USA > Pennsylvania > Berks County > Some early lineages of Berks County, Pa. : Clauser (Klauser)-Hicks (Hix) and associated lines > Part 2
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Washington's bodyguard was made up almost entirely of Pennsylvania Germans. They were the first to answer Wash- ington's call at Cambridge, and they were the last to leave his side at Mount Vernon. They participated in every campaign of the Revolutionary War. Dr. Bodo Otto of Reading
was the Chief Surgeon of the Continental Armies. George Washington was first called "Father of His Country" in a German almanac printed at Lancaster in 1779.
The State Convention elected to ratify the Constitution
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of the United States was composed of delegates, half of whom were German. The first speaker of the United States House of Representatives was F. A. C. Muhlenberg. He was the brother of a Revolutionary War general and a grandson of Conrad Weiser, the colonial Indian interpreter of Berks County.
Other early Pennsylvania Germans were William Ritten- house, who built the first paper mill in America, 1690; Christopher Sauer, the earliest type founder in America, who published the first Bible in 1734; John Fritz, who founded the steel industry in Pennsylvania; David Ritten- house, who made the first approximately accurate calculation of the distance from the earth to the sun; Christopher Dock, who in 1754 published the earliest American book on pedagogy, Schul Ordung and the first book on etiquette; Baron von Stiegel, 1777, of Berks County, of glass-making fame; Molly Pitcher (nee Ludwig) the heroine of Stony Point; Barbara Fritchie (nee Hauer) of Cumberland County, celebrated Whittier's poem.
Among Pennsylvania German descendants are Admiral Schley, hero of Santiago; General John J. Pershing; General J. Hunter Liggett; General Lewis Hershey; Presidents Herbert Hoover and Dwight Eisenhower; Senator W. E. Borah; James Lick, builder of Lick Observatory; John Sutter, discoverer of gold. These few names are easily recognized. Volumes have been written about the Pennsylvania Germans, their
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history, their folklore, their language and their accom- plishments.
Not only the Germans, but the Scotch, English, and smaller groups contributed in full measure to the early development of Pennsylvania. All of them deserve our profound respect for their incredible courage, their perseverance, and their foresight so necessary in building the foundation of a great government.
Pennsylvania German
The German settlers of Eastern Pennsylvania did not all originally speak the same High German dialect, for they came from a number of different states. The dialect in a com- munity was determined by its largest group from any given German section. For example, Reading in 1748 was mostly populated by Wurttembergers and Palatines, so that their dialects prevailed in this region.
Although the settlers spoke the dialect peculiar to the states from which they came, in the course of a few genera- tions there developed from these a new High German dialect in which the several dialects were blended, but in which the speech is similar in its essential linguistic features to the dialect spoken in the Palatinate which lies to the west of Heidelburg. This new dialect became known as Pennsylvania German (Pennsylfanish Deitsch), which is basically a
homogeneous fusion of Southwest German dialects. Since the
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eighteenth century, English words have been adopted because the Muttersprache had no native words for new objects such as telephone, electricity, traffic lights, car. Its pronunciation and its grammatical inflections remain the same, however.
For over two hundred years the dialect has persisted in an English-speaking nation, and is still spoken in at least one-third of the total land area of Pennsylvania. The counties which use it most solidly and which contain a population of one and a half million are Berks, Bucks, Carbon, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Monroe, Mont- gomery, Northampton, Northumberland, Schuylkill, Snyder and York. It is also spoken in other counties, but to a lesser degree.
Pennsylvania possessed a bilingual culture, English and
German. Although French was spoken to the extent that it was used in a few early pulpits, it had little influence on the Pennsylvania German dialect. Because many French had lived in the German states and had intermarried before coming to America, they were familiar with Standard German, the dialects, the customs and the religions. For this reason, the Germans and French understood one another better than either understood the English. It was therefore natural that the French should be absorbed by the German element.
Generally speaking, therefore, Pennsylvania was
bilingual. Nevertheless, the German settler brought with
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him not only Standard German, but his dialects as well. Standard German was the language of his Bible, hymnbook, school and newspaper. His dialect was the language of the home, business affairs and his social relations. Today German has fallen into the category of a foreign language and English has taken its place, but the dialect is still affectionately retained.
Although Standard German was the literary language of the German states, dialects were not completely ignored in writings. Goethe (1740-1832) showed traits of South German dialects, but the best known dialectal writer of the eighteenth century was Johann Peter Hebel (1760-1826) of Basel. His works, as well as those of others, were read by Pennsylvanians.
Among a number of Pennsylvania German writers were Henry Harbough, born October 1817 in Franklin County, whose ancestor settled in Berks County in 1736; Col. Thomas C. Zimmerman, born in 1838 in Lebanon County, who was editor of the Reading Times; David Brunner, educator and Congress - man, who called himself "Goethe von Berks."
Many books have been written about the Pennsylvania German dialect. Dictionaries have been compiled, and studies of its phonology and morphology have been made. For the sake of interest I am listing a few Pennsylvania German words and phrases: church, keirich; relatives, freundschaft; complain, grex; awkward, doppick; jolt, blutz;
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horse, gaul; sprinkle, schpritzt; A Merry Christmas, En Fraylicher Grischtdawg; Happy New Year, Fraylich Nei Yowr;
doughnut, Faschtnacht. Faschtnacht is also the name of a
day which coincides with Shrove Tuesday. On this day doughnuts of various shapes are served and usually dunked in molasses.
The Lord's Prayer follows :
'M HAERR SI GABAIT
Unser Fodder, du os im Himmel bisht. G'aird is di nawma. Di Kanichreich coom'd. Di willa sul gadu waerra uf der and so we im Himmel. Geb uns heit unser daiglich brode. Fergeb uns unser shoolda, so we mer unser shooldner fergevva. Un luss uns net ferfeer'd waerra in shlechtes, awer heet uns geaga ungoot. For di is's kanichreich, un de gawalt, un all de air for immer, Awmen.
References for Introduction
Atkinson, C. T. Germany 1715-1815. London : Methuen and Co., 1908.
Brunner, O. B. Indians of Berks County. Reading : Eagle Book Print, 1897.
Schach, Paul. "Semantic Borrowings in Pennsylvania German" American Speech, 26 (1951), 257.
Super, Chas. W. History of the German Language. Columbus, Hann., 1893.
Wood, Ralph, editor, Pennsylvania Germans. Princeton : Princeton Univ. Press, 1943. Studies by A. D. Graeff, W. M. Kallmorgen, C. S. Stine, R. Wood, R. H. Shryock, O. F. Buffington, G. P. Musselman, H. H. Reichard.
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Churches
During the colonial days there was a lack of sufficient ministers, and the congregations were so small that union churches were often necessary. For these reasons the ministers served a number of churches spread over a wide area, keeping the records of all their parishes in the same book. Some ministers covered the territory from sections of western New Jersey to the Susquehanna River, south to Virginia and north of the Blue Mountains. These early ministers were highly educated and came from families of distinction in the old country.
Among the many union churches was St. Michael's, a few miles southwest of Hamburg, Berks County. It is this church that served at some time during their history most of the descendants of the people whose lineages are recorded. It was first built in 1769, although there was a cemetery here as early as 1766.
The first pulpit of St. Michael's was a cross-cut section of log. In the Deed to the land for the church, January 16, 1768, given by Joseph Sollenberger to the Evangelical Lutheran and Calvinist St. Michael's Church, the following stipulation was made : "So as nevertheless, the table in the church to be erected on the said parcel of land, be made an altar or the altar as a table with a drawer and the leaf thereof extending six inches from the posts or feet which must be enclosed with boards in the
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manner of an altar." This was a peaceable combination of a Lutheran altar and a Reformed communion table. When the leaf was raised a table was formed; when it was dropped an altar was formed.
The Warrant for St. Michael's Church, applied for June 20, 1767, mentions those in trust. They were M. Lindenmuth, J. Schock, M. Rentschler, and Jacob Wagoner. The records of January 27, 1781, show Jacob Shertel, Adam Klauser, and George Albrecht as trustees for the Reformed Congregation; and Michael Nunnemacher, George Wagner, Wm. Machmer, and John Marschall as trustees for the Lutheran Congregation.
In the colonial days it was customary to have a school connected with the church, as was the case at St. Michael's. The building was maintained by the church and the scholars' fees were usually paid with grain, potatoes, and smoked meats . The curriculum included reading, writing, arithmetic, religion, and morals. The New Testament, the Psalter, the Catechism, and hymns were read and memorized. Listed among the reading material was the weekly der Readinger Adler. The teacher not only taught, but he was also the organist, the chorister, and the sexton. £ In the absence of the pastor he gave the sermon and conducted the service. St. Michael's Church was dedicated August 16, 1769, the eleventh Sunday after Trinity. The Reformed pastor was the Rev. Philip Jacob Michael, and the Lutheran pastor the Rev. Petrus Mischler. Elders and Deacons were Philip
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Faust, John Schock, Michael Lindenmuth, Peter Lehr, John Clauser, Jacob Schertel, Jacob Wagner. £ Members of the congregation were Bernhard Schertel, Jacob Kauffman, George Schock, John Scherdel, Anthony Dillman, John Geschwindt, Christopher Wagner, Peter Shanner, John Sterr, Simon Clauser, Ludwig Seaman, Philip Adam Clauser, Michael Rentschler, John Wolf Lindemuth, Jacob Schock, Herman Zorsinger, Michael Lindemuth, Frederick Gottschall, Christian Weber, John Jacob Hansknecht, Henry Kalbach, Nicolas Meyer, Conrad Henne, George Wm. Wagner, George Haenner, Jacob Reichart, William Weber, John Mall, George Gamlich, Frederick Lang, Peter Zollenberger, Killian May, Conrad Stein who was schoolmaster. On August 5, 1810, at the time a new building was dedicated, the Lutheran pastor was the Rev. John Knuske and the Reformed pastor the Rev. Philip Meyer. The Elders were Mathias Schuman and Eberhard Seaman; the Deacons George Schertel, John Berger, Michael Wagner, Philip Zechman.
The Clausers, who contributed to the building fund at this time, were Jacob Clauser, John Klauser, George Clauser, William Clauser. The church paid Philip Clauser for lumber. Some of the members who made contributions December 11,
1811, were Philip, Jost, and Valentine Kaufman; Jacob Schertel; Ludwig and Michael Nonnemacher; Conrad, George, and Tobias Henne; Henry Goettel. On the subscription list for the new organ on October 14, 1813, were Jacob Schertel, Sr., George, Jacob, and Bernhard Schertel; Jacob, William,
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and John Clauser; Conrad, George, and Tobias Henne; Michael Nonnemacher. £ Records were kept in German until December 26,
1871. These have been translated by Arthur Schuman.
Clauser Church (Union) Llewellyn, Schuylkill County, was built in 1819 of brick. The land was donated by Philip A. Clauser, who served on the building committee. Hetzel's (Salem) Union Church was built in 1804 about three miles east of Pine Grove, Washington Township, Schuylkill County.
Frieden's Union Church, Shartlesville, was built about 1875. James Nunemacher donated four acres, James S. Hix was chairman of the building committee, and Adam Clauser Was the building contractor.
Petitions
A Petition from the inhabitants of Berks County, March 15, 1758, asking for assistance for protection against the Indians and addressed to Lieut. Gov. William Denny, appears in Pennsylvania Archives Series 1, Volume 3:361. The original signatures, written in German, are preserved in the State Historical Library, Harrisburg. The signatures , translated by Arthur Schuman, are Albrecht Straus, Simon Ming, Filbert, Nicel Lang, Jacob Kramer, Michael Albert, Adam Weber, Jorg Weber, William Albert, Johannes Lang, Frantz Nei, Kilian May, Nicel Gundius, Henrich Berger,
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Niclaus Bauseer, William Giessman, Jorg Berger, Andress Kramer, Conrad Reber, Marcis Craemer, Michael Hamburger, Jacob Loos, Hannes Hahn, Johannes Myer, Hannes Kuhn, Andreas Schaeffer, Nicholas Franger, Henrich Klein, Nicel Mueller, Casper Long, Jacob Hubler, Nic. Schaeffer, Folan Raumgertner, Tomas Kern, Daniel Richel, Jacob Klaar, Konrad Wirth, Andres Schadt, Jacob Rauch, Mades Wacher, Michael Gerbrich,
Nicholas Haag, Hannes Kaufman, Jacob Kaufman, George Minch, Felde Zintzel, Nicolaus Sallede, Christian Gruber, Fillas Jacob Geiss, David Fuss, Filb Strauss, Christof Minch, Felde Lang, Hans Ficher, Michael Kedner, Jorg Gutman, Bernhard Schertel, Hannes Wirtz, Peter Reitenbach, Nicholas Holer, Johannes Zerbu, Jorg Haag, Johannes Schwartzhaus, Mathes Kempes, Johan Jorg Haag, Stofel Winder, Ludwig Fischer, Jeremias Baar, Jacob Vollmer, Hironimiss Hantz, Jacob Riffer, Hannes Raeber, Christian Berger, Wormer Stain, Lador Heil, Jos. Fustorr, Michael Miller.
A Remonstrance of the people of Berks County in 1779, against limiting the power of the electors was sent to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (Pa. Arch. Ser. 2, Vol. 3:324). Among the hundreds of signers were Jacob Clauzer; John Clauzer, Sr .; Philip Adam Clauzer; Ludwig Nunemacher; Henry and Jacob Runckel; John Sherdel; Adam, Christian, Daniel, George, Jacob, Philip Albrecht; Christian and Joseph Althouse; Henry Alspach; Jacob, Peter, and Val- entine Eppler; Frederick and John Faust; Andreas, Geo. Adam,
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Henry, Jacob Hummel; Michael Hollenbach; Adam Kalbach; George Kaufman; John Kelchner; Anthony Conrad, Mathias, and Peter Kerschner; Mathias Kremer; William Kremmer; Goffried and Jacob Kircher; Jacob Kobel; Christian Laur, Sr. and Jr .; Michael Lindemuth; Michael Renssler; Daniel and George Reigel; Mathias Roth; George and Stophel Sneider; Bernard Sweizig; Stophel Wagner; Christian, Mathias and Peter Weber; George, John and Peter Weiss.
Counties and Townships
Three original counties were established in 1681 : Philadelphia, Chester, and Bucks. Lancaster County was erected May 10, 1729, from Chester County. Berks County Was formed March 11, 1752, from Philadelphia, Chester, and Lancaster. Dauphin County was formed March 4, 1785, from Lancaster County. Lebanon County was erected February 10, 1813, from Lancaster and Dauphin. £ Cumberland County was erected in 1750, from Lancaster. Schuylkill County was erected in 1811 from that part of Berks County north of the Blue Mountains.
Tulpehocken Township was erected in 1729, Heidelberg Township in 1734, Bern Township in 1738, all originally in Lancaster County until 1752 when Berks County was formed.
Bern Township extended over the Blue Mountains until 1768, when the area north of the mountains became Brunswick Township, Berks County. After 1811 the area north of the xxxii
mountains became Schuylkill County. From Brunswick Township were formed Pinegrove, in 1771, and Manheim, 1790. Nor - wegian Township was formed in 1802; from it Branch in 1838, and Upper Mahantango in 1807.
On the south side of the Blue Mountains Bern Township was split into Penn, 1841; Upper Bern, 1841; Centre, 1842; Tilden from Upper Bern in 1887; the southern end still is Bern.
From Tulpehocken Township were erected Upper Tulpehocken, 1821; Marion, 1844; Jefferson from Upper Tulpehocken in 1851.
Acknowledgments
Assistance in tracing my lineages was received from the following : Mrs. Mary Steinmetz and Mrs. Le Roy Sanders of the Historical Society of Berks County; Jacob Clauser of Auburn; Cyrus G. Fox, Shartle line; Grace Cousins and Mrs. Frank Baer, Hix line; Mrs. F. Spencer Roach, Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania; Carl Savage, Register of Wills, Berns County Court House; A. G. Reese, Director, and Arthur Fenoglio, Assistant Director of Land Office, under Genevieve Blatt, Secretary, Department of Internal Affairs for warrants, surveys, and patents and for construction of maps showing original drafts on file at Harrisburg.
Arthur Schuman
Mr. Arthur Schuman, Reading - a descendant of the first Elders of St. Michael's Church; of Mathias Schuman and
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Eberhard Seaman; and of the Reverends B. D. and M. L. Zweizig - has translated from the German church histories, records, and tombstones. He has collected much genealogical data. If I were to attach his name to each item that he gave me, it would appear on every page. It is my wish that anyone who may receive satisfaction from this book will keep in mind that without his help this data could not have been collected.
Author's Comments on Methods and Material
Because of the nature of the material collected, which stresses the earlier generations, no generally accepted genealogical system has been used. The immigrant has no number. His children are given Roman numerals; the third generation, capital letters; the fourth generation, Arabic numerals; the fifth generation, small letters; the sixth generation, Arabic numerals in parentheses, etc.
Where dates are missing, the chronological order of issue could not be followed. It is obvious that the record of the issue is not always complete, which does not mean that further search would not produce their names.
The various spellings of a name are partly due to the fact that English clerks did not know how to spell German and Germans did not know how to spell English. Germans often changed ks to x and ts to z. Names beginning with K were often changed to C and C to G. On some tax lists names beginning with C. are found under G. Furthermore, there was
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no such thing as standardized spelling of surnames before the eighteen hundreds. Just as there were many ways of spelling a name in Pennsylvania, so there were many variants of German surnames in Germany before their use became legally regulated in the nineteenth century. At that time a clan had to decide which of the spellings they wished to use henceforth, and the law required them to adhere to that one spelling.
Abbreviations
A. - acres
d. - died
arr. - arrived
dau. - daughter
b. - born
m. - married
bap. - baptized
p. - perches
ca. - about
sp. - sponsor
cem. - cemetery
T. S. - tombstone
C. H. - Court House
War. - warrant
Ch. Rec. - Church Records
w. - wife
Hist. of Berks Co. - History of Berks County, Pa. (Montgomery, M. L. Phila. Events. 1886).
Hist. and Biog. Ann. of Berks Co. - The Historical and Bio- graphical Annals of Berks County, Pa. (Montgomery, M. L. Chicago. J. H. Beers Co. 1909).
Pa. Arch. - Pennsylvania Archives.
Gen. Soc. of Pa. - The Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania. Pa. Ger. Pion. - Pennsylvania German Pioneers (Straussberger and Hinke).
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1
PART ONE
Clauser and Associated Lines
Klauser - Clauser
According to tradition, the western and eastern branches of the Clauser line in Berks County are descended from the same immigrant. The ancestor of the eastern
branch is certain, the ancestor of the western branch as being the same is based upon deduction. A cursory examina- tion of Clauser immigrants who arrived before 1745 seems to show that the western branch may have had the same ancestor. Both lines used the variants Klauser, Clauser, Clowser, and Glasser.
HANS JARICK KLAUSER and his wife, ANNA MARIA, arr. Sept. 11, 1729, on the ship Allen, James Craigie, Master, from Rotterdam, last from Cowes (Pa. Ger. Pion. Vol. I:27). All of the passengers were members of the German Baptist Brethern or Dunkards. Among them was the leader of the Dunkards himself, Alexander Mack, who in 1708 originated this faith at Schwarzenau on the Oder River, Germany. From
there they moved to Witgenstein, later to Crefeld about fifteen miles northwest of Dusseldorf, thence to Pennsyl- vania. £ However, these were preceded by a group of Dunkards under Peter Becker, who settled in Germantown by 1719. In
due time there were settlements at Skippack, Montgomery County; at Oley, Berks County; and on the Conestoga Creek, Lancaster County. This last settlement seems to have been the one known as the Bermudian Congregation in the present Adams County. This group was led by Conrad Beissel, who
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left here in 1728, to establish the Ephrata Cloisters or Seventh Day Baptists. The Bermudian group then fell to the leadership of Elder Becker. Dunkards did not have infant baptism, and about the only records they kept were the names of deacons and elders.
Several Dunkards of importance here, found in Lan- caster County at an early date, were (John) Philip Gabel of the Bermudian group and Jacob Naas, son of Elder John Naas of Germantown. Godfrey Kobel received a warrant in western Berks in 1758. In 1764 two Kobel adults were baptized at the Lutheran Trinity Church, Rehrersburg, Berks County. That Hans Jarick Klauser was probably in this region of Lancaster County with Gabel and Naas will be shown later.
The passenger list of the ship Allen was divided into three groups: males, of whom there were 64; females, of whom there were 58; children under fifteen, of whom there were 5 boys. Forty-two couples are easily recognized with twelve females and nine males above fifteen who were con- nected with these various couples. There seem to have been four women and thirteen men who were unattached. That forty-two couples had only five children under fifteen seems improbable. It is therefore very likely that Hans Jarick Klauser and his wife had one or more children under fifteen. It is common knowledge that ship lists were not always complete, especially where children were concerned.
The son, John George, who founded the eastern branch in Berks County became a Lutheran, and his wife, a pietist, was baptized as an adult in the Lutheran Church. The
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supposed son, Johannes, who founded the western branch of Berks County, had at least two sons baptized by a Lutheran minister, which indicates that he also did not remain a sectarian. HANS JARICK KLAUSER, or John George, received Warrant No. 22 in the name of GEORGE CLOUSER on Jan. 8, 1734, for 100 acres in Upper Salford Twp., Philadelphia County. This tract was not patented to him.
Warrant No. 170 on June 18, 1772 issued to Henry Worman, et al, to accept the survey previously made February 12, 1733 for the 100 acre tract of land in Upper Sal- ford Township, Philadelphia County, a return of which was made to the Land Office June 20, 1772 and recorded in Sur. Bk. C-220-269. This parcel was obtained by purchase from GEORGE CLAUSER.
The Warrant of Acceptance also included another tract of land in this same Township on which a resurvey made Feb. 24, 1768 by order of the Board of Property was returned June 20, 1772, re- corded in Sur. Bk. C-220-268: This tract was originally surveyed Feb. 18, 1733 for Michael Boots who sold to heirs of Henry Worman.
Still another parcel of land was included in the Warrant of Accept- ance in the same Township on which a resurvey containing 26 acres, made Feb. 24, 1768 was returned to the Land Office June 20, 1772, (Sur. Bk. C-220-281).
These three tracts of land aggre- gating 316 acres, 20 perches came into possession of Henry Worman by purchase from Michael Boots, John Linch and GEORGE CLAUSER, according to an affidavit made by Michael Boots and one, PHILIP KOBBLE, Executor or Administrator of the estate of GEORGE CLAUSER. On the
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death of Henry Worman, his estate went to his five sons: Jacob, Henry, Andrew, Conrad and George to whom the above three tracts Were patented June 20, 1772. (Pat. Bk. AA-13-170.)
HANS GEORGE KLAUSER died in the early part of 1745. Let- ters of Administration were granted to JACOB NUSS and PHILIP GABEL, County of Lancaster, creditors of GEORGE KLAUSER, yeoman. Anna Maria, his widow, renouncing, Feb. 21, 1745 (Phila. Administration Bk. F p. 31). Since the tract of land was in Phila. Co., the Letters of Administra- tion were registered there.
Jacob Nuss (Naas) and Philip Gabel (Knobble, Kobel) were from what was then western Lancaster County, where both were identified with the Dunkards, and where both received warrants in 1749 and 1750. It is therefore very probable that Hans George Klauser was with them as well as his son, Johannes, who was in western Berks, then Lancaster, by 1745 or earlier. Son, John George, remained in Phila- delphia County until about 1759 at which time he is found in the Oley region of Berks County. For convenience the two branches will be placed under separate heads. Hans and Johan are abbreviations of Johannes.
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