JAKOB, GEORGE, ELIZABETH, AND CATHERINE- OUR 2nd AMERICAN GENERATION

      Let me begin by reminding readers that the spelling of "Shedenhelm" varied widely from the beginning. In our time, we're prone to think that someone is not related to us if he or she spells their surname in a different way than we do. For instance, there was a time when I would not have thought that I was related to the "Shetenhelms" in Michigan, or the "Sheetenhelms" in Maryland, or the "Schiedenhelms" in Illinois...but I am! Of greater concern to researchers is the fact that spellings differed considerably for the same person, depending on the census taker's interpretation of the name. In preparing for this blog, I had trouble verifying the marriage of Frederick Shittenhelm's daughter, Catharine, to Anthony Eckhart... until I discovered that her last name was entered as "Sheetinghelm." Likewise, I had trouble finding Jabob (Jakob) Shittenhelm in the 1830 Federal census until I discovered that he was listed as "Seatenhelm." Be careful not to draw a circle that excludes relatives you may have... or even varying spellings of the ones you know you have.
      Having noted that, I will turn my attention to our 2nd generation in America. First, the record shows that they were all farmers and that three of them- George and his two sisters- relocated to Ohio when Ohio's land deals became too good to refuse. Indeed, this is exactly what many of their ancestors did when they left Ohio for Iowa and Michigan. Farmers, especially those who were not in line to inherit the family farm, moved west to claim the American dream for themselves. Thus, the record shows that George Shedenhelm purchased land in Seneca County, Ohio in 1832 and that Catherine Sheatenhelm was settled with her husband, Anthony Eckart, in Falls, Ohio by 1830.  We also know, although the details are sketchy, that Elizabeth and her husband, Anthony Brashear(s) Jr., we're settled in Ohio at an early date, but Frederick's first-born son stayed in Maryland.
      According to the 1800 Federal Census, Jacob Shettenhelm was living in Liberty, MD. at that time, and according to the 1830 census, Jacob Sheatenhelm/Seatenhelm, was living in District #9 of Frederick, MD. with his wife and three "children," one of whom was a teenage boy and two of whom were young women over 20. We know that 1) Jacob lived from June 28, 1777 to New Year's Day of 1836, and 2) he married a woman named Mary Walter. 3) with whom he had 5 children. 4) We also know that on May 11, 1807 Jacob purchased 130 acres of "Middle Plantation" from Thomas Walter for 700 English pounds ($1000 at the time), and that Jacob Sheetenhelm was our family's first miltary veteran, serving in the Maryland Militia during the War of 1812 under Captain Samuel Duvall (a 3rd cousin of mine from the Simmons' side) from August 3-Oct. 3, 1814.
      Jacob's younger brother, George Shedenhelm (my 3x great-grandfather) lived from January 10, 1782, when he was born in Frederick County, MD. to October 26, 1852, when he died in Seneca County, Ohio. We know that, 1) in May of 1832, George purchased 160 acres of land "near Wolf Creek, 3 miles north of Tiffin, Ohio," and that 2) he married Catherine Lease (1785-1875) on March 11, 1805. (Please note that some researchers believe that George married Catherine Slaymaker instead of Catherine Lease and a few others suggest that he married Ms. Slaymaker first and then Ms. Lease. These are minority opinions, however, and they are without documented proof that I have found.) George Shedenhelm was an early settler in Seneca County, Ohio and he seems to have enjoyed a successful life there. George's last Will carried his final words, and with these words, George made these things clear: 1) all funeral expenses and just debts must be paid first, 2) all of his real estate and personal property would go to his "beloved wife, Catherine;" 3) his son-in-law, Aaron Ruse, was not to receive any more of his property; 4) the grandchild who was living with him (1852) would receive $150; 4) all other assets and money should be divided equally among his heirs, except for the aforementioned Aaron Ruse; 5) after his wife, Catherine, died, all property should be equally divided among his living heirs (except Ruse), and 6) that his sons, Levi Adam, and Grafton McClellen would be co-executors of his Will. George and Catherine Shedenhelm are buried in Fravell Shaull Cemetery.

                                                                                   

Catherine, wife of George Shedenhelm

     Elizabeth Schidenhelm was born in Frederick County, MD.  on June 30, 1779. She was baptized in the German Reformed Church on August 22, and she married Nathan Brashear, Jr. in 1796. We know that they were living in Frederick when the 1800 Federal Census was taken, but it is difficult to trace their steps after that, probably because the name Brashear is listed in many different ways. However, we do know that they had 10 children and that most of them lived and farmed in Fairfield County, Ohio. There is one record suggesting that Nathan and Elizabeth relocated to Ohio as early as 1817, That seemed a bit too early to me initially, but there is no doubt that they left Maryland early on.
      Catharina/Catherine Sheatenhelm was Frederick and Maria Barbara's youngest child. She was born on September 27, 1788 in Frederick, MD, and she married (listed as Sheetinghelm) Anthony Eckhart on September 13, 1806... six miles from Frederick Town, MD. Interestingly, the record shows that Anthony also served in the War of 1812 and that he served as a Corporal under Captain Samuel Duvall (who was the same officer whom Jakob Sheetenhelm served under). Like George Shedenhelm and Nathan Brashears, Anthony Eckhart was enticed by the land deals in Ohio,... and by 1830, we know that he was living with Catherine and his children in Falls, Ohio.

      Jacob and Mary had 5 children; George and Catherine had 6 children; Elizabeth and Nathan had 10 children; and Catherine and Anthony had 10 more. Their kids are my first cousins, several times removed.  There are 31 of them... and they constitute the 3rd generation of our family in America, many of whom had moved west to Ohio.

   

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.

Gen. 10- MORE FLOSSERS UND EIN SACKWALTER

           Anna Ehinger and Johann Michael Schittenhelm were married in Erzegrube, Germany on June 20, 1702. As noted earlier, Michael was a flosser who transported lumber on the river, just as his father had before him. Their first son, Johannes, was born in 1703 and buried in Gruntal on July 26, 1788. Their 3rd son, David, was born in 1708. He married (first) Anna Oesterlin and (second) Christine. He had three children with Anna and four more with Christine and he worked as a bauer (farmer), flosser (rafter), sackwalter (lawyer), and zimmerman (carpenter). Johann Michael and Anna had at least two children who died in childhood, but it is their son, Friedrich, who is of most interest here... because his son, Frederick, was the "Shedenhelm" who immigrated to America in 1766.
      Friedrich Schittenhelm was born on June 2, 1704, in Aach, Germany and he died in Kalberbronn on November 18, 1772. Like many of our ancestors, Friedrich farmed and also worked as a raftsman. On May 27, 1726, Friedrich married Anna Schumacher and they had 5 children- Dorothea (b. 1729), Eva Magdalena (1731-81), Frederick (1733-1808), Johann Jacob (1736), and Johann Michael (1736).   They all had families whom I would like to follow. Dorothea, Eva Magdalena, and both Jacob and Michael are my 5x great aunts/uncles. They are most likely related to you also.
      However, Frederick Schittenhelm is my 4x great-grandfather. He is a direct ancestor and he is the Shedenhelm who brought our branch of the family to America. Thus, he will be presented next as the 1st generation of our family in America.

OUR 9TH GENERATION- A FLOSSER AND A KIRCHENPFLEGER

      My 8x great-grandfather, Johannes Michael, and his wife, Anna Maria Ziegler, had two sons- both of whom left Aach and relocated to towns that were nearer to Alpirsbach, Germany, which was "home" to the progenitor of the Schwarzwald branch of our family. (see earlier post on HannB)
      Johannes was their first-born. He was born in Aach on December 26, 1651 and he lived to see the 18th century unfold, dying on June 9, 1715, in Wittlensweiler. Johannes was the first church caretaker (Kirchenpfleger) in our family, which means that he had broad-based duties to oversee church property, processes, and personnel. Johannes and his wife had three children who are my 1st cousins 8 times removed. They were Hans Martin, who worked as a miller, judge, and mayor in Wittlensweiler; Anna Catharina, who married Johan Caspar Stuhr; and Hans Jakob (1694-1763), who married Christina Zufle.
      Michael Schittenhelm was Joh. Michael and Anna Maria's 2nd son. He is also my 7x great-grand-father. Michael was born in Aach on April 22, 1655 and he died in Erzgrube on July 29, 1681. At the time, lumber was an important part of the German economy and Erzgrube was a place where rafters could load their cargo and take it to Amsterdam and other large cities. Indeed, as our family tree shows, several members of our family worked full-time or, in some cases, part-time, as rafters (Flossers) during this time period. Michael Schittenhelm made his living as a Flosser and he and his wife, Maria Agnes Schuefer, had one son, Johann Michael who was born just a few months after his father died in 1681. Johann Michael is the grandfather of the man who immigrated to America and he will be the subject of our next chapter.

Freudenstadt and church

Schwarzwald (Black Forest)

Our 8th Generation- More Mayors, more Farmers and our first Butcher

      Joh. Michael Schuttenhelm was Michael Schuttenhelm's eldest son. He lived in Aach, Germany throughout his life (1600-1681), and he enjoyed success as a Judicial Mayor and as a Judge in that village. He married a woman named Waldburga in 1628 and later, he married Anna Maria Ziegler on January 22, 1650 (which would've been two years after the Thirty Years War concluded). Michael Schuttenhelm's second son was named Philipp Schuttenhelm. Like his brother, Philipp spent his life (1604-1682) in Aach, and also like his brother, he was married twice- initially to Anna Dustling on January 25, 1636 and then to another Anna on October 3, 1670. Joh. Michael and Anna Maria had at least two children- one of whom is my 7x great-grandfather, Michael. He was born in 1655 and will be mentioned later.
   

Hallwangen, Germany

Untermusbach area

      Michael Schuttenhelm's brother, HannB and his wife, Anna Maria, had a large family. Their first son was named Heinrich (1596-1669). Heinrich was a Metzger (butcher) in Hallwangen and he also served as Mayor in Schrozberg. Cyriacus was the 2nd son born to HannB and Anna Maria. He lived from 1603-1633 and worked as a farmer in the Gruntal area. Jakob Schuttenhelm was born to HannB and his wife on May 19, 1605. He was a farmer and a miller in Aach and on July 5, 1640, he married Walburga Muller. HannB was HannB's 4th son (who can keep track of these names?) and he was born on January 27, 1619. He served as Village Mayor in Horschweiler, Germany, where he died on January 18, 1676. On May 6, 1649, HannB married Anna Gwinner, who gave birth to at least ten children before she passed away on April Fool's Day, 1693.
      Finally, we mention Wilhelm Schuttenhelm's youngest son, Wilhelm, who was the younger brother of both Michael and HannB. We don't know what Wilhelm did for a living, but we do know that he served on the town council at Untermusbach and that he and his wife, Barbara, had a son named Wilhelm HannB ... who was short near Egenhausen and died on May 22, 1636 at the age of 43. I don't have any details on the shooting and don't know if it was the result of an accident, a crime, or the Thirty Years' War.
      As a geographical reminder, Aach is located approximately this many kilometers from the towns that we have encountered so far: Horschweiler (74), Egenhausen (83), Freudenstadt (77), Tubingen (117), Nordlingen (225). Aach is 79 kilometers from Nagold, Germany and 79 kilometers to Zurich, Switzerland.
      Thus, Joh. Michael, Philipp, Heinrich, Cyriacus, Jakob, HannB, and Wilhelm HannB. constitute the 8th generation of our family tree. They lived in southwest Germany during the 30 Years' War and they worked as Mayors, Judges, Farmers, Butchers, Millers, and Town Councilmen.

Wilhelm's Boys- Our 7th Generation

      As noted earlier, Wilhelm Schuttenhelm- the progenitor of our Aach branch- relocated to the small village of Aach, which is a picturesque town which sets near the Swiss border and Lake Constance, in southwest Germany.

Aach, Germany

      Wilhelm farmed there and he had three sons: Michael, who was born around 1553 and died on March 10, 1636, probably in Untermusbach, where he earned a living as a Bauer (farmer) and a Muller (miller) and also served on the Town Council; HannB, who was born circa 1560 and died sometime before 1637. During his lifetime, HannB must have been well respected because he served as Mayor in Gruntal for years; and Wilhelm (born c. 1565-died aft. 1595) who was both a Judge and a member of the Council in Untermusbach, Lacking details about their lives- other than the fact that Michael married a woman with the surname of "Krieger" and HannB married a woman named Anna Maria- it is hard to know how Wilhelm's sons fared in Aach. On the one hand, it is clear that they were well respected in their communities and that they they carried on the family's tradition of being part of the growing Bourgeosie at that time in Europe- a social class that included merchants, master craftsmen, and mayors. On the other hand...my 9th great-grandfather, Michael, and at least one of his brothers lived through, and may have died from the devastating effects of the Thirty Years War, which raged throughout Germany from 1618-1648. The was began as a feud between the Protestant Union and the Catholic League, but it mushroomed quickly into an international conflict. Sweden got involved on behalf of the Protestants and France weighed in to support the Catholics. Other countries were involved too, and for decades, warring armies marched across Germany, plundering, burning property, dislocating citizens, devastating sources of livelihoods, and leaving a trail of death and disease in their wake. Indeed, the 30 Years War is one of the deadliest "religious" wars on record and when the smoke cleared... Wurttemberg had lost aa much as 3/4 of its population and 8,000,000 people had died. 

      Finally, for those interested in such things, it is interesting to note that Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian Calendar in 1582. This calendar replaced the Julian calendar which has been in effect for as long as anyone could remember and it also established January 1 as the beginning of a new year. Protestants rejected Gregory's calendar and would not implement it for more than a century, but Catholics implemented it immediately. Thus, to paraphrase Jean Wilson  (pg. 37), "after going to be on October 4, 1582, they woke on October 14, which (for them) was the following morning!"

HANNB AND OUR SCHWARZWALDER BRANCHES

      The record shows that Hans Schuttenhelm moved from Nordlingen to Tubingen to advance his career and that his son, Heinricus, became a man of considerable influence in Tubingen and surrounding areas. As a graduate of Tubingen University, Heinricus caught the attention of Graf Eberhard im Bart, who rewarded for his work on the reunification of Wurttemberg with a great Coat of Arms and the position of Senior Judge. Thus, Heinricus' three sons- HannB, Burchard, and Georg- were blessed with a lot of social contacts and career options when they came of age. They could have followed in their father's footsteps and became lawyers themselves, or they could have followed in their grandfather's footsteps and pursued careers as master journeymen in one of the trades, but it seems that they became our first landowning farmers. We know that Heinricus' middle son was a Bauer (farmer) and that he died in Baiersbronn and that Heinricus' youngest son, Georg, was a Bauer who died in Dorhan sometime after 1562.
      It appears that farming land with tenants was in their best interest, and so it was with Heinrucus' oldest son, HannB, my 11x great-grandfather, who owned at least two farms in an area near Alpirsbach, Germany, which is in the heart of the Black Forest (Schwarzwald). We know this from a 1534 tax document in Alpirsbach which notes that "HannB Schuttenhelm and Jacob Ruoff, yearly renter, through their joint ownership of farms of Stueckhen and Guerttern" offered (among other things) "3 bushels of grain, ten hens, 9 chickens and 'joyful gift money' in the amount of 14 Batzen." (see Wilson, pg. 33) HannB Schuttenhelm lived in the Vogelsberg Congregation of the 24 Farms at Apirsbach, and he is the first recorded Schuttenhelm in the Black Forest. He is also the progenitor of the Schwarzwald line of Schittenhelms, which according to Wilson (pg.32), represents more than 75% of the Schittenhelms in Europe today.
      HannB was the first farmer in our family. He started the Schwarzwald branch of our family... and his three sons broke off into three distinct branches from there. HannB (HannB's first son) started the Vogelsberg branch of the family, which suggests that he stayed in the Alpirsbach area and may have even inherited his father's farms; HannB's son. Heinrich, started the Gruntal branch of our family (Gruntal is 12 miles north of Alpirsbach); and HannB's youngest son, Wilhelm, my 10x great-grandfather, moved to Aach, Germany (which is within walking distance of the Swiss border) and started the Aach branch of our family.
      HannB's son, Heinrich Schuttenhelm, is one of my great uncles and his descendants are my first cousins (many times removed of course). Many of these cousins were quite successful in their lives, becoming Mayors and Judges in their own right, The same thing can be said for "uncle" HannB's family. His progeny are also cousins of mine and perhaps yours too. Read Jean Sheathelm Wilson's book and you will be blessed to see some of what they accomplished... but to make my work somewhat manageable, I will focus primarily on Friedrich Schittenhelm's direct ancestors because he the Immigrant who brought us to America, Therefore we will turn our attention to Wilhelm Schuttenhelm and his descendants as we turn our attention to Generation 6 of the Schuttenhelm/Schittenhelm/ Shedenhelm family.
      As a minister myself, I can't leave the 16th century behind without mentioning the Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation that affected the lives of most, if not all, Germans throughout the century. Religion is a sensitive subject in our own time, but it was downright sacred in HannB's time. HannB was alive when Martin Luther started the biggest theological fire that the world had ever seen by nailing his 95 theses to the door of a church in Wittenberg, in protest to the practices that he thought were contaminating the Catholic church. The Pope immediately labeled Luther's protestations as heresy and the fight was on. Luther went into hiding the better part of a year, but his teaching spread through much of Germany, dividing its regions into Catholic and Lutheran. Since the rule at the time was that the citizens of any region or state would worship as their ruler worshiped, many people who had been Catholic forever... became Lutheran overnight! And if their ruler died or was overthrown, the same citizens might well become Catholic again. It was a chaotic time and HannB's sons lived to see Europe's religious differences lead to war. We don't know how much our ancestors were affected by the Reformation (it must have been a lively topic in a University town like Tubingen), but we do know that, while Wittemberg opted for Lutheranism early on, its citizens were free to worship as their consciences dictated, especially if they were Catholic or Lutheran.
   

The Schwarzwald (Black Forest)

Alpirsbach