did to raise their families and help their new country grow. They are all awesome!
The line of descent is
Maria Magdalena Kunkle-Johann Casper Schnerr
Julia Margaret Schnerr-Simon Essig
George Essig-Catherine Shollenbarger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Buchtel
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
So this story will be incredibly brief. Maria Magdalena Kunkle was born most likely in Germany, came to America, married Johannes or John Sensinger and then after he was killed by Indians, Johann Casper Schnerr. She had at least four children with her first husband and four with her second husband. Dates of the children are not clear so I am only giving her "credit" for children that were noted as born within 9 months of her first husband's death, or after the supposed marriage to her second husband. It it possible that there were more children.
We don't even know when she died, but it is thought she died prior to her husband, who died in 1790. We know that the family were Lutheran, that they lived through exciting times in the New World, with both the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War during their lifetime, and we know that they were a good pioneer family. We know they lived in what became Adams and York County, Pennsylvania.
What we can't know or understand is the amount of hardships she, as all pioneer women, would have suffered. She likely associated only with other German speaking women, and may not have associated with those of the Reform church, as opposed to the Lutheran church. There are many stories of neighbors not speaking to each other for years because of their religious differences, but it must have been difficult to be so isolated. As the children grew and gradually moved away, it must have been a sad time.
I'd love to be able to talk to her, to hear her tell the story of her life. Maybe I am reading too much into the little that is known, maybe she had entirely different emotions than I, 250 years later, think she would have had. But most of all, I'd like to thank her, and all the other unknown women, for doing everything they did to raise their families and help their new country grow. They are all awesome!
The line of descent is
Maria Magdalena Kunkle-Johann Casper Schnerr
Julia Margaret Schnerr-Simon Essig
George Essig-Catherine Shollenbarger
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Buchtel
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Harshbarger line: Daniel Sayler, Immigrant 1708-1778
I opened up my file folder to write about this gentleman today and found nothing. I had no notes, no print outs, no documentation, nothing. So what I've found in the last hour on the internet will be the basis for this blog post, with a go to the top of the list requirement that I find documentation for this. Much of the information I am using I found on a site by Stewart Saylor of Friedens, Pa, headed "Descendants of Josepth Seiter and (---) Unknown. I found a little more on Ancestry and on Find a Grave, but please note, all of these are secondary sources. And to make it worse, some of them appear to be contradictory.
Daniel Sayler was born June 15, 1708 in Sembach (also known as Lembach, also known as Schaumburgh), Lippe, Nordhien-Westfalen, Germany. I tried to pull this up on Google but only got more confused. I think, though, that it is in southern Germany, somewhere close to the border with Switzerland. Daniel's father was Joseph Seiler, born 1687 in Willenstein, Germany, and his mother is unknown. He had three brothers but two died young, leaving Jacob as his sole brother through most of his life. He also had three sisters, at least one of whom died young. The family appears to have moved from place to place as the children were born in four different locations. It would be interesting to know the story behind that, because for the most part, unless they were refugees, families stayed in one location.
There are reports that Daniel was in the New World by 1730, and also there appears to have been a Daniel Seiler who came on the Muscliffe Galley in 1744. If this is our Daniel, he may have returned to the "Old Country" to settle or claim an estate, since he was the oldest surviving son. Joseph had died in 1740 but it is unknown when his mother died. There is conflicting information as to the name of his wife. Most trees on Ancrestry give her name as Hanna Gerber. I also found one tree giving her name as Hanna "Anna" Barbara Hahn. He is supposed to have married each woman in Lancaster County, Pa, in either 1735 or 1738. Since one child, the one we are interested in, was born in 1736 it is possible that the first wife died in or shortly after childbirth, and he remarried. More research needs to be done. Daniel had eight children, all born in Pennsylvania: Catherine, Johannes, Jacob, Christian, Daniel, Julia, Mary, and Daniel.
His last known child was born in 1749, in Lancaster County, where the family had settled. This is noted in one site as Lebanon Township, so apparently it eventually became Lebanon County. He had purchased land there before 1761, but sold it at a cheap price to two of his sons, John and Christian, and moved to Frederick County, Maryland in 1772. Both of these would have been "frontier" locations, and Daniel would likely have had to clear his second farm, build his second home in the wilderness, and start all over again there. He was 64 years old at the time, so perhaps he depended on his youngest son Daniel to do the heaviest work.
Daniel died in 1778 in Frederick County, Md. and is buried at Johnsville, Frederick County, Md. In his will, which is written in German, he advises that he had sold his Pennsylvania land to his two oldest sons at a very good price so they would get nothing further from him. (If they contested this, they were each to get a shilling, as payment in full.) He left his Maryland land to his youngest son, Daniel, and asked that each of his daughters be paid "three and thirty pounds, six shillings, eight pence) beginning three years after the death of both himself and his wife, one daughter a year. Since his wife died in 1791, payments would have begun in 1794 or 1795, when presumably the farm was producing a good profit. It is likely that at least one of the crops that was grown was tobacco.
There is so much research I need to do here. Who was his wife, and who was the mother of each of his children? Where, exactly, were his farms? What prompted him to come to America, establish a farm, and then move yet again to Maryland? What religion did he practice?
It sometimes seems premature for me to put a sketch like this in a blog post, but I hope the Harshbarger descendents will think of this as an outline for research, if someone should so choose and if I don't make much progress myself. At least we know where he came from, and have some idea of how and where he lived his life, and that is more than we had when I started this post. If someone reading this has additions or especially corrections, please contact me: happygenealogydancing AT gmail DOT com.
The line of descent is:
Daniel Sayler (Seiler)-Hanna or Anna
Catherine Sayler-Johannes Buchtel
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Daniel Sayler was born June 15, 1708 in Sembach (also known as Lembach, also known as Schaumburgh), Lippe, Nordhien-Westfalen, Germany. I tried to pull this up on Google but only got more confused. I think, though, that it is in southern Germany, somewhere close to the border with Switzerland. Daniel's father was Joseph Seiler, born 1687 in Willenstein, Germany, and his mother is unknown. He had three brothers but two died young, leaving Jacob as his sole brother through most of his life. He also had three sisters, at least one of whom died young. The family appears to have moved from place to place as the children were born in four different locations. It would be interesting to know the story behind that, because for the most part, unless they were refugees, families stayed in one location.
There are reports that Daniel was in the New World by 1730, and also there appears to have been a Daniel Seiler who came on the Muscliffe Galley in 1744. If this is our Daniel, he may have returned to the "Old Country" to settle or claim an estate, since he was the oldest surviving son. Joseph had died in 1740 but it is unknown when his mother died. There is conflicting information as to the name of his wife. Most trees on Ancrestry give her name as Hanna Gerber. I also found one tree giving her name as Hanna "Anna" Barbara Hahn. He is supposed to have married each woman in Lancaster County, Pa, in either 1735 or 1738. Since one child, the one we are interested in, was born in 1736 it is possible that the first wife died in or shortly after childbirth, and he remarried. More research needs to be done. Daniel had eight children, all born in Pennsylvania: Catherine, Johannes, Jacob, Christian, Daniel, Julia, Mary, and Daniel.
His last known child was born in 1749, in Lancaster County, where the family had settled. This is noted in one site as Lebanon Township, so apparently it eventually became Lebanon County. He had purchased land there before 1761, but sold it at a cheap price to two of his sons, John and Christian, and moved to Frederick County, Maryland in 1772. Both of these would have been "frontier" locations, and Daniel would likely have had to clear his second farm, build his second home in the wilderness, and start all over again there. He was 64 years old at the time, so perhaps he depended on his youngest son Daniel to do the heaviest work.
Daniel died in 1778 in Frederick County, Md. and is buried at Johnsville, Frederick County, Md. In his will, which is written in German, he advises that he had sold his Pennsylvania land to his two oldest sons at a very good price so they would get nothing further from him. (If they contested this, they were each to get a shilling, as payment in full.) He left his Maryland land to his youngest son, Daniel, and asked that each of his daughters be paid "three and thirty pounds, six shillings, eight pence) beginning three years after the death of both himself and his wife, one daughter a year. Since his wife died in 1791, payments would have begun in 1794 or 1795, when presumably the farm was producing a good profit. It is likely that at least one of the crops that was grown was tobacco.
There is so much research I need to do here. Who was his wife, and who was the mother of each of his children? Where, exactly, were his farms? What prompted him to come to America, establish a farm, and then move yet again to Maryland? What religion did he practice?
It sometimes seems premature for me to put a sketch like this in a blog post, but I hope the Harshbarger descendents will think of this as an outline for research, if someone should so choose and if I don't make much progress myself. At least we know where he came from, and have some idea of how and where he lived his life, and that is more than we had when I started this post. If someone reading this has additions or especially corrections, please contact me: happygenealogydancing AT gmail DOT com.
The line of descent is:
Daniel Sayler (Seiler)-Hanna or Anna
Catherine Sayler-Johannes Buchtel
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaretha Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Friday, January 2, 2015
Harshbarger line: Nicholas Pontius 1728-1794
One reason I love doing this blog is that I learn so much by doing it. When I decided to write about Nicholas Pontius today, I had maybe three facts about him-his parents, his siblings, and birth and death dates. In only about half an hour's research online, I've found enough to write several paragraphs, I suspect. Of course, I still have many many questions, but they will wait until my next trip to the Allen County Public Library, or until I have time to do a bit more in depth work on line, whichever comes first. Nicholas is an immigrant ancestor, and that is reason enough to want to know more about him.
Nicholas is actually Johann Nicholas Pontius, and as one would guess, he is of German descent. His parents are Johann Peter Pontius and Anna Catherina Hausch, and he was born just before August 24, 1728 in Berglengenbach, Rheinland-Pfalz, in what is now Germany. The August 24 date is the date of his christening, which took place at the "Evangelish Lutherische" there. It is currently a small village of about 478 people, and there is no reason to think that it was a larger town at the time of his birth. It is located near the French border, and is in that part of the country that frequently changed hands during the long wars in the 17th century.
Nicholas was the second youngest in his family, and his father died in 1736, when Nicholas was only 8 years old. We don't know how the family supported themselves, without the bread winner, but in 1738 his mother and some of her children, including John and Nicholas, came to America in search, no doubt, of a better life. They arrived on the ship "Glasgow" on September 9, 1738, from Rotterdam. Nicholas' older brother John took the oath of allegiance the next day, but Nicholas was still a child and probably stayed on ship with his mother until this was completed.
Nicholas would have helped to support his mother in some way while he was learning how to live in America. As a teenager, he would have likely been hired out to work on a farm, or perhaps he served as an indentured servant for a period of time. By 1749, though, we was ready to take on family responsibilities of his own and he married Anna Margaret Shuey, daughter of Daniel and Mary Margaretha Schilling Shuey on November 22, in Bethel Township, Berks County, Pa. The Shueys were a French Huguenot family, and the families may have been acquainted "back home".
Nicholas and Anna Margaret had at least 7 children, born from 1752 to 1767, so they were a busy family. Nicholas may have purchased land in 1762, because that is when he was naturalized. In order to be naturalized, he had to have been confirmed in the church so this would have been a busy year for him. I don't yet know much about his life at this time, except that when the Revolutionary War came he is listed as being in the inactive militia (possibly an Associator) from 1777-1779, under Capt. John Folmer, 6th Battalion, 7th Company from 1777-1779. I am not sure what it means, but the record in the Pennsylvania Digital Archives online gives "muster fines" of 0.7.6, so perhaps he missed some drills.
He paid taxes in 1759 in Berks County and from 1767 to 1791 was taxed for land and personal property. When he died without a will in 1794, his oldest son Daniel noted that Nicholas was "late of Bethel Township in the the County of Berks, yeoman" and that Nicholas owned 154 acres of land with "appurtenances" and asked the court to make partition. (Daniel ended up buying the farm, which had a value of 850 pounds.) His personal property was inventoried at a value of 45.14.3, and includes household goods, clothing, books, and items and grains necessary to farming. His burial location is not known, nor is Anna Margaret's. It appears that she died less than a month after Nicholas's death.
I'd love to find actual church records in Berks County for them, as none of the sources I have used mentions the specific church they attended. Berks County has a lot of good records, so it puzzles me that this information isn't yet available. There may be maps available that show the exact location of his farm, and that would be wonderful! I guess I have more researching to do. I've used sources from Ancestry, FamilySearch, and the Pennsylvania Digital Archives for this article, but there is more to be done.
The line of descent is:
Nicholas Pontius-Anna Margaret Shuey
Mary M Pontius-Conrad Reber
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel-the mysterious Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Nicholas is actually Johann Nicholas Pontius, and as one would guess, he is of German descent. His parents are Johann Peter Pontius and Anna Catherina Hausch, and he was born just before August 24, 1728 in Berglengenbach, Rheinland-Pfalz, in what is now Germany. The August 24 date is the date of his christening, which took place at the "Evangelish Lutherische" there. It is currently a small village of about 478 people, and there is no reason to think that it was a larger town at the time of his birth. It is located near the French border, and is in that part of the country that frequently changed hands during the long wars in the 17th century.
Nicholas was the second youngest in his family, and his father died in 1736, when Nicholas was only 8 years old. We don't know how the family supported themselves, without the bread winner, but in 1738 his mother and some of her children, including John and Nicholas, came to America in search, no doubt, of a better life. They arrived on the ship "Glasgow" on September 9, 1738, from Rotterdam. Nicholas' older brother John took the oath of allegiance the next day, but Nicholas was still a child and probably stayed on ship with his mother until this was completed.
Nicholas would have helped to support his mother in some way while he was learning how to live in America. As a teenager, he would have likely been hired out to work on a farm, or perhaps he served as an indentured servant for a period of time. By 1749, though, we was ready to take on family responsibilities of his own and he married Anna Margaret Shuey, daughter of Daniel and Mary Margaretha Schilling Shuey on November 22, in Bethel Township, Berks County, Pa. The Shueys were a French Huguenot family, and the families may have been acquainted "back home".
Nicholas and Anna Margaret had at least 7 children, born from 1752 to 1767, so they were a busy family. Nicholas may have purchased land in 1762, because that is when he was naturalized. In order to be naturalized, he had to have been confirmed in the church so this would have been a busy year for him. I don't yet know much about his life at this time, except that when the Revolutionary War came he is listed as being in the inactive militia (possibly an Associator) from 1777-1779, under Capt. John Folmer, 6th Battalion, 7th Company from 1777-1779. I am not sure what it means, but the record in the Pennsylvania Digital Archives online gives "muster fines" of 0.7.6, so perhaps he missed some drills.
He paid taxes in 1759 in Berks County and from 1767 to 1791 was taxed for land and personal property. When he died without a will in 1794, his oldest son Daniel noted that Nicholas was "late of Bethel Township in the the County of Berks, yeoman" and that Nicholas owned 154 acres of land with "appurtenances" and asked the court to make partition. (Daniel ended up buying the farm, which had a value of 850 pounds.) His personal property was inventoried at a value of 45.14.3, and includes household goods, clothing, books, and items and grains necessary to farming. His burial location is not known, nor is Anna Margaret's. It appears that she died less than a month after Nicholas's death.
I'd love to find actual church records in Berks County for them, as none of the sources I have used mentions the specific church they attended. Berks County has a lot of good records, so it puzzles me that this information isn't yet available. There may be maps available that show the exact location of his farm, and that would be wonderful! I guess I have more researching to do. I've used sources from Ancestry, FamilySearch, and the Pennsylvania Digital Archives for this article, but there is more to be done.
The line of descent is:
Nicholas Pontius-Anna Margaret Shuey
Mary M Pontius-Conrad Reber
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel-the mysterious Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William H Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Monday, September 29, 2014
Harshbarger line: John David Mertz, immigrant
Oh, this is a happy genealogy dance day! While I was reviewing the meager information I had about John David, I was also googling him and I found there is a lot of new information about this man's ancestors that I had not yet found. In looking at some very exhaustive research done by Robert Mertz of Sarraguemines, Lorraine, France and shared online by another Mertz researcher, "Oakey" Mertz I was able to add 8 new ancestors and a few collaterals to husband's family. Wow! These names go back to the 1600's in Switzerland, and then Alsace, France or Germany depending on the time period. To see the full on line reports on these ancestors, go to mertzgenealogy.com, which is a wonderful website. I am grateful to these two gentlemen for working so hard to find and publish these records, which help tell more of the family story.
The ancestor I want to highlight today is John David Mertz, another immigrant. He was born in 1689 or 1690 in Hangweiller, Germany, the son of Peter Mertz and Barbara Zimmerman. He was one of 5 children of this couple. After Barbara died, his father married Susanna Braconnier, and there were four children from this family. John David appears to be the oldest. He married Veronica Schneider, daughter of Joseph Schneider, about 1714. We don't know John David's occupation, but the village appears to be very small so it is likely that he farmed. Apparently he had the skills he needed to support a family in the New World, so he may have served in, or at least observed some of the trades as he grew up. As the oldest son, he would have received a double portion of whatever his father was able to leave as an inheritance. His father died in 1728, and John David, Veronica, and three children emigrated in 1733. I haven't seen any indication of how John David financed the trip, but perhaps he sold his land or trade tools or whatever his father had left him.
John David, aged 44, Veronica, aged 40, Johann Nicholas, age 18, Johan Peter aged 13 3/4 and Christina, aged 3 3/4 arrived in Philadelphia on the ship Richard and Elizabeth. (There was another son, Johannes, who was born in 1722. He did not make the trip and it is possible that he had died before the trip.) David gave the oath of allegiance to King George II and his family would have then been allowed to leave the ship. For five years, there is a gap in the records. We know that in 1738 John David was able to buy 150 acres on Longswamp Creek in Berks County, Pa, and that the family stayed there for some generations. We can assume they all worked hard, and shared in the ups and downs of living on the frontier, with Indians who conducted raids and uncertain growing conditions for their crops.
They were members of the Longswamp Reformed Church of Berks County, which at the time the church was founded meant the area families were not particularly kind to the Lutherans (they settled in a separate area, for the most part). John David died in 1748, but the names of David and his sons Nicholas and Peter are listed as contributors to the first building. Veronica lived until 1760 and died also in Longswamp Township, Berks County, Pa. I've not located a burial location for either, but they are likely buried near or at the church they helped establish, and their gravestones are probably gone or not legible.
This is still meager information, but it is more than I started with this morning, and I am grateful for it. I'd like to know more about John David and Veronica and their lives, but I'm glad to have this much. The line of descent is:
John David Mertz-Veronica Schneider
Johan Nicholas Mertz-Margaret
Elizabeth Mertz-Johann L Schollenberger
Peter Shollenberger-Susanna
Catherine Shollenberger-George Essig
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
The ancestor I want to highlight today is John David Mertz, another immigrant. He was born in 1689 or 1690 in Hangweiller, Germany, the son of Peter Mertz and Barbara Zimmerman. He was one of 5 children of this couple. After Barbara died, his father married Susanna Braconnier, and there were four children from this family. John David appears to be the oldest. He married Veronica Schneider, daughter of Joseph Schneider, about 1714. We don't know John David's occupation, but the village appears to be very small so it is likely that he farmed. Apparently he had the skills he needed to support a family in the New World, so he may have served in, or at least observed some of the trades as he grew up. As the oldest son, he would have received a double portion of whatever his father was able to leave as an inheritance. His father died in 1728, and John David, Veronica, and three children emigrated in 1733. I haven't seen any indication of how John David financed the trip, but perhaps he sold his land or trade tools or whatever his father had left him.
John David, aged 44, Veronica, aged 40, Johann Nicholas, age 18, Johan Peter aged 13 3/4 and Christina, aged 3 3/4 arrived in Philadelphia on the ship Richard and Elizabeth. (There was another son, Johannes, who was born in 1722. He did not make the trip and it is possible that he had died before the trip.) David gave the oath of allegiance to King George II and his family would have then been allowed to leave the ship. For five years, there is a gap in the records. We know that in 1738 John David was able to buy 150 acres on Longswamp Creek in Berks County, Pa, and that the family stayed there for some generations. We can assume they all worked hard, and shared in the ups and downs of living on the frontier, with Indians who conducted raids and uncertain growing conditions for their crops.
They were members of the Longswamp Reformed Church of Berks County, which at the time the church was founded meant the area families were not particularly kind to the Lutherans (they settled in a separate area, for the most part). John David died in 1748, but the names of David and his sons Nicholas and Peter are listed as contributors to the first building. Veronica lived until 1760 and died also in Longswamp Township, Berks County, Pa. I've not located a burial location for either, but they are likely buried near or at the church they helped establish, and their gravestones are probably gone or not legible.
This is still meager information, but it is more than I started with this morning, and I am grateful for it. I'd like to know more about John David and Veronica and their lives, but I'm glad to have this much. The line of descent is:
John David Mertz-Veronica Schneider
Johan Nicholas Mertz-Margaret
Elizabeth Mertz-Johann L Schollenberger
Peter Shollenberger-Susanna
Catherine Shollenberger-George Essig
Susannah Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Their descendents
Friday, September 19, 2014
Harshbarger line: Johann Friederich Schollenberger 1703-1768
For some reason, I'm gravitating to posts about immigrant ancestors right now. Here is another one in the Harshbarger line. Maybe by the time I get done writing about these folks, I'll be better able to understand how so many people could leave behind the land of their birth, family members, and all that they knew, to go to a new land about which they knew very little, but which they could expect to be their final home on this earth.
Johann Friederich Schollenberger (known as Frederick) was one of those people. He was born on March 18, 1703 in Albig, Germany to Dietrich Schollenburger and Christine Kessenkopf. Albig is a small German village in the Rhineland-Palatinate, not far from France. Albig currently (as of 2008) has a population of slightly over 1600 people, so this would have been a small town where everyone knew everyone. The Schollenberger's would have known the Hoppach family, and in due time the marriage arrangements were complete.Friederich married Anna Katherina Hoppach on January 11, 1729. At least 8 children were born to this couple, 6 boys and 2 girls; the youngest was born after the family arrived in America.. As happened so many times, 2 of the boys died as toddlers. So as the Schollenbergers came to America, they were also leaving behind the gravesites of two of their children.
They arrived, along with his brother in law and other relatives, in Philadelphia on the ship "Loyal Judith on September 3, 1742, and soon marched to the local judge's office for the naturalization oath. This was when immigrants from whatever country swore allegiance to the British king, George II, to allay fears from English immigrants that the "new guys in town" would someday outnumber them.
We don't know whether Frederick served an indentureship or whether he had enough money to pay for the passage of his family. (His father, Dietrich, lived until 1746 so he didn't come to America on his inherited money). Most likely, he stayed in Germantown until he had his feet on the ground, so to speak, and then purchased land. We know that he obtained a land warrant for 100 acres of land in 1747, in what was then Philadelphia County, but later became Greenwich Township, Berks County, Pa. This property then grew to include 210 acres. We haven't found any indication of an occupation for Frederick other than farmer, and 210 acres would certainly have kept him busy.
We know little of the rest of his life, but based on the time frame and the location we can guess that there were tensions, or worse, with the native Americans. The French-Indian war took place when Frederick was approaching what was then old age, but Frederick would have been involved on at least a local level. He died about 1768, but we don't know where he is buried and I have not located a will. Of course, I'd like to know where he is buried, what will he may have left, and what church he attended. Was his home a log cabin? If so, did he later build another home, and was it made of stone? There's always more to learn, it seems.
The line of descent is:
Johann Friedrich Schollenberger-Anna Katherina Hoppach
Johann Lorenz Schollenberger-Elizabeth Mertz
Peter Shollenberger-Susanna
Catherine Shollenberger-George Essig
Susanna Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Johann Friederich Schollenberger (known as Frederick) was one of those people. He was born on March 18, 1703 in Albig, Germany to Dietrich Schollenburger and Christine Kessenkopf. Albig is a small German village in the Rhineland-Palatinate, not far from France. Albig currently (as of 2008) has a population of slightly over 1600 people, so this would have been a small town where everyone knew everyone. The Schollenberger's would have known the Hoppach family, and in due time the marriage arrangements were complete.Friederich married Anna Katherina Hoppach on January 11, 1729. At least 8 children were born to this couple, 6 boys and 2 girls; the youngest was born after the family arrived in America.. As happened so many times, 2 of the boys died as toddlers. So as the Schollenbergers came to America, they were also leaving behind the gravesites of two of their children.
They arrived, along with his brother in law and other relatives, in Philadelphia on the ship "Loyal Judith on September 3, 1742, and soon marched to the local judge's office for the naturalization oath. This was when immigrants from whatever country swore allegiance to the British king, George II, to allay fears from English immigrants that the "new guys in town" would someday outnumber them.
We don't know whether Frederick served an indentureship or whether he had enough money to pay for the passage of his family. (His father, Dietrich, lived until 1746 so he didn't come to America on his inherited money). Most likely, he stayed in Germantown until he had his feet on the ground, so to speak, and then purchased land. We know that he obtained a land warrant for 100 acres of land in 1747, in what was then Philadelphia County, but later became Greenwich Township, Berks County, Pa. This property then grew to include 210 acres. We haven't found any indication of an occupation for Frederick other than farmer, and 210 acres would certainly have kept him busy.
We know little of the rest of his life, but based on the time frame and the location we can guess that there were tensions, or worse, with the native Americans. The French-Indian war took place when Frederick was approaching what was then old age, but Frederick would have been involved on at least a local level. He died about 1768, but we don't know where he is buried and I have not located a will. Of course, I'd like to know where he is buried, what will he may have left, and what church he attended. Was his home a log cabin? If so, did he later build another home, and was it made of stone? There's always more to learn, it seems.
The line of descent is:
Johann Friedrich Schollenberger-Anna Katherina Hoppach
Johann Lorenz Schollenberger-Elizabeth Mertz
Peter Shollenberger-Susanna
Catherine Shollenberger-George Essig
Susanna Essig-Daniel Kemery
Adam Kemery-Nancy Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Friday, June 20, 2014
Harshbarger line: Daniel Shuey, Immigrant 1704-1777
I just love these immigrant ancestors. It is so difficult to understand their bravery, from a distance of almost 300 years, but somehow, for some reason or reasons, they summoned up the courage to leave their family homes, get permission from the state authorities (which was a feat in itself), gather up their children, travel to Rotterdam (usually), and then spend weeks or months in a rolling, crowded, unsanitary ship, traveling to America. Once they got here, the men had to declare their loyalty to the British king before they were permitted to leave the ship permanently. Then they had to find a place to live, or possibly had to serve an indentureship (both husband and wife would have had to serve, and children, too).
Most of the Germans settled in the areas west of Philadelphia, in Lancaster or Berks or Lebanon County, although not all the counties were named in the early years. Then, when the families were free to go, they had to make a home for themselves out of what was a wilderness. Land was purchased or rented, and then cleared. Log cabins were built at first, and barns and other out buildings followed, as the crops were planted and harvested. It is hard to imagine how the families ate until the harvest came in. They would have brought grains with them from Philadelphia, and whatever else they could afford, but the only fruits would have been those naturally growing in the area (berries, mostly) and they would probably have also gathered nuts and honey from the surrounding forest. As their crops and animals began to produce, the farm would have made an attractive offer to the wild animals of the area, which included panthers, wolves, and bears. As if all this wasn't enough, there were the Indians to deal with and eventually fear and finally, battle.
Would Daniel Shuey and his wife, Mary Margaretha Shilling, have come to America if they could fully comprehend all that would be required of them once they arrived? The answer perhaps is in their religion, and in their history. The Shueys were members of the Reformed church, rather than the Lutheran Church in America (they attended the Swatara Church). Daniel's family had been French Huguenots, with the name Jouy) in prior generations, but the family had been forced to flee to Germany when Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes which had allowed other religions in France other than Catholicism. The stories Daniel would have heard of the escape of his grandparents from France to Germany due to religious persecution was probably a motivating factor in moving to America, since much of the German area was also going through religious disputes and wars. Another factor may have been economic, as many of the French/German people had fled with little or nothing to their name, and it was hard to make a decent living as a refugee family.
Daniel and his wife and oldest son came to America in 1732, on the ship Johnson, which sailed from Rotterdam to Philadelphia. The 305 passengers on this ship are all referred to as "Palatinates", since they had lived in Palatine, an area of Germany near the French border. Daniel owned land by 1746, but the original records have apparently been lost. There is a record of a receipt for additional land purchased by Daniel in 1746, which adjoined Daniel's "dwelling plantation", so he had already been there for some time. It appears from various additional receipts that he may have owned as much as 1000 acres of land by the time of his death, so he was apparently a successful farmer in America.
This Daniel was the son of Daniel Shuey or Jouy and Judith l'Avenant, and Mary Margaret Schilling was the daughter of Benedict Schilling and Anna Barbara Hoffman. Daniel was born in 1704 in Oggersheim, Pfalz, Germany, and the marriage took place on October 16, 1725 in Dandstadt, Pfalz, Germany. Several children had already been born to the couple by the time they immigrated, but it is unclear if they were all on this ship. We know that Ludwig and Anna Margaret made the trip, and we know that several children were born after the couple arrived here, including Elizabeth, Barbara, and Peter. The family was fortunate indeed that they lost no family members to the Indians, the reason apparently being that there was a fort very near the family home, and also the family farm served as a base for small contingents of soldiers.
Daniel died in May, 1777, and left a will written in German that fortunately has been translated. He left his home and belongings and 200 pounds to his wife, and then gave instructions for what appears to be a separate sum of 200 pounds. He left some of his sons and sons in law only 1 shilling, explaining that they had already received their share of his estate. At the time of his death it appears that Ludwig, John, Martin, Anna Margaret the wife of Nicholas Pontius, Catharine the wife of Jacob Giver, and Barbara the wife of George Feesers were living and were to share 200 pounds to be delivered in 1784. Also Peter, Daniel, and Elizabeth were mentioned in the will. Mary Margaretha is listed as having died in 1800 in Bethel Township, which would have made her 97 years old at the time. This is a little confusing to me because in the will she is named as Mary Martha. There is a possibility that this is not the wife of 1725, but further research needs to be done on this.
I think it's fun to find a "German" Harshbarger who actually has French roots. Even in this most German of families, there are other lines involved, from other countries. It's part of what makes family history so fascinating.
This post is taken largely from a book called "The History of the Shuey Family in America from 1732 to 1919" by Dennis Boeshore Shuey. There is a 2008 paperback version of this available from Amazon, but it is also available on Internet Archive.
The line of descent is:
Daniel Shuey-Mary Margaretha Schilling
Anna Margaret Shuey-Nicholas Pontius
Mary M Pontius-Conrad Reber
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel- (brick wall) Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Most of the Germans settled in the areas west of Philadelphia, in Lancaster or Berks or Lebanon County, although not all the counties were named in the early years. Then, when the families were free to go, they had to make a home for themselves out of what was a wilderness. Land was purchased or rented, and then cleared. Log cabins were built at first, and barns and other out buildings followed, as the crops were planted and harvested. It is hard to imagine how the families ate until the harvest came in. They would have brought grains with them from Philadelphia, and whatever else they could afford, but the only fruits would have been those naturally growing in the area (berries, mostly) and they would probably have also gathered nuts and honey from the surrounding forest. As their crops and animals began to produce, the farm would have made an attractive offer to the wild animals of the area, which included panthers, wolves, and bears. As if all this wasn't enough, there were the Indians to deal with and eventually fear and finally, battle.
Would Daniel Shuey and his wife, Mary Margaretha Shilling, have come to America if they could fully comprehend all that would be required of them once they arrived? The answer perhaps is in their religion, and in their history. The Shueys were members of the Reformed church, rather than the Lutheran Church in America (they attended the Swatara Church). Daniel's family had been French Huguenots, with the name Jouy) in prior generations, but the family had been forced to flee to Germany when Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes which had allowed other religions in France other than Catholicism. The stories Daniel would have heard of the escape of his grandparents from France to Germany due to religious persecution was probably a motivating factor in moving to America, since much of the German area was also going through religious disputes and wars. Another factor may have been economic, as many of the French/German people had fled with little or nothing to their name, and it was hard to make a decent living as a refugee family.
Daniel and his wife and oldest son came to America in 1732, on the ship Johnson, which sailed from Rotterdam to Philadelphia. The 305 passengers on this ship are all referred to as "Palatinates", since they had lived in Palatine, an area of Germany near the French border. Daniel owned land by 1746, but the original records have apparently been lost. There is a record of a receipt for additional land purchased by Daniel in 1746, which adjoined Daniel's "dwelling plantation", so he had already been there for some time. It appears from various additional receipts that he may have owned as much as 1000 acres of land by the time of his death, so he was apparently a successful farmer in America.
This Daniel was the son of Daniel Shuey or Jouy and Judith l'Avenant, and Mary Margaret Schilling was the daughter of Benedict Schilling and Anna Barbara Hoffman. Daniel was born in 1704 in Oggersheim, Pfalz, Germany, and the marriage took place on October 16, 1725 in Dandstadt, Pfalz, Germany. Several children had already been born to the couple by the time they immigrated, but it is unclear if they were all on this ship. We know that Ludwig and Anna Margaret made the trip, and we know that several children were born after the couple arrived here, including Elizabeth, Barbara, and Peter. The family was fortunate indeed that they lost no family members to the Indians, the reason apparently being that there was a fort very near the family home, and also the family farm served as a base for small contingents of soldiers.
Daniel died in May, 1777, and left a will written in German that fortunately has been translated. He left his home and belongings and 200 pounds to his wife, and then gave instructions for what appears to be a separate sum of 200 pounds. He left some of his sons and sons in law only 1 shilling, explaining that they had already received their share of his estate. At the time of his death it appears that Ludwig, John, Martin, Anna Margaret the wife of Nicholas Pontius, Catharine the wife of Jacob Giver, and Barbara the wife of George Feesers were living and were to share 200 pounds to be delivered in 1784. Also Peter, Daniel, and Elizabeth were mentioned in the will. Mary Margaretha is listed as having died in 1800 in Bethel Township, which would have made her 97 years old at the time. This is a little confusing to me because in the will she is named as Mary Martha. There is a possibility that this is not the wife of 1725, but further research needs to be done on this.
I think it's fun to find a "German" Harshbarger who actually has French roots. Even in this most German of families, there are other lines involved, from other countries. It's part of what makes family history so fascinating.
This post is taken largely from a book called "The History of the Shuey Family in America from 1732 to 1919" by Dennis Boeshore Shuey. There is a 2008 paperback version of this available from Amazon, but it is also available on Internet Archive.
The line of descent is:
Daniel Shuey-Mary Margaretha Schilling
Anna Margaret Shuey-Nicholas Pontius
Mary M Pontius-Conrad Reber
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel- (brick wall) Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Harshbarger line: Conrad Reber
We're going back a ways here, since Johann Conrad Reber was born in December 10, 1751 in Langenselbold, Main-Kinzig-Kreis, Hesse, now Germany. His parents, Johann Conrad Reber and Anna Margaret Conradt, emigrated to America shortly after his birth, as another of their children was born in 1754 in Upper Tulpehocken Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania.
Conrad grew up in a typically large German family of 8 children. He would have worked hard on the family farm and his early years would have been spent with one eye out for warring Indians, as well as wolves, panthers, bears, and other more natural dangers. There is a Conrad Reber who was a private in the Militia during the time of the Revolutionary War, but I am not sure whether it was this Conrad. He would have been the right age and this is the right location, but another Reber family claims this as their Conrad, and I haven't yet found proof one way or the other. Conrad most likely would have been in either the militia or the American army. I found a listing for a Conrad Reber in 1779 who was taxed for having two cattle, and I think this may be our Conrad Reber because he was listed just two names above Peter Pontius, who was probably his brother in law. In this list, Conrad is listed under occupation as "joiner", which is a skilled carpenter. Conrad would likely have served an apprenticeship to learn this skill, unless his father taught it to him.
Conard married Mary Margaret Pontius, daughter of Nicholas Pontius and Anna Margaret Shuey, probably in Berks County but date and location as yet not located. By the 1790 census, his household shows three males under the age of 16, and a total of five females, one of which would have been Margaret. I show a total of ten children for them, with four being born in the 1790s. Known children are Christina, Margaret Elizabeth, Magdalena, Daniel, Maria Margaretha, Conrad, Thomas, Catherine, John, and Henry. Of course there
The History of Centre County by John Blair Linn states that Conrad Reber came to Miles Township, Centre County, in 1801, where he remained some 8 or 10 years. This is where daughter Maria Margaretha met and married Solomon Buchtel in 1805. A Conrad Reber acquired land in Ohio in 1806 but it appears this was not our Conrad, as he stayed in Miles Township for about 10 years before moving west. Before he moved, he laid out the town of Rebersburg, in Centre County, Pa. It was not hard to choose a location for the town, as he situated it near two churches, a tavern, and a couple of other buildings that were already there. He also deeded some of his land to the Reformed Church, for the erection of a building.
Sometime around 1811, it appears that he and much of his family moved on to Uniontown, Ohio in Stark County. They lived some miles from the nearest town, Canton, and were apparently in Ohio during the War of 1812. By now the Rebers would have been in their 60's, so military service would not have been expected. Conrad died in Lake Township, Stark County, Ohio on September 7, 1823, and Margaret died in 1831. I don't have their burial information or their estate information at this time, but I need to locate that.
I also need to find a marriage date and location and the baptismal/birth date information for their children. Once again, we don't know a lot about this family. I have the feeling that they were not dirt poor since they paid taxes in Berks County and since they could donate land for the church in Centre County, but estate and land records would also give us clues there.
The line of descent is:
Conrad Reber-Mary Margaret Pontius
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel-(brick wall) Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Conrad grew up in a typically large German family of 8 children. He would have worked hard on the family farm and his early years would have been spent with one eye out for warring Indians, as well as wolves, panthers, bears, and other more natural dangers. There is a Conrad Reber who was a private in the Militia during the time of the Revolutionary War, but I am not sure whether it was this Conrad. He would have been the right age and this is the right location, but another Reber family claims this as their Conrad, and I haven't yet found proof one way or the other. Conrad most likely would have been in either the militia or the American army. I found a listing for a Conrad Reber in 1779 who was taxed for having two cattle, and I think this may be our Conrad Reber because he was listed just two names above Peter Pontius, who was probably his brother in law. In this list, Conrad is listed under occupation as "joiner", which is a skilled carpenter. Conrad would likely have served an apprenticeship to learn this skill, unless his father taught it to him.
Conard married Mary Margaret Pontius, daughter of Nicholas Pontius and Anna Margaret Shuey, probably in Berks County but date and location as yet not located. By the 1790 census, his household shows three males under the age of 16, and a total of five females, one of which would have been Margaret. I show a total of ten children for them, with four being born in the 1790s. Known children are Christina, Margaret Elizabeth, Magdalena, Daniel, Maria Margaretha, Conrad, Thomas, Catherine, John, and Henry. Of course there
The History of Centre County by John Blair Linn states that Conrad Reber came to Miles Township, Centre County, in 1801, where he remained some 8 or 10 years. This is where daughter Maria Margaretha met and married Solomon Buchtel in 1805. A Conrad Reber acquired land in Ohio in 1806 but it appears this was not our Conrad, as he stayed in Miles Township for about 10 years before moving west. Before he moved, he laid out the town of Rebersburg, in Centre County, Pa. It was not hard to choose a location for the town, as he situated it near two churches, a tavern, and a couple of other buildings that were already there. He also deeded some of his land to the Reformed Church, for the erection of a building.
Sometime around 1811, it appears that he and much of his family moved on to Uniontown, Ohio in Stark County. They lived some miles from the nearest town, Canton, and were apparently in Ohio during the War of 1812. By now the Rebers would have been in their 60's, so military service would not have been expected. Conrad died in Lake Township, Stark County, Ohio on September 7, 1823, and Margaret died in 1831. I don't have their burial information or their estate information at this time, but I need to locate that.
I also need to find a marriage date and location and the baptismal/birth date information for their children. Once again, we don't know a lot about this family. I have the feeling that they were not dirt poor since they paid taxes in Berks County and since they could donate land for the church in Centre County, but estate and land records would also give us clues there.
The line of descent is:
Conrad Reber-Mary Margaret Pontius
Maria Margaretha Reber-Solomon Buchtel
Benjamin Buchtel-(brick wall) Barbara Long
Nancy Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren
Friday, April 4, 2014
Harshbarger line: Daniel Kemery will
When I started reviewing all the "deeds" that I collected at the Whitley County Recorder's office a few weeks ago, I realized that one of these was actually a will. Daniel Kemery was born about 1811 in Pennsylvania (per 1850 census records) and died before September 12, 1877 in Whitley County, Indiana. After his first wife, Susannah Essig died, Daniel married Barbara Long Buchtel, who was the mother in law to his son Adam. They were married on June 13, 1872, in Whitley County, Indiana. The will was filed April 12, 1878, with acknowledgements by Isaiah B McDonald that he had witnessed the will, signed December 14th, 1876. The acknowledgement was made on September 12, 1877, so Daniel would likely have died during the preceding 30 days or so. G. W. Hollinger was the other witness to the will. Here is the will:
In The name of God I Daniel Kemery of Whitley County - State of Indiana being of sound mind and memory and knowing the certainty of Death I do make and declare the following to be my last Will and Testament hereby and herein revoking any and all former wills by me heretofore made. Item first-I give my soul to God who made it. Item second It is my will that after my death all my proper funeral expense shall be promptly paid and all my just and legal debts be paid. Item Third After the payment of my funeral expenses and debts It my will that all my property both personal and Real shall go to my beloved wife Barbary Kemery to be her own absolute property in fee simple. I therefore will and bequeath to her the undivided third (1/3) Part of the following Real Estate in Whitley County and State of Indiana to wit The West half of the South west quuarter of section No sixteen (16) Township No Thirty one (31) north Range No nine (9) East the whole tract being and containing sixty three (63) acres the same more or less The same the said one third 1/3 of the above described tract to [not sure of word] in fee simple to the said Barbary Kemery for her own use thereof and control the same as though it were conveyed by Deed That the balance of said land belongs to my children and heirs at law of my late deceased wife Susannah Kemery to wit a minor child of my daughter Harriet Cox Mary Ann Mosher Lydia Kemery Amanda Jones Alexander Kemery Daniel Kemery Alfred Kemery Solomon Kemery. Alexander Kemery Adam Kemery and John Kemery and at my death my said wife Barbary Kemery shall pay or cause to be paid all my funeral expenses and debts as in Item second specified and in case she shall pay the same in a reasonable time no letters of Administration shall issue to any one in my estate. Witness my hand and seal this the 14th day of December AD 1876.
Daniel (his mark) Kemery (Seal)
Signed, sealed and declared by Daniel Kemery to be his last will and testament in our presence and that we have signed the same as witnesses at his request in his presence and in the presence of each other this Dec 14 1876.
Isaiah B McDaniel
G W Hollinger
There is following this the statement by Isaiah B McDaniel that he saw the signing of the will of Daniel Kemery on December 14, 1876, etc, so signed by James Krider, Clerk, and then certified by James Krider, Clerk, Whitley Circuit Court, dated 12th day of September, 1877.
I have tried to type this as it is written, with very little punctuation. The will seems to be contradictory to me in that Daniel appears to have given Barbary everything, and then seems to be giving her just 1/3 of the land he had, dividing the rest up among his grand children. Perhaps I should look for a court case about this. The land was in Columbia Township, on the northwest side of the Beaver Reserve, and adjoining railroad tracks that may be the old Nickel Plate RR. It is believed that first wife Susannah and several of the children are buried on land there, and it may be that Daniel is buried there also. It seems that this may be part of the area known as "Hell's Half Acre", an area alleged to be unsafe for travelers for many years. Daniel was in Whitley County by 1850 and may be the Daniel Kemery in the 1840 census in Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County, Pa.
Here is the line of descent:
Daniel Kemery-Susannah Essig
Adam Kemery-Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
children, grandchildren, great grandchildren
In The name of God I Daniel Kemery of Whitley County - State of Indiana being of sound mind and memory and knowing the certainty of Death I do make and declare the following to be my last Will and Testament hereby and herein revoking any and all former wills by me heretofore made. Item first-I give my soul to God who made it. Item second It is my will that after my death all my proper funeral expense shall be promptly paid and all my just and legal debts be paid. Item Third After the payment of my funeral expenses and debts It my will that all my property both personal and Real shall go to my beloved wife Barbary Kemery to be her own absolute property in fee simple. I therefore will and bequeath to her the undivided third (1/3) Part of the following Real Estate in Whitley County and State of Indiana to wit The West half of the South west quuarter of section No sixteen (16) Township No Thirty one (31) north Range No nine (9) East the whole tract being and containing sixty three (63) acres the same more or less The same the said one third 1/3 of the above described tract to [not sure of word] in fee simple to the said Barbary Kemery for her own use thereof and control the same as though it were conveyed by Deed That the balance of said land belongs to my children and heirs at law of my late deceased wife Susannah Kemery to wit a minor child of my daughter Harriet Cox Mary Ann Mosher Lydia Kemery Amanda Jones Alexander Kemery Daniel Kemery Alfred Kemery Solomon Kemery. Alexander Kemery Adam Kemery and John Kemery and at my death my said wife Barbary Kemery shall pay or cause to be paid all my funeral expenses and debts as in Item second specified and in case she shall pay the same in a reasonable time no letters of Administration shall issue to any one in my estate. Witness my hand and seal this the 14th day of December AD 1876.
Daniel (his mark) Kemery (Seal)
Signed, sealed and declared by Daniel Kemery to be his last will and testament in our presence and that we have signed the same as witnesses at his request in his presence and in the presence of each other this Dec 14 1876.
Isaiah B McDaniel
G W Hollinger
There is following this the statement by Isaiah B McDaniel that he saw the signing of the will of Daniel Kemery on December 14, 1876, etc, so signed by James Krider, Clerk, and then certified by James Krider, Clerk, Whitley Circuit Court, dated 12th day of September, 1877.
I have tried to type this as it is written, with very little punctuation. The will seems to be contradictory to me in that Daniel appears to have given Barbary everything, and then seems to be giving her just 1/3 of the land he had, dividing the rest up among his grand children. Perhaps I should look for a court case about this. The land was in Columbia Township, on the northwest side of the Beaver Reserve, and adjoining railroad tracks that may be the old Nickel Plate RR. It is believed that first wife Susannah and several of the children are buried on land there, and it may be that Daniel is buried there also. It seems that this may be part of the area known as "Hell's Half Acre", an area alleged to be unsafe for travelers for many years. Daniel was in Whitley County by 1850 and may be the Daniel Kemery in the 1840 census in Hempfield Township, Westmoreland County, Pa.
Here is the line of descent:
Daniel Kemery-Susannah Essig
Adam Kemery-Fannie Buchtel
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
children, grandchildren, great grandchildren
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Harshbarger line: Solomon Buchtel 1773-1840
Solomon Buchtel was born in 1773 to Johannes John Buchtel and Catherine Seiler. Both of his parents were born in Wurtemburg, Germany and had immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1753. His parents married in 1760, probably after their terms of indenture were over, and initially lived in Snyder County, Pa. They soon moved to Brush Valley, Centre County, Pa, where most of their children, including Solomon, were born. This was frontier land at the time, and there were likely encounters with Indians during those early years on the farm. Solomon had 7 brothers and sisters.
His father was a truly intelligent man (I'll write about him another time) so it is likely that Solomon had inherited at least some of that curiosity and energy. Solomon married Maria Margaretha Reber, daughter of Johann Conrad Reber and Mary M Pontius, about 1805, and the couple settled near Rebersburg, Pa. to raise their family. I've seen a copy of a picture of their home, which he built himself. It was a frame two story dwelling, with an addition. I'm not sure if the smaller section might have been the original section, or whether it was the addition. At any rate, the home had enough room to raise the 8 children that were born to the couple: Benjamin, Solomon, Johnathon, Thomas, Henry, Hannah, Joseph, and William.
I haven't been able to trace Solomon through the US Census, nor Find A Grave, nor any of my usual sources, so I have much to do yet to learn his story. He purchased land in what became Greene Township, Summit County in 1815, so that gives us an approximate date for his move. I have notes that the 1820's census lists the occupation as manufacturing, but I can't duplicate that finding in a current search, so perhaps that is not correct. He is listed on an 1830 tax list for Stark County (parent of Summit County) in Lake Township, Uniontown, as having a town lot, so perhaps he was engaged in some form of manufacturing rather than farming. His oldest son Benjamin was married in Summit County, Ohio in 1844. I have an "internet" death date of about 1840 in Portage County, but I don't know if that is correct and I'm only guessing that is an Ohio location.
This is as much as I know about Solomon. Since he had 8 children, I am hoping that another descendent or two have information about him and about Maria Margaret Reber, that would help fill in the many blanks in this story. I'd love to hear from you!
Here is the line of descent:
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaret Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Long
Nancy Fanny Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger kids, grandkids, and great grandkids
His father was a truly intelligent man (I'll write about him another time) so it is likely that Solomon had inherited at least some of that curiosity and energy. Solomon married Maria Margaretha Reber, daughter of Johann Conrad Reber and Mary M Pontius, about 1805, and the couple settled near Rebersburg, Pa. to raise their family. I've seen a copy of a picture of their home, which he built himself. It was a frame two story dwelling, with an addition. I'm not sure if the smaller section might have been the original section, or whether it was the addition. At any rate, the home had enough room to raise the 8 children that were born to the couple: Benjamin, Solomon, Johnathon, Thomas, Henry, Hannah, Joseph, and William.
I haven't been able to trace Solomon through the US Census, nor Find A Grave, nor any of my usual sources, so I have much to do yet to learn his story. He purchased land in what became Greene Township, Summit County in 1815, so that gives us an approximate date for his move. I have notes that the 1820's census lists the occupation as manufacturing, but I can't duplicate that finding in a current search, so perhaps that is not correct. He is listed on an 1830 tax list for Stark County (parent of Summit County) in Lake Township, Uniontown, as having a town lot, so perhaps he was engaged in some form of manufacturing rather than farming. His oldest son Benjamin was married in Summit County, Ohio in 1844. I have an "internet" death date of about 1840 in Portage County, but I don't know if that is correct and I'm only guessing that is an Ohio location.
This is as much as I know about Solomon. Since he had 8 children, I am hoping that another descendent or two have information about him and about Maria Margaret Reber, that would help fill in the many blanks in this story. I'd love to hear from you!
Here is the line of descent:
Solomon Buchtel-Maria Margaret Reber
Benjamin Buchtel-Barbara Long
Nancy Fanny Buchtel-Adam Kemery
Della Kemery-William Withers
Goldie Withers-Grover Harshbarger
Cleveland Harshbarger-Mary Margaret Beeks
Harshbarger kids, grandkids, and great grandkids
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)