Quiet Time? Not Really!

It's been quiet here at kinexxions for the past two weeks. Not because I haven't had anything to blog about. Quite the opposite, actually.

The hunt for Hoffman descendants was "interrupted" somewhat by several inquiries from other researchers and the news that I'd be attending the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP) the last week of this month.

A descendant of Christian Rupert shared his family information with me. I, however, had no additional information to give to him. Christian was listed in the 1820 census in Columbiana County, Ohio. Initially, I had thought he might be related to John Rupert (my 5th Great Grandfather) and he may well be, but we don't know how, though he is probably not a son of John since he wasn't mentioned in John's will. Christian Rupert married Mary Stuller in 1818 in Columbiana County. By 1832, they had moved to what would become Auglaize County, Ohio and by 1840 they were in Carroll County, Ohio.

Then there was a descendant of Christian Hoffman who contacted me, thinking that his Christian was the son of Michael Hoffman (my 6th great grandfather). This Christian was of the right age, had enlisted in "April 1776" in the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment. A later deposition states that he enlisted in May or June of 1777 at Easton in Northampton County, Pennsylvania in the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment. In 1819, under the name of "Christian Hoofman" he filed a Revolutionary War Pension application (S38042) while living in Pendleton County, Virginia.

However, there was also a pension file for another Christian Hoffman who was also of the right age and who enlisted in "August 1775" in a company in the 12th Regiment Pennsylvania Line. This Christian Hoffman filed for a pension (S39752) in 1818 while living in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

According to The American Revolutionary War website, the 1st Pennsylvania Regiment was organized in June and July 1775 and consisted of 9 companies from Cumberland, Lancaster, Northumberland, Northampton, Bedford, Berks and York Counties.

The same site shows that the 12th Pennsylvania Regiment was authorized on August 23, 1776 in the Continental Army as the Northampton and Northumberland Defense Battalion, and actually organized between September 28th and December 18th 1776 at Sunbury and was to consist of 8 companies from Northampton, Berks, Cumberland and Northumberland Counties.

Since both men enlisted in Regiments from the same area of Pennsylvania and there was little personal information other than their ages and names of their wives, the pension applications provided few clues as to their nativity. Without additional research, there is no way of knowing if either man is a son of Michael Hoffman. Since Christian isn't my ancestor I didn't pursue the matter any further. Hopefully my correspondent will continue his quest and come up with a more definitive answer.

But the most recent contact was, for me, the most exciting. An email from a descendant of Jonathan Smith Dunfee who was the brother of my 3rd great-grandfather, William Hamilton Dunfee, didn't get me back any further on that line but it sure filled in some blanks on his branch of the family! He also shared some wonderful family photos - more on those in future posts - and I was, happily, able to give him some new information too.

I've also been reading the articles Dr. Jones sent for "prep" work for GRIP but really do need to spend some time STUDYING them. And since I'm going to Pennsylvania I'm hoping to be able to take a few days afterward for on-site research. However, I'm quickly running out of time....