Genealogical Gems

On This Day in 1880, it was recorded that John W. Eckman sold the Gochenaur farm in Providence Township to Silas Winters. Eckman was the manager of Montgomery iron company of Port Kennedy. The farm, which at one time was mined for iron ore, contains approximately 50 acres. It sold for $4,000.   Silas’ mother was a Gochenaur by birth – Esther Gochenaur (1792 – 1823). She is the daughter of Joseph and Esther Herr Gochenaur. Esther is a direct lineal descendent of the Rev. Hans Herr.   Silas was born about 1822 to Esther (nee Gochenaur) and Christopher Winters. He and his wife, the former Catherine Marks, farmed in Providence Township . They had at least four children of their own: Ella M. (1844-1907), Mary A. (b. 1846), Sophia (b. 1848), Augustus (1847-1924), John (b. 1854), Laura (b. 1857) and Walter H. (b. 1861). They also adopted two children: Ida and Charles LeFevre.    The Eckman family is related to the Winters, the Gochenaurs, and the Herrs. ...

A contract to erect a bridge across the Beaver Creek at Refton was finally awarded On This Day in 1882. The bridge had been out for about four months and people have been driving through the creek. At night this would be a dangerous trip. The contract was awarded to B. F. Herr and S. M. Miller. While Herr and Miller were not the lowest bidders, they did agree to keep the bridge maintained for five years. Refton is located in Southern Lancaster County.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 6 November 1882. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.    On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

On This Day in 1880, the correspondent from Bart Township reported in the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer, that a stabbing had occurred in Georgetown . Georgetown is a little village in Bart Township , Lancaster County . On Sunday (probably the 19 th since the article states “last Sunday”) William Mimm stabbed Wesley Herr in the side with a knife.    Herr was treated by Dr. John Martin. His wounds were severe but not life threatening. Mimm was taken into custody by constable D.B. Quigley and placed in the county jail.    Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 27 September 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.      On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Daniel Herr raised a new barn, reported the Lancaster Daily Intelligencer On This Day in 1880. Herr, a former Lancaster County treasurer, lost his Pequea barn some time ago to a fire. Former sheriff H. N. Breneman and Mr. John Ingram supervised approximately 100 men in the raising.   Source Lancaster Daily Intelligencer. ( Lancaster , PA ), 23 August 1880. Chronicling America : Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.     On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

It was On This Day, 117 years ago, in 1898 that Catherine Kezia Cresswell Eckman passed away in Strasburg Township , Lancaster County . Born 13 October 1840, she was the daughter of James Cresswell and Elizabeth Herr. Elizabeth , being the daughter of David Herr and Catherine Bumberger, was the 3x great granddaughter of the Reverend Hans Herr.   Catherine married John Henry Eckman, son of Henry and Elizabeth Eckman, on 7 January 1858. They had 11 children and lived across the street from the Zion UCC Church in Providence .   She is buried at Zion with her husband, John, and several of their children.  She is my husband's 2x great grandmother.   On This Day is a prompt to further explore historical events.                  © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Family Events This Week Birthdays Happy birthday to my daughter, Mary. She turns 22 today. It is also Lori LeMon’s (hubby’s niece) birthday. May God grant you all Many Years.    Memory Eternal Today is the 102 nd anniversary of the passing of Dorothy Still. The daughter of Pierson George Still and Mary Kilpatrick, she was my great aunt. She lived only 19 days in 1913. She died of whopping cough.  She is buried with her parents in Old Doe Run Presbyterian Cemetery in East Fallowfield, Chester County. Friday is the 156 th anniversary of David Herr’s death. He is hubby’s 4 th great grandfather. He was born in 1774 to David Herr and Christina Martin in Camargo, Lancaster County . In 1808 he married Catherine Bumberger. They had seven children. He died 13 March   1859.   My Family Calendar This Week will be a weekly feature.    © Jeanne Ruczhak-Eckman, 2015

Thursday of this week is National Puzzle Day. I used to love putting jigsaw puzzles together but why I bring this up is because it dawns on me that genealogy is like a big family puzzle. We spend our time seeing if this person fits here or there and matching up events and such. So really Thursday could be “National Place An Ancestor Day”!   Birthdays Happy birthday this week to David and Mark Peters, and Doug Schlichter! May God grant you all Many Years.    Memory Eternal Today (25 January) is the 104 th anniversary of the death of Julia T Coursault. She is my husband’s 2x great aunt and the daughter of Oliver C Coursault, of Philadelphia , and Catherine Wren, of Ireland .   Monday is the second anniversary of Aunt Jo passing. Aunt Jo is Josephine Eckman Pelikoski. She was (hubby’s) Dad’s sister. She married Tony Pelikoski. Tomorrow I will share more about Aunt Jo during Matrilineal Monday.   That's her photo at right. It is also 152 ye...

This week begins today with the birthday of a famous children’s author, A.A. Milne. He was born in 1882. He is the author of Winnie the Pooh. Tomorrow (Monday) is a US day of observation, recalling Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birth in 1929. Last week’s 52 Ancestors theme had him in mind with the theme “ Remembering the King .” The themes though are simply loose guidelines and I instead talked about Elvis and my Daddy! Wednesday is National Hugging Day so grab a family member and hug away! Birthdays Happy birthday this week to Chip Pelikoski, Stacey O’Flaherty and Diane Buckley McKiernan! May God grant you all Many Years.    Memory Eternal Monday (19 January) commemorates three who passed. Alice K. Eckman Dupal passed four years ago. Maria Herr Barr passed 199 years ago.    Alice is my husband’s 4x cousin 1x removed, or at least that’s what FTM tells me! Alice is the daughter of Ross, son of Cyrus. Cyrus is the son of Mahlon, son of Henry. It i...

Tombstone Tuesday is a blogging theme for GeneaBloggers which encourages the family historian to include an image of a gravestone of one or more ancestors and it may also include a brief description of the image or the ancestor.   Winters Mabel Steinman  Nov. 9, 1885 - Feb. 8, 1975 In loving Memory   Married Apr. 3, 1904 Philip G.  Oct. 16, 1884 - Sept. 27, 1964 The Winters are buried at Zion UCC in New Providence, Lancaster County, PA. They were wed 3 Apr 1904 at Faith Reformed Church, in Lancaster. The 1905 Lancaster City Directory reveals a Philip G. WInters residing at 316 E. Liberty Street. He is a silk weaver. His father, Issac, still lives at 334 Green Street and is a laborer. The 1907 Directory lists Philip's address as 423 Cherry. The 1910 Census shows Philip and Mabel Winters the parents of three young daughters: Mary, Stella, and Mabel in Strasburg Township. Philip at this time is 24 and his wi...

A piece of history is slated to be demolished in West Lampeter Township. Township supervisors sadly approved the demolition at their Monday, 8 September, of a house built by Christian Herr II in 1734. Christian Herr II is the son of Christian Herr I who built the adjoining 1719 Hans Herr House (seen at left), which is the oldest original Mennonite meeting house. According to an article in the Lancaster Newspapers , current owners of the 421 Penn Grant Road historic home, Randy and Christine Andrews, want to tear down their historic home to make space for a new one. Step back in time for a moment. In 1710, the Reverend Hans Herr was among the Mennonites who received land grants near the Conestoga and along what was known as the Great Conestoga Road leading to the west. At that time, the area was part of Chester County, one of the original counties in the Commonwealth. Lancaster County was parceled out in 1729. The Great Conestoga Road was repla...

David C Eckman, 87 David C Eckman of 147 Loop Rd., Pequea, dies at Lancaster Regional Medical Center on Friday, 21 November 2003. He was 87. Mr. Eckman was born in Little Britain Township, son of the later David H and Lottie Herr Eckman. He farmed in Martic Township, worked for Armstrong Co., the Pennsylvania Railroad., PP&L, and the construction crew that built a UGI pipeline. He retired from PennDOT in 1977 after 10 years' service. Mr.Eckman was a member of the Martic Township Planning Commission, the Safe Harbor United Methodist Church, and the Multiple Sclerosis Patients Club. He liked to attend sales, make crafts, and build and fix equipment. Mr.Eckman is survived by two daughters, Joyce E Hartenstine of Lancaster and Linda L Morris of Ephrata; his son, David D Eckman of Hooversville; nine great grandchildren and four great grandchildren. His wife, Mabel A Gantz Eckman, died in 2001. Four sisters, Miriam Hathaway, Ruth Wood, Edna Mae Kleinhans Mortimer, an...

Today (2 November) is Plan Your Epitaph Day. An epitaph is "an inscription on or at a tomb or a grave in memory of the one buried there," according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. It can be something simple like "beloved wife and mother" to something almost comical "I told you I had a cold." An epitaph can be informative - that is name, birth info, death info - or it can be more personal and revealing. This example (on right) shows the stone of a Charles L Miller, buried in the Clearfield UM Church Cemetery in Providence Township, Lancaster County, PA. Charles is clearly a father who passed in 1911.  Beneath his death info reads: A little flower of love That blossomed but to die Transplanted now above (?) with God on high - The short verse tells a few things about Charles Miller. First we see by the dates that Charles was young. He was just 27 when he passed. Second, we know he is a father so we can surmise he had a wife and at least one chil...

Providence Township was formed out of Martic Township in 1853 however the area had been settled as early as the 1720s. Several sources indicate early settlers were mostly German-Swiss descent. During its hayday, Providence was home to such industries as Martic Furnace and a Woolen Mill as well as many grist mills. It was also home to many saw mills, a natural progression since the land was full of hardwoods. Farming was another popular profession although many farmers - like Henry Eckman who settled here in 1817 - supplemented income with other related businesses. Many farmers quite naturally doubled as butchers and blacksmiths. Providence Township was home to many one room schoolhouses during the 1800s. Many of the old schoolhouses do not have datestones and records were poorly kept over the years. Schools included Fairview, New Providence, Harmony, Pleasant Valley, Mt. Airy, Hickory Grove, Rising Sun and Clearfield. Today elementary students attend Providence Elementary School, ...

I woke up early this morning and decided to take a look at the old to do list. We all have this sort of list. It's made with god intentions but have you ever noticed as we cross one item off two more items find their way on the list! Anyway, something woke me up at 4 this morning and since I normally wake up at 5 anyway I decided to just stay up. My FarmTown (yeah - I'm addicted!) was not ready so I pulled out the to do list. I think I could probably wake up at 3 for an entire month and still have a nice list! Today - I updated my family file on Ancestry.com finally. It's been a long time coming. If you would like to check it out, it is called Ruczhak Family Tree. It covers: Ruczhak/Hruszczak, Matys, Kurenda, Skrabalek, Still, Walsh/Welsh, O'Flaherty, Durkin, Keating, Murphy, VanHorn, Rice, Bing, Way, Eckman, Deyoe, Schermerhorn, Herr, Miller, Kirchner and more. I used to be able to recall any date and name or place or event ... then I computerized. I love it don...

According to Ancestry.com's website they will be adding several databases. One of which is the Pennsylvania Marriage Records, 1700s-1810. While I doubt my Margaret Still will be there I am confident I will find my husband's Eckman line as well as his Herr, Miller and Kirchner lines. His line is confusing at times as there was much intermarriage during that time frame. Both his grandparents for example were born Eckman. John Charles Eckman was born in 1883 to Charles Henry and Rosa Kirchner Eckman in Lancaster City, Lancaster County, PA. Mabel Florence Eckman was born in 1888 to Aldus John and Emma Miller Eckman in New Providence, Southern Lancaster County, PA. Both John and Mabel had a previous marriage. He was a widower when they met and Mabel a divorcee. The immigrant ancestor was Johannes Eckman who was born about 1687 in Roamnshorn, Germany. He married Eva Dorthea Seitz in Germany and died here in Lancaster County on 22 November 1759. Johannes had one brother - Hans Jac...