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Facts and Events
References
- Hostetler, Harvey, and William F. Hochstetler. Descendants of Jacob Hochstetler, the Immigrant of 1736. (Elgin, Illinois: Brethren Publishing House, 1912)
953.
- Minister of the Amish Church
- Amish settlers in Brothersvalley, Somerset County, Pa.
Replies: 0
Amish settlers in Brothersvalley, Somerset County, Pa.
Trish (View posts) Posted: 20 Mar 2006 6:45PM GMT
Classification: Biography
Surnames: Schrock, Blough, Miller, Speicher, Maust, Kaufman, Speicher.
Much of the land immediately north of the present site of Berlin in Somerset County, Pa. was held by the Amish. They were actively supported by the Amish church in eastern Pennsylvania. An old Amish Alms Book with records from 1768 of Berks County, Pa. list on November 15, 1768 that 11 pds. 6 pence was given to Christian Speicher who then moved to the Brothersvalley region. This was nearly the entire amount in their treasury. Among the earliest Amish settlers in this region were John Schrock ( spelled as Schrak, Schrag, Schyrach) and Christian Blough. John Schrock came to the vicinity of Berlin about 1765, he married one of his Amish neighbors, a sister to Bishop Jacob Miller. He grew to manhood here and purchased land from the Speichers and died in 1813 and was buried on the Lewis Maust farm near Berlin. Another notable Amish leader came to the Brothersvalley Glade with the migration around 1760's from eastern, Pa. He was Jacob Miller, the first leader of the River Amish in Elk Lick Twp., Som.Co., Pa. Jacob was the son of Hannes Miller Sr., known later as Indian John, who was an early settler on what became the Tom Maust farm. Around 1782, at the age of 28 years, Jacob and his young family moved to the Glades where his father had settled a few years earlier. While there he ministered to the Brothersvalley Amish between 1785 and 1793. He moved to Holmes County, Ohio where he became the first Amish-Mennonite leader before his death in 1835. His mother, Magdalena, the wife of John Miller, is buried on the on the home farm in Brothersvalley, the old cemetery is on an elevated ridge and looks west across the whole valley which was once the core of the Amish Community, a hand chiseled stone reads "M. 1817 M." Jacob Miller's brother Christian was referred to as Glades Christian to distinguish him from nearly half a dozen other men of the same name. This Christian Miller remained on the home farm and became a prominent farmer in the 1800's. Bishop Mose B. Miller, the son of Bishop Benedict C. Miller, wrote the notes of his ancestors names and dates for the Descendants of Jacob Hochstetler. Among the papers found in Moses Millers articles when he died in Richland Twp., Cambria Co., Pa. were notes of the money that was used from the Amish treasury to help those of their faith moving to another area as well as the help given to the widows in the area. Some of his notes included the following: Great grandfather, John Miller, called Ferunh Miller, was born 1730, five sons that I know of were Christian Miller, Joseph Miller, Peter Miller, John Miller. and Jacob Miller. Grandfather was Jacob Miller, he had four daughters, one married Joseph Speicher, one to Christian Speicher, one to Jacob Kaufman and one to Jacob Hochtetler. Grandfather married Anna Stutzman and they moved to Ohio in the spring of 1808. He was a minister in the Amish Church. Three of his sons, John J., Henry Miller, and Jacob Miller, moved to Ohio. Only one son, Benedict Miller , became a Bishop in the Springs area of Somerset Co., Pa. and the Grantsville area in Maryland and remained here until his death. Bishop Benedict Miller was the father of Moses B. Miller who came into the region of Scalp Level and Richland, Cambria Co., Pa. where he died and is buried in the Weaver Mennonite section of the Richland Cemetery.
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