Frederick Shittenhelm was the immigrant who brought us to American. Like other Germans from the Palatinate, he sailed from Rotterdam to Philadelphia, where he took an oath of allegiance and went to work. Since there are no records of Frederick purchasing land in Pennsylvania, it seems likely that he worked off his debt (for passage to America) and then migrated to Maryland, as many other Palatines had done before him. Frederick bought 109 acres near McKaig, Maryland and called the place, "Frederick's Contentment." Thus, when he died in 1808, our ancestors had a foothold in America. In fact, they had a home and a beginning for us.
JAKOB SCHITTENHELM, THE SHEETENHELMS, & THE LEASES
Frederick and Maria Barbara Schittenhelm had four children: Jacob Schittenhelm, George Shedenhelm, Elizabeth Schiedenhelm, and Catharine Sheatenhelm. As the oldest son, Jacob inherited at least part of his father's farm (aka "Frederick's Contentment), and we know that he also purchased 130 acres of land from Thomas Walter in May of 1807. Since Jacob was married to Mary Walter, it is likely that Thomas was his father-in-law or one of Mary's uncles. In any event, Jacob's line of the American Schittenhelm family stayed in Maryland and embraced the surname of Sheetenhelm. Indeed, Jacob and Mary had five children: Thomas Sheetenhelm, (1799-1853) who married 1) Mary Clay and 2) Elizabeth Harris; Catherine Sheetenhelm (1802-1807), who married Daniel Lease; Delilah Sheetenhelm (1805-1879), who married Charles Lease; Reuben Sheetenhelm (1811-1882), who married Mary Ann Lease; and Mary Shedenhelm, who married Washington Hammond. Jacob is my 3rd great-grand uncle, and I am proud to say that he served our country during the War of 1812. Records show that he was a Pvt. in Capt. Duvall's Company of the Maryland Militia and that he was baptized in the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Jacob is my 4th great uncle.
GEORGE SHEDENHELM AND THE MOVE TO SENECA COUNTY, OHIO
It seems that, while other family members moved west, the Sheetenhelm's stayed in Maryland, and there are Sheetenhelm's listed in Maryland White Pages to this day. However, the connections with the LEASE family carried over to Jacob's younger brother, George, who is my 3 great-grandfather. George, who adopted the surname of Shedenhelm, was baptized on April 21, 1782, in the German Reformed Church of Frederick, Maryland. In the course of time, he married Catherine Lease and they had six children together: Levi A. Shedenhelm (1806), who married Margaret Rosenberger, Elizabeth Shedenhelm (1807), who married Aaron Ruse; Henry Shedenhelm (1810), who married Mary Myers; Grafton Shedenhelm (1813), who married 1) Mary E. Schall and 2) Catherine M Schall; Mary S. Shedenhelm (1817), who married Barnett Freeze; and Barbara Schendenhelm (1821), who married John Michael Schall. Since his older brother inherited his father's land and since attractive land deals were being offered in Ohio, George moved from Hagerstown, Maryland to Tiffin, Ohio in the fall of 1830. The record shows that George purchased 80 acres at the Tiffin land office on May 25, 1832, and we know that he also purchased160 acres near Wolf Creek, which is 3 miles north of Tiffin. Some researchers believe that George married Catherine Lease- others believe that he married Catherine Slaymaker- still others believe that he married both of them in succession. However, George and Catherine Lease are buried together in Tiffin, Ohio. The census of 1850 indicates that George, age 71, was living with... Catherine, age 60; Mary Ruse, age 18; and Lyhae McCracken, age 14 months. George's will was probated on November 1, 1852, and in it, he gave the following instructions:1) pay all of my funeral expenses and debts first, 2) give all of my real estate and personal property to my beloved wife, Catherine; 3) "It is my will that my son-in-law, Aaron Ruse, shall not receive any more of my property... but that his wife, Elizabeth, receive an equal portion; 4) give to the granddaughter who lives with me $150 and other specified items; 5) "It is my will that my money and interest be divided equally... with the exception of the said, Aaron Ruse; 6) after my wife dies, remaining assets should be divided equally, except for Aaron Ruse; 7) my will shall be executed by my sons, Levi and Grafton. George is my 3rd great grandfather and Catherine Lease is my 3rd great grandmother.
ELIZABETH SHIDENHELM AND NATHAN BRASHEAR JR.
Those of us who are attached to uniformity will be frustrated with the undisciplined way in which surnames were handled in the past. Clerks wrote names as they heard them and people changed the spelling of their surnames for reasons of their own. Thus, even before we leave the 2nd generation of "Shedenhelms" in America behind us, we have already encountered Shittenhelm, Schittenhelm, Sheetenhelm, Shedenhelm, and Shidenhelm (Schiedenhelm). Soon, we we encounter a line of Shetenhelms... but now, our focus in on Frederick's daughter, Elizabeth, who was born in 1799. Elizabeth married Nathan Brasher, Jr. Nathan died at an early age in 1817, but not before he purchased a tract of land, which he named, "Nathan's Purchase," and moved to Ohio, where he died. Indeed, each of their children lived relatively short lives and lived them in Ohio. Nathan Brashear, Jr and Elizabeth Shidenhelm had the following children: Truman (1799-1849) married Elizabeth Kerns; Barbara (1801-1847) married George Seidner; Nancy Ann (1802-1847) married James Owen; Hiram (1814-1847) married Mary Cherry; Perry (1818-1847) married Elizabeth Phipps; and Catherine (1810-1833) married Nathan C Owen. Elizabeth is my 4th great aunt.
CATHERINE SHEATENHELM AND ANTHONY ECKHART
Little is known (by me) as this is written about Catherine Sheatenhelm and Anthony Eckhart, other than Catharina was baptized in the Evangelical Reformed Church, Anthony served in the War of 1812, and they were living in Falls, Ohio in 1860, with their children: Betsy Eckhart, who was born before 1809; Susan, born 1809; Barbara, born 1811; Catherine, born 1813; Cornelius, 1814, married Elizabeth Weaver; Polly, born 1816; Lewis A., born 1816, married Samantha White; Eden, born 1825, married Mary Weaver; Grafton D., born 1825, married Priscilla Mathias; Lovina, born 1830, married Jeremiah Stukey; and John Alexander, born 1837. Catherine is my 4th great aunt.
These four people comprise the second generation of our family in America. However, the third generation was much larger and included thirty-two cousins: Levi Adam Shedenhelm, Henry Shedenhelm, Grafton Shedenhelm, Mary Shedenhelm, Barbara E. Shedenhelm (from George), Thomas Sheetenhelm, Catherine Sheetenhelm, Delilah Sheetenhelm, Reuben Sheetenhelm, Mary Shedenhelm (from Jakob), Betsy Eckhart, Susan Eckhart, Barbara Eckhart, Catherine Eckhart, Cornelius Eckhart, Polly Eckhart, Lewis Eckhart, Eden Eckhart, Grafton Eckhart, Lovinia Eckhart, John A. Eckhart (from Catherine), Freeman Brashear, Barbara Brashear, Truman Brasher, Owen Brasher, Solomon Brasher, Esther Brasher, Catherine Brasher, Nathan Brasher Jr., Elizabeth Brashear, Hiram Brashear, and Perry Brashear.
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