Today's been a reasonably good day, despite its start. I got up quite late - just ten minutes before my morning class began - and so I felt rather... grimy. I rolled out of bed, brushed my teeth, combed my hair, tossed on some clothing, and went to class. Class was pretty good; we spent lots of time in groups. I also found out that the next speech I'll be delivering for it will be a devotional... on Psalm 58. Which has a lovely line about the righteous "bathing their feet in the blood of the wicked", and exhorts God to break the wicked's teeth. Awesome. After class, I came back here, took down my recycling, and took out a couple bags of trash while clearing off the spare bed and my intolerably messy desk. Then I went to lunch, where I stayed for about 1.5 hours, since my friends began arriving just after I finished eating. When that was all done, I came back here and watched three more episodes of Arrested Development, up through the season 1 finale. After that, I caught up on a few blogs, and then decided that - being quite tired - it'd be prudent to take a nap. I did, and I believe I woke up around 6 PM. It must have been a restful slumber, since it included a dream that, to the best of my recollection, involved gaining access to a 7-dimensional library through the aid of a very powerful silver pocketwatch... I have a rather peculiar dream life, when I can remember it. Anyway, after getting up, I listened to a podcast and then some music as I finished cleaning things up. Took out the last two bags of trash, put away my laundry (finally!), then vacuumed everything and Febreezed the living daylights out of it all. Now the room looks remarkably habitable. That said, I have nothing left for the evening but to await my friend Daniel's arrival after the lengthy and harrowing trip west-southwest from our native land. Given that he has difficulty even finding my house at times, I predict that it could be a few more hours until he makes it. I certainly hope his travels are safe and swift, though. I'm eager to see him.
In the meantime, though, I'm collecting some more genealogical data. A chance Internet search revealed that the Strausstown Roots website has information on the ancestors of my great-great-great-great-grandmother Elisabeth Rauch nee Moyer. This is thrilling, since it was only 17 days ago that I even found out about Elisabeth. To refresh: it turns out that my great-great-great-great-grandfather Jonathan Rauch first married Elisabeth Rauch in 1851. With her, he had two children, William Rauch and my great-great-great-grandmother Priscilla Rauch (later wife of Jacob Mountz). But Elisabeth died in 1854 at the all-too-early age of 25. Sometime in the next few years, Jonathan Rauch married Elisabeth's sister Mary Magdalene Moyer. Together, they had at least four children: Ezra Rauch (b. c. 1857), Monroe Rauch (b. 1860), Samuel Rauch (b. July 1867), and Mary L. Rauch (b. c. 1872). Mary Magdalene Rauch nee Moyer died in 1903, and her husband Jonathan followed suit in 1906, having outlived both of his wives.
Now for the new material. It seems that Elisabeth Moyer was the daughter of Johannes Meyer (1805-1872) and his wife Barbara Meyer nee Wilhelm (1802-1886). Johannes, in turn, was the son of Georg Meyer (1770-1847) and his wife Susanna Meyer nee Peiffer (1773-1833), while Barbara was the daughter of Adam Wilhelm (1754-1834) and his wife Maria Christina Wilhelm nee Gruber (1766-1825). At the moment, I've just been jotting down what's available on Maria Christina Gruber's ancestry. She was the daughter of Adam Gruber (1735-1807) and his wife Catherine Elizabeth Gruber nee Schauer (1744-1790). And here's the part that caught me really off-guard: for the birthplace of Catherine Elizabeth Schauer, the site listed "Northkill Amish Settlement" in Bern Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Amish? Now that caught my attention! Indeed, we're talking the first Amish settlement in the New World here, established just in 1740. But I'm not sure where, if at all, that would fit in. Catherine was the daughter of Johann Adam Schauer (c1718-1762) and (probably?) his wife Anna Elizabeth Schauer nee Koch (c1718-c1775). Catherine was baptized at the local Lutheran church, however, by its pastor Caspar Stoever; Johann Adam was married in the Lutheran church in Stouchsburg in 1748 (3.5 years, I note, after the birth of his daughter Catherine); and it seems that Johann Adam's father Michael Schauer, a German immigrant, was one of those who received the 1744 land warrant for the church's use. This family, then, was Lutheran rather than Amish. Or so I conclude for now. Johann Adam Schauer was himself born in New York to two German immigrant parents who met in America: Michael Schauer (1699-1772) of Massenbach (in Baden-Wurttemberg), and Elizabeth Catharina Lauck (c1696-1784) of "Wallau/Hofheim, Darmstadt, Hessen". So, assuming that this website has the picture roughly right (and I've always found it to be fairly reliable, often citing particular sources), this Michael Schauer would be my... ninth-great-grandfather (that is, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather). And I haven't even finished exploring the wealth of data collected on this website. Looks like I'll have plenty of other folks to research when I'm back home in Pennsylvania this winter!
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And, just as I was finishing up this post, I got a call from Daniel to the effect that he's reached the campus, and so I gave him (again) detailed directions on how to reach the dorm. He should be here in a matter of minutes now.
In the meantime, though, I'm collecting some more genealogical data. A chance Internet search revealed that the Strausstown Roots website has information on the ancestors of my great-great-great-great-grandmother Elisabeth Rauch nee Moyer. This is thrilling, since it was only 17 days ago that I even found out about Elisabeth. To refresh: it turns out that my great-great-great-great-grandfather Jonathan Rauch first married Elisabeth Rauch in 1851. With her, he had two children, William Rauch and my great-great-great-grandmother Priscilla Rauch (later wife of Jacob Mountz). But Elisabeth died in 1854 at the all-too-early age of 25. Sometime in the next few years, Jonathan Rauch married Elisabeth's sister Mary Magdalene Moyer. Together, they had at least four children: Ezra Rauch (b. c. 1857), Monroe Rauch (b. 1860), Samuel Rauch (b. July 1867), and Mary L. Rauch (b. c. 1872). Mary Magdalene Rauch nee Moyer died in 1903, and her husband Jonathan followed suit in 1906, having outlived both of his wives.
Now for the new material. It seems that Elisabeth Moyer was the daughter of Johannes Meyer (1805-1872) and his wife Barbara Meyer nee Wilhelm (1802-1886). Johannes, in turn, was the son of Georg Meyer (1770-1847) and his wife Susanna Meyer nee Peiffer (1773-1833), while Barbara was the daughter of Adam Wilhelm (1754-1834) and his wife Maria Christina Wilhelm nee Gruber (1766-1825). At the moment, I've just been jotting down what's available on Maria Christina Gruber's ancestry. She was the daughter of Adam Gruber (1735-1807) and his wife Catherine Elizabeth Gruber nee Schauer (1744-1790). And here's the part that caught me really off-guard: for the birthplace of Catherine Elizabeth Schauer, the site listed "Northkill Amish Settlement" in Bern Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. Amish? Now that caught my attention! Indeed, we're talking the first Amish settlement in the New World here, established just in 1740. But I'm not sure where, if at all, that would fit in. Catherine was the daughter of Johann Adam Schauer (c1718-1762) and (probably?) his wife Anna Elizabeth Schauer nee Koch (c1718-c1775). Catherine was baptized at the local Lutheran church, however, by its pastor Caspar Stoever; Johann Adam was married in the Lutheran church in Stouchsburg in 1748 (3.5 years, I note, after the birth of his daughter Catherine); and it seems that Johann Adam's father Michael Schauer, a German immigrant, was one of those who received the 1744 land warrant for the church's use. This family, then, was Lutheran rather than Amish. Or so I conclude for now. Johann Adam Schauer was himself born in New York to two German immigrant parents who met in America: Michael Schauer (1699-1772) of Massenbach (in Baden-Wurttemberg), and Elizabeth Catharina Lauck (c1696-1784) of "Wallau/Hofheim, Darmstadt, Hessen". So, assuming that this website has the picture roughly right (and I've always found it to be fairly reliable, often citing particular sources), this Michael Schauer would be my... ninth-great-grandfather (that is, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather). And I haven't even finished exploring the wealth of data collected on this website. Looks like I'll have plenty of other folks to research when I'm back home in Pennsylvania this winter!
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And, just as I was finishing up this post, I got a call from Daniel to the effect that he's reached the campus, and so I gave him (again) detailed directions on how to reach the dorm. He should be here in a matter of minutes now.
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