Person:Michael Schenk (1)

He was 4th of 4 chdn.Per cousin vee who found this information in Pennsylvania Mennonite Heritage magazine by Joanne K Hoover.The article sites that "On the eastern border of Elizabeth twp , Lancaster, adjoining Clay twp, lived Michael Shenk, a Mennonite, who in 1733 was granted a warrant for 273 acres, which was patented Aug 18, 1749. In 1740, he was additionally deeded the 94 acres of the Charles Jones tract. The remaining 100 acres of the Charles Jones tract was deeded to Oswald Hostater. In 1750, M ichael acquired the Martin Wiedman tract. During his lifetime he released parts of the land to his family. Michael Shenk was married at least two times with a strong possibility of a third wife. A deed cites Michael and wife Maudlin releasing 30 acres t o Elizabeth Deerdorff, widow, part of 273 acres patent, which on Aug 18 1749, was granted to Michael Shenk. His will proved o n Dec 24, 1763, names seven of his ten children ranging from marriage aged to a three year old daughter.Next to Michael Shenk lived Sebastian Royer also known as Mathias Reyer who on Sept 21 1747, sold 2 1/2 acres o f his land to the trustees of the Dutch Reformed Congregation for a church and burying ground. This became the Reyer Church, or Zion Reformed Church at Brickerville. The first trustees were Peter Becker, Wendel Laber, Jacob Keagy, and Tillman Sheets. During the Revolutionary War, the old church was used as a hospital, and some of the soldiers who died in this church are buried in the graveyard.

The Schenk’s migrated to America from the Pfalz, after having left the parishes of the Berne area. Many Schenks descending from Michael <1590> became Anabaptist and were in trouble with local authorities and their parishes. In 1671 at the age of 81 it’s thought that he was driven from the Emmenthal valley along with many others. According to Mennonite archives in Amsterdam, it’s thought that 643 Mennonites were driven from this valley in a 2-month period. In 1672, Michael and his family were refuges at Ibersheim Germany. Michael soon died in Gemany though his sons Christian and Michael both made it to America. They arrived in 1717, having come with a group of 363 Mennonites who left Germany, traveled down the Rhine River, and boarded sailing ships. About one month after arrival, Christian took out a warrant for 530 acres in what is now Strasburg Township of Lancaster County. Michael Schenk, the first child of Christian and his wife Barbara had been born in the Palatinates and was 22 years old when his parents immigrated to America and settled in the Pequa area near Conestoga where many other Mennonite families were located. Michael and Mary had seven sons and one daughter. While most sons seem to have stayed in the Conestoga area or migrated to nearb y townships, Martic or nearby York County PA, Adam, born about 1737 in Conestoga migrated to migrated to Manchester Township in York County of PA. Most of his and Magdalena’s ten children were born there between 1769 and 1782. In 1784, the lure of land seems to have drawn the Shanks to Rockingham. The York county farm was sold and land was bought in Rockingham from a John Schenk in 1785, and from a Michael Schenk in 1786. Two new children were born to the Shanks in Virginia. The Shanks had ten children, and among them was a Magdalena born in 1769 in Manchester Township of York Co., PA. This daughter became the second wife of Abraham Brenneman. Magdalena Shank died in 1802, a year before her husband Adam. Both are thought to be buried besides one another in the Mennonite cemetery in Edom.