JOHANNES BACKENSTOSS
Baptized 8-5-1736,came with his mother & brother JACOB to PA in 1744. He lived first at Lancaster, PA where he learned the saddler's trade at the same time as his brother. Later residing in Northumberland Co., Butler Twp.,his location during the 1800 census. No record of his death has been found. It is conceivable from VA census records that he was living with son JOHN in 1810 & with son's widow in 1820. JOHN served in the Revolution in 1777 in Capt. Reed's Co. of infantry and took part in the battles of Long Island and White Plains. He put in a claim for 12s. 6d. for pouches and a powder horn lost on retreat from Long Island. From 1778 to 1782 he served in Capt. Jonathan McClure's Co.of the 4th Bn. The PA Archives report that he was called to Bedford for frontier duty on 4-19-1778 and that in 1778 he collected 2 bushels of wheat and one bushel of forage for the Army depot at Middletown. On 9-21-1760 he married Christina Snyder(or Christine Schneider), widow of Joseph Snyder,at the First Ref.Ch.,Lancaster,PA. We assume his first son JOSEPHsB1) was the product of this marriage. JOHN BACKESTOSS of MMiddle- town,yeoman, & Magdalena Ziegeler, a spinster.
Married married 12-30-1763 in Trinity Lutheran Ch. of Lancaster. The baptisms of two sons from this marriage,JOHN(sB2) and FRIEDERICHsB3),are recorded at Middletown by Rev. John Conrad Bucher. On 3-1-1761 he bought land at Middletown from George Fisher,youngest son of John Fisher & w. Hannah. The 1771 assessment lists in Middletown say that he had 5 acres of land and owned one horse. In 1782 he owned 5 acres and 2 cattle. "John Backenstoe of Middletown"bought lot No19 in Northumberland,PA on 9-24-1783 from Mathias Richard of that place. In 1796 he sold this lot to Thomas Cooper of Northumberland for 5s. & bought Lot No.20 in the same town,on the same day,for the same price. John's wife's name in theses transactions is Elizabeth. We assume she is the mother of JACOB(sB4) and FREDERICK(sB5) and possibly another son. The 1790 census of Northumberland Co. lists John Backinstose,his wife,and son - 208 - sA2 under 16 years of age.
