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venis (Finis) Family Chart


UPDATED 11/20/2007

Our VENIS (Finis) ancestry has its origins in the German Province of Hesse-Nassau, which lies close to the areas from where all of our other ancestral families migrated in western Germany.  The German version of the name was FINIS.  At the time of the American Revolutionary War, many young men from Hesse-Nassau were recruited by the British to serve as mercenary soldiers fighting the rebellious
colonists in America. Johann Heinrich (Henry) FINIS was one such recruit. To our good fortune (but
maybe not to Henry's, at least at that time) he was a member of the British garrison at Trenton, New
Jersey, which was attacked and overwhelmed by George Washington's small army on Christmas Day in 1776. After the war, Henry elected to stay in the new United States of America. He settled initially in the
Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, then moved his family to the Ohio frontier shortly before he died in 1814. Before he left Virginia, he saw his young daughter Christina (Christiana) marry Jacob SUMMERS, the
son of the Revolutionary War patriot John SUMMERS.  Jacob and Christiana, as part of a larger group
of pioneers in 1818, led their family from the Shenandoah Valley, across the Cumberland Gap, and up
the Wilderness Road to the "Falls of the Ohio River", becoming some of the earliest settlers of Floyd
County, Indiana.

 

*********************************************** "QUIK-TREE" ***********************************************

(1) JOHANN GEORG FINIS (1709 - 1777) m. ANNA MAGDALENA MULLER (1711 - 1775)

  NOTE:  If the years shown above are correct, there was most likely and intermediate generation
              between Johann Georg and Johann Heinrich. The dates are not verifiable..

       (2)  JOHANN HEINRICH (HENRY) FINIS (1756 - 1814) m  MARGARET WOLFE (1764 - ?)
              daughter of Johannes WOLF and Margaret ?

            (3)  JACOB SUMMERS (1786 - 1868) m. CHRISTIANA VENIS (1789 - 1859)
                   dau. of Henry FINIS and Margaret WOLFE

                (4) JOSEPH SUMMERS (1817 - 1893) m. ELIZABETH UTZ (1821 - 1913)
                      dau. of Conrad UTZ and Elizabeth BAKER

                   (5) CHRISTINA SUMMERS (1842 - 1919) m. WILLIAM HOPPER (1844 - CA. 1899)
                         son of Hiram HOPPER and Eliza Ann WHITLOCK

                        (6) SUSIE HOPPER (1879 - 1971) m. WILLIAM OTT (1874 - 1963)
                              son of Ferdinand OTT and  Anna Maria ROTH

                             (7) MERVIN OTT (1905 - 1976) m. ROSE NOOYEN (1901 - 1952)
                                  daughter of Alexis NOOYEN and Adelia HERMANS

                                  (8) JOHN D. "JACK" OTT

 *********************************************** DETAILS ***********************************************

(1) 1. JOHANN GEORGE FINIS
Birth Date: 6 January 1709
Birth Place: Westuffeln, Hessen-Nassau
Death Date: 5 August 1777
Death Place: Westuffeln, Hessen-Nassau
Spouse: ANNA MAGDALENA MULLER
Birth Date: 8 February 1711
Birth Place: Hessen-Nassau
Death Date: 9 April 1775
Death Place: Westuffeln, Hessen-Nassau
Marriage Date: 15 July 1734
Marriage Place: Westuffeln, Hesse-Nassau
Children: Christoffel, Johannes, Johann Christoffel, Johann Heinrich (Henry)

(2) 1.1 Christoffel FINIS
Birth Date: 7 January 1750
Birth Place: Westuffeln, Hesse-Nassau
Death Date: ?
Death Place: Rockingham Co., VA

(2) 1.2 Johannes FINIS
Birth Date: 16 January 1753
Birth Place: Westuffeln, Hesse-Nassau
Death Date: 25 January 1825
Death Place: ?

(2) 1.3 Johann Christoffel FINIS
Birth Date: 9 December 1753
Birth Place: Westuffeln, Hesse-Nassau

(2) 1.4 JOHANN HEINRICH (HENRY) FINIS

NOTE: Henry FINIS was a Hessian mercenary soldier brought
to America by the British to serve in the Revolutionary War. On
Christmas Eve, 1776, General George Washington’s troops
crossed the Delaware River to attack the British garrison at
Trenton, NJ. In this battle, Henry FINIS was captured by the
Americans. After the war, he elected to remain in the US. He
and his brother Christoffel settled in Rockingham County, VA.
The German surname "FINIS" became Americanized to "VENIS".

Birth Date: 31 August 1756
Birth Place: Westuffeln, Hessen-Nassau
Death Date: 1814
Death Place: German Township, Champaign Co., OH
Spouse: MARGARET WOLFE
Birth Date: About 1764
Birth Place: Washington Co., MD
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Spouse Father: JOHANNES WOLF
Spouse Mother: MARGARET ?
Marriage Date: About 1783
Marriage Place: Virginia
Children: Margaret, John, Christiana, Jane, Sarah, George, Elizabeth, Henry,
              Mary, Adam

(3) 1.4.1 Margaret VENIS
Birth Date: 23 February 1784
Birth Place: Rockingham Co., VA
Death Date: ?
Spouse: David MAGGERT
Birth Date: About 1786
Birth Place: Virginia
Death Date: ?
Marriage Date: 1806
Marriage Place: Augusta Co., VA

(3) 1.4.2 John VENIS
Birth Date: About 1786
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: ?
Spouse: Susanna COX
Birth Date: 1785
Birth Place: Virginia
Death Date: ?
Marriage Date: 1805
Marriage Place: Rockbridge Co., VA

(3) 1.4.3 CHRISTIANA VENIS
Birth Date: 1789
Birth Place: VA
Death Date: 2 January 1859
Death Place: Floyd Co., IN
Burial Place: St. John's Lutheran Cemetery, Floyd Co. IN
Spouse: JACOB SUMMERS
Birth Date: 21 December 1786
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 1868
Death Place: Georgetown, Floyd Co. IN
Burial Place: St. John Lutheran Cem., Floyd Co. IN
Spouse Father: JOHANNES SOMMERS (1746 -1803)
Spouse Mother: ELIZABETH (REIDENAUER?) (abt 1753 -1832)
Marriage Date: About 1807
Children: David, Jacob, Elizabeth, Joseph, Sarah, Rebecca,
              Hannah, Suzanna, Mary J.

Go to SUMMERS Family Chart to see children's
details and descendancy from Christiana and
Jacob.Summers.

(3) 1.4.4 Jane VENIS
Birth Date: abt. 1790
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: ?
Spouse: John LEOPARD
Birth Date: ?
Death Date: ?
Marriage Date: 1809
Marriage Place: Augusta Co., VA

(3) 1.4.5 Sarah VENIS
Birth Date: 15 November 1791
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 6 September 1861
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Spouse: Abraham MAGGERT
Birth Date: 1790
Birth Place: Shenandoah Co., VA
Death Date: 1871
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Marriage Date: 1813
Marriage Place: Virginia

(3) 1.4.6 George VENIS
Birth Date: 8 January 1794
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 25 June 1866
Death Place: Boone Co., IN
Spouse: Abagail FERGUSON
Birth Date: 1798
Birth Place: Kentucky
Death Date: ?
Marriage Date: 1815
Marriage Place: Champaign Co., OH

(3) 1.4.7 Elizabeth VENIS
Birth Date: About 1796
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 1885
Death Place: Pulaski Co., IN
Spouse: George COFFELT
Birth Date: 1796
Birth Place: Virginia
Death Date: 1875
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Marriage Date: 1816
Marriage Place: Champaign Co., OH

(3) 1.4.8 Henry VENIS Jr.
Birth Date: 1 August 1798
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 21 January 1859
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Spouse: Mary BAKER
Birth Date: 1800
Birth Place: Page Co., VA
Death Date: 1886
Death Place: Champaign Co., OH
Marriage Date: 1821
Marriage Place: Clark Co., OH

(3) 1.4.9 Mary VENIS
Birth Date: About 1800
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: ?
Spouse: John HUFFMAN
Birth Date: 1800
Birth Place: Virginia
Death Date: ?
Marriage Date: 1823
Marriage Place: Champaign Co., OH

(3) 1.4.10a Adam VENIS
Birth Date: 10 March 1810
Birth Place: Augusta Co., VA
Death Date: 30 April 1897
Death Place: Boone Co., IN
1st Spouse: Catherine STEINBARGER
Marriage Date: 1828
Marriage Place: Champaign Co., OH

2nd Spouse: Anna McDANIELS
Marriage Date: 1837
Marriage Place: Indiana

3rdSpouse: Anna GOLDSBURY
Marriage Date: 1863
Marriage Place: Boone Co., IN

4th Spouse: Sarah DANE
Marriage Date: 1878
Marriage Place: Clinton Co., IN

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