Jacob Hertzler's Origin

Jacob Hertzler was born in 1703, of Swiss parents, in Switzerland, Europe. Occupation, farmer and minister of the Amish Mennonite Church. He married in Europe, and with his first wife had one son named John. His wife died and was buried in Europe. [Ed. note: based on information from the Swiss Anabaptist Association databases, a daughter, Catherine, was born in 1731, died 1800. It isn’t clear if her mother was Jacob’s first wife or second.] Jacob Hertzler then married his second wife, Catharine; the children by this marriage were two sons and one daughter. Jacob Hertzler with his family emigrated from Switzerland to the Palatinate, in France and after residing there for some years, during the reign of Louis XV, a king of France, on account of being persecuted for his religious faith, being a Mennonite, Jacob Hertzler and family emigrated from there to America, taking the route via Rotterdam, Holland, and Plymouth, England. He came over in the ship St. Andrew, James Abercrombie, Master, from Rotterdam, landing in Philadelphia, Pa., Sep. 9th, 1749. From there he went to Berne T., Lancaster Co., Pa., now Upper Berne T., Berks Co., Pa., two miles west of Hamburg, on the direct road leading to Harrisburg, and purchased from the proprietaries of Pennsylvania, Richard and Thomas Penn, in Philadelphia, warrant granted to Jacob Hertzler, January 9th, 1750, for 182 acres, 30 perches of land surveyed May 14th, 1767. Price one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. This tract was named Contentment.

John Hertzler, A brief biographic memorial of Jacob Hertzler and a complete genealogical family register of his lineal descendants and those related by inter-marriage : from 1730 to 1883, chronologically arranged : together with the necessary historical and other notes : also, an appendix of the Christian Zug family, Elkhart, Ind.: Mennonite Pub. Co., 1885, 384 pgs.