FREDERICK SHITTENHELM- OUR 1st AMERICAN GENERATION

      In the fall of 1766... Frederick Schittenhelm (aka. Shittenhelm/Schittenhelm) boarded the ship "Betsey" with 153 other Palatines... and set sail for Philadelphia through Rottenberg. The Palatines hailed from SW Germany and they emigrated in large numbers for a number of reasons. Some of them were seeking peace following all the wars that had affected their lives. Some of them were seeking a more comfortable place to practice their religion, especially if they lived in places where there was a lot of Catholic-Lutheran-Calvinist tensions. Some of them were attracted by the stories they heard from relatives who had already emigrated. Some of them were simply adventurous, but most of the Palatines who immigrated to America were seeking economic opportunity. Thus, even in the face of ordinances that threatened punishments for those who left Wuerttemberg, they made the trip to Rottenberg and set sail on a long and harsh trip to America.
      Some of the passengers (1/3-1/2) were able to pay for their passage to America and, after they took an Oath of Allegiance, they were free to go about their lives in their new land. But the many immigrants who could not pay for their passage were not allowed to pursue their dreams until they had paid their debt by working for an "employer" as an indentured servant. Would-be employers met ships as they docked, hired those who could not pay for their passage, paid for their trip themselves, and then "hired" their new employees as "indentured" servants until their debt was paid. On average, those who were indentured worked for their "employers" for 4 years before they were "redeemed," but the time period varied from case to case. It was a difficult and sacrificial journey to America, and I haven't even mentioned the crowded conditions and spoiled food that the passengers endured, or the sickness and death that often occurred. For most of the immigrants it was a one-way trip because they would never see their homeland again... but even so, the men of the Palatinate came to America in great numbers. Indeed it is estimated that there were between 70,000 and 100,000 Palatines in Pennsylvania by the time of the American Revolution and, while they were respected for their work ethic and commitment to their families, a number of influential Americans became concerned about their willingness to assimilate and their loyalty to the King of England. With this in mind, a law was passed in 1727 that required all adult male immigrants from the Palatinate, whether they could pay for their passage or not, to take an oath of allegiance before they settled in America. When he arrived in Philadelphia on October 13, 1766, Frederick Shittenhelm signed an oath of allegiance and joined others in reciting this verbal oath: "We subscribers, natives and late inhabitants of the Palatinate on the Rhine... do solemnly promise... that we will be faithful and bear true allegiance to King George II and his successors."

Depiction of Meeting House in Philadelphia
Arriving immigrants pledged their allegiance to the King in buildings like this

      With these words Frederick Schittenhelm was free to get about his life in America, or if he didn't have the money to pay for his fare, he would have begun his work as an indentured servant. I have not been able to determine which course he was obliged to follow, nor have I been able to determine if he traveled with, or met up with, relatives or friends from his native land. There were many Germans from the Palatinate already in Pennsylvania. Some of the lived in and around Philadelphia and it is known that they would often meet and welcome new arrivals. Whether Frederick was welcomed by someone who provided a community and a temporary home for him, or whether he had to work as an indentured servant for years, I don't know... but I do know that he "appears" on the historical/genealogical record when his eldest son, Jakob, was baptized in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Middletown, MD. on July 11, 1777. Based on other church records, we also know that Frederick and his wife were living in Frederick County, MD. when their remaining children were baptized: Elizabeth (1779); George, possibly named in response to the oath which Frederick had taken upon arrival in America, (1782); and Catharina (1789). It looks as if Frederick was settled in Frederick county, MD. when the Revolutionary War started... and he himself "showed up" on the 1790 census as a resident of that area.

Evangelical Reformed Church
Frederick, MD
1848

Evangelical Lutheran Church
Frederick, MD
1851

By 1790 Frederick, MD. had become home to many Palatine Germans, and it was also home to the Amelung Glass Co., which was founded by John Frederick Amelung in 1784.  Amelung crossed the Atlantic with enough material to build three glass factories and with 50-60 skilled tradesmen whom he had recruited for the task. Today, the only building that remains is an Old Tavern on Mt. Ephraim Road, but at it's peak, Amelung's factory and self-sufficient community covered 3000 acres along Bennet's Creek and employed nearly 500 people. Since the census of 1790 was taken by men who gathered information as they walked from neighborhood to neighborhood, we can discern people who lived next to one another... and since Frederick Shittenhelm is included among men who were known to work for Amelung, it is reasonable to assume that he worked for Amelung Glass Company at that time, especially when we remember that Frederick already lived in the area when the glass factory was hiring hundreds of men.
      We don't know much about Frederick Shittenhelm, but we know these things: 1) his father was a farmer and a flosser (rafter) back in Germany; 2) instead of following in his dad's footsteps or joining his brother in a law practice in Germany, Frederick immigrated to America in 1766, at the age of 33; 3) by 1777, Frederick had settled in Frederick county, Maryland where is children were baptized; and 4) in 1790, Frederick is listed among men who were known to be employees of the Amelung Glass Company (see Wilson's book). In addition to this, land records show that 5) under the name of Schutenhelm, Frederick purchased 103 acres of land in 1792 and 6) according to the 1800 Federal Census, Frederick and his wife were living with a female, age 10-16, in Liberty Town District, #7. Although it's not mentioned in the Census, it is almost certain that this female was their daughter, Catharina, who was born in 1788.

Depiction of Amelung Glass Factory

      Frederick (1733-1808) and Anna Barbara (1756-1820) had four children: my 4th great-uncle, Jakob (b. 1777), my 4th great-aunts, Elizabeth (1779) and Catharina (1788), and my 3x great- grandfather, George, who was born in 1778. These four people- Jakob, George, Elizabeth, and Catharina- comprise the 2nd generation of our family in America.