Wayland - pafg03 - Generated by Personal Ancestral File

Immigrant to Virginia prior to1720, Thomas Wieland and related lines

Balthasar BLANKENBAKER [Parents] [scrapbook] was born in Apr 1683 in Neuenburg, , , Germany. He died in 1773 in , , Virginia. Balthasar married Ann Margaret.

REFERENCE: Germanna Record No. 6, p. 16. He was one of the original 1717 colonists to Germanna.

NOTE: A, p. 66

Historian John W. Wayland says, "1759 Pallas Blankenbaker, Brumfield (?) Parish, Co. of Culpeper, leaves his beloved dtr. Elizabeth, wife of Adam Wayland, 160 acres of land in Culpeper Co., witnesses, Jas. Barbour, Wm. Kirtley, Christopher Blankenbaker. Book 0, pg. 244."

I have two page photocopies of his will...Blanken1.jp and Blanken2.jpg. He signed it with a mark. I think that his is an old re-written copy of it, as all of the signatures look alike and it is from a book apparently as other wills are on the same page.

Ann Margaret was born about 1685. She died after 1772 in , , Virginia. Ann married Balthasar BLANKENBAKER.

She is listed in notes of Dr. John W. Wayland. He got her from the book, "Monnett Family Genealogy: Wayland - Wilhoit Families" by Monnett.

One place has her last name as "Utz".

They had the following children:

  F i Anna Barbara BLANKENBAKER
  F ii Elizabeth BLANKENBAKER

Morton CHRISTOPHER was born in 1740 in , , Virginia. He died in 1795. Morton married Elizabeth WAYLAND about 1765.

REFERENCE: "The German Colony of 1717" in "The William and Mary College Quarterly", First Series, Vol. 26, p. 242 quotes family bible which gives the children and their dates.

NOTE: A, p.72-73

"A book called 18th century VA Newspapers shows Morton Christopher and his wife Elizabeth named in a suit by David Jones in Culpeper Co. VA Nov. 20, 1798. Appears Mortons wife was a dau. of Adam Wayland dec'd- David Jones wife was Hannah Wayland. Other names incl. Godfrey Yager and wife Mary, John Wayland, Daniel Ultz and wife Mary, Joshua Wayland, Lewis Wayland and Adam Wayland"

Elizabeth WAYLAND [Parents] 1 was born about 1749 in , , Virginia. She died before 1833 in , , Virginia. Elizabeth married Morton CHRISTOPHER about 1765.

They had the following children:

  F i Mary CHRISTOPHER
  M ii Ambrose CHRISTOPHER was born on 9 Jan 1769.

NOTE: A, p.73
  F iii Anna CHRISTOPHER
  F iv Frances "Frank" CHRISTOPHER
  F v Elizabeth CHRISTOPHER
  M vi Lewis CHRISTOPHER was born on 5 Mar 1783.

NOTE: A, p.74
  F vii Sarah CHRISTOPHER was born on 29 Mar 1787. She died before 1833.

NOTE: A, p.74
  M viii James CHRISTOPHER was born on 23 Nov 1790.

First name not in bible, but thought to be identical with James Christopher of the 1833 deed.

NOTE: A, p. 74
  F ix Milly CHRISTOPHER was born on 24 Jul 1795. She died before 1833.

NOTE: A, p. 74. Another note gives birthdate as 4 July 1795.

John WAYLAND [Parents] 1 was born about 1751 in , , Virginia. He died in 1841 in , Madison Co., Virginia. John married Rosina WILHOIT in 1776.

Rosina WILHOIT [Parents] was born in 1754. She died after 1801. Rosina married John WAYLAND in 1776.

REFERENCE: A, p. 74-76; B, p. 77. Name is also seen as Rosanna.

They had the following children:

  F i Nancy WAYLAND was born on 2 Jun 1776 and was christened in Hebron Church, Madison Co., Virginia.

Apparently died young, without issue.

NOTE: A, p. 76
  F ii Mary WAYLAND
  M iii Joseph WAYLAND was born about 1778. He died about 1795.

NOTE: A, p.76. Possibly named Joshua instead of Joseph. Died unmarried.
  F iv Elizabeth WAYLAND
  M v William WAYLAND
  F vi Rosanna WAYLAND
  M vii Simeon Bluford WAYLAND
  F viii Fanny WAYLAND
  F ix Ann WAYLAND was born about 1795 in , , Virginia. She died on 13 Jul 1881.

Madison Co. Census of 1850 shows as Family No. 54, Moses Weaver age
76, Rosannah Weaver age 73, Ann Wayland age 50, and James French age 15. Ann apparently never married. There are 3 referencies to Weavers elsewhere: Eleanor Weaver (A24) dtr. John Wayland (A5); Frances Weaver (A90) dtr. Cornelius Wayland (A22); and Marian Weaver dtr. Elbridge Wayland (A91). She apparently was staying with the Weavers to help them as was common with maiden ladies at the time, who usually stayed with one family member or another. I have a copy of her obit which gives the DOD and says she was in her 86th year. It says that she was born in Madison County, Virginia and resided there until 1841 ehen she came to Clermont County, Ohio to stay with her brother, Dr. Wayland,
where she stayed until his death in 1858, and since has stayed with his
family in Batvia. It says that she outlived all of her brothers and
sisters.

NOTE: A p. 77
  M x John Wesley WAYLAND

Godfrey YAGER [Parents] was born on 6 Jun 1747 in , Culpeper Co., Virginia. He died on 26 May 1819 in , Madison Co., Virginia. Godfrey married Mary WAYLAND before 1775 in , , Virginia.

Other marriages:
KLUG,

"Rev. War Patriot"

NOTE: Germanna Record No. 11, p.67; Record No. 10 has descendants of this Yager family. Also Record No. 6, p.47

I got this from Marilyn Lewis in 12/98:

"Have looked further.....in the inventory of Godfrey Yager, Madison Co VA
will book 4, page 189, Godfrey lays out an account of advances he made to
his children, complete with the year of the advance. He states that he
made an advance to "Salathiel W. Yager" in 1813. The "W" most probably was Wayland."

Godfrey married twice, as indicated, and had 12 children total, who are known. I received correspondence from Paul Sparks about this line in 1994.

In 4/98, I received his line from Lars Lovegren [email protected] :

Yager, Godfrey b: June 6, 1747 Culpeper Co, VA d: May 26, 1819 Madison, VA
3 Yager, Rosanna b: Abt 1780 d: Bef 1890
+Bledsoe, Benjamin b: Abt 1780 d: Bef 1880
4 Bledsoe, William Lewis b: January 7, 1807 d: May 31, 1859
+Perry, Rachel Hawkins b: March 28, 1812 d: December 2, 1884
5 Bledsoe, Lucinda "Lucy" Ann Hawkins b: September 9, 1833 d: December 11,
1922
+Johnson, Joseph William "Gov." b: August 6, 1828 d: August 19, 1902
6 Johnson, Stonewall JACKson b: October 15, 1862 Virginia d: September 4, 1959 Huntington WV
+Perry, America Eugenia "Jink" b: November 14, 1867 d: January 22, 1942 7Johnson, Eddith Elma b: October 30, 1896 Salt Rock, WV d: August 27, 1976
Rest Haven Nursing Home, York, PA
+Adkins, Roscoe Conklin b: November 5, 1887 WV d: November 4, 1962 Morton
Plant Hospital, Clearwater, FL
8 Adkins, Ruth Eloise b: October 17, 1916 Salt Rock, Cabell Co, WV
+Lovegren, Frank Jonathan b: May 14, 1910 Seattle, King Co, WA d: May 10, 1979 Hanover, York Co, PA
9 Lovegren, Lars Jackson b: June 3, 1947 East Stroudsburg, Monroe Co, PA

Mary WAYLAND [Parents] 1 was born about 1754 in , , Virginia. She married Godfrey YAGER before 1775 in , , Virginia.

REFERENCE: For Mary's descendants, see the article on the Yager family in the Germanna Record No. 10. She was Godfrey Yager's second wife. He must have married her before 1775, as he is named as an executor in her father, Adam Wayland's will that year.

I received this email 5/98:

Dear John,
I'm enjoying your Germanna Wayland posts. Did I ever send you my list on my line which goes through Godfrey Yager/Mary Wayland...........William Yager/Jane E. Chancellor............Sanford Chancellor Yager, M.D/Lucinda Boulware...............Jane Elizabeth Yager/William R. Morgan.........to my grandparents, William C. Morgan/Henryetta O'Brien? I remember that you told me you would like to have it as you were working on another book.

Would you know if anyone else is working on this particular line?

Marilyn Lewis
[email protected]

They had the following children:

  M i William YAGER

Joshua WAYLAND [Parents] 1, 2 was born on 23 Mar 1760 in , , Virginia. He died on 18 Aug 1823 in , Henry Co., Kentucky and was buried in Shelbyville, Shelby Co., Kentucky. Joshua married Rachel UTZ on 18 Dec 1781 in , Culpeper Co., Virginia.

Documented as being a veteran of the Revolutionary War. He enlisted at age 17 (10 Feb, 1777 to serve 3 years) as a fifer and drummer in Capt. Gillison's Co. 10th Virginia Regiment. Also known as the 6th Ba. Regt. He was granted a Revolutionary pension in 1819. On a muster roll dated 28 Jan 1780, he is shown as of Capt. John Steed's company in detachment of 2nd Va. Brigade, commanded by Col. Febiger (?). His name last appears on a company pay roll for the month of Dec 1779, and Jan., Feb., March 1780. No record has been found to show that any other person named Joshua Wayland served in any military organization in the Rev. War. Here is a copy of his pension certificate:

"I certify that in conformity with the law of the United States of the 18th March 1818, Joshua Wayland, late private in the army of the Revolution is inscribed on the pension roll of the Kentucky agency, at the rate of eight dollars per month to commence on the 5th day of April 1819. Given at the War Office of the United States this 3rd day of Dec. 1819.
C. Vanderventer, Acting Sec. of War"

He reportedly was granted a bounty warrent in Ohio, which veterans frequently sold if they didn't settle there. He appears constantly in the tithables of Culpeper and Madison Cos. through 1805, after which he seems to have moved to Shelby Co., Ky. He is buried in the "Wayland Cemetary" in Shelby County. For description of grave site and directions to it, see "Cemetaries of Shelby County, Kentucky", published by Shelby County Historical Society, Inc., 1979. It says that the stone is down and broken through, but says "Joshua Wayland, a Revolutionary Soldier, died Aug 18, 1823, aged 62 yrs. 4 mos. 26 d."

To verify his being a private while living in Va and receiving a pension while in Kentucky, search for his name on this site:

http://www.lineages.com/rooms/usa/state.asp

JOSHUA WAYLAND
SHELBY COUNTY PRIVATE
VIRGINIA LINE
$96.00 ANNUAL ALLOWANCE
$87.73 AMOUNT RECEIVED
DECEMBER 3, 1819 PENSION STARTED
AGE 60

Rachel UTZ [Parents] 1 was born on 17 Aug 1765. She died on 29 Nov 1841 and was buried in Wolfe Cemetary, Clark Co., Missouri. Rachel married Joshua WAYLAND on 18 Dec 1781 in , Culpeper Co., Virginia.

NOTE: "Culpeper Marriages", p. 95; Record No. 10 for Utz lineage

Rachel is listed in 1840 Clark Co., Missouri Census on p. 332 (same page as her son, Julius), living alone, age 70-80. Rachel is listed as purchasing 40 acres of land in Clark Co. on July 28, 1835 (U.S. Land Sales, Vol. 2, p. 333), and no doubt came to be near her relatives after death of husband, Joshua, which probably took place in Shelby Co., Kty. Vicki Maddox has death as 1845.

In DAR record for a descendant, her name is spelled "Ootz" which would be the pronuniciation.

They had the following children:

  F i Margaret "Pake" WAYLAND was born on 17 Sep 1782 in , , Virginia. She died on 17 Apr 1822.

NOTE: A, p.79; B, p.9,72,83.

Confirmed at Hebron Church in 1800; At the christening of Polly (A53) in 1801, sponsors are shown as "the father and his daughter, Margarett". There is much confusion about this person as the Hebron church records, according to Holtzclaw, p. 78, give the name "Pake" for this birthdate while family records give this birthdate to Margaret. It would seem that "Pake" would be a nickname for "Paschal", such as B224 listed in B, p.9 and 72 of my book, but it could possibly also be a nickname for Margaret. She apparently never married.
  M ii Joseph WAYLAND
  M iii Lewis WAYLAND
  M iv Julius WAYLAND
  F v Elizabeth "Betsy" WAYLAND
  M vi Abraham WAYLAND Dr.
  M vii Fielding WAYLAND was born on 27 Dec 1794 in , , Virginia. He died on 12 Nov 1803.

NOTE: B, p.14; died at age 9 of hydrophobia
  M viii Jeremiah WAYLAND
  F ix Mary Ann "Polly" WAYLAND
  M x Fielding WAYLAND Dr.
  F xi Louisa Ann WAYLAND

Lewis "Ludwig" WAYLAND [Parents] 1, 2 was born on 10 Dec 1771 in , , Virginia. He died on 28 Jan 1854 in , Sevier Co., Tenn. and was buried in Eusebia Presb Cm, Blount Co., Tennessee. Lewis married Elizabeth "Betsy" LINK on 1 Nov 1798 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.

Holtzclaw's vol. Eleven is inaccurate about this Lewis's marriage and his issue. According to a descendant, Jane Crouch Williams, Lewis was sometimes known as "Ludwig." He and his full siblings had a falling out with his father's second wife and their children. This may have been the reason that Lewis moved to Augusta Co., Virginia, when he was only age 11. Holtzclaw in Germanna Record No. 11 thought he was over 21, but he was 11 on September 15, 1783 when his older brother, John, turned in an account of the estate of Lewis, orphan of Adam Wayland. In Augusta County, he became an honored part of his wife's family. He had some means as he paid cash for two pieces of real estate immediately upon his marriage to Elizabeth Link, and other parcels after that. He sold his holdings and moved to Tennessee between September & October, 1818, along with his wife and 8 of his ten children.

They also took two slaves, "Aunt Nancy" and "Uncle Billy." His wife's brother, Captain John Link, had already established himself in Tennessee and was no doubt responsible for this move. He is often referred to as "Ludwig Wieland" in church records, but he used the anglicized version in legal records. He built a home that is still standing on old Stage-Coach Road leading from Knoxville to Sevierville (presently Hwy. 338). He was an educated man and organized Rocky Springs Academy in Sevier County and taught in it.

Historian Dr. John W. Wayland's notes have a letter written by Lewis on April 10, 1849, most in English, some in German, written very well I have a copy of this.

Lewis is found in the 1850 Sevier Co. TN census at:

http://c-23.rootsweb.com/usgenweb/archives/tn/sevier/census/1850/pg0433b.txt

as Lewis Sr., age 78, b. VA. His wife Elizabeth, age 71, b. VA is with him along with one other person, Mary Wayland, age 15, b. TN. Am uncertain who this is, but probably a grandchild to help them out.

The following was in a post 1/00:

"Land Grants recorded ; Land Grant Book ET 2, p 90, (TN Archives and History, Nashville, TN)
Sevier Co. (TN) Entry Takers Office, 25 June 1824...John Shahan ...50 acres on Boyd's Creek... to a stake on Lewis Wayland's line... 18th Aug 1824 Surveyor"

Elizabeth "Betsy" LINK was born on 10 Mar 1779 in , Frederick Co., Maryland. She died on 23 Mar 1869 and was buried in Eusebia Presb Cm, Blount Co., Tennessee. Elizabeth married Lewis "Ludwig" WAYLAND on 1 Nov 1798 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.

NOTE: A, p.79; B, p.82

There is a book, "The Link Familys", subtitle "Antecedents and Descendants of John Jacob Link 1417-1951" by Paxon Link, 1951. It has a letter in it by Dwight Eisenhower as he is connected. Here is some of what it says:

They had the following children:

  M i Mary WAYLAND was born on 1 Apr 1799 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  M ii William S. WAYLAND
  M iii James WAYLAND was born on 16 Jun 1803 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  M iv David WAYLAND was born on 11 Jan 1806 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  F v Anna WAYLAND was born on 1 Jan 1808 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  M vi John WAYLAND was born on 12 Jun 1810 in , Augusta Co., Virginia. He died on 21 May 1812 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  F vii Elizabeth WAYLAND was born on 11 Mar 1813 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  M viii John WAYLAND was born on 1 Feb 1816 in , Augusta Co., Virginia.
  M ix Lewis WAYLAND Jr.
  M x William Harve WAYLAND was born on 22 Aug 1820 in , Sevier Co., Tennessee.

Nicholas YAGER [Parents] was born in 1765 in , , Virginia. He died before 28 Aug 1792 in , Madison Co., Virginia. Nicholas married Anne WAYLAND on 22 Dec 1785 in , Madison Co., Virginia.

Other marriages:
YAGER, Jemima

NOTE: A, p.67. Nicholas made a will in Culpeper Co., Va on Oct. 12, 1792
in which he mentions wife Jemima, dtr. Melinda, and unborn child. Executors are Adam Yeager, John Yeager and Elisha Berry. Witnesses are John Smith, Michael Wilhoit, Susanna Yeager and Rosanna Yeager.

See Germanna Record No. 10 for list of descendants

Anne WAYLAND [Parents] "Anney" 1 was born about 1766 in , Culpeper Co., Virginia. She died in 1786. Anney married Nicholas YAGER on 22 Dec 1785 in , Madison Co., Virginia.

Called Anney Wayland in records. Her husband remarried Mar. 16, 1790 to his cousin, Jemima Yager. No children by Anney, but see Germanna Record No. 10 for children of Nicholas and Jemima. Confirmed at the Hebron Church, Madison Co., Va. in 1782. One source has marriage date as 2 December 1785.

Thomas BLANCKENBUHLER [Parents] was born about 1660. He died in 1687/1691. Thomas married Anna Barbara SCHOENE on 2 Nov 1680 in Neuenburg, , Germany.

Here is an interesting note from: http://www.kalglo.com/germname.htm

At baptism, if two given names were given to the child, the
first given name was a spiritual, saint's name, originally
developed from Roman Catholic tradition and continued by the
Protestants in their baptismal naming customs. The second given
name was the secular or call name, which is the name the person was
known by, both within the family and to this rest of the world.
The spiritual name, usually to honor a favorite saint, was usually
repeatedly given to all the children of that family of the same
sex. Thus the boys would be Johan Adam Kerchner, Johan George
Kerchner, etc., or Philip Peter Kerchner, Philip Jacob Kerchner,
etc. Girls would be named Anna Barbara Kerchner, Anna Margaret
Kerchner, etc., or Maria Elizabeth Kerchner, Maria Catherine
Kerchner, etc. But after baptism, these people would not be
known as John, Philip, Anna, or Maria, respectively. They would
instead be known by what we would think of now as their middle
name, which was their secular name. Thus these people would be
known respectively as Adam, George, Peter, Jacob, Barbara,
Margaret, Elizabeth, and Catherine in legal and secular records.
For males, the saint's name Johan or John was particularly
heavily used by many German families. The child's secular name
was really John, if and only if, at baptism he was named only
John, usually Johannes, with no second given name. Many
researchers, new to German names, who find a baptism of an
individual with a name such as Johan Adam Kerchner, thus
mistakenly spend a lot of time looking for a John Kerchner, in
legal and census records, when he was known after baptism, to the
secular world, as Adam Kerchner. Also when reading county
histories, etc., especially those written by individuals in the
20th century, and the author is referring to someone as John
Kerchner, and you are not looking for a John Kerchner, but the
history sounds otherwise familiar, further research may turn up
that this person was really not a John Kerchner, but instead was
someone else such as a Johan George Kerchner. You would thus
find all his 18th century records recorded under the name
George Kerchner and not John Kerchner and therefore after checking
the data and correlating the facts you may find this is really a
story about your missing George Kerchner.

Anna Barbara SCHOENE [Parents] was born in Sep 1664 in Neuenburg, Kraichtal, Baden and was christened on 29 Sep 1664. She married Thomas BLANCKENBUHLER on 2 Nov 1680 in Neuenburg, , Germany.

Other marriages:
FLEISCHMANN, Cyriacus
SCHLUCHTER, Johann Jacob

They had the following children:

  M i Nicholas BLANKENBAKER
  M ii Balthasar BLANKENBAKER
  M iii Matthias BLANKENBAKER
  F iv Anna Maria BLANKENBAKER

Mark FINKS was born about 1700 in , , , Germany. He died in 1764 in , , Virginia. Mark married Elizabeth.

NOTE: A, p.66; Germanna Record No. 6, p 81.

Proved his importation in 1741; living in Orange Co. VA as early as 1736...had two tithables in 1739. His will mentions his wife and nine children.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-
From: "The Magazine of Va Genealogy " vol.26 n.4 Nov 1988 p. 248
Article : "Importations in the Orange Co. Va. Order Books 1-8 1735-1770"
by Barbara V. Little Order Book 2 p. 368 "John Kines(?), Henry Philip Hart, Robert Appleby, Robert Mcpherfon Margret Mcpherson Alexander Mcpherfon Susanna Mcpherson... Joseph Harrifs & Mark Fink..... severally made oath that they were imported from Great Britain or Ireland immediately into this
Colony..."
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Many of the colonists from Germany were in Great Britain to find a ship to get to America.,.that does not make him British.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Mark Finks' (Sr.) importation has also been written in The Virginia Genealogist , April 1968, Vol. VI No. 2 on page 32 in an article titled "Orange County, Virginia Order Book 2 1739-1741: Importations." On page 368
of Court Order Book 2 the following people made oath that they were imported from Great Britain and Ireland "immediately into this colony...dated 29 May 1741...Mark Fink?" [sic] The question mark after his name isn't explained. The other surnames given with his were Kines, Hart, Appleby, McPheron, and Harris. I found this at the Allen Co. Library in Fort Wayne, IN.

Mark Finks (Sr.) was in Orange Co. as early as Nov. 1734 at which time he served on the first grand jury of Orange County which met at Mr. Wm. Robertson's house on Black Walnut Run.

Some Finks are found with other German families in the early 1700's in the settlement founded by William Millars on the Shenandoah River above Front Royal in what is now part of Warren County. Some of the other families there were: Schumachers (from Michelstadt), Koiners (from Winterlingen in Wurttemburg), Benders, and Beckers. These families came down to settle in the valley after Spottswood and his Knights of the Golden Horseshoe explored the country west of the Blue Ridge Mts. Indian uprisings later led them to seek
refuge in the more settled areas of Orange County.

According to Hank Z. Jones' book on the Palatines, some Finks also are found among the New York Palatines. Some have speculated the family may've been among those Germans who were in Ireland before emigrating to America in the early 1700's. There is no proof, but one of the early Finks in N.Y. may have
been related to the Virginia Finks family. There is a record of an Andreas Fincks in New York in 1710. The German LDS records show an Andreas Finks' marriage 19 Feb. 1689 to Appolonia Fiescher (daughter of Hans). Her confirmation at age 14 in 1672 is mentioned also. The fact that Mark Finks (Sr.) had a son named Andreas and his son Mark married Eve Fisher/Fiescher the daughter of Ludwig lends some weight to the speculation that the Virginia Finks were related to the New York Palatine Finks....but alas, it is just
speculation. Has anyone found more about where Mark Finks Sr. originated?

Joyce Libes 5/99

The below are John Blankenbaker's Notes that can be found at:

http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~george/johnsgermnotes/germhs29.html#Note703

[Nr. 707:

One of my favorite families to write about is the Finks family in the Robinson River Valley. Mark Finks, Sr., the progenitor of the family, is an ancestor of mine, so look on my comments as talking about my relatives, not about someone else's. There are more mysteries in the records than there are clarifying facts.

I am not aware that Mark Finks ever owned land. Certainly, he had no patent for land, and, though he might have purchased a property that had been patented by someone else, I am unaware of any land ownership. (If anyone can add to my comments, please speak up.) The people who did not own land were rare. Most of the people who did not own land were the senior generation who lived with a younger generation.

Mark Finks starts appearing in the Virginia records in the 1730's, where there are several references to him. The first Court in Orange County was held in January 1734, though we would say it was 1735. The first Grand Jury appeared in November, and among its members were Mark Finks, William Carpenter, and George Utz (as Woods). At these early dates, it is always a surprise to see Germans in the English Courts on the Juries. However, William Carpenter and George Utz had been here thirteen to eighteen years, and they probably knew some English. The real surprise was to see the name Mark Finks, for this is one of the earliest records for him. I definitely consider Mark to be Germanic; the question is, "Where and when did he learn English?"

A question closely coupled to this is the nationality of Mark. By blood, he was probably German, but there is no naturalization known for him. Was he born in the British Empire? As to when he was born, it was probably close to the first decade of the eighteenth century. He may very well have married after he came to the Robinson River Valley. The apparent ages of his children would be consistent with this. Thus, he might have been born between 1710 and 1714. I have a reason for selecting the first of these dates, late in 1710.

His apparent English citizenship might have arisen from his parents being a part of the exodus from Germany in 1709. Some of these people were sent to New York, and some were sent to North Carolina. Some of them, a very respectable number, were sent to Ireland. Many of them were farmed out to communities throughout England, said communities being paid to take in the refugees. Most of the Germans in England in these communities did not like life under these conditions. They gravitated toward London, where they sought transportation to America. Ships' captains were willing to take them to America, where they became indentured servants. Had Mark Finks' parents been in one of these situations, Mark might have been born on English soil and have been an English citizen. Perhaps the conditions led to his learning English. The Vawter name is often found with the Finks and the Vawters are associated with the Church of England.]

[Nr. 708:

Apparently Catherine Finks was the eldest child of Mark Finks and his wife Elizabeth. Catherine married Christopher Crigler, and they had children from 1751 to 1778, a span of 27 years. If we say that the youngest child was born when she was 44, the first (eldest) child was born when she was about 17. These are reasonable numbers, so she was probably born about 1734. This was about the time that Mark Finks started appearing in the records in Orange County.

Through this general period, Mark Finks appears in several incidental records. He was a defendant in a 1736 assault and battery case, which was dismissed in 1740. He was a witness on 24 Nov 1736. He appeared in the Orange County list of tithables. In 1737, he was in the list of Davis Phillips with one tithe. In 1737, Timothy Finks was also in the list of Isaac Haddock with two tithes. In 1739, Joseph Pickett included Mark Finks in his list, with two tithes.

So there appeared to have been two male Finks, Mark and Timothy. Timothy could hardly have been a son of Mark as Mark does not appear to be that old. My suggestion has been that Timothy and Mark were brothers. Later, I will even suggest a marriage for Timothy, which occurred after Mark married, so Timothy might have been a younger brother.

On 29 May 1741, "John Kines, Henry Philip Hart, Robert Appleby, Robert McPherson, Margaret McPherson, Alexander McPherson, Susanna McPherson, Joseph Harris & Mark Fink in open court severally made oath they were imported from Great Britain or Ireland immediately into this Colony and that this is the first time of proving their importation in order to obtain land ..." [Orange County Order Book 2, page 366ff].
My most immediate notes do not say so, but I was under the impression that Mark assigned his head right to another person. Notice that there was no mention of Timothy Finks.
Already it is beginning to sound as if we are discussing an atypical German. Especially when my notes say that when he signed his will, Mark used English script, not German script. Two of the individuals who appeared in court with Mark Finks above appear in the community later. These are Kines (who might be a Kaines) and Hart (Michael Thomas married, as his second wife, a Hart woman). From the importation order, we know that Mark was not born in the colonies. (In my earlier comments, above, I suggested he may have been born in the British Empire.)

Reader comments are invited. One reader suggested that Mark must have owned land to have been on the Jury, since land ownership was generally a requirement of voting (true). But, I don't know whether this was a juror qualification or not.]

[Nr. 709:

In the last note, Catherine Finks, who married Christopher Crigler, was mentioned. They had children from 1751 to 1778. All of them were baptized at the German Lutheran Church. In entering the information for the first ten children, there is no mother listed. The name of Catherine is omitted for all of them, except for the eleventh child, Wilhelm or William. Sometimes the record keepers simply failed to make the proper entry, but I am convinced in this case that the reason he did not list Catherine is that she was not there. The children were brought by the father without the mother being present.

From a study of the Finks family at the Lutheran Church, I am convinced that the family was not Lutheran. They were opposed to the Lutheran Church, especially to the baptisms of infants. There are two groups that I can think of that might be opposed. First, there are the Anabaptists who are opposed to all infant baptisms, believing that this is a function which should be performed when a person is an adult. The second group which might oppose the baptisms at the Lutheran church is the Catholics. The Reformed Church members would hardly be opposed, nor would the Church of England people. The Church of England and the Lutherans regarded each other as members of the "true" church with the Church of England holding their service in English and the Lutherans in German.

For a while, I was impressed by the stories told by the descendants of Mark Finks. They said he was born in the Alps or he was born high in the mountains. What is remarkable about these attributions is that the Anabaptists today give these "locations" as their spiritual and/or physical home. So I was inclined to think the family was Anabaptist. It would describe a lot of their behavior patterns. A major weakness in this thesis was the role played by Mark Finks, Jr., during the Revolutionary War. He was a Captain in the Militia. The Anabaptists were not only opposed to infant baptisms but they were pacifists. Mark Finks, Sr., had died in 1763 or 1764, but his wife, Elizabeth, lived until at least 1776, when she was recorded at the Lutheran Church as taking communion. But about 1776, there is a turn around in the attitude of the Finks family toward the Lutheran Church. It would still be hard to believe the major change in attitude displayed by Mark, Jr., in a few years. I haven't completely abandoned the thought that the family might have been Anabaptists but an alternative theory might fit the facts better.

I am now inclined to believe the family was Catholic and had convictions strong enough to keep them from participating in a Lutheran baptism. Tomorrow I will cite a small piece of evidence toward this end. At least it would not be so improbable that Mark, Jr., could be a Captain in the Militia.]

[Nr. 710:

In 1767, a Conrad Fink lived in Windsor, Berks Co., PA. He appeared in the Catholic Church of Goshenhoppen, PA, in 1768. He was in Heidelberg Township, York Co., in 1783, and he died 24 Nov 1794, in Littlestown, Adams Co., which, prior to 1800, was York Co. This information came to me from David Schubert. Certainly the mention of the Catholic Church sparked my interest. An almost equally interesting point was the name of the children in Conrad Fink's family.

These children were Henry, JOHN, ELIZABETH, Margaret, CATHERINE, Mary CHRISTINA, Conrad ANDREW, and Magdalena. The children of Mark Finks, Sr., in Culpeper Co., VA, are CATHERINE, ELIZABETH, Mark, JOHN, Mary, ANDREW, Hannah, and James. I thought this was a significant overlap between the two sets of names. If the two families were related, the age difference between Conrad Fink and Mark Finks, Sr., suggests that Conrad might be of the generation below Mark Finks. (I do not regard the inclusion or omission of the final "s" as significant.)

According to this thesis, the Finks family might have been among the early emigrants from Germany who had lived for a while in England. While they were there, Mark was born. Then they came to Pennsylvania and lived there for a while. Mark, and probably a brother, moved down to Virginia.

In the last note I was telling of my conviction that Catherine Finks Crigler did not attend, except for the last one, any of the baptisms of her children. I cited the omission of her name at the baptisms. There is another reason which strongly enforces this conclusion. For the first ones, the father, Christopher Crigler, did not have his brother as a sponsor for the children. Normally this is a role performed by brothers, sisters (none in this case), and brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law. With only one brother and no sisters, one would have certainly have expected Nicholas to have been selected. Nicholas did appear as a sponsor once, for Wilhelm, the last child. For this baptism, the mother Catherine is listed as present, and in this case Nicholas is a sponsor. I can hear Nicholas saying, "If my brother's wife is not coming to the baptism, I will not be a sponsor." He would have no part of this strange proceeding.

Wilhelm is entered twice in the list of baptisms, once as Wilhelm in the original recording, and as William in the later recording. Wilhelm was born in 1778 and about this time the attitude of the Finks family changed toward the Lutheran Church. They started to participate and they brought children for baptism and they acted as sponsors. Something happened about this time and it may have had a deeper significance than the appearance of Rev. Frank who was very successful at getting people into the church.]

[Nr. 711:

The third child which Mark Finks, Sr., mentioned in his will was Elizabeth, whom he identified as Elizabeth Weaver. Popular history says that she was the wife of Matthias, the son of Peter Weaver, the immigrant of 1717. Elizabeth is a special problem because she acts as if she were a Carpenter, not a Finks. What do I mean when I say this?

At church (the German Lutheran church) she sat with the Carpenters and the Weavers. Even on the few occasions when there was a Finks at church, she sat not with the Finks but with the Carpenters and the Weavers. Her behavior is so biased this way that it would be possible to conclude that she was a Carpenter. (Her association with the Weavers would be because of her husband.)

There are two possibilities that I see. One, it was a mistake to say that the wife of Matthew Weaver was a Finks, or, two, she split with her family on the question of religion. I have argued for both of these points, but I am inclined now to the belief that she did not agree with the other Finks family members and broke with them on this question of religion. It may not have been a severe break. Instead she may have found herself, without any of the other Finks family members, at church and the Carpenter family befriended her. There was only one church in town and Elizabeth was going to use it. Since her blood relatives did not make much use of it, she chose the sponsors for her children from her husband's relatives and from the Carpenters.

Elizabeth and Matthew Weaver had children baptized from 1757 to 1780. So Elizabeth would seem to be just a few years younger than Catherine. Between these two there was another name in the will of Mark Finks, Sr. This was Christina, who married Christopher Blankenbaker. They had children baptized from 1754 on, so it was appropriate that Christina was the second name in Mark's will. None of the sponsors at the baptism of these Blankenbaker children were from the Finks' family. This was also true of the Weaver children just discussed. At the baptism of the Crigler children, previously discussed, Finks' family members appear only once for Wilhelm, the last child.

From the early 1750's, three of the Finks daughters have children and only once, in 1778, does the list of sponsors include a Finks. Apparently Christina and Elizabeth attended the baptism of their children. From evidence such as this, one can draw the conclusion that the Finks family was opposed to infant baptism at the Lutheran church. The question for us is, "Why?"]

[NR. 712:

The oldest children of Mark Finks, Sr. appear to be Catherine, Christina, and Elizabeth. Catherine and her husband, Christopher Crigler, had eleven children baptized even though Catherine appears to have been present for only the last one in 1778. There were no Finks related sponsors except for Wilhelm, the last one. And even here, the closest we come is Elizabeth Christopher, a relation by marriage.

Christina and her husband Christopher Blankenbaker had nine children and only one Finks sponsor, Mary Finks Wayland, was related to the Finks family. This too was in 1778. Elizabeth and her husband, Matthew Weaver, had ten children up to 1780. None of the sponsors at the baptisms of their children were Finks related.

There is only one case where a Finks appeared as a sponsor before 1776. In 1772, Christina, with her husband Christopher Blankenbaker, were sponsors of Anna Miller, the daughter of Henry and Susanna Miller. This would seem to mark this as an exceptional event and we have no good explanation for it.

I elaborate on these events to emphasize that the Finks had an attitude problem toward the Lutheran Church and its infant baptisms. When Rev. Franck came in late 1775 to be the pastor, he was successful in getting more participation from the Finks family. Was this due to his personality or was it due to the death of the parents? Or another reason? In telling this story to an Anabaptist, he said he could believe that the family was Anabaptist because this behavior is typical of Anabaptists. While the parents are living, the children are very faithful to the Anabaptist church. After the parents die, the children often switch churches. Was the change that was evident during Rev. Franck's pastorate due to the death of the parents? Mark Finks, Sr. had died several years earlier. The last known record of Elizabeth Finks is her attendance at the Lutheran church on Easter Sunday in 1776, just a few months after Rev. Franck came. It appears from the record which has been kept that she partook of communion. Was this attendance by Elizabeth a symbolic release of the children? Did the family decide that if you couldn't lick them, then join them?

In the petition made by the male members of the church in the fall of 1776 to be released from payment of tithes to the state church, Mark Finks, Jr. signed it as Mark Fink. (I say that "he" signed it as most of the signatures were made by the person named but one can never be sure who wrote a name.)]

Elizabeth was born about 1717. She died after 1776 in Virginia. Elizabeth married Mark FINKS.

NOTE: A, p.66

From John Blankenbaker's 711 Note:

"The last known record of Elizabeth Finks is her attendance at the Lutheran church on Easter Sunday in
1776, just a few months after Rev. Franck came."

They had the following children:

  F i Catherine FINKS
  F ii Christina FINKS
  F iii Elizabeth FINKS
  M iv Mark FINKS Jr.
  M v John FINKS
  M vi Andreas "Andrew" FINKS
  F vii Maria "Mary" FINKS
  F viii Hannah FINKS

Daniel UTZ [Parents] was born about 1740. He married Maria "Mary" FINKS about 1785 in , , Virginia.

NOTE: A, p.67; Record No. 10

REFERENCE: Madison Co. D.B. 14, p. 377; Madison Co. O.B. 1808-15, p. 103. He married widow of Adam (A4) and she bore him four children, who are listed in the Utz family history in Germanna Record No. 10.

Maria "Mary" FINKS [Parents] 1 was born about 1753 in VA. She died about 1830 in VA. Maria married Daniel UTZ about 1785 in , , Virginia.

Other marriages:
WAYLAND, Adam

They had the following children:

  M i Humphrey UTZ was born about 1789 in VA.
  M ii Daniel UTZ Jr.
  F iii Ellen UTZ
  F iv Lucy UTZ

Home First Previous Next Last

Surname List | Name Index