Camp Security

Dick Eastman had a post today about the preservation of Camp Security, a Revolutionary War POW camp in York County, PA, just east of the town of York. A recent aerial image of the camp is here. I had read that my 4xgreat-grandfather, Johann Peter Strayer of Dover, York Co., PA had been a POW guard during the Revolutionary War. This article prompted me to investigate if this was the prison camp at which he had served.

A Google search for "peter strayer guard" turned up a Google Newspaper archive article from the Gettysburg Times of 24 Sept 1987. It states "Peter Strayer was in the American Rev. on Capt. Samuel Fuller's payroll, and was a guard at Camp Security, in 1781. Pa. Archives Vol 2 page 810 Sixth Series."

I am so glad that the author of the article, Harold Ditzler, provided a source citation for his assertion. Another Google search led me to a Wikipedia article on the Pennsylvania Archives with a link to the Google Books location for every volume. A few clicks and I was on page 810 of Volume 2 of the Sixth Series, where I found the second page of a muster roll for Sept 1781 listing Peter Strayer, who began serving on 15 Aug 1781.  He is listed as being "on guard" in the "Causualities" [sic] column. The heading of the muster roll on page 809 states that they were guarding "the Convention Prisinon [sic] at Camp Security."

I wanted to cite this book and realized I didn't know how to cite an on-line book. I know how to cite a book and I know how to cite an web site, but this was my first try at citing a book I accessed on-line. Since I had recently downloaded the 2nd edition of "Evidence Explained" from evidenceexplained.com, I popped it open to see what the expert had to say.

Basically what Elizabeth Shown Mills says for Reprints: Image Editions is to cite first the book (without publisher or place of publication), then the location of the image. She gives examples for a book on CD/DVD or on microfilm, but not for a web site. So here is my attempt at a citation regarding my ancestor's service.

Montgomery, Thomas Lynch. 1906. [Muster rolls, etc., 1743-1787], 809-810. Google Books (//http://books.google.com/books?id=ED4OAAAAIAAJ : accessed 15 May 2012.)

 I took the book citation straight from WorldCat, so that has to be right, even if I think it needs to provide information about the series of which it is a volume. I tried to follow the format for citing a website given in EE as best I could. At the very least, it's provides a trail for someone else to verify and evaluate my assertion that Peter Strayer was a guard at Camp Security during the Revolutionary War.

So that's one maternal line fighting for independence and one (Ogden) fighting for the Crown and heading for Canada when they lost.

Census Sunday: Another 1790 entry

Today I decided to see if there was anyone else in my family tree that would have been in the 1790 US Census. I have previously blogged about finding Peter Strayer and George Stauch and George Schaeffer. I went through the family tree again and discovered that Johann Georg Klinefelter, another fifth great-grandfather and father-in-law of George Schaeffer, died in 1794 in Shrewsbury, Dover Co., PA. I went looking for him in the 1790 US Census and found him with no trouble.

(1790 U.S. census, Shrewsbury, York Township, York County, Pennsylvania, p.3 , col. 2, line 1, John Clinefelter; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 15 Apr 2012); citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm M637, Roll: 9; Page: 359; Image: 195.)

He's there at the top of the second column as John Clinefelter. There are other Shrewsbury Clinefelter and Kleinfeller [sic] households at the bottom of the first column. They are probably related somehow, maybe sons or brothers.

By clicking on an ancestry.com leaf, I also discovered that someone had posted a photocopy of a page from a book called "Early German Settlers of York County, Pennsylvania" by Keith A. Dull. (Dull, Keith A. 2009. Early German settlers of York County, Pennsylvania. Westminster, MD: Heritage Books.) Originally published in 1997, a revised edition was last published in May 2009. The library in Ft. Wayne has a copy (not sure which edition) so I added it to my list for that library on Worldcat.org. It should be a great source of information on my Strayer, Stauch, Schaeffer and Klinefelter lines and any other early German families of that area that I don't know about yet.

Mystery Monday: Schaeffer Hattrick

What the heck, my last two blog posts have been about my 4th great-grandfather, George Schaeffer, so let's make it a trifecta. I don't have any info on the place and date of his birth, death or marriage to Elizabeth Klinefelder. I do have very exact info on the places and dates of her birth and death. My brother added this couple to our ancestry.com on-line tree, probably using other ancestry.com trees.

I've done a little bit of disorganized searching on ancestry.com looking for relative historical records. I'm finding conflicting info, mostly in Sons of the American Revolution applications. I can find applications for a George Schaeffer, but the maiden name for his wife Elizabeth is different. His son is given as Adam Schaeffer. I have also found applications for an Adam Schaeffer with a wife of Elizabeth Klinefelder. Very confusing.

This is a bigger mystery than I want to get involved with right now. I have more recent questions to work on answering. If I was tackling it, I would start by looking for records for Catherine Schaeffer, my 3rd great-grandmother. A marriage certificate from early 19th century York County, PA might list her parents. York County histories might also have history on the Schaeffer family. There are also church records from Dover, PA           that could provide info on her baptism or marriage. I get the feeling that my German York Co. ancestors are all tied together in the community.

Census Sunday: George Shaeffer 1790 US Census

Yesterday after posting about my Schaeffer line, I decided to do some quick research on my 4th great-grandfather, George Schaeffer. I have his wife, Elizabeth Klinfelder, living in Pennsylvania between 1760 and 1835. His daughter, Catherine Schaeffer, my 3rd great-grandmother, was born in Pennsylvania in 1784. That lead me to surmise that I could probably find George somewhere in Pennsylvania in 1790. I searched the 1790 US Census for a George Schaeffer living in Pennsylvania. I found several, but one was living in Dover, York County, which is where the family of Catherine's husband, Andrew Strayer, comes from. I clinked on the link to view the image and I immediately recognized it. I posted it a couple of weeks ago because John Peter Stayer and his father-in-law appear near the top of the page. About halfway down the page is George Shaffer. 

It will take a lot more research to verify that this is the right George Schaeffer, but his close proximity to future in laws makes me think I've found the right man. Plus his wife was born in York Co., PA. I still have no info on when and where he was born and died, but this is a start.

Surname Saturday: 61 - Schaeffer

Here is on of the last lines in the lines starting with my 3rd great-grandmothers.

1. Kevin Joseph HUIGENS

2. Joseph Anthony HUIGENS
3. Shirley Ann OGDEN

6. Emery Julius OGDEN (b. 9 Sept 1896 in Elk Point, Union Co., SD, USA, m. 19 Mar 1929 in Gordon, Sheridan Co., NE, USA, d. 8 Apr 1984 in Martin, Bennett Co., SD, USA)
7. Esther Louise JOHNSON (b. 23 Feb 1902 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 24 Mar 1984 in Rapid City, Pennington Co., SD, USA)

14. Gustav Adolph JOHNSON (b. 18 Aug 1867 in Locknevi, Kalmar, Småland, Sweden, m. 4 Sep 1899 in Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 25 Dec 1941 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)
15. Rosabell "Rose" STRAYER (b. 23 Aug 1872 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA, d. 7 May 1955 in Henning, Otter Tail Co., MN, USA)

30. Abraham STRAYER (b. 2 Sept 1822 in Dover, York Co., IL, USA, m. 10 Jul 1847 in Clark Co., OH, USA, d. 13 Feb 1893 in Milan, Rock Island Co., IL, USA)
31. Harriet Alice HOWARD (b. 30 Apr 1829 in Dayton, Montgomery Co., OH, USA, d. 2 Apr 1914 in Davenport, Scott Co., IA, USA)

60. Andrew STRAYER (b. 18 May 1781 in Dover, York Co., IL, USA, m. ? in probably Dover, York Co., PA, USA, d. 1855 in Dover, York Co., IL, USA)
61. Catherine SCHAEFFER (b. 1784 in PA, USA, d. 1875 in Dover, York Co., IL, USA)

122. George SCHAEFFER
123. Elizabeth KLINEFELDER (b. 27 Dec 1760 in Shrwesbury, York CO., PA, d. 10 Nov 1835 in Madisonberg Center, York Co., PA)

I don't have any information on my 4th great-grandfather, George Shaeffer. I'd guess he was spent at least a large part of his life in Pennsylvania. He may have been old enough to fight in the Revolutionary War. That's a possible line of research.

Census Sunday: Johan Peter Stroher 1790 US Census

Here is the oldest US Census record I have for any of my ancestors. My 4th great-grandfather is listed as Peter Stroher, second from the top in the left column. Below him is his father-in-law George Stauch, my 5th great-grandfather. My other colonial ancestry lines (Ogdens, etc.) were Loyalists who headed up to Canada after the US won its independence, so they're not in the US census until they come back later for homesteads in South Dakota.