2010 – Page 4 – A Pennsylvania Dutch Genealogy

How Many Henry Hoobers in Martic Township?

Kris Hocker on 29 Jul 2010

So, just how many Henry Hoobers were there in the Conestoga (now Pequea)/Martic (now Providence)/Lampter/Strasburg township area of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania? If you’d asked me that question yesterday, I’d have said one. Now today, I’m not so sure…

Diagram I: Hoover land patents in Conestoga/Martic Township area

According to the township warrantee maps, there were 5 tracts either warranted to or patented to Henry Hoober in the area where Martic (now Providence), Lampeter and Leacock (now Strasburg) townships meet. [see B1-5 on diagram] They were:

B1: 86 1/2 acres warranted to Henry Hoover 24 Jan 1733, patented to Joseph Bosler 28 Mar 1810, Patent Book H2:272
B2: 144 acres warranted to Michael Shank, 27 Sep 1717, surveyed 4 Jun 1718, and patented to Henry Hoober 15 Apr 1740, Patent Book A9:180 (Copied Survey Book D82:15)
B3: 106 acres warranted to Michael Shank, 27 Sep 1717, surveyed 4 Jun 1718, and patented to Henry Hoober 15 Apr 1740, Patent Book A10:97 (Copied Survey Book D82:48)
B4: 68 acres warranted to Henry Hoober 14 Apr 1740, surveyed 10 Nov 1731, patented 15 Apr 1740, Patent Book A9:178 (Copied Survey Book C76:15)
B5: 171 acres warranted to Henry Hoover 13 Nov 1744, surveyed 20 10ber (Dec?) 1744, Patent Book AA1:227 (Copied Survey Book A46:77)

In 1733, Michael Shank sold his rights to 250 acres at the junction of Pequea Creek and Big Beaver Creek to Henry Hoober and Jacob Good [tracts B2 & B3 in the diagram]. Henry Hoober took the northern portion and Jacob Good took the southern portion. Jacob Good’s last will & testament, dated 12 Sep 1739, named Henry Hoover as his son-in-law; his daughter was not named.¹ There is also a last will & testament for Henry Huber of Martic Township, dated 7 Aug 1757.² Jacob Huber, son of Hans Huber and owner of tracts A1-A3, named his “loving friend Henry Hoover” as one of the executors of his estate in his last will & testament, dated 9 Jul 1759.³

In 1758, John and Elizabeth (Hoover) Boyers sold their share of the property they had inherited via Henry Hoober’s last will & testament to John Hoover, the other heir to the property. This tract of land was patented in Patent Book A9:180—tract B2 in the diagrams.⁴

Diagram II: Martic Township Hoover property

In 1767, Henry and Catharine Hoober sold to their son John Hoober two tracts of land in Martic Township.⁵ The first tract was 88 acres from the tract patented in A10:97 or B3 in the diagram. [see left] The second tract was 171 acres from the tract patented in AA1:227 or B5 in the diagram.

Also in 1767, Henry and Catharine Hoober sold to Jacob Hoober 3 tracts of land in Martic Township totaling 137 acres.⁶ Mapping it out, Jacob Huber’s property matches the residue of tract B3, B4 and part of B5 from Diagram I or B4 on Diagram II. These deeds, to the best of my knowledge, were not recorded until his executors—possibly his sons—sold the land in 1790.

Based on this information, it becomes apparent that there were two men named Henry Hoober—quite likely father and son—living in the Martic Township area circa 1740 at the time the tracts were patented. The elder Henry (?—1757) had children John, Elizabeth, and quite likely Henry Jr. He may have had more. Henry Jr. [the younger], who married a daughter of Jacob Good—quite possibly Catherine as seen in the deeds, had a son John and and possibly another named Jacob to whom he deeded land in 1767.

Henry Jr. may have also had a son-in-law named George Feite. His name appears in the metes and bounds for one of the tracts sold to John Hoober on the boundary for tract B5 (B8 on the diagram). Additionally, the name Ulrich Hoober appears as a neighbor (to the south) in the metes and bounds for tracts B4 and B5 sold to Jacob and John Hoober, respectively. He may have been another relative of Henry Jr.

Tract B6 and B7 also belonged to Hoovers. Tract B6 was warranted to Martin Huber 6 Apr 1803 and patented to him on 13 Nov 1811. Tract B7 was warranted to Jacob Huber 14 Mar 1796 and patented to him on 12 Apr 1803. These two men could have been grandsons of Henry Hoober Jr. or Jacob Huber. If at least part of B7 belonged to Ulrich Hoober at one point, he must not have patented it.

As always if you have additional information or questions on any of the people in this post, please contact me or leave a comment.

Making a Deed Map from Old Metes and Bounds

Kris Hocker on 28 Jul 2010

As you may know I’ve been working with land records a lot recently. I started with the surveys available for Lancaster County land warrants and patents, grouping them by township and name. I’ve also been going through Hoover family deeds for Lancaster County and assigning them to the appropriate Hoover family. My goal is to tie the deeds not only to a particular Hoover family, but also to a particular tract of land back to the original patentee. Sometimes, the information is readily available in the deed itself; sometimes it requires some backtracking through deeds.

As part of the process, I’ve been trying to create deed maps for deeds where I have questions—especially where the land is being divided amongst the heirs. I like to think that I’m a smart person, but I had some problems figuring it all out. Since I didn’t really find an answer online, I thought I’d share what I learned.

Data Entry form for Metes and Bounds

I downloaded a Mac application called Metes and Bounds by Sandy Knoll Software. It’s a neat program with some cool features. Using the application to map a deed is fairly simple. You enter direction (north/south), degrees, bearing (east/west), and distance. Doesn’t seem complicated, does it?

Except I kept coming across metes and bounds descriptions like this:

“…Beginning at a chestnut tree, thence by the other Land of said Henry Hoober West by South fifty six perches to a post, then South South East fourteen perches to a post, thence by land of Ulrich Hoober East South East fourteen perches to a post and thence South East eight perches to a white oak, thence by Land of George Feite North twelve degrees East one hundred six perches to a Hickory and South eighty four degrees seventy two perches to a post, thence North twenty six perches and an half to a Chestnut Tree and North North West thirty perches to a Black Oak by Beaver Creek and thence by other Land of said Henry Hoober South South West forty perches to the Place of Beginning…”

What do I do with that? Some if it looks usable. But how was I supposed to enter “South South East?” None of the available options came close.

So, I scoured the web looking for help. I sort of found what I was looking for. The article I found involved converting those directions into degrees using this “Box the Compass” chart.

Okay. Seems simple. I took the degrees from the “middle”column and entered them in the degrees field of the data entry form, thinking I had my solution. Nope. My maps looked like scribbles.

Apparently, I missed a step in the conversion process. In order to get a bearing that would work in the application, I needed to take the degrees from the chart and convert it.

Convert Azimuth to Bearing

If you click on the down arrow beside the degrees field, one of the options is “Convert Azimuth to Bearing.” If you enter the degrees from the chart there, it will convert it to a bearing that the program can use to recreate the equivalent of “East by North” or “East South East.”

Once I started changing the degrees I’d entered using this method, my maps started looking more like maps and when the deed said “to the place of Beginning” my lines actually met up!

So, if you would like to make plat maps from old deeds for your family research and you use Metes and Bounds, this is how to convert the “old directions” to a useable bearing using degrees.

From Deed to Land Warrant and Back Again

Kris Hocker on 21 Jul 2010

For some reason I got stuck on John Hoover today when I was deciding where to start on my Huber/Hoover work. Which John Hoover, you ask? I was hoping to find information on John Hoover (Huber), son of Hans Ulrich (Woolerick) Huber of Conestoga Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

I don’t have much information on him. I believe he may have been born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania circa 1726. He purchased land from his father’s estate from his siblings—Jacob Hover and Barbara his wife, Henry Shank and Anna his wife, Jacob Boyer and Maria his wife, Elizabeth Hover, Ulrick Hover and Henry Hover all of Pennsylvania—in 1759.¹ I had seen the possibility that this John Hoover was also the John Hoover of Necessity, Maryland alluded to on a message board and wanted to see if I could find evidence in the data I’ve acquired.²

So, I was looking at deeds and land patents for John Hoover for leads. John Hoover of Necessity was in Maryland by 1769 when he received a deed for “Harry’s Grove” from the David Watson estate at the request of Michael Miller, to whom it had been sold but who had not received a deed. ³ If John Hoover of Necessity was the son of Ulrich Hoover of Conestoga Township, then he would have had to have sold his Lancaster property at or before 1769.

John Hoover 1744 Martic Township land patent

John Hoover 1744 Martic Twp land patent

I did not find any deeds for John Hoover selling land in Conestoga (now Pequea) Township. I found a deed for John Hoover purchasing land in Conestoga Township. On 28 May 1754, John Hoover purchased 110 acres on Pequea Creek from Jacob Eshleman and Pebela his wife.⁴ There were several land patents for John Hoover in the same general area—one for 105 acres adjoining Ulrich Hoover’s tract in Martic (now Providence) and Conestoga Townships and another for 25 acres in Conestoga Township.

Figuring the land adjoining Ulrich’s was the best bet, I followed up on that first. This tract—although patented to John Hoober—had first been the land of Jacob and Barbara (___) Hoober from Martin Kendig. ⁵^,⁶ It was sold by John’s heirs—Jacob Hoover and Margaret his wife, John Hoover, Henry Hoover and Mary his wife, Christian Hoover, Peter Hoover, Anna Brenneman, Frena Hoover, and Barbara Hoover all of Lancaster County—to their brother Abraham Hoover in 1785.⁷ So, this may not be the John Hoover I’m looking for.

John Hoover 1752 Conestoga Township land patent

John Hoover 1752 Conestoga twp land patent

Next I looked at the land patent for the 25 acres in Conestoga Township patented to John Hoover in 1752.⁸ Looking at the survey, I was confused. I saw no reference to it being for John Hoover. This tract was apparently patented to Michael Hess in 1744. Had I made a mistake? I double checked the index and looked the survey up again on the internet. No, that was the correct file.

I spent some time pouring over the Township Warrantee maps, but couldn’t find matching land for John Hoover, Jacob Good or Jacob Rubely. I found Michael Hess, but it wasn’t matching up.

So, I looked up the survey for the adjoining land of Jacob Good. ⁹ It made no reference to Jacob Good, but instead showed the land as patented to Thomas Lindley. Now I was still confused, however the name Lindley rang a bell.

Jacob Eshleman Conestoga Twp tract

The land John Hoover purchased from Jacob Eshleman bordered on land of Thomas Lindley. Figuring that John Hoover’s property bordered on this land, I compared the description of the tract borders from the deed to the survey to see where they met. To my surprise, they matched! And moreover, not only was this Lindley tract the same property patented Jacob Eshlemen in 1744 and sold to John Hoover in 1754, but it also abutted the property allegedly patented to John Hoover in 1752.

Now I knew that I had the correct pieces of property. So, I printed off the surveys for both tracts. Each survey comes with two pages, the survey drawing and information and the reverse page that usually gives the date, location and patentee name. Looking at the reverse pages of these two surveys, I saw that they clearly stated that the patent surveys were for “John Hoover in Right of Michael Hess” and “for the use of Jacob Ashleman.” The moral here: examine the whole document before freaking out!

So, I still don’t know if Ulrich’s son John Hoover is the John Hoover of Necessity—that will take much more work. I don’t even know if these documents belong to John² Hoover (Ulrich¹). However, I have, I believe, tied these three documents—the two patents and the deed—together. It is highly likely that John Hoover of Conestoga Township, having patented 25 acres in the township in 1752, purchased the adjoining land from Jacob Eshleman in 1754.

Now I need to find out what happened to this property. Did he sell it or was it passed down to one of his children?

If you have any information on these families, please I’d love to see it!

The Internet Is Only the Start…

Kris Hocker on 29 Jun 2010

There’s an excellent article in the Broomfield Enterprise by Julie Miller—“Internet is resource, but not do-all genealogy tool.” She makes the argument that the internet is not the be all, end all genealogy resource, that if you only look at records online, you’ll miss the majority of your family history story. This point is all too easy to overlook in today’s online world.

There is so much more information available online today than there was even 10+ years ago when I started out. It’s so easy to focus only on what’s available online, because let’s face it you can learn a lot and the convenience is amazing! But as a family historian you need to also face up to two facts: 1) the information on the internet is only the tip of the iceberg and 2) much of what you find online is either incomplete or sometimes even wrong.

The offline world has probate records, deed records, tax records, town/county histories, church records, vital records, cemetery records, etc.—most of which you will not find online. If you skip these sources, you will miss out on a lot of information. Not to mention you’ll miss out on the thrill of the hunt and the absolute joy of finding that bit of information that puts your family history puzzle together!

Relying on GEDCOMs or family trees that others have put together online is also a mistake—especially if they don’t have sources or if their sources are only someone else’s work! Locating primary and secondary sources is the only way to verify someone else’s work and is absolutely necessary if it’s at all important to you to make the correct connections in your family tree. Mistakes are common, so do the work and think for yourself.

Take some time to visit genealogical and historical societies in the locale you’re researching. Visit courthouses, churches and cemeteries. And if you can’t get there in person, try something really old-fashioned—the mail. You’ll be amazed at what you can learn.

Lancaster Deed Book Index

Kris Hocker on 28 Jun 2010

I’ve written about how much I love deeds—and the great information you can find in them—and I’ve written about how great it is to find the Lancaster County Deed books viewable online. One thing that’s not so great is not having a deed index online, too.

I’m working on changing that! I’ve been going through the books and creating an index that I hope to share through my site. It started out containing the information found in the Grantor and Grantee indices that were created in book form—the standard grantor information, grantee information, book, volume, page number, deed date, date recorded, and location or type of record (mortgage, quitclaim, etc.) All the necessary information to find the deed you’re looking for.

But then I started thinking about what would be included in my ideal index. Here are some of the ideas I came up with:

Image Frame Number
The page number and frame number don’t correspond—and can be quite off—and the page numbers can sometimes be impossible to read.
Grantor/Grantee Location
Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between multiple men of the same name without a residence or occupation.
Spouse Name
For land sales, sometimes the wife is named. This also helps to identify the grantor among men of the same name.
Neighbors
Often deeds refer to the owners of adjoining property. This might help to locate an individual where others records don’t exist or can’t be found.
Others Named
There are also other people associated with a deed: witnesses, previous owners, family members when a deed is part of an estate settlement, etc. This may help to locate people who otherwise wouldn’t be found, especially where an earlier deed wasn’t recorded.

What would you like to see in your ideal deed index? Drop me a line or leave a comment and let me know. You just might see it in the final product!

Blood of my blood…*

Kris Hocker on 24 Jun 2010

I‘ve recently been reading An Echo in the Bone by Diana Gabaldon, the latest in her series which started with Outlander. If you haven’t read the series, one of its main characters is James Alexander Malcolm MacKenzie Fraser, a dashing young Scottish highlander. Once I’d managed to pull my head out of the book and back into the present, I started thinking about my Scottish ancestors—surprisingly enough I actually have some ancestors that weren’t German!

It’s been a while since I’ve done any research on them or posted anything to the blog. So, I thought I’d share what I have in case anyone out there is looking for the same people.

William Smith and Eliza Craig Bonnington

William Smith (25 Sep 1851—23 Feb 1905) and his wife Eliza Craig Bonnington (2 Oct 1866—18 Oct 1946) immigrated to the United States from Scotland in the 1880s. They were originally from the Edinburgh area. William had been an engineer with the White Star shipping line. He was discharged from his ship as 3rd engineer on the 22nd of January, 1882, after a voyage to Calcutta, India. He filed a declaration of intention to become a US citizen in Berks County, Pennsylvania on the 20th of September, 1886. He became a US citizen on the 12th of January in 1893 in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. William owned and operated an icehouse in Harrisburg.

William and Eliza Craig (Bonnington) Smith were married 12 Dec 1882 at The Manse in Uphall parish, Linlithgow, Scotland. ¹ William was the son of James and Isabella (Aitken) Smith; and Eliza was the daughter of Peter Purvis and Elizabeth (Buchanan) Bonnington.

They had children:

Elizabeth “Lizzie” Smith, born and died 17 Jun 1884, Liberton Parish, Lasswade, Edinburgh, Scotland ²
James Smith, born 22 Jun 1885, Straiton, Liberton Parish, Edinburgh, Scotland ³
Elizabeth “Bess” Marian Smith, born 31 Oct 1887, No. 3, Straiton, Liberton Parish, Edinburgh, Scotland and died 3 Jan 1973 in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania ⁴ ⁵
William M. Smith Jr., born 28 Mar 1892, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and may have died in France during or after World War I, under the name John Norwood ⁶
Isabella Aiken Smith, born 4 Apr 1893 and died 21 Jul 1962 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. ⁷ ⁸
Robert “Bobby” Thomas Alexander Smith, born 7 Apr 1899 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and died 12 Nov 1970 in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania ⁹ ¹⁰

James Smith and Isabella Aitken

James Smith (ca 1812—8 Feb 1856) and his wife Isabella Aitken (ca 1810—1 Dec 1856) lived in Whitburn, Linlithgow, Scotland. The banns were proclaimed 13 Dec 1840 and they were married 25 Dec 1840 in Carnwath, Lanarkshire, Scotland.¹¹ James was the son of Thomas and Agnes (Nimmo) Smith; and Isabella was the daughter of William and Marion (Brown) Aitken.

In 1851, the family lived at 51 Crossroads in Whitburn and James was listed as a coal miner. James’ 1756 death record lists his occupation as engine worker. ¹² Isabella also died in 1856, leaving their children to be raised by James’ brother William and sister Margaret.¹³

James and Isabella had children:

Thomas Smith, born ca 1844 in Whitburn, West Lothian, Scotland and died 9 Apr 1909? in Fauldhouse, West Lothian, Scotland ¹⁴
Marion Smith, born ca 1844-1846, Whitburn, West Lothian, Scotland and died 11 May 1857, age 13, in Greenburn, West Lothian, Scotland ¹⁵
William Smith, born 25 Sep 1851, Greenburn, West Lothian, Scotland and died 23 Feb 1805 at 1314 Howard Street, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania ¹⁶ ¹⁷

Peter Purvis Bonnington and Elizabeth Buchanan

Peter Purvis Bonnington (ca 1844—16 Sep 1891) and his wife Elizabeth Buchanan lived in Edinburgh, Scotland. They married on 17 Jun 1864 at Bloomyhall, Junipergreen, Colinton, Midlothian, Scotland.¹⁸ Peter was the son of William and Margaret (Purves/Fairborn) Bonnington; Elizabeth was the daughter of James and Sarah (Craig) Buchanan. Peter worked as a carpenter or joiner.

Peter and Elizabeth had children:

Eliza Craig Bonnington, born 2 Oct 1866, Colinton, Midlothian, Scotland and died 18 Oct 1946, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, married William Smith on12 Dec 1882 ¹⁹ ²⁰
Margaret Bonnington, born 3 Nov 1868, Colinton, Midlothian, Scotland and died 16 Jun 1943, Prestonpans and Cockenzie, East Lothian, Scotland, married David Simpson on 31 Jan 1890 ²¹ ²²
William James Bonnington, born 3 Dec 1871, Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland and died 8 Mar 1945, Hillhead, Glasgow, Scotland, married Robina Wait ²³ ²⁴
Peter Bonnington Jr., born 2 Oct 1873, Whitburn, West Lothian, Scotland and died aft 1939, married Christina Isabella Graham Law ²⁵ ²⁶ ²⁷
Alexander Bonnington, born 16 Aug 1875, Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland and died Feb 1964 in Nebraska, married Christina Peace and Martha Krich ²⁸ ²⁹ ³⁰
Robert Bonnington, born 30 Nov 1878 and died 7 Oct 1879 in Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland ³¹ ³²
Robert Bonnington, born 20 May 1881, Bathgate, West Lothian Scotland and died 1 May 1939, Canongate, Midlothian, Scotland, married Jessie Hunter Crawford Alexander ³³ ³⁴ ³⁵
Craig Bonnington, born 10 Sep 1885, Liberton, Midlothian, Scotland and died ca 1959 in Edinburgh, Scotland, married Isabella Mason Kinghorn ³⁶ ³⁷

Thomas Smith and Agnes Nimmo

Thomas Smith (?—bef 1856) and Agnes Nimmo (?—bef 1856) were married sometime prior to 1804, quite possibly in West Lothian, Scotland. He was a farm laborer according to his son James’ death certificate and a farmer according to Margaret’s death certificate.

Thomas and Agnes had children:

Margaret Smith, born ca 1804-1807, Whitburn, West Lothian, Scotland and died 26 Aug 1875 in Fauldhouse, West Lothian, Scotland ³⁸
William Smith, born ca 1806, Whitburn, Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland and died 7 Jun 1877 in Fauldhouse, West Lothian, Scotland ³⁹
James Smith, born ca 1812 and died 8 Feb 1856 in Whitburn, West Lothian, Scotland, married Isabella Aitkin ⁴⁰ ⁴¹

William Aitken and Marion Brown

I don’t have much information at all about this couple. William Aitken and his wife Marion Brown may have been married 29 May 1769 in Renfrew, Scotland. It seems a trifle early considering the children I have for them are two daughters: Isabella, born ca 1810 and baptized 24 Mar 1816 in Carnwath, Lanarkshire, Scotland; and Helen, born bef 19 Aug 1819 and baptized 19 Aug 1819, both in Carnwath, Lanarkshire, Scotland.

William Bonnington and Margaret Purves/Faiborn

William Bonnington (ca 1816—11 Jun 1885) and his first wife Margaret Purves/Fairborn (ca 1821—bet 1844-1847) apparently lived in Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland. They likely married about 1838. Her surname is given as Purves on their son Peter’s marriage certificate and daughter Anne’s birth record and as Fairborn on William’s second marriage certificate and his death certificate. William married twice more after her death, first to Mary Reavely on 9 Jul 1847, and second to Elizabeth Thomson 16 Jun 1857.⁴² ⁴³ William was a Master Joiner and at one time an undertaker.

William and Margaret (Purves/Fairborn) Bonnington had children:

Anne Bonnington, born 5 May 1839, Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland ⁴⁴
Robert Bonnington, born 30 Mar 1841, Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland
Peter Purvis Bonnington, born ca 1844, Galashiels, Selkirk, Scotland and died 16 Sep 1891, Mayburn, Loanhead, Lasswade Parish, Edinburgh, Scotland ⁴⁵

James Buchanan and Sarah Craig

James Buchanan (ca 1812/22—17 Apr 1888?) and his wife Sarah Craig (ca 1809—bet 1851-1861) lived in Cambusnethan Parish in Lanarkshire in 1851, living at 9 Barnhall Row.⁴⁶ James was a coal miner. According to the record, James, his wife Sarah, two daughters Elizabeth and Sarah, as well as his mother were all born in Ireland. James may have married after Sarah’s death Margaret Tatlock and lived in Shotts, Lanarkshire. If so, he was the son of John Buchanan and Mary Irvine.⁴⁷

James and Sarah had children:

Elizabeth Buchanan, born ca 1845/47 in either Ireland or Chapellhall, Lanarkshire, Scotland and died 13 May 1928 in Crown Terrace, Prestonpans, East Lothian, Scotland, married Peter Purvis Bonnington.⁴⁸⁴⁹
Sarah Buchanan, born ca 1847, possibly in Ireland⁵⁰ ⁵¹

* From a Scottish marriage rite: “Ye are the Blood of my Blood, and Bone of my Bone. I give ye my Body that we Two might be One. I give ye my Spirit, ’til our Life shall be Done.” [from Outlander]

Don’t Forget Deeds!

Kris Hocker on 6 May 2010

Have I mentioned I love deeds? Well, even if I have, it bears repeating. I LOVE deeds! As I’ve mentioned before I’m gathering information on the Hoover/Huber families of Lancaster County. I’m currently reviewing deed records for these families and abstracting them with the ultimate goal of creating a volume of Lancaster County Huber/Hoover family data.

You wouldn’t believe the amount of information in some of these deeds. True enough, some of the deeds are simply—so & so Hoover sold or bought from so & so x amount of land in xyz township, bounded as follows… But some of the deeds list the land transactions for that piece of property back to the original grant from the Proprietaries of Pennsylvania, including references to the original patent (patent book, volume & page) and other deed transactions. They also name each owner and their wife and sometimes—as land was often transferred through families—children and their spouses. I’ve even come across deeds created during an estate settlement that include verbatim extractions from the will itself.

As I’ve been going through the deeds I’ve been keeping a list of persons and their locations, including their heirs as taken from the deed, and trying to make connections between persons. For some reason, I’ve become stuck for the moment on Christian Huber/Hoober/Hoover of Hempfield Township. One deed listed his heirs:¹

Martin Hoover of Hempfield Township, wife Catharine
Jacob Hoover of Brecknock Township, wife Anna
Elizabeth (Hoover) Funk of Manor Township, husband Henry
John Hoover of Hempfield Township
Barbara Hoover
Magdalena Hoover
Anna Hoover
Michael Hoover
Christian Hoover Jr.

Later deeds reveal that Barbara Hoover married Christian Hoffman bet 1758 and 1764, Magdalena Hoover married John Hershey bet 1758 and 1767, and Anna Hoover married John Bossler (also Bassler, Basler, Bausler) between 1758 and 1769.² Michael and Christian Hoover Jr. both died after their father in their minority without issue. Other deeds showed that John Hoover married Anna (possibly Hershey) and was a miller. He was also likely the John Hoover Esq. who was the executor of the estate of Johannes Hoover of Manheim Township.³

John Hoover Esq. and his wife Anna, according to his will, had children:

Elizabeth Hoover, wife of Peter Baughman (also Bachman, Bauchman)
Christian Hoover
Mary Hoover, wife of Jacob Stehman

Another daughter, Ann Hoover wife of Christian Stehman, although not named in the will abstract, is named in a deed where the heirs sign a release for property in Manheim Township that John left his daughter Elizabeth and her husband Peter Baughman.⁴ If I’d hadn’t found this deed, I wouldn’t have known about Ann.

I’ve also had success tracing Peter Baughman’s ancestry and other relatives through deeds. His brother Christian died without issue and there are deeds that name his siblings, some of their children, and in a couple of cases grandchildren. Deeds also provided the name of the son-in-law of Peter’s sister Ann (Baughman) Bear. Want to guess? Ann’s daughter Catharine married a Christian Huber. Think there’s a connection back to Christian Hoover of Hempfield? I don’t know, but maybe the deeds will tell us…

So, don’t discount deeds. They can be a veritable gold mine of information, especially when use in conjunction with other sources. Have you learned something valuable by researching deeds? Please share.

Huber/Hoover Map of Lancaster County, PA

Kris Hocker on 21 Apr 2010

Lancaster County Huber/Hoover land warrant tracts

I’m in the middle project on the Huber/Hoover family, specifically looking at Lancaster County and Fayette County, Pennsylvania and Washington County, Maryland—with the likelihood of branching out to additional areas like Somerset County, Bedford County, Franklin County, Dauphin County… A big undertaking!

I’ve started by looking at deeds and land warrants for Lancaster County. Being a visual person, I wanted some way of seeing spatial relationship between the locations from these records. I tried combining data from the warrantee township maps, but decided to try a simpler approach.

I put together a map of the original townships of Lancaster County that were within its current boundaries. Lancaster originally included much more land, including parts of Dauphin, Lebanon, Berks, Cumberland, York, Adams and Franklin counties. For my purposes I wanted to focus on a smaller area. On this map I plotted the approximate locations of Huber/Hoover tracts from the land warrants prior to 1800.

I can’t guarantee that I’ve got everyone correct. John Jacob and Jacob Huber in Conestoga (now Pequea) could have been the same man. The two tracts adjoin. Since the patents were for John Jacob Huber (from Martin Kendig, 1736) and Jacob Huber (from John Smith, 1759), I indicated them separately.

Also, I haven’t determined if all the tracts in Warwick and Manheim Townships were to the same Jacob Huber. Jacob Huber (ca 1708-1767), the founder and ironmaster of Elizabeth Furnace, did own substantial amounts of property. So, it is likely the same man.

I must caution that proximity does NOT necessarily always indicate a relationship. According to Harry Hoover’s book on the descendants of Hans Hoober of Earl Township, Hans’ son Jacob owned property in Martic Township—he was likely the John Jacob Huber—quite a ways away from his father’s land. Hans and Martin of Earl Township are, however, grandfather and grandson.

Update: 3 Revised Hoover Family Pages

Kris Hocker on 4 Apr 2010

I’ve finally added the revised family pages for George Hoover (ca 1766-1847) of Fayette County, son of Andrew and Catharine (___) Hoover and George Hoover (ca 1735/40-1813) of Armstrong county, son of Michael Hoover. These pages—especially George Hoover of Armstrong County—include some substantial changes from their prior versions, so descendants of Christian Hoover, William Matthias Kern Jr., Johan Adam Waltenbaugh, Peter Kern, Peter Dedrow/Tedrow, Martin Kerbaugh, and Philip Weitzel/Whitesel please take note. I’ve also updated the Andrew Hoover Jr. of Fayette County page to include the new information regarding his wife.

I am currently expanding my research to include Hoovers in Frederick/Washington County, Maryland and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. There are at least three Hoover families in the same area in Maryland at approximately the same time of interest to me—Johannes Huber of Necessity (the Hoover vacuum family line), Andreas Huber (later of Fayette County), and Michael Huber (later of Bedford County) and several of his sons. Although it is unknown if there was actually a familial relationship between these groups, I find the possibility intriguing. After all, Andreas Huber named his first land purchase in Maryland “Cousins Obligation.” It makes me wonder who was the cousin and what was the obligation?

Do you have ties to the Hoover families of Frederick and Washington counties? If so, please drop me a line.

Update: George Hoover of Fayette County

Kris Hocker on 22 Mar 2010

I’ve recently discovered that George Hoover, son of Andrew and Catharine (___) Hoover, of Fayette County lived in Union Township his whole life. Therefore, he can not be the George Hoover who owned property in Westmoreland County from 1779 through 1799 and died in Armstrong County in 1813.

How Did We Get Here?

Before I get to what I’ve learned about Andrew Hoover’s son, George, let’s review. How did we previously determine that George Hoover of Armstrong County was the son of Andrew and Catharine (___) Hoover? What evidence led to that conclusion?

A biography of George’s grandson, Samuel Hoover of Indiana County, stated that:

“George Hoover, the grandfather of our subject, was among the early settlers of Westmoreland county. He was of German descent and came to that county when only fourteen years of age, with two brothers.”¹

Looking at Westmoreland County records reveals the baptisms of two children—Maria Magdalina and Solomon—to George and Eva Elisabeth (__) Hoover at Good Hope Lutheran and Reformed Church that match two heirs named in George Hoover’s estate papers.²,³,⁴ Children of George’s son Christian and daughters Catharina and Julianna were also baptized at Good Hope Lutheran and Reformed Church.⁵ The couple were also sponsors at their grandson Samuel’s baptism.

George Hoover purchased land in Donegal Township, Westmoreland County on 10 Apr 1779.⁶ Available county tax records put George there from 1783 through 1799 when he and Christian were marked as “gone from the county.”⁷,⁸,⁹ From these Armstrong and Westmoreland county records we know that the George Hoover in Westmoreland was, in fact, the same man as George Hoover of Armstrong County.

This George Hoover was in the Fayette/Westmoreland county area by 1779; but he could have been there earlier. From the 1800 U.S. census, we can estimate George’s birth date as circa 1755 or before.¹⁰ Going by Samuel’s biography, his grandfather, therefore, came to the Westmoreland area about 1769. Andrew Hoover’s son Jacob was in the Fayette County area by 1770 when he was living on land that today is part of Greene County, Pennsylvania.¹¹ Andrew’s son Andrew Jr. was also in Fayette County early. He and his brother-in-law were of “Manallin Township and county aforesaid [Westmoreland]” when they purchased land from John Waller in 1775.¹² We also know that Andrew Hoover had a son named George because he named him and left property to him in his last will & testament in 1784.¹³ George and wife Rosannah sold some of the land George inherited to John Hoover, presumably his brother.¹⁴

So, it seems perfectly reasonable that George Hoover of Armstrong County was the son of Andrew Hoover of Fayette County. Right? Is this conclusion supported by the other facts we know or do they sow doubt?

In my page on Andrew Hoover Sr., I wrote:

“I find some of the birth dates of Andrew’s grandchildren to be problematic—their parents having to have become parents as teenagers.”

Several of George’s children are good examples. Based on census records, an estimated birth date for George’s first daughter Catharine (Hoover) Kern puts her birth ca 1760—1770.¹⁵ Her eldest son Solomon was born 30 Nov 1781, which is consistent with a birth in the early 1760s for Catharine.¹⁶ Census records for George’s second daughter Rosanna (Hoover) Waltenbaugh place her birth date bef 1765.¹⁷ Judging by these two children alone, a 1755 birth date for George is not feasible. While census records are known to be inconsistent and sometimes incorrect regarding age and “guesstimates” complicate the analysis, the likelihood of both of George’s daughters being at least 10 years off AND their children’s ages being off… You see where this is going. While it’s possible, there are significant problems to address.¹⁸

Consider also that there are baptism records for both a Catharine and a Rosannah Hoover which place their births on 10 Apr 1761 and 27 Mar 1763.¹⁹ These dates fit perfectly with the estimated birth dates from the census records of George’s daughters. These church records name the girls’ parents as George and Eva Elisabeth Hoover.

But George’s wife was Rosannah. Right?

The only mention of Rosannah as George’s wife is in the deed where she and George sell land to John Hoover.²⁰ How do we know this deed refers to the son of Andrew Hoover Sr.? Although this deed is difficult to read, you can make out the following:

“…And whereas the said Andrew Hoover Senior in and by his last will and testament dated the twenty-fifth day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty four In the third section thereof did [?] [?] give unto his three sons Jacob Hoover [John] Hoover and George Hoover his whole estate… And whereas the said divisions have been [?] made and the [?] [?] [?] content? Now this indenture witnesseth the said George Hoover and Rosannah his wife do grant in consideration of the sum of sixty eight [pounds?] to them paid by John Hoover the receipt thereof to him by [?] [?] [?] granted bargained and sold – And by these presents do grant bargain & sell unto the said John Hoover his heirs [?] assigns the following described part of these [?] [?] of the lands of Andrew Hoover Senr divided unto the said George by the above in part [?] last will and testament of the said deceased…”

Louella Schaumberg Hoover believed that George and Rosannah sold the land (and executed the deed) prior to leaving for Armstrong County, but that the deed was only recorded when John sold the land in 1811.²¹ The next deed in the county deed book is for John Hoover’s sale of the land to James Fletcher. So, her assertion is a possibility.

Where did George and Rosannah live at the time of the deed? The deed provides no location information for George and Rosannah. If they were of Saltlick or Donegal townships, one would expect that information to be included in the deed. Because it is not, the evidence connecting this deed to the George Hoover of Westmoreland is slim.²² The logical presumption in this case is that George and Rosannah were of the same township and county as the land that they were selling—Union Township, Fayette County. Further proof of this assertion comes at the end of the deed where there is the following:

“Fayette County Pa—The [seventh?] day of November Anno Domini 1811 Before me [?] [?] one of the Justices of the Peace in and for the said County Personally came George Hoover and Rosannah his wife…”

This means that this George and Rosannah (___) Hoover were both alive and presumably living in Fayette County in 1811, most likely in Union Township. However, from the baptismal record of Maria Magdaline, daughter of George Hoover of Armstrong County, we know that George was married to Eva Elisabeth before 1787. We also know from deed, tax and census records that this couple had left the Westmoreland/Fayette County area by 1800.

Therefore, we must be dealing with two George Hoovers—one George of Fayette County, who was married to a woman named Rosannah and another George Hoover of Westmoreland and Armstrong counties, who was married to a woman named Eva Elisabeth. Furthermore, the deed records pertaining to the sale of land that Andrew Hoover left to his son George make it clear that the George Hoover of Fayette County, who married Rosannah, was the son of Andrew and Catharine (___) Hoover.

Look for more information on each of these men when I post their family group pages. In the meantime, if you have any questions, just drop me a line. And, as always, if you have more information, please shoot it my way…

Year: 2010