Individual Page

Person Info

• Name: John HERR
• Sex: M
• Birth: Abt 1681 ^b
• Death: Before 6 Nov 1756 in Lampeter Twp, Lancaster Co, Pennsylvania ^d


Parents:

• Father:
  
• Hans HERR Birth: 1 Sep 1639 in Zurich, Switzerland Death: 11 Oct 1725 in Lampeter Twp, Lancaster Co, Pennsylvania
Mother:

• Barbel KENDIG Birth: 1644 in Zurich, Switzerland Death: 30 Jun 1730 in Lampeter Twp, Lancaster Co, Pennsylvania

Family:
Marriage:

• Frances BRACKBILL .^m1
  
• Frances BRACKBILL Death: After 1756

Children:

1. John HERR Birth: 23 Apr 1702 Death: Before 11 Oct 1783
2. Veronica HERR Birth: 14 Oct 1705 Death: 20 May 1780
3. Anna HERR Birth: 20 Dec 1711 Death: Before 1756
4. Mary HERR Birth: 13 Oct 1714 Death: Before 26 Jul 1803 in Lancaster, Lancaster Co, Pennsylvania
5. Christian HERR Birth: 20 Feb 1717 Death: 18 May 1772 in Lampeter Twp, Lancaster Co, Pennsylvania
6. Elizabeth HERR Birth: 10 Aug 1719 Death: 9 Aug 1807

Bibliography

Sources for birth and parent Information

date:

1681 [Ref: Davis Emigrants v1p105]

1685 [Ref: HerrT HERR p1]

abt 1681 [Ref: Best KENDIG p16],

parents:

[Ref: Best KENDIG p16],

father:

[Ref: HerrT HERR p1]

Sources for death Information

date:

1756 [Ref: Best BEAR-Euro p25, Davis Emigrants v1p105]

1765 [Ref: HerrT HERR p1]

will pro 6 Nov 1756 [Ref: Best KENDIG p16],

place:

[Ref: Best KENDIG p16]

Sources with Information about marriage to Frances BRACKBILL

names:

[Ref: LancasterCoPA Biog p276]

John HERR & Frances ___ [Ref: HerrT HERR p1, HerrT HERR p2],

child:

[Ref: Best KENDIG p16, HerrT HERR p2]

Research Notes:
Lancaster County's first pioneers came to Pennsylvania because a century of cruel wars and religious persecution in Germany and Switzerland, especially throughout the Rhine Valley, had destroyed the estates of many noble people, creating acute social, religious, and economic problems. The proprietors of the British colonies in America were eager to increase the value of their holdings by securing as settler these people of high character and abilities. In 1708 they had sent glowing descriptions of the New World throughout the Rhineland to induce the war-weary people to come to America. Over 13,000 responded in 1709 and 1710, but the Swiss Mennonites, in spite of the most adverse conditions, were so devoted to their homeland that they preferred familiar troubles to unknown dangers. Only a handful of the most daring left for America before 1711, among them the half dozen first families of Lancaster County. Sometime in the spring of 1710 these six families came down the Rhine to Rotterdam, from Rotterdam tookship for London, and on June 24, 1710 wenton board the Maria Hope, bound for Philadelphia. While on shipboard, but before the ship sailed, the heads of the six pioneer families wrote a letter to a committee of the Amsterdam Mennonite Church, thanking them for assistance in their journey. This London letter of June 27, 1710, still to be seen in the Amsterdam Mennonite Archives, is signed by Martin Kendig, Jacob Miller, Martin Oberholtzer, Martin Maili (Mylin), Christian Herr and Hans Herr. This is the first known document containing the name of Martin Kendig. [Ref: Benson MartinKendig p14]

Jun 24 1710: signed London letter [Ref: Best KENDIG p16]

Jun 24 1710: embarked from Rotterdam on ship Maria Hope, bound for Philadelphia; arrived Sep 23 1710 at noon [Ref: Benson MartinKendig p14]

Oct 10 1710: secured a warrant to survey 10,000 acres near the head waters of the Pequea, to be purchased at a cost of five pounds per hundred acres. Warrant mentions Martin Kendig, Jacob Miller, Hans Herr, Christian Herr, Martin Oberholzer. On Oct 23 4,000 acres were surveyed in the Paradise area, and on Apr 27 1711 6,000 more acres surveyed in the Strasburg-Willow district. Martin Kendig received patents for about 5,000 acres, all of which he held in trust for others with exception of 530 acres for his family [Ref: Benson MartinKendig p15]

Oct 10 1710: warranted 530 acres in Strasburg Twp [Ref: Best KENDIG p16]

Jun 30 1711: patented 530 acres in Strasburg Twp [Ref: Best KENDIG p16]

Nov 27 1717: representing the Swiss, with Martin Kendig, met with Isaac Norris and James Logan, two of the Pennsylvania land commissioners. They agreed for 5,000 acres of land about Conestoga and Pequea Creeks "for settlement for several of their contrymen"; at the same time the commissioners signed the land warrants which had been issued to the 21 other Swiss on Sep 27. Norris and Logan explained to them that, according to English law, they were all aliens legally unable to own land, but that the land commissioners' business was to sell land, therefore they would sell the land if the Swiss would take a chance on laws being passed in the future to remedy the situation. Norris and Logan suggested that the Swiss petition the Pennsylvania Assembly for a special law making it possible for them to own the land and transmit it to their children. This they all agreed upon. Most of the Swiss and many German settlers secured the rights by a special act of the Pennsylvania Assembly passed in 1730. Martin Kendig's name is not among them; he may have considered his position secure without legislation, having been appointed to two offices under the Crown of Great Britain, that of constable of Conestoga Twp in 1724 and supervisor of Conestoga Twp in 1726 [Ref: Benson MartinKendig p16]

Nov 22 1717: the practice of granting surveys to individuals effectively came to a halt, and a blanket warrant was granted to hans Herr and Martin kendig for 5000 acres, more or less, which were to be surveyed in plots of various sizes anywhere along the Pequea and Conestoga creeks or their branches. This warrant made Kendig and Herr the officially recognized intermediaries between the provincial authorities and the Swiss. [Ref: Brackbill Herr-Kendig p81]

method to obtain land under this blanket warrant was that a settler would locate a likely tract of land, then visit Martin Kendig and Hans Herr, and request a survey under their warrant. They, in turn, would have the survey made by the official surveyor, and after the lines and acreage had been determined, Kendig and Herr would sell the settler a deed, which, of course, only disposed of their rights under the warrant. [Ref: Brackbill Herr-Kendig p83]



Pedigree of John HERR
          /-----Christian HERR
 /-----Hans HERR
John HERR
|                  /-----Peter KUNDIG
|         /-----Jorg KUNDIG
 \-----Barbel KENDIG
          \-----Barbel HUFFELBERG



Descendants of John HERR

2nd generation


3rd generation


4th generation


5th generation