Place of Restoration
From a letter written by John Hertzler, author of the Hertzler Genealogy, we learn of the kindly treatment of Joseph by the Indians, and “when they brought him down the Susquehanna River, to the Fort on the east side of the river, near where Sunbury is now, in Northumberland County (Fort Augusta), by treaty, they tried to have him go back with them and live with them as brothers. He often visited them and enjoyed himself hunting, fishing, running and jumping.” John Hertzler’s mother, Barbara Zug, was a niece of the wife of Joseph, the captive.
. . .
It is related of Joseph that, although the Indians had murdered his mother, brother and sister, and committed many other atrocities, he had become so attached to them and their customs and manner of living that he hesitated long before he decided to leave them and readopt civilization and live with the whites. The mutual attachment between him and his Indian brethren was such that it was kept after his return.
In due time he married . . . and settled down, but the habits he acquired during his long captivity never fully left him.
Taken from pp. 44, 45 of Descendants of Jacob Hochstetler, by Rev. Harvey Hostetler, D.D., 1912. This portion was prepared by William F. Hochstetler.
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