History of Lehigh county, Pennsylvania and a genealogical and biographical record of its families, Vol. I, Part 151

Author: Roberts, Charles Rhoads; Stoudt, John Baer, 1878- joint comp; Krick, Thomas H., 1868- joint comp; Dietrich, William Joseph, 1875- joint comp; Lehigh County Historical Society
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Allentown, Pa. : Lehigh Valley Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1158

USA > Pennsylvania > Lehigh County > History of Lehigh county, Pennsylvania and a genealogical and biographical record of its families, Vol. I > Part 151

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The clothing used by the early settlers was mainly of flax, which was woven by the women and the younger sons of the family. Children went barefooted, and when grown up were pre- sented with a pair of cowhide shoes or boots. Later, a pair of these was given each fall. Agri-

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NORTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP.

culture was a rude affair, and farming imple- ments were of the simplest description. Plows were made of wood, the point of the share being tipped with iron; hoes and forks were clumsily made and heavy out of all proportion.

Not all the land was at first taken by farmers and improved. Large tracts were also applied for by speculators, who held them for a time only for the purpose of realizing a profit on their sale. One of the principal of these was Samuel Morris, of Philadelphia, who owned a large es- tate in the neighborhood of Romich's mill. He stationed a watchman by the name of John Henry upon his land to prevent depredations upon the wood. John was fond of his toddy, and the neighbors were accustomed to humor this weak- ness of his to such an extent that he would forget his duty and assist them in carting away the wood he was appointed to guard. He is still remembered by the name of "Elsenhaus," which he received because of his so doing. Another famous land speculator was Nicholas Kraemer, who flourished between 1800 and 1817.

The colonist made application to the rulers of the province of Pennsylvania for a warrant for the survey of the land selected, paying at the same time a certain per cent. of the purchase money down. The prices of the land varied at different times. Between 1744 and 1758 the price per 100 acres was £15, 10 sh., or $41.33 or $0.41 per acre. About 1762 and 1763, the time of the Indian troubles, the price sank to £9, or $24, and in 1765 it rose to its former price, at which figure it remained for but a short time. The value fell again to £5 sterling, or $22.22, in July, 1765, at which price it was sold till after the close of the Revolutionary War and the re- turn of peace, in 1784.

After taking out the warrant, the settler had a presumptive title to the land, which he se- cured by paying a portion of the purchase money down as already stated. The warrant in reality was only an instrument giving the surveyor-gen- eral of the province authority to survey a tract of land corresponding in quantity to what was asked for in the settlers application. The survey was then made, generally a few months after the issuing of the warrant, and a return made to the land office, with a draft attached. Then, at the convenience of the colonists, sometimes not for many years after the first steps were taken, the settler paid the balance of the purchase money, and received from the proprietaries of the prov- ince a deed-patent for the land surveyed for him. The full title to their lands was thus often not secured by the early settlers till after the lapse of twenty or twenty-five years, or even more, from the time when they first settled. For ex-

ample, the land of Nicholas Saeger, who took out a warrant for 250 acres on Coplay creek on October 28, 1737, was not surveyed till the 14th of November following; and he did not ask for or obtain his deed for the same till April 6, 1762. So with the second tract of 431/2 acres, for which he applied on January 24, 1739. This was not surveyed till the 8th of May in that year, and a deed for it was not received by him till April 6, 1762. Thus it will be seen that Saeger was in the full enjoyment of the first tract twenty-five years, and of the second twenty-three years, before the title fully vested in him. This was the general practice of the early settlers, some of whom in fact never received a deed for the lands for which they had taken out warrants, selling their title to the warrants, so that often the deeds were made to their vendees. This seeming looseness was permitted by the proprie- taries for the greater encouragement of coloniza- tion.

TAXABLES FOR 1781 .- The assessment-lists for 1781, disclose the names of the following real- estate owners in the township :

Michael Bruch

Peter Neuhard

Stephen Balliet John Balliet

Lawrence Neuhard

Paul Balliet

Peter Neuhard

Henry Berger

Lawrence Ruch

Jacob Berger

Michael Ringer, Jr.

Christopher Blank

Nicholas Seager

Henry Bear

Nicholas Seager, Jr.

Philip Deel

Samuel Seager

Peter Draxel

Christian Seager

Daniel Draxel

Peter Steckle

Nicholas Draxel

Jacob Steckle

Adam Draxel

John Shad

Jacob Frantz

Adam Serfass

Jacob Flickinger

Stephen Snyder

George Flickinger

Michael Snyder

Lawrence Good

Daniel Snyder

Paul Gross Conrad Seip

Widow Houser.

William Seip

Jacob Harmon

Adam Sheurer

John Hoffman

Peter Sneck

Barthol Hoffman

Henry Sneck

Peter Hoffman Yost G. Sneck

George Hoffman

Martin Samel

Henry Heffelfinger

George Samel

Andrew Jeal

Jacob Sander

Jacob Kohler

Adam Sander

Peter Kohler

Tohn Sander

Theobald Kennel

Widow Siegfried

Henry Koon

Andrew Siegfried

Gottfrey Laury

Samuel Woodring

Conrad Leysering

Nicholas Woodring

Peter Mever

Tacob Wolf

Jacob Miller

Philip Knappenberger

Sebastian Miller

John Mosser

Adam . Miller

INDIAN MASSACRE .- The valleys through which the Coplay, Rock, and Mill creeks flow were favorite hunting- and camping-grounds of

Widow Snyder

Martin Graff

Frederick Neuhard

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HISTORY OF LEHIGH COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

the Delaware and Shawanese Indians. Kolapech- ka, a chief of the latter tribe, and the son of Paxanosa, also a chief, dwelt on the banks of Sand Spring, one of the tributaries of Coplay creek, near Ballietsville. He was a good man, and was frequently employed by the govern- ment as a messenger. The remains of the foun- dation walls of this hunt are still pointed out. There were Indian villages on Laurence Trox- ell's, Hilarius Kennell's and the Woodrings' land, near Schnecksville. Another encampment was located on land of Jerry Kuhns, and the spring flowing by the spot is yet known as Indian Spring. At the mouth of Rock creek there was also a village, and at the same point there was a fording place used by the Indians in crossing the Lehigh river. Some distance farther down the stream were rapids, which were known as the Indian falls until they were flooded by the erection of Kuntz's dam, two miles above Laury's. There were burial grounds on land of Tilghman Schneck and beyond Unionville. Near Romich's mill there is a field on the side of the hill, well exposed to the sun, upon which the sav- ages raised Indian corn. In the neighborhood of these places there are still found stone arrow- heads, axes, tomahawks, hoes, etc., in abundance. Traces of Indian paths are still visible in the vicinity of Sand Spring, and from Siegfried's bridge to Egypt, thence to the Blue mountains, near the Bake Oven Knob. The latter runs due east and west, and its course is still plain from the cleared space where there are woods. At the upper end of the village of Whitehall, in White- hall township, about a quarter of a mile north of the bridge at Siegfried's, the Indians were ac- customed to cross the Lehigh river. On the Northampton county side of the river, numerous skeletons, beads, tomahawks, etc., were discover- ed in digging the road bed of the Lehigh and Susquehanna railroad, about fourteen years ago. Numerous Indian paths branched out on this side of the river from this fording place, one of which, leading along Mill creek, was taken by the Indians on their murderous journey in Oc- tober, 1763.

The relations of the early German settlers were peaceful and friendly with the Indians. The latter plaited baskets for their white neighbors, and received in return the necessaries of life, while the children of both played and grew up with each other. After the defeat of Braddock in 1753, the murderous instincts of the savages were aroused, and the settlers were constantly disturbed. It was a customary thing for the former, rifle in hand, to ascend some high point near his house before retiring, and look for blaz- ing cottages. In 1758 peace was made and kept

unbroken till 1763, when Indian fury again broke out.

On the 8th of October, 1763,-a clear, de- lightful fall day,-a band of twelve Indians crossed the Lehigh river at the spot where White- hall now stands, fresh from an attack upon the whites in Allen township, Northampton county, and proceeded along Mill creek to the farm of John Jacob Mickley, three of whose children they met in the woods gathering chestnuts, and immediately murdered two of them. They then proceeded to the house of Nicholas Marks and John Schneider, both of which they burned down after they had killed Schneider, his wife and three children, and wounded two daughters, scalping one of them, and leaving both for dead. Marks and his family escaped. Another of Schneider's children was taken captive, and never restored. The murdered Mickley chil- dren were buried on the farm, and the spot where they are interred at the foot of a large chestnut-tree is still pointed out. For nineteen years the scene of these cruelties remained en- tirely deserted by whites. In 1784, G. Remeli bought the land and erected upon it a small stone house, which is yet standing. A portion of the land is now owned by James Frantz.

REMELI SPRINGHOUSE, BUILT 1784.

The daughters of John Schneider, who were wounded by the Indians and left for dead, (one of them being scalped), recovered from their in- juries. In 1765 the Assembly of the province passed a bill for their relief. They never en- joyed sound health, and the one who had been scalped was a pitiable object with her head un- covered with hair.

During these troubles the settlers would leave their homes and seek refuge in what were called

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NORTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP.

forts, as at Siegersville, Ballietsville, and in Deshler's Fort, near Egypt, and Coplay. Paulus Balliet and Adam Deshler were very active in the protection of the community from the attacks of the Indians, and formed and equipped com- panies of soldiers to fight with the Indians, re- ceiving for their services in the latter's behalf substantial reward from the Assembly of Penn- sylvania. Deshler's fort is still standing in a good state of preservation. It is a two and a half story stone building and stands on a little eminence overlooking the meadows through which Coplay creek flows. The building is forty feet long by thirty in width. The walls are eighteen inches or two feet thick, and heavy tim- bers support the interior. There were a few small windows in the sides, with four panes of glass, and in the gable ends there were square loopholes. A large hearth and chimney occupies the center of the house, and divides the lower and upper stories into two apartments. In the mantelpiece above this can be seen the bullet- holes made by the Indians. It was the place of refuge for the entire neighborhood upon an alarm being sounded, and at the time of the Indian murders in 1763 was occupied by twenty men at arms, who, on receipt of the ill tidings from the fugitives, started in pursuit of the savages, but without overtaking them.

A number of captives were taken by the In- dians during the disturbances, and those with black hairs and eyes were generally spared and adopted. One of the Mayers, his wife and his son, were captured and received into a tribe. In September, 1757, a girl by the name of Margaret Frantz was taken prisoner by the Indians while washing flax in company with another girl named Solt, who was also captured in the creek near her father's house, on land near Ballietsville. She was twelve years of age, and lived with the In- dians for seven years, until exchanged. Her companion, Solt, lived with an Indian as his wife, and had two children, of whom she was permitted to retain the girl on her being re- stored to the whites. Henry Frantz, the father of Margaret, was killed by the savages in 1764 and scalped. The Indians pricked a mark re- sembling a hen's foot, or, as some say, leaves, on the right wrist, rubbing it in with powder. Five years after her return from captivity, on the 9th of May, 1769, she was married to Nich- olas Wotring. She became noted far and wide for her knowledge of herbs and simples, which she acquired from the Indians, and her services in curing the sick were in great demand. Her journeys, while on these errands, she always accomplished on horseback. She died on the

29th of June, 1823, aged seventy-eight years, one month, and twenty-three days.

Marker of Indian Massacre .- A granite mark- er, twenty-eight inches wide, by thirty-six inches high, and thirteen inches thick, was set up by the Lehigh County Historical Society on Oct. 8, 1913, in North Whitehall township, on the west side of the public road leading from Egypt to Sheidy's, about a mile west of Egypt, near the dwelling-house of James Frantz, for the purpose of marking the locality where the In- dians in 1763 killed in a barbarous manner a number of inhabitants of the township. The in- scription is as follows :

"Here on October 8, 1763, John Snyder and his wife, Anna Margaret Wotring, with their three children and Jacob Alleman's wife and child were killed by Indians. Their bodies were buried 200 yards south of this spot. John Jacob Mickley's children, Henry and Barbara, killed the same day, were buried half a mile to the east. This was the last Indian massacre in Lehigh county."

UNION CHURCH .- The earliest inhabitants of North Whitehall, including those of contiguous territory, were mostly of the Reformed faith, and some were Lutherans. The early history of Union church is involved in considerable obscur- ity, for there are no written records to throw light upon it. In the early times the settlers at- tended services, held at private dwellings or in the school-houses, and they often consisted only of prayer, singing, and reading of Scripture. After their number had increased somewhat, those of the Lutheran faith began attending serv- ices at the nearest churches, such as Jordan and Heidelberg; but those of the Reformed faith, being greater in numbers, early united in form- ing a congregation and building a house of wor- ship. The exact date when this was done cannot now be ascertained, but it probably happened in the decade beginning with 1750; for there is a record of date 1748, in which the Heidelberg, Jordan, and Egypt churches are mentioned, and there is another made in 1764, in which mention first occurs of Schlosser's (now Union) church. This building erected by the Reformed com- municants (the original of the present Unionville congregation), stood just outside the southeast- ern wall of the old burying ground. It was constructed of logs, and was about 50 feet in length. It was plastered within, and contained galleries along the sides, with benches of equal height placed on the level floor, so that it was impossible for those who occupied the rear seats to see the minister at the altar or the worship-

846

HISTORY OF LEHIGH COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

ers on the floor below. The chancel was laid with flag stones, and altogether the structure was an improvement upon others of that day. This first building was commonly known as Schlosser's church, being located on land which was donated by the first of the Schlosser family, and supposed to have been erected in 1755.

In 1767 the congregation united with the Re- formed congregations of Egypt, Jordan, and Northampton borough in purchasing six acres of land and erecting a common parsonage, at a total expense of £52, or $345.62. This, it is supposed, stood on what is Moyer's land, on the road from Mechanicsville to Mickley's Tavern, in South Whitehall.

In 1768 an application was filed in the land- office of Pennsylvania for a tract of land by Daniel Gross and Paul Balliet for the use of the Reformed congregation, although both in this application and in the patent-deed afterwards granted for the land, the congregation is denomi- nated Presbyterian, under which name they held the land until April, 1879, when action was taken towards changing the name from Presby- terian to Reformed, and in December, 1881, Al- exander, Peter, and Moses Hollenbach were ap- pointed a committee to have the change legally made. A deed for their lands was confirmed to the congregation on May 27, 1827, in pursuance of the seventh section, of an act of assembly approved the 17th day of April, 1827, which enacts-

"That the officers of the land office are hereby authorized and required to issue a patent, free of the purchase money and fees, to Peter Romich and Christian Houseman, Sr., and their successors, in trust and for the sole use and benefit of the con- gregations of North Whitehall township, Lehigh county, known by the name of Union, alias Schlos- ser's, Church, composed of Lutherans and Presby- . terians, for a certain tract of land situate in North Whitehall township aforesaid, surveyed to them by virtue of an application dated June second, 1768, numbered 3374.

Three drafts of church lands are contained among the church records,-the first of three acres, surveyed in 1795, at the request of Michael Hoffman; the second made in 1796, at the request of Peter Romich, in which the church tract is shown to consist of 87 acres and allow- ances; and a third was made on April 11, 1839, by Daniel Saeger, Esq., by request of the consist- ory. The last appears to be the only legal one, and on it the church land is shown to consist of 94 acres, 18 perches.

On November 7, 1795, the congregation then consisting wholly of Reformed members, held a meeting and decided to erect a stone church in place of the old log building. It was also re- solved to invite their Lutheran neighbors to form

a congregation, and unite with them in erecting the new building, which should be held in com- mon. As an inducement, the Reformed mem- bers offered the Lutherans a half interest in 40 acres of their lands, which tract should after that time be held in commonalty by both, and also agreed to sell all of their lands above these forty acres, and devote the proceeds towards the expense of construction. On May 27, 1796, be- ing the occasion of the laying of the corner- stone, the Lutherans accepted these propositions, formed a separate congregation, and united with their Reformed brethren in constructing the new church. None of the church lands were sold, however, the cost of constructing being liquidated with free-will contributions.

This second church building stood in a line with the old stone school house (still standing) and the yard of the present brick church, on ground lying between the two. It was solidly built of rough hewn stone, with galleries running around three sides of the interior. It was com- pleted in the following year (1797), and since that time has, together with the church lands and other temporalities of the former Reformed con- gregation, been held and owned in common by the members of the Reformed and Lutheran con- gregations of this vicinity, each, however, being perfectly free to worship after its own fashion, and holding divine services on alternate Sundays. From this date the church and congregation have been known as the Union church, although among the people it was also called the Grund- Eichel Kirche, or Scrub-Oak Church, owing to the large quantity of scrub-oak and low timber growing around the building.

The first communion service of the church, made of pewter, has been preserved as a cherished relic of the early times, and is deposited in a spe- cial case for exhibition, which is attached to the wall in the southwest corner of the auditorium. Two of the klingel-säck, used for taking the collection from 1755 for an hundred years, are also on exhibition in the same corner, suspended against the wall. They are made of small, black, velvet bags, with little bells fastened to the bot- tom, and attached to black poles about five feet long.

The old white-painted pulpit of the 1797 church has also been preserved as an interesting piece of furniture, and stands in the basement at the foot of the south side stairway. It is nine feet high, and four feet wide at the top, and re- sembles a large goblet with the base cut off at the foot of the stem.

This stone building served all the purposes of the united congregations until February II, 1871, when they resolved to erect a new and

847

NORTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP.

substantial brick building, 50 feet in front and 80 feet in depth. It was found, however, a task of no small importance to tear down the old stone church for so solid was the masonry, and so thick were the walls, that it required the use of blasting-powder, and the united efforts of a large crowd of people, who had collected by invitation from the neighborhood and even from distant parts of the township, to overthrow the walls. The timbers were found in part still sound and dry as when first laid. When the corner stone was reached, it was found entirely empty, although many articles, besides pieces of money, had been deposited in the walnut box, with sliding lid, which was placed in the cavity of the stone, nearly a century previous. It was ascertained that it had remained uncovered and unprotected over night, when laid, and the sup- position is that it was then rifled of its contents by sacrilegious thieves.

On May 28, 1871, the corner stone of the present building was laid with imposing cere- monies in the presence of a large throng. In the corner stone was placed a zinc box, resting on a plate of heavy glass, and packed on all sides with powdered charcoal and plaster of Paris, and in this box were placed church records, books of worship, silver and copper coins, and memen- toes of members of the congregations, and the whole covered with a second plate of heavy glass.

The present building is of brick, handsomely finished within and without. It has a spire one hundred and sixty-five feet in height, in which hangs a bell of 2,000 pounds weight. Around the three sides extend galleries, and a basement room is under the whole, used for Sunday- and sing- ing-school purposes. It was dedicated to the service of God on Whitsuntide, 1872, with im- pressive ceremonies, conducted by Revs. Dr. Wil- liam F. A. Notz, E. Boner, and A. R. Horne, Lutheran ministers; and Rev. Drs. Bomberger, and Gerhard, Reformed ministers.

Certain additions to the church constitution were proposed at a meeting of the church councils on February II, 1871, and formally adopted by the congregations on the 25th of February fol- lowing. They were as follows: "The present church shall be for the exclusive use of the Re- formed and Lutheran congregations. As long as one single member of either of these denomina- tions remains faithful to its doctrines and prac- tices, the church property cannot pass out of his hands." These additional rules were signed by the church councils, consisting of William Gern- ert, Moses Hollenbach, Hilarius Kennel, and Peter Gross, elders; and Tilghman Semmel, Thomas Casey, Tilghman F. Schneck, Stephen

Deibert, David Hensinger, Lewis Clauser, Alex- ander Peter, deacons.

The building committee consisted of Benja- min Semmel and Emanuel Krause, of the Lu- therans, and Elias Hoffman and Aaron Balliet of the Reformed. The cost of erecting the pres- ent building was $34,000, which was paid in part with labor, collections, and free-will offer- ings; the remainder by levying a tax upon the basis of the county and state rates, no adult male member paying less than $5.

The Lutheran church record begins with 1797, and is headed as follows: "Church Record of the Evangelical Lutheran Brethren in the Faith of the Union Church in Whitehall, Northamp- ton." The first entry was the baptism of a child of Christian and Magdalene Hausman March 5, 1797. Immediately following are the records of baptisms in families by the name of Adams, Helff- rich, Seiss, Deibert, Mosser, Fenstermacher, Walb, Semmel, Rumbel, etc. In 1806 there were 93 communicants on the Lutheran side, and in 1821 21 catechumens were confirmed by the name of Mosser, Miller, Laury, Semmel, Seiss, Scheirer, Jacobs, Deibert, Housman, Zellner, and Herbster.

The early records of the Reformed congre- gation were placed in the corner stone of the second church, but when that was opened, they were gone with the rest of its contents. Nearly everything told of its early history has been transmitted by oral tradition, and not much can be stated with certainty, except that in point of numbers the Reformed congregation was always stronger than the Lutheran. In 1808 the Lu- therans had 68 communicants, the Reformed more than twice that number. In 1858 the latter had 309 communicants, while the Lutherans numbered a little more than half as many. In 1872 there were 264 heads of families of the Reformed faith and 155 of the Lutheran. In 1874 the Reformed had communing members to the number of 615, while the Lutherans had 419; the former had 330 contributing mem- bers and the latter 225. In 1884 the congre- gations were 1,076, composed of 622 Reformed communicants and 454 Lutheran. In 1913, the membership was about 800 Reformed and 700 Lutheran.

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History of Lehigh county, Pennsylvania and a genealogical and biographical record of its families, Vol. I, Part 151

Author: Roberts, Charles Rhoads; Stoudt, John Baer, 1878- joint comp; Krick, Thomas H., 1868- joint comp; Dietrich, William Joseph, 1875- joint comp; Lehigh County Historical Society Publication date: 1914 Publisher: Allentown, Pa. : Lehigh Valley Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1158

Author: Roberts, Charles Rhoads; Stoudt, John Baer, 1878- joint comp; Krick, Thomas H., 1868- joint comp; Dietrich, William Joseph, 1875- joint comp; Lehigh County Historical Society
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Allentown, Pa. : Lehigh Valley Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1158