Pennsylvania History
Many Mennonite and other Anabaptist families, including our own ancestors, sought freedom of religion in the Colony of Pennsylvania beginning in the 1600s. William Penn, himself a Quaker, had been persecuted in England for his religious
beliefs to the extent he had been arrested several times as well as imprisoned. One time he was imprisoned in the tower of London. Because of his own experiences he was determined to create a land where freedom of religion and democracy
were practiced. His original land grant included not only Pennsylvania, but parts of Delaware.
Lancaster County
“Many of the Colonies of North America were the consequences of emigration, either voluntary, or produced by religious persecution, in the Fatherland, where many an aching heart yearned after a place of peace and repose, where in obedience to the dictates of a quickened conscience, strains of worship, praises of the Almighty, might he poured forth unmolested.”
Rupp, I Daniel. (1845). History of Lancaster and York Counties. Gilbert Hills. https://archive.org/details/historyoflancast00inrupp/mode/2up
Pennsylvania
Filby, P. W. (Ed.). (n.d.). PASSENGER AND IMMIGRATION LISTS INDEX: Vol. 1 : A-G.
A Partial List of the Families Who Arrived at Philadelphia between 1682 and 1687. (1884). The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 8(3), 328–340. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20084664
Hocker, E. W. (2003). Genealogical Data Relating to the German Settlers of Pennsylvania and Adjacent Territory; From Advertisements in German Newspapers published in Philadelphia and Germantown, 1743-1800. Clearfield Company by Genealogical Publishing.
Knouff, G. (1994). “An Arduous Service”: The Pennsylvania Backcountry Soldiers’ Revolution. Pennsylvania History, 61(1), 30. https://journals.psu.edu/phj/article/view/25116
South Central Pennsylvania Settlers. (n.d.). [Personal History and Genealogy]. South Central Pennsylvania Settlers. Retrieved November 5, 2022, from http://pennsylvaniasettlers.com/index.php
Whitman, R. L. (n.d.). The Settlement of Germantown 1683-1719. Germantown Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends. https://gmm.gfsnet.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/The_Settlement_of_Germantown_in_1683.pdf
Egle, William H (Ed.). (1897). Provincial Papers: Warrantees of Land in the Several Counties of the State of Pennsylvania 1730-1898. In Pennsylvania Archives: Vol. XXV. Wm Stanley Ray, State Printer.
Egle, W. H. (Ed.). (1899). Minutes of the Board of Property of the Province of Pennsylvania Vol 1. In Pennsylvania Archives: Vol. XIX. Harrisburg : State printer.
Mayhill, R. Thomas. (n.d.). Index and Abstract of deeds, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania : Deed Books A through K (1729 to 1766) (Vol. viii). https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/494055-index-and-abstract-of-deeds-lancaster-county-pennsylvania-deed-books-a-through-k-1729-to-1766?offset=
Colonial Records of Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Archives Series 1 Vol III Colonial Records (Vol. 1). (1852). PUBLISHED BY THE STATE. https://archive.org/details/colonialrecordsov3harr
Archives guide to genealogical material in Pennsylvania Archives, Series 1-6, published 1852-1914. (1937).
Schuler, H. A. (Ed.). (1906). The Pennsylvania German. A popular magazine of biography, history, genealogy, folklore, literature, etc. H.W.Kriebel. https://ia600300.us.archive.org/4/items/pennsylvaniagerm07leba/pennsylvaniagerm07leba.pdf
Wokeck, M. (1981). The Flow and the Composition of German Immigration to Philadelphia, 1727-1775. The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, 105(3), 249–278. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20091588
Pensylvania Census 1790 Heads of Families. (n.d.). https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHKV-4DD
Pennsylvania, U.S., Septennial Census, 1779-1863 – Ancestry.com. (n.d.). Retrieved August 22, 2024, from https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/714619:2702?tid=&pid=&queryid=87b60deb-2a4d-4631-8042-891e6c108df7&_phsrc=oQp157&_phstart=successSource
Strassbourger, R. (1934). Pennsylvania German Pioneers (Vol. 3). PENNSYLVANIA GERMAN SOCIETY. https://ia800609.us.archive.org/31/items/pennsylvaniagerm44stra/pennsylvaniagerm44stra.pdf
Strassbourger, R. (1934). Pennsylvania German Pioneers (Vol. 1). PENNSYLVANIA GERMAN SOCIETY. https://ia800609.us.archive.org/31/items/pennsylvaniagerm44stra/pennsylvaniagerm44stra.pdf
Historical Images. (n.d.). [Web app viewer]. Lacaster County Pa Map Portal. Retrieved September 11, 2024, from https://arcgis.lancastercountypa.gov/portal/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=9150c13fe6d541a195f4327ef188db4d
Smith, Carl T. (n.d.). Genealogy of Pennsylvania Families (Vol. 1). https://archive.org/details/genealogiesofpen0001unse/mode/2up
A map of the improved part of the Province of Pennsilvania in America : begun by Wil. Penn, Proprietary & Governour thereof anno 1681. (n.d.). [Image]. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved August 16, 2024, from https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3820.ct001815/
Weeks, L. (Ed.). (1912). A Journal of American Ancestry (Vols. 1 and 2). William M Clemens. https://books.google.com/books/download/Genealogy.pdf?id=WsAWAAAAYAAJ&output=pdf
Strassbourger, R. (1934). Pennsylvania German Pioneers (Vol. 2). The Pennsylvania German Society. http://archive.org/details/pennsylvaniagerm04penn_1
Soderlund, J. R. (2016). William Penn and the Founding of Pennsylvania: A Documentary History. University of Pennsylvania Press, Incorporated. https://books.google.com/books?id=5fKcDQAAQBAJ
County Specific
Lancaster County
Abstracts of Lancaster County, PA Orphans Court Records 1742-1800. (2001). [Government]. Lancaster County Pennsylvania. https://co.lancaster.pa.us/1155/Orphans-Court-Index-1742-1800
Awkerman, L. C., Heiges, G. L., & Kendig, J. D. (Eds.). (1962). Manheim Bicentennial 1762-1962. https://ia801309.us.archive.org/10/items/manheimbicentenn00awke/manheimbicentenn00awke.pdf
Bureau, L. C. T. C. (1977). Rapho Township 1751-1825 [Tax Records]. Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. https://collections.lancasterhistory.org/en/permalink/lhdo20775
Clare, I. S. (1891). A Brief history of Lancaster County (A. Lyle, Ed.). Argus Publishing Company. https://archive.org/details/briefhistoryof00clar/page/n5/mode/2up
Clare, Israel. (1892). A Brief History of Lancaster County with Special Reference to the Growth and Development of its Institutions, Designed for the School and Home. (L. Anna, Ed.). Argus Publishing Company. https://ia801608.us.archive.org/23/items/briefhistoryof00clar/briefhistoryof00clar_bw.pdf
Diffenderffer, F. R. (1897). Historical Papers and Addresses of the Lancaster County Historical Society: Vol. II. The New Era Printing Company.
Ellis, F., & Evans, S. (1883). History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: With Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men. Everts & Peck. https://www.google.com/books/edition/History_of_Lancaster_County_Pennsylvania/WsQxAQAAMAAJ?hl=en
Eshleman, H. F. (1917). Historical Background and Annals of the Swiss and German Pioneer Settlers of South Eastern Pennsylvania, and of Their Remote Ancestors, from the Middle of the Dark Ages, down to the Time of the Revolutionary War. https://archive.org/details/historicbackgrou01eshl/page/8/mode/2up
Gilbert, G. (2005). The Warrant Maps of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Harmon, S. A. (2003). Cemetery Records of Lancaster County, PA (Vol. 3). Closson Press.
Historical Markers and War Memorials in Manheim, Pennsylvania. (n.d.). [Historical Marker Database]. The Historical Marker Database. Retrieved September 11, 2024, from https://www.hmdb.org/results.asp??Search=Place&Town=Manheim&State=Pennsylvania
Lancaster County Pennsylvania Oaths of Allegiance Index 1777-1789. (n.d.). [Dataset]. Lancaster County Archives Collection; Lancaster County Archives. https://www.co.lancaster.pa.us/DocumentCenter/View/12068/Oaths-of-Allegiance-Index-1777-1789?bidId=
Lancaster County Will Index M-R. (n.d.). Lancaster County Archives. https://www.co.lancaster.pa.us/DocumentCenter/View/12189/M-R-Will-Index?bidId=
Lancaster Mennonite History. (n.d.). [Mennonite History]. Mennonite Life. Retrieved October 23, 2024, from https://mennonitelife.org/research/lancaster-mennonite-history/
Lititz Mennonites: Historic Sites – Lancaster County, PA. (n.d.). Lititz Mennonites: Historic Sites – Lancaster County, PA. Retrieved August 15, 2024, from https://pennblog.typepad.com/lititz_mennonites/
MacInnes, S., & MacInnes, A. (2008). Early Landowners of Pennsylvania: Atlas of Township warrantee Maps of Lancaster County, PA. Closson Press.
Mayhill, R. Thomas. (n.d.). Index and Abstract of deeds, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania: Deed Books A through K (1729 to 1766) (Vol. viii). https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/494055-index-and-abstract-of-deeds-lancaster-county-pennsylvania-deed-books-a-through-k-1729-to-1766?offset=
Mombert, J. I. (1869). An authentic history of Lancaster County: In the state of Pennsylvania. J E Barr & Co. https://ia904508.us.archive.org/27/items/authentichistory00momb/authentichistory00momb.pdf
Rapho_taxes_1751_.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved August 1, 2023, from https://collections.lancasterhistory.org/en/viewer?file=%2fmedia%2flibrary%2fdocs%2fRapho_taxes_1751_.pdf#phrase=false
Rapho_taxes_1756_.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved August 1, 2023, from https://collections.lancasterhistory.org/en/viewer?file=%2fmedia%2flibrary%2fdocs%2fRapho_taxes_1756_.pdf#phrase=false
Rapho_taxes_1757_.pdf. (n.d.). Retrieved August 1, 2023, from https://collections.lancasterhistory.org/en/viewer?file=%2fmedia%2flibrary%2fdocs%2fRapho_taxes_1757_.pdf#phrase=false
Rupp, I. D. (1844). History of Lancaster County: To which is Prefixed a Brief Sketch of the Early History of Pennsylvania. Gilbert Hills. https://www.google.com/books/edition/History_of_Lancaster_County/9Kk-AAAAYAAJ?hl=en
Rupp, I Daniel. (1845). History of Lancaster and York Counties. Gilbert Hills. https://archive.org/details/historyoflancast00inrupp/mode/2up
Scott’s map of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. (n.d.). [Image]. Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved August 17, 2024, from https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3823l.la000761/
Wokeck, Marianne. (n.d.). Cultural Persistence and Adaptation: The Germans of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, 1729-76. Retrieved November 15, 2024, from https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=ec1dccfd83b08ad7b8b467cc1fc0fd5e9fe57ed7
Worner, W. F. (n.d.). LancasterHistory Research Collections. 35(1), 3.
Additional Counties to be added