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
Showing posts with label Schollenberger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Schollenberger. Show all posts
Monday, September 29, 2014
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
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