Since the First Germanna Colony left Fort Germanna at the beginning of 1719, it is doubtful that Peter Heide ever lived at Fort Germanna; however, he arrived early enough in Virginia to receive one of the shares of land at Germantown.  Whether he arrived in Virginia with his wife is unknown, and whether this was the Maria Elisabeth of the marriage and the 1717 Simmendinger list is unknown.

Hitt researchers have two questions to pursue.  First, what happened to the Peter Heyd who lived along the Hudson River for at least seven years?  Secondly, is the man called Peter Hitt in Virginia really the Peter Heide who married Maria Elisabeth Freudenberg in Germany?  The answer to the first question might answer the second question.

It is time for some DNA testing.

P.S.  Was the land divided into 20 parts at Germantown because the first purchasers were expecting some other Germans to come and settle there also?  Did some other Germans from Siegen immigrate in 1709 and come to New York, and was it hoped they would move south?
(16 Nov 03)

While Andreas and Elke were working on the emigration list in the Gemmingen Burial Register, I was working on the baptisms of the Joseph Weber family.  (All of this was from the November issue of Beyond Germanna.)  Perhaps I was prejudiced in picking on the Joseph Weber family for a study in detail as Joseph and his wife Susanna Klaar are my ancestors.  Another motive was to develop my reading skills (I use that word lightly), especially in the sponsorship section in the baptismal record where the writing is poorest.

The first child was Hannss Martin baptized 26 April 1707 [he died about a week later].  He was named for one of the sponsors, a very common pattern there.  The particular sponsor was Hannss Martin Zehendbauer with his wife Anna Maria.  [One of my little pleasures is that I have since been contacted by a descendant of Martin Zehendbauer.]  Joseph Weaver was a farmer.  The second child was Johann Ge�rg, baptized 23 March 1708 [no death record was found but the name was used again].  Joseph was a farmer again.  Hannss Martin Zehendbauer, wine grower, and his wife Anna Maria were sponsors, as was Anna Margaretha, Clausenberger�s wife.  The third child was Hannss Ge�rg, baptized 7 May 1709 [he died two days later].  Joseph was a farmer.  To the three previous sponsors, Ge�rg Clausenberger of Gemmingen was added.  The fourth child, Hannss Dieterich, was baptized 8 Nov 1710.  The father was described as a day laborer this time, a step down from farming.  To the Zehendbauers as sponsors were added Abraham Vischer, resident of Gemmingen, and his wife (not named).  This child became Peter Weaver in Virginia.  The fifth child was Maria Sophia, baptized 26 October 1713.  Joseph is again a farmer.  The sponsors were Abraham Vischer, day laborer, and his wife Maria Sophia.  Anna Maria Zehendbauer was also a sponsor.  This child became the wife of Peter Fleshman in Virginia.  The sixth child was Johann Georg, baptized 17 Dec 1715.  [He died in 1717.]  The father was a Gemmingen resident and a wine grower.  The sponsors were Martin Zehendbauer, a resident straw cutter for thatching, and Maria Sophia, Abraham Vischer�s wife.

En route to Virginia, �Burga� was born.  She married John Willheit.  In Virginia, it appears Susanna was the mother of four Crigler children, two boys and two girls.

The writer preferred to write what we would say was Hans as Hannss.  From the occupations, it does not look as if Joseph Weber was a big money earner.  The choice of sponsors seems to be influenced more by social class and occupation than by being a relative.  It must have been a real struggle for the Webers to make it to America, all the more reason to admire them for their decision and follow through.

The Vischer name would be spelled by us as Fischer.  Except for the appearances here, I did not encounter the name.
(18 Nov 03)

The Andreas Mielke-Sandra Yelton research team found interesting material written by Richard Beresford who was an agent for the South Carolina Assembly in December of 1715.  The letter was written on 4 July 1716.  I will paraphrase the letter rather than quote it which appears verbatim in the November issue of Beyond Germanna.

Beresford had just returned from Virginia where he had learned that the fort at Christiana was finished.  [This fort was in the southern part of the colony and was the base for several activities but principally it was to serve as the headquarters for an Indian trading operation.  The Virginia legislature had established a privately run state monopoly for Indian trading.  The trading company was to maintain a school for Indians at Christiana.  It was anticipated that the trading company would be very profitable and Alexander Spotswood was one of the investors in it.]

Beresford writes that the Governor (i.e., Spotswood) was building a house near Christiana where he intends to live when he will be out of the government.  [Already in 1716, relations between Spotswood and the leading citizens of Virginia had deteriorated and Spotswood was making his plans for the future.]  Spotswood's house was expected to cost five to six hundred pounds.  Encouraged by his example, other people were planning to do the same.

[What this tells us is that Spotswood was abandoning Germanna and concentrating on Christiana.  At this time, he saw no future in silver and there were no iron mines yet.  He had only a few thousand acres of land at Germanna which he was hoping to lease to the Germans.]

Beresford continues that there were three companies of Rangers (twelve men each) who ranged and made discoveries as the governor directed.  One of the companies made the discovery of a passage through the mountains between the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers.  [This could not be Swift Run Gap, where all of the historical markers are planted claiming that site for the passage.]  The pass was said to be easy to ascend and descend.  The Rangers went forty miles beyond the mountains where they saw new cabins and signs that Indians were in the area.

The governor is going to order the three companies of Rangers and some other men to explore the pass and the lands beyond in more detail.  It was thought that this could open a new route for trading with the Indians.  [This worried people in South Carolina who saw a threat to their Indian trading.]

Several people in Virginia see the proposed trip as excuse to look for mines, reports Beresford.  It was noted that there was a settlement of Germans that way who could mine.  And it was noted that Frantz Ludwig Mitchell [Michel] had passed information to the Treasury in London about mines in the Valley and this information had been forwarded to Spotswood.

Recently there was discussion of the effect of plagues and disease which ran unchecked.  To these, one could add the wars which produced similar results.  Most of these deaths were the result of starvation and disease, not bullets.  Events in the Seventeenth Century in Europe were dominated by the Thirty Years� War.  The ramifications of this were still felt even one hundred years later.

I did a little study of what happened in the village of Mundelsheim, which is about seven miles to the east of Gross Sachsenheim, where the family of George Moyer originated.  Or, it is about half way between Heilbronn and Stuttgart.  Today it is in W�rttemberg.  The numbers that I am using come from one of the later pastors who counted the deaths and births for each year which he tabulated in the front of the Church Book.  Births in the Church Book started in 1603, and death entries started in 1633.

From 1620 to 1629, the average number of births per year was almost 30.  From 1640 to 1649, the number of births was a little more than 14 per year.  Using the reasonable assumption that the number of births is proportional to the size of the population, we see the population had been cut in half in the 1630s.  This was a very bad decade for the people in Mundelsheim.  That it was very bad is shown by the number of births and the number of deaths.  For the two years, 1638 and 1639, the numbers of births that were recorded were zero.  If you are thinking that the population had moved away, the number of deaths in these years in the Mundelsheim Church Book would indicate otherwise.

The year of maximum births had been in 1606, when 40 were recorded, but, of course, the average is less than this.  In a stable population, the number of births and deaths are equal.  In 1635, the number of deaths is 320, which is ten times the number of births per year in the 1620s decade.

The reduction in population from the early part of the century was not overcome even by 1680, even though, from 1640 to 1680, the number of births exceeded the number deaths.  Rebuilding of the population came from two sources, internal and external.  As the number of births exceeded the number of deaths there would be a growth.  From external sources an increase would occur as a net immigration from other areas.  The rulers, in general, sought immigrants to rebuild.  In some regions, for example The Kraichgau, the rebuilding of the population went so far by the Eighteenth Century that there were more people than the land could support.  This was one of the reasons that emigration occurred to other regions of Europe and to America.
(24 Nov 03)

I have been spending some time on the marriages in Gemmingen, as recorded in their Kirchenbuch starting in 1694.  This date seems to be soon after the French had left and the citizens were trying to pick up their lives again.  Apparently Gemmingen was not a large community as the number of marriages each year was often very small.  Starting in 1694, the numbers were 4, 6, 5, 10, 6, 6, 3, 5, 6, 4, 8, 8, 9, 5, 7, 11, 4, and 3 in 1717.  (I missed some information for a few years so there are gaps in the numbers.)  This would seem to indicate a population of a few hundred men.  Together, men, women, and children added up to about 750 people.  The very low numbers in 1716 and in 1717 may indicate unsettled times and further reasons to immigrate.

I was happy to see quite a bit of diffusion in the sense that many of the men seem to come from outside Gemmingen, mostly from nearby villages.  Incidentally, a very useful tool to have as one is reading these records is a detailed map.  When you encounter what seems like a geographical place, you can look at the nearby places so that you can see what the modern spelling is.  And it helps to confirm that what you thought might be a place name really is a place name.  Clues as to where the place names are apt to be found occur about three or four words after the name of the father, and are often prefixed with the prepositions "zu" or "von".

In the almost quarter century of marriage records at Gemmingen, there was a usually a standard form for the record.  First comes the name of the groom, his marital status, his father's name, his father's citizenship, occupation, and place of residence.  After this was completed, then the word undt (und or and) and the name of the bride, her marital status, her father's name, citizenship, occupation, and residence; and, finally, a few verbs to tie it all together.  The date may be entered at the beginning or at the end.  But there is no standard used by all scribes in all churches.  Usually one man will be consistent with only minor variations.

Many times the writer, or someone who comes along later, will underline the names of the groom and the bride.  If one is seeking only certain names, that is fairly easy to do.  Then, to transcribe the whole record takes much more effort.

Since I had a rough record of the baptisms, I was often checking the names that I read in the marriage record with the names in the baptismal register.  In more than half of the cases the couple does not seem to reappear at the church.  This may mean the couple went to live somewhere else.  It may also mean that people were not diligent about baptizing their children.
(25 Nov 03)

You have had time to read the short piece of history that Andreas sent yesterday (Tuesday to be exact).  I thought I might expand upon this as it merits a much wider audience.

When John Caspar Stoever, Michael Smith, and Michael Holt went to Europe on their fund-raising trip, they emphasized the northern tier of Germany along the Baltic sea as their primary target.  We actually know the cities they visited because of the ledger that they kept of the monies raised.  This book, minus a few pages pertaining to England, is still maintained by the Lutheran church outside Madison, Virginia.  It is available to a wide audience via microfilm.

When the trio visited Kolberg (now a part of Poland), they visited the mayor and probably showed him the letters of recommendation they had from Virginia and from London.  The object was to earn the mayor's good will and help.  They told him their story from the time they emigrated from Germany in 1717 up to then (1736).  The mayor wrote to Prof. Francke and related some of what he had learned.

The Second Colony (which in 1717 hardly merited the nomenclature of Colony) found a ship Captain who said he would take them at the rate of six Pounds Sterling per passenger.  He agreed to take them to Pennsylvania.  (According to another document, they paid him at the time.)  As they were just about to cast the lines off and get underway, the Captain was detained and held in debtors' prison.  This lasted more than eight weeks.  The Germans, being hungry, ate much of the food that was on board the ship.  The Germans were hostages, so to speak.  They had spent their transport money for food, and were unable to find another ship.  When the Captain was released, he promised the Germans that he would obtain more provisions at another place.  Instead they went to sea without replenishing the stock of food.  The voyage was slightly longer than average.  Usually the trip could be made in about ten weeks, but they took three months to make the trip.

As a consequence of the length of the trip and the shortage of food, many passengers died.  They gave the number of thirty for the deaths.  The arrivals seem to have been about eighty in number.  So perhaps 110 started the trip.

One of the questions that has been asked is, "What was the year when they arrived?"  The answer becomes difficult because there were two different calendars in use at that time, called "Old Style" and "New Style".  Later, when reporting their arrival, they failed to state which calendar was being used.  We know that the Germans were still in London at least as late as September 8, when Michael Koch had a baby daughter (Dorothea) baptized in London, with Henry Snider and Mary Elisabeth Scheibel as sponsors.  They may have been there longer than this, but this is the latest date that we can say for certain.
(to be continued in Note Nr. 1816)
(27 Nov 03)

(continued from Note Nr. 1815)
From the baptism of Dorothea Koch (Cook) in London on September 8, 1717, we know that the Second Colony was still there at that date.  According the story that the mayor of Kolberg wrote to Prof. Francke (see Andreas' recent note on the list here), the trip to America took three months.  This takes up to October, November, to December 8 at the minimum.

Later in September, there was a petition signed by some Palatines who pleaded for money to return to their homes.  Some of the signers are people who would later become settlers in Virginia in 1719.  None of the people who did arrive in 1717 were signers.  The date of this petition was September 16.  Perhaps by this date, it was known who was leaving on the ship Scott for Pennsylvania and who was not.  None of the signers of the petition were on the ship.  Though this is weak evidence, the ship Scott perhaps did leave between September 8 and September 16.

If we remember that the Old Style calendar was eleven days behind the new style calendar, and we add the eleven days to September 16 we would get September 27.  Then, if we added three months to this we would be just about at December 31 on the New Style calender, or perhaps even January 1.  Now January 1 on the New Style calendar would be 1718.  On the Old Style calendar in Virginia, both of these days (December 31 and the following day of January 1) would have been 1717.  If the reports on the year of arrival were based on the calendar in use in Virginia, they would have said 1717.  But, as we see, it could readily have been 1718 on the New Style calendar.

The mayor's letter to Prof. Francke said that the Captain was in debtors' prison for eight weeks.  The Germans could hardly have arrived before the middle of August, since some of them left Gemmingen on July 12.  The trip to London could hardly have been made in less than a month.  This would put them in London on August 12, when the search for a ship would begin.  After finding and agreeing with one (Capt. Tarbett), it would be later August.  Eight weeks from this, would be into October.  Then, three months at sea would put them past January 1 for the Virginia arrival.

On an optimistic schedule, they may have made it to Virginia by the end of 1717 on the New Style calendar.  By a more realistic schedule, using the numbers in the letter to Prof. Francke, the arrival would have been after January 1, which on the New Style calendar would have been 1718.

I mentioned this possibility once to Klaus Wust and he said humorously, "We can't change the year of 1717 because it is carved into too many stones."  We can let the 1717 stand and say the congregation was formed in London in the summer of 1717 when they took communion at a German church there.
(29 Nov 03)

A recent question pertained to Naval Stores.  Since Great Britain had ships before they had the North American Colonies, where did they get their Naval Stores then?  At first, they obtained them from the British Isles, where the ultimate source for many of the things that made up Naval Stores was trees, especially pine trees.

Wood and trees were the source of many of the goods which were needed in a civilization then.  So much so that the lands became denuded of trees.  Wood became a precious commodity, not something to be wasted.  This is why Europe has so many half-timbered houses.  Less wood was required to build a half-timbered house than it did to build one completely out of wood.  The frame was built out of wood and this is visible part of the structure that we see today.  The space between these timbers was filled with something else other than wood.  In the oldest half-timbered construction, the space was filled with a patchwork of brush and adobe.  Today, bricks are used because they are more permanent.

The roofs of houses used to be thatch but this was too dangerous from a fire standpoint.  Briefly, prior to the industrial age, thatch was replaced by wood.  This was a drain on the wood supply without relieving the fire hazard completely.  Then it was dictated that the roofs had to be built of slate and tile, non-wood products that had excellent fire inhibiting properties.

By Seventeen Hundred, the industrial age had progressed to the point that much iron was being used.  Iron processing required an intense heat which could be provided by charcoal (pure carbon).  This led to an increased demand on the wood supplies.  In fact, in England, the supply of wood to make charcoal was being exhausted.  England was forced to procure several things from the Baltic nations such as Naval Stores and iron because of the wood shortage at home.

Very soon after Alexander Spotswood came to Virginia (in 1710) he proposed to make iron that could be shipped home to England.  His arguments were good.  Virginia and other Colonies had the necessary materials and energy to do so.  But the mercantile mentality in England said that the colonies must supply raw materials, not finished goods.  He was warned against going into the "iron works" business for this reason.  But his arguments were valid.

However, the production of tar, pitch, and deal boards were encouraged.  England simply could not do these at home so the Colonies were encouraged to do these things.  Germans were sent to New York in 1710 to make Naval Stores.  This project was poorly guided and managed, and produced little.  Spotswood heard the appeal and wanted to go into Naval Stores.  For this purpose, he obtained immense quantities of land which he said were for making Naval Stores.  He "imported" (his word) the people who made up the Second Germanna Colony to provide the labor for this.
(01 Dec 03)

I believe that the Germans, if they had a minister, would tend to hold a church service on Christmas Day.  Whether there would be a Communion Service would depend on other factors.

On the dates that Sandra gave, Communion Services in 1775 and in 1776 were both held on Christmas Day, which tells us that it was not a requirement that the day be a Sunday.  If possible, they would like to hold a church service on Christmas Day regardless of when in the week that it came.  At Hebron, the Communion Services were generally held in the spring and fall, perhaps because of the weather and the demands on the farm.  We know of Communion Services on two Christmas Days when Jacob Franck was the minister (the ones in 1775 and 1776).  One year that he was there, there was no Communion Service on Christmas.  Later, two other Communion Services were held on Christmas.

The more general rule is that Christmas was a religious day with perhaps a big dinner afterwards.  I have read that even artifacts such as Advent Calendars and Manager Scenes were frowned on because they were regarded as idolatrous.  This was akin to worshiping images, and the Lutherans and Reformed were skeptical of images.  But, there was a lot of variation in individual churches.  Some Lutheran Churches used the building, altar, and images that the Catholics had been using.  Some simplified the presentation.  If you visited the Oberfischbach Church (Reformed), you would not see any images to speak of.

In the Eighteenth Century, I think you would find that Christmas was a religious day for the Germans, not a day for fun and frivolous affairs.

With the Amish, the day after Christmas is as sacred as Christmas Day.  Maybe Elke can tell us whether December 26 is a special day at this time for the conventional churches.
(02 Dec 03)

(Reply from Elke Hall, in answer to John's question above:

Christmas is still a sacred religious holiday in Germany, both for Catholics and Protestants.  The "Christkind" brings the gifts for children on Christmas Eve, and then there are two Christmas Holidays, the 25th and the 26th of December, where everything is closed!  If you forgot to buy something, tough luck!  No stores are open!  Families gather for a big dinner (at noon) on Christmas Day, after church services in the morning.  (The churches are not very crowded in cities today.  In smaller villages and towns, more people still go to church.

Christmas Eve in our house was always very special, my father trimmed the tree in the living room during the day, and my brother and I were not allowed to see it before nightfall.  My father had lost a leg in WWII and wore a wooden leg.  He rigged a little bell on a string in the wooden leg and when the bell rang, we were able to enter.  As long as we lived at home, my brother and I pretended not to know that he had the bell in his leg and that the Christkind actually rang the bell as a signal that it had left the living room.  Then the living room door was opened and the Christmas tree was trimmed with all kinds of ornaments and "Lametta" (tinsel) which had been hung individually and absolutely straight by my father (in true German order!) and all the candles on the tree were lit.  It truly was a special sight.  Everyone wished the other "Frohe Weihnachten", then we sang some Christmas songs, and then we were able to open the gifts under the tree.  They were of course not as numerous as today, we received a candy bar, oranges, a sweater, a book.  A few treats and 'useful' things.  Elke [02 Dec 03] )

(Second reply from Elke:

Just realized I didn't really answer John's question in my previous reply.  He is right, both Christmas Holidays are equally solemn and religious days and "family days".  Some parents in Germany are very upset that our American "Santa Claus" is getting more and more important to the children, mainly due to advertising in stores and on TV.  I read last year that some small town in Austria, I believe, actually had a petition not to let Santa Claus take over Christmas.  Elke [02 Dec 03] )

(Third reply from Elke:

On December 4 is Barbaratag (St. Barbara's day).  We used to cut branches from a fruit tree, like a cherry or apple tree, and place them in water.  If we were lucky, then the branches would blossom in the warm living room on Christmas day.  I think if the blossoms opened exactly on Christmas Day, it was a good sign for the future.  Since we have so many Germanna women named Barbara, I thought it might be a nice custom to follow.

On December 6 is Nikolaustag (St. Nikolaus Day) in Germany.  All the little children polish their shoes and put them outside the front door on the evening before (evening of December 5).  If they were good, then St. Nikolaus will fill the shoe with goodies, chocolates, and sweets.  If they were bad, he comes with his helper, Knecht Ruprecht, and puts a bunch of branches in the shoe for punishment.  That was the custom of the "Olden Days"; today's parents hopefully no longer use the switch!  Of course I always was a good little girl, always had oranges and candy in my shoe.  We always put our biggest boots out there, just so that there was enough room for all the goodies.  Elke [02 Dec 03] )

Recently a question was raised as to what county should be used to identify where events happened.  For example, a man could be born in a house, married in the same house, and die also in the same house.  Suppose when the birth occurred that the house was in Orange County, when the marriage occurred the house was in Culpeper County, and when he died the house was in Madison County.

Is it better to say his birth place, marriage site, and the location of death were

1. All in Madison County, or

2. The birth was in Orange Co., the marriage in Culpeper Co., and the death in Madison Co.?

In spite of the great temptation to say Madison Co. for all three, genealogists prefer to say what the county was when the event occurred.  Vital statistics were skimpy in Orange Co., but if you were looking for those that might pertain to birth, you surely do not want to be looking in Madison Co.  The logic, of course, is with the second alternative above and behooves the researcher to realize when the boundaries of counties change and how they changed.  So if I have a death in Madison Co. in 1795, I will not look for a birth record of an elderly woman in Madison Co.

Let me give another example which I think is comparable, but many of you might not agree.  The earliest written appearance of the name Hebron for the Lutheran Church in Madison County was in 1850.  So if I am talking about this church when Rev. Franck came in 1775, should I call it "Hebron"?  At that time, the name was something else, probably something like "German Lutheran Church".  A little later it became the "Lutheran Church", and still later it became "Madison Lutheran Church", before it was recognized as "Hebron Church" about 1850.

If I do a book on baptisms in this church in the period from 1750 to 1813, and I call the church "Hebron", then I am creating a falsehood.  There was no church by that name in that period.  The dilemma is that no one would recognize the book if I called it the German Lutheran Baptisms.  Here is a case where it seems the modern or current name must be used to describe the church throughout its history.

Comments?
(03 Dec 03)

Continuing to think along the lines of the last note, suppose that we want to do a search for Oberfischbach in the Catalog of the Latter Days Saints.  If I enter Oberfischbach as a place to search for in the Catalog, I get the response of:

Germany, Bayern
Germany, Preu�en, Hessen-Nassau
Germany, Westfalen

Again, we need to know some geography to proceed.  First, note that the secondary names after Germany are in German.  Since I have read the Germanna publications, I have heard of Nassau-Siegen.  So if I select the second of the three above, I would be wrong.  There is no Nassau-Siegen that I might have expected to see.  If I look at the modern map of Germany with the names of the states, I would not see Hessen-Nassau or Westfalen directly.

In constructing the LDS Catalog for Germany, it was recognized that villages have appeared, in the course of time, in many different States and Principalities.  Down south in the Kraichgau, there were many independent principalities or villages which hardly anyone has heard of.  Then, over the course of time, these have appeared in many different States.  An example, from the Kraichtal (different from the Kraichgau), the Neuenb�rg of the Blankenbakers was in the lands of the Bishops of Speyer in 1717.  After about 1802, it was in Baden, and today it is Baden-W�rttemberg.  What do I use as a secondary specification to fix the location of this village?  This type of thing was such a problem that the LDS catalogers used different rules.  They used the political lines of 1872(?) as their boundaries, regardless of how the boundaries changed before or after this.  Actually, they have been relatively stable (except for the eastern regions) since 1872.

So looking for Neuenb�rg, I would enter Baden as the secondary location.  If I did this, they would find two villages which met this specification, corresponding to the fact that names are repeated even within the same State.  In addition to the State, I need the county (or a large nearby city) to select between the two.  Again, a map of Germany is very useful.

Several people have fixed on the wrong Neuenb�rg as their village, especially when they learn that the other one (the correct one) has no Protestant Church (Evangelische Kirche).  So, geography in Germany can be tricky, but a knowledge of it is necessary to find the correct location.  If the information about the location comes from a church record, remember that it may be spelled wrong (it often is).

In the Garr history, there was a reference to Kolnpach.  Immediately one might be suspicious and think it should be Kolnbach.  But no cigar.  Try Kolmbach and there is a city, but the wrong location.  The correct location, by the name of Kolmbach, is obscure, as it is the name of a farm.  It does appear on the German ordinance maps, though it is doubtful that you have one of these.  When you do reach the location, there is a road sign that says Kolmbach.
(04 Dec 03)

[My attention to these notes was diverted by all that white stuff outside the house.  I had to get Eleanor off to work; important things come first.]

I like not to refer to the Hebron Community for several reasons.  It is not inclusive by any means.  Some of the descendants of the Anglos and Saxons lived there also.  And, of the Germans, not all of them professed the Lutheran faith.

The members of the Church, which I will call Hebron, was positive that they were adherents to the Lutheran "unaltered Augsburg confession".  In the Eighteenth Century, anyone was welcome to attend Church, but only Lutherans could partake of Communion.  There was a strong Lutheran flavor to its beliefs and practices.

Referring to the Hebron Community should only be used for the Lutherans.  To be more inclusive, I use the term Robinson River Valley [RRV].  While this is not absolutely correct because the boundaries of the area in which we are interested did not exactly match the Robinson River watershed, it is remarkably close.  I can forgive the excesses and shortfalls.

After a few decades in the Robinson River Valley there were several choices in churches.  To the Germans, the most important alternative was probably the Hoffman Reformed Chapel, which was active late in the Century.  Several families were Reformed in the RRV.  Besides the Hoffmans, there were Fischbachs, Stoneciphers, Railsbacks, perhaps a Becker, and at least two families of Holtzclaws.

Starting about the time of the Revolution, there were also the alternative churches such as the Baptists and Methodists.  And the Anglicans, later Episcopalians, were there also.

All of these were mixed together in the big bowl called the Robinson River Valley.  Only one of the ingredients was called Lutheran or Hebron.

[Did you notice how my attention has been drawn to food by the work that I did?]
(05 Dec 03)

The comments in this Note are stolen from the current issue of The Newsletter of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the Palatines to America.  The author there credits several web sites which have comments on Christkindlmarkt.

That last word is better understood if it is broken into its three parts, Christ, kindl, and markt which are the German words for Christ, children, and market, respectively.  These Christkindl Markets are held in most German-speaking countries and in a few North America cities.  Often the Advent Season starts with the opening of the town Christkindlmarkt which is generally held in the town square in a pedestrian zone.  The market combines shopping and pageantry using a bit of tradition for stability.

Typically, a Christkindlmarkt opens with a golden-haired angel played by a local youth.  In some larger towns, this is repeated every night.  Popular items at the Market are the Nativity Scene (the creche or crib), figures made of decorated dried plums, carved nutcrackers, candied toasted almonds, assorted cookies, Christstollen (egg bread with candied fruit), and Gluhwein (hot mulled wine, with or without a shot of brandy.  The last is to provide energy for the cold winter air.  Crafts are to be found, often homemade, toys, books, and generally useful gadgets.

As the custom of giving gifts grew, so did the Christkindl Markets.  They have become renown for their special ceremonies, festivities, entertainment, gifts, and food.

The Munich Christkindlesmarkt was mentioned for the first time in 1310.  The one held in Nuernberg is probably the best known.  (Trying to get a hotel room is not easy.)  The markets are outdoors in wooden booths decorated with green boughs and holly berry branches.  The creche originated in south Germany, where the symbolism of the figures was a means of religious instruction.  The oldest known creche is from 1590 at Augsburg.
(10 Dec 03)

Several postings have been made here about the Black Dutch and their origins.  I am trying to remember where I heard the following.  I may have the details wrong, but that is only evidence of my memory, not of the basic methodology.

DNA studies have been made of people who seem to have a valid claim to being Black Dutch.  The results confirm some earlier ideas, but, in addition, add a new, unexpected element.  They have their origins as a mixture of Caucasian, Black, and Indian blood.  The unexpected element was that a trace of Turkish women was also found.  How this could have come about is totally unexplained.

Though DNA work is in its infancy, it is still capable of answering many questions.  More should be done with DNA.  Eventually, it will probably be an alternative to other methods of proof for the patriotic societies, such as the DAR.

With some of the more common Germanna names such as Cook and Hoffman/Huffman, it is very difficult to prove a line.  Given that there are proven lines, one can compare to these to see if there is a match.  For example, there are Huffmans who are unattached though perhaps with a modicum of evidence who would like to answer the question of whether they came from the Germanna Hofmanns.  I should think that DNA testing would be useful.

There are two obstacles to DNA testing.  One is the cost, though, in comparison to what one spends on subscriptions, books, and research, it is not that bad.

The other obstacle is the fear of what might be disproved.  The testing companies require, I understand, that every person who is tested sign a waiver of their rights.  Or stated in another way, the proposal that every baby be tested for a match to the mother's husband was rejected.  The reason?  There are too many cases were the true father is not the apparent father.  This says a lot about genealogy as a subject for study.
(11 Dec 03)

I have been trying my hand at reading the Marriage Register for Oberfischbach in the period of time that Rev. Henry H�ger was the pastor there.  Actually, I also have been reading on both sides of this period of time.  The last marriage by Rev. H�ger was 14 Aug 1710.  His successor, Rev. Knabenschuh, has a first marriage on 19 May 1711.  Thus, there seems to be a hiatus of a better part of a year between the pastors.  The letter of Rev. H�ger requesting retirement was dated 16 Feb 1711, so it seems to suggest that his ill health had prevented him from performing marriages for several months.  (Or there were no people wanting to get married in this interval.)

My attention was especially drawn to one marriage by Rev. Knabenschuh on 18 May 1712.  The groom was Arnold Knie, the son of the deceased Veter Knie of Heis(s)berg.  The bride was Anna Catharina Holtzklau, the surviving legitimate daughter of the Johannes Holtzklau, the former schoolteacher at Oberfischbach.

The name "Veter", which is clearly written with a "V", is probably to be taken as "Peter" by us.  The surname Knie seemed a bit odd to me, but, on consulting B. C. Holtzclaw, I find the Knie family was an allied family to the Holtzklau family in earlier generations.

Johannes Holtzklau was the brother of the 1713 emigrant, Hans Jacob Holtzklau, who was about 14 years younger than Johannes.  Johannes died in 1707 as a young man of 38.  Jacob Holtzklau took over his place as schoolteacher at Oberfischbach.

Anna Catharina, the daughter of Johannes and the niece of Jacob, was born about 1695, so she was about 17 when she married Arnold Knie.

Rev. Knabenschuh did not have the best handwriting.  It helps that the range of places which are mentioned is limited.  Surnames can be a problem, but it is helpful to consult the indices of books dealing with the history of the region and the people in the region.  Though my first reading of the name Knie was as that, I had my doubts, so I certainly did consult other sources.  Happily, it is a name to be found in the region.

The entry of the Marriage Record occurs when the groom and the bride announce their intention to be married.  At this time all of the information except the date is recorded.  About a month later, they are married, and then a date is appended to the record stating that they were married.  Sometimes, even though the church is at Oberfischbach, the marriage takes place in another village.
(15 Dec 03)

I, and others (Suzanne and Andreas), have been reading the Church Book for Oberfischbach around the time that Rev. H�ger was the pastor.  I have completed a preliminary read for the services of Rev. H�ger in the matter of marriages.  This record is not a Marriage Record, but is a record of the first Announcements of Intentions to Marry ("the banns").  About half of the time, he added the actual date of marriage, which generally was about one month after the first announcement of intention.  In one case, the intention was not fulfilled for reasons that were not stated.

These are the surnames which occur in the Announcements of Intentions to Marry Records, as entered by Rev. H�ger:

B�rn/B�r	Henerici	Kunte/Cunte/Cuntze	Spiess
Beker	Hoffman	Le�endeker	St�gers
Bell/Belle	Honrath	L�berich	Stahl
Berluh	Huttsiffer?	Ludwig	Stahlschmid
Bros/Brost/Bross	Jung/J�ng	Ohrenbach	Stockhauser
Daub	Kehler	Reinschmid	Stohlschnider
Dilster	Kinsd- - -	Reisdorft	Strack
D�hr/D�rr	Klappert/Koppert	R�bel	�bach
Faust/Fa�st	Knie	Schmid/Schmidt	Weissg�rber
Fischbach	Kolbe	Schneider	Winckel
Giseler	Kr�mer	Siebel	W�ste/W�sten

Many of the names are repeated.  Hoffman, Schneider, and �bach are especially popular.  To continue with the surnames:

Bael	Griseler	Lutz/L�tz/Lutzen	Schielman?
Bender	Haars/Hars	Mentz	Schnell
Blecher	Hausmann	Neuhe	Siegeler
Brass/Brasen	Holtzclau	Peltzer	Weichel
Cotri	Kramer/Kr�mer	Reichard	Wellees
Fischach (Fischbach?)	Lasen?	Reisteraht	Weller
Gibele	Latschen	Reistwohl	Wiste
Grimme	List	Scherer

Several names are lumped together because I am suspicious that they may be the same name.  Rev. H�ger�s spelling was not always the best, it seems.  In the same record the surnames of the groom and of his father may be given in two different ways.  More research is needed in other records to see if there may be preferred spelling in order to put together all of the related people.  Rev. H�ger also has the habit of omitting letters, especially on the end of words and names.  A flourish at the end is apt to stand for "en".

Rev. H�ger performed 58 marriages from 5 August 1703 to 1 June 1710 (both dates are the dates of banns).

In the margin of the book, notes have been added which do not seem to be a part of the official records.  For example, "tischgeld" is mentioned in more than one.  That would seem to me to be "table money" or a tip, perhaps for the services rendered.
(17 Dec 03)