Lawrence - Smith - Jeffcoat -
Saltzgiver - Weaver
Background
It all started with the immigration of Moritz (Lorentz) Lawrence and many others to Philadelphia from Alsace, a German speaking area of now modern-day France.
Their journey and ancestors are well documented by Marion C. Bale and Diane M. Lawrence Krumrine in "The Life and Times of Moritz Lorentz, His Ancestors And His Descendants".
This book is in print and can be acquired through the John Timon Reily Historical Society.
Legacy
We have hundreds of old family Lawrence, Smith, Jeffcoat, Kuhn, Saltzgiver and other photographs, all passed down from a few generations of our Adams & York County relatives. We wanted to figure out document, share and pay tribute to our great ancestors.
It's like one huge puzzle so please provide feedback and any help is greatly appreciated.
The more you learn the more inquisitive one becomes when doing ancestry research.
I hope you enjoy the Galleries and short stories.
We are all related!
Philadelphia was the major USA immigration entry point in the early 1700's for German speaking Europeans. Their surnames were often misspelled and changed to fit the English overseer's. Most were farmers who spoke only German, a trend which continued for a few generations.
Lorentz became Lawrence, Schmidt's to Smith, Graf's to Groft and so on... These Germans intermarried as well as mixing with the few English, Scotts and Irish settlers all moving from Philadelphia through Burks, Lancaster, York and Adams Counties. Many of the British paid German Hessian Revolutionary mercenaries stayed in the area, versus going home to Germany.
Even into the 1900's Adams & York County Pennsylvania residents spoke a form of German while English was slow in becoming the main language. During the Second World War many German POW's were sent to this area. It wasn't uncommon that these Germans stayed, married and raised families in the area.
This site is tribute to our early Adams County ancestors as we try to identify pictures and relationships.
Please visit our friends who have much more history and artifacts from the families who settled in and around Adams County Pennsylvania.
John Timon Reily Historical Society
The Bonneauville Museum
Adams County Historical Society
Our Ancestors Photo's
This site is tribute to our early Adams County ancestors as we try to identify pictures, relationships and family history...