BACHMAN, George

Male 1686 - 1753  (67 years)


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  • Name BACHMAN, George 
    Born 1686  Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Died 22 Nov 1753  Coopersburg, Upper Saucon Township, Bucks (now Lehigh), PA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Buried Saucon Mennonite Cemetery, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I1405  Hans Georg Spang
    Last Modified 2 Aug 2015 

    Father BACHMAN, Jos,   b. 1657, Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1736, Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 79 years) 
    Relationship Natural 
    Mother TREICHLER, Regula,   b. 1646, Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1706, Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 60 years) 
    Relationship Natural 
    Married 1687  Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Family ID F679  Group Sheet

    Family SCHNEBELE, Anna Maria,   b. 12 Apr 1698, Ibersheim, Germany Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 04 Nov 1776, Coopersburg, Upper Saucon Township, Bucks (now Lehigh), PA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 78 years) 
    Married 1715  Ibersheim, Germany Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
     1. BACHMAN, Henry,   b. 1717, Ibersheim, Germany Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Aft 1792, , Bucks, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age > 76 years)
     2. BACHMAN, Jacob,   b. 1720
     3. BACHMAN, Catherine,   b. 1722,   d. 1810  (Age 88 years)
     4. BACHMAN, George,   b. 1724,   d. 1806  (Age 82 years)
     5. BACHMAN, Christian,   b. 1727,   d. 1783  (Age 56 years)
     6. BACHMAN, Mary,   b. 1729,   d. 1785  (Age 56 years)
     7. BACHMAN, Elizabeth,   b. 1732
     8. BACHMAN, John,   b. 1735,   d. Abt 1801  (Age 66 years)
     9. BACHMAN, Samuel,   b. 1739,   d. 1814  (Age 75 years)
     10. BACHMAN, Susanna,   b. 1742
     11. BACHMAN, Abraham,   b. 1744
    Last Modified 2 Aug 2015 
    Family ID F670  Group Sheet

  • Notes 
    • Bachman in Richterswil, Canton Zrich, Switzerland

      Origins: [222] "Hans Jrgli for many years in Kurpfalz, was an Anabaptist, moved to America in Pensilvania, living by a great swamp, according to various letters to his father, had sons."

      Bachman-Schnebelli Bible (1536 Froschauer)

      Bachman Family Bible: [1] "In the meantime, the [1536 Froschauer Schnebelli-Bachmann Family] Bible found its way into the possession of Hans George Bachmann (1686-1753) when he married Anna Maria Schnebelli in 1715, probably at the
      Ibersheimerhof. In the 'Palatine Mennonite census' lists we find one Hans Bachman at the Ibersheimerhof in September 1685. [226]

      According to Maria's gravestone, she was born in 1698 and died in 1776, and appears to have been the daughter of Hans Jacob Schnebelli.

      George and Maria Bachmann's oldest child, Henrich, was born in 1717, according to their family record which we find in the Bible. They may have immigrated to Pennsylvania in that year, along with Dielman and Elizabeth Schnebeli Kolb and many
      other Palatine Mennonites who came at the same time. We do know that they came by 1727 and settled in the Saucon area. [101] George and Maria's second son, Hans Jacob Bachmann (possibly named after his material grandfather), was born in 1720.

      During the 1720s, the [1536 Froschauer Schnebelli-Bachmann Family] Bible settled with the Bachmann family in the Saucon Mennonite community in what is now Coopersburg, Lehigh County, where George acquired a tract of 300 acres by 1728. [101]

      From 1717 to 1744, the births of George and Maria Bachmann's eleven children are recorded in the Bible [97] as follows:

      Our Son Henrich Bachmann, born 1717
      Our Son Hans Jacob Bachmann, born June 15, 1720
      Our Daughter Catarina Bachmann, born August 25, 1722
      Our Son Hans Georg Bachmann, born November 30, 1724
      Our Son Christel [Christian] Bachmann, born May 19, 1727
      Our Daughter Mary Bachmann, born January 28, 1729
      Our Daughter Elisabeth Bachmann, born July 3, 1732
      Our Son Johannes Bachmann, born August 1, 1735
      Our Son Samuel Bachmann, born January 14, 1739
      Our Daughter Susanna Bachmann, born April 17, 1742
      Our Son Abraham Bachmann, born November 12, 1744

      And one more birth, which must be a grandchild of Hans George Jr.:

      Esther Oberholtzer, born September 30, 1782, at 7 o'clock p.m., in the sign of the Ram.

      George Bachmann, Sr. died in 1753, was buried in the Saucon Mennonite Cemetery, and the Bible was passed on to his son Hans George, Jr. (1724-1806)

      The elder Bachmann's gravestone, the oldest in the Saucon cemetery, refers to him as the 'honorable' (ehrsame) George Bachmann, tells us his age, that he was married for 38 years, and that they had eleven children. His 1753 estate inventory
      lists: 'two Bibles & sundry other books,' valued at four pounds. [227] The Bible was rebound sometime in the 18th century. His widow, Maria, lived another twenty -three years."

      Immigration to Pennsylvania

      1717 Immigration: [228] "On 15 August 1717, a ship under the command of Captain Richmond arrived in Philadelphia with 150 Palatines aboard. Among them were more Mennonites from Ibersheim, including Hans Georg Bachman, his wife and their
      one-year-old son Heinrich. Also aboard were Hans and Martin Br, Jacob Bhm, Hans Brubaker, a Brachbill, a Langenacker, and a Schnebelli."

      1717 Immigration: [175] "After considering different areas of Europe for settlement, the Mennonite leaders decided in February 1717 that Pennsylvania would be the new gathering place for the Mennonites. Some started leaving in March of that
      year to journey to London. By May, some had received certificates which allowed them to receive help from the Dutch brethren when they arrived in Holland.

      It was reported that on August 24, 1717, three ships carrying 363 Mennonite passengers arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We do not know the names of the ships and there are no ship lists which contain the names of the passengers. I have
      used tax lists and warrants to determine who probably arrived on those ships.

      According to Dielman Kolb's Bible record, Kolb arrived on August 10, 1717. This may mean that there was another ship full of Mennonites which left shortly before the three other ships which arrived on August 24, 1717, or Kolb's ship was
      included with two others for a total of 353 arrivals. Another possibility is that Kolb wrote the wrong date.

      After doing the research for this article, putting my list together and totaling the number of family members which I believe arrived in 1717, I was surprised to find that my total was approximately 363 passengers. There may have been other
      Mennonite arrivals that summer, however, which I have not yet found. I believe that there were probably daughters in some of these families whom I have not been able to identify as yet, which would add to the number.

      August 24, 1717 -- Arrivals on three ships: Hans Georg Bachman, age 31, Ibersheim, Germany, d. 1753, Lehigh Co., Pa.; wife: Anna Maria Schnebeli, age 19, Ibersheim, Germany, d. 1776, Lehigh Co., Pa.; child: Henrich Bachman, age 1, Ibersheim,
      Germany"

      1717 Immigration: [229] "The reasoning for putting Hans Georg Bachman as a 1717 immigrant is because he was naturalized with a number of settlers from Philadelphia, Chester, and Bucks counties in 1729 and the list was noted as solely for the
      purpose of naturalizing those who arrived in the colonies previous to 1718. I am assuming that the 1729 list for the Philadelphia, Chester and Bucks counties was for the same purpose. It would appear that the others listed on the list with Hans
      Georg all settled previous to 1718."

      Bachman in Pennsylvania

      1970 Biographical Sketch: [230] "George Bachman, the pioneer settler, was born in 1686 and acquired lands in the Coopersburg area of Bucks County (later Northampton) as early as 1735. Tract number 95 in Upper Saucon Township was warranted to
      him about 1735, in pursuance of which warrant, there was patented to him on June 4, 1737, a tract of 334 1/2 acres. He established his residence here in what later became Coopersburg. On May 2, 1739, he took a warrant for 30 acres and on July
      18, 1740 he received a patent on this warrant for more than 103 acres. One June 5, 1739, he filed a warrant for 80 acres and on July 18, 1740, he received a patent for 110 plus acres. About 1742, a warrant was issued to George Bachman, in
      pursuance of which there was surveyed for him a tract (no. 34) of 40 acres. Bachman also drew the warrant for a tract of 38 acres. In other original titles, George Bachman received tracts nos. 11, 23, and 39. All of these tracts amounted to
      about 1,000 acres of land.

      In 1742, George Bachman was one of the early settlers who petitioned that the area be made a township. It was to be called Saucon or Sak-unk, an Indian name meaning 'at the place of the creek's mouth.' Bachman was also one of those who
      petitioned to erect Upper Saucon Township in March of 1743. About 1745, George Bachman opened a hotel in Coopersburg known as 'Der Siebenstern' (The Seven Stars). 'The Crown,' a resort in South Bethlehem, was visited by the Bachmans of Saucon
      while they were in the area on business or simply to partake of the good cheer and camaraderie there.

      George Bachman died in 1753 and was buried at the neighboring meeting house. His immediate descendants seem to have held sole possession of the original Bachman tract until the close of the 18th century. In 1758, claims were filed based on the
      deeding of the property by Anna Maria Bachman to the sons as follows: George, Jr., A-1-113 and A-1-114, July 24 and 16, 1754 respectively; Jacob, A-1-116, March 17, 1755; John, A-1-119, April 7, 1758; and Samuel, A-1-123, April 7, 1758."

      1997 Biographical Sketch: [231] "The Lenn-Lenape Indians kept a village knows as Skakunk or Sa-ku-wit, meaning 'mouth of the creek.' At first, the Swiss had named this general region 'Der Grosse Sumpf' after the many fingers of the Great Swamp
      Creek where a larger community of Mennonites lived a few miles to the southwest. Eventually, the Bachman land became more specifically known as 'Saucon.'

      Johannes Georg Bachman must have been among the earliest to stop since he staked claim to the best part of the gateway, a wide and deep section astride the trail, well-watered by Saucon Creek. The settlers interested in metalwork discovered
      rich ores of zinc and iron around the limestone soil of Saucon. The Penn family did not officially buy the land from the Indians until a treaty was signed on 7 September 1732."

      1997 Biographical Sketch: [232] "Georg received his patent to the first property on 4 June 1737, being tract No. 95 for 334 1/2 acres. Tract No. 34 was also warranted to him in 1742 for 40 acres; tract No. 24 was warranted eight years later to
      Jacob Bachman for 71 1/4 acres, the future site of Philipsburg. [233] The Bachman family at Saucon held ten farmsteads during the early years, totally over 1,000 acres. [234] Along with their neighbors, the making of 145 tracts into an official
      Upper Saucon Township began with a petition filed in March 1743."

      1997 Biographical Sketch: [235] "Back in Saucon Township, the volume of traffic passing his front door persuaded Georg Bachman to open an inn and tavern by 1745. A considerable number were German Moravians heading for their new settlement. On a
      Christmas Eve just a few years before, they founded the town of Bethlehem seven miles further north along the trail.

      "The large squared logs were lathed and plastered on the outside, of a yellow tint with white lines drawn to imitate some blocks," recalled old timers who had seen 'Der Siebenstern,' meaning 'The Seven Stars,' before it was torn down after 96
      years. "The sign, a moon and seven stars, stood in the middle of the public road. The squared, lathed logs distinguished the owner as wealthy and 'genteel.'" Their interior was completed "with large flat stones for a floor."

      'The bar room was furnished with small crude tables arranged along the walls. On these tables was wine, which was cheap and served by half pints and pints. Later, whisky and other strong drink came into use and these were served by the
      [four-ounce] gill.' [236]

      Starting out in the German tradition, one big building sheltered both travelers and their animals. Under the same roof, better protection was insured against midnight horse thieves, and besides, the livestock could share their body heat with
      the whole building.

      The Siebenstern Inn faced north on the corner of present-day Main and State Street, the exact site of which was open ground in the late 20th century. The rectangular lot considered part of the tavern grounds ran along the east side of the
      trail, bounded by the present-day streets of Oxford, to the north, Fourth on the east, Station on the south, and Main as the western edge. Across the lane from the tavern, a large stone barn was soon finished, right where the Coopersburg Town
      Hall now stands. The huge barn could accommodate 30 to 40 teams of horses at one time. [237] Not too long after it opened in 1748, Georg Bachman patronized an elegant inn and resort founded at Bethlehem called 'The Crown,' and perhaps borrowed
      ideas for his own place.

      In 1752, the permanent population of the Saucon Township reached 650 souls. Georg Bachman died around 22 November 1754, and was buried at the old meetinghouse next door to his original property. [234] Tombstones for the elder Bachman and the
      preacher Jacob Meyer are among the oldest there. His third son, Hans George Jr., continued to run the tavern and inn.

      The year after Georg Sr.'s death, workers completed the Old Bethlehem Pike, making the last section from Bachman's to Bethlehem into a proper wagon road. It can be traced from Philadelphia, roughly following the course of present-day Route 309,
      onto Route 378, known north of Coopersburg as Wyandotte Street"

      1735 Mennonite Meetinghouse: [238] "The original Mennonite meetinghouse was erected about 1735 on the northeast corner of Bachman's land."

      1753 Tombstone: [224] "The English translation of the gravestone of George Bachman reveals that the word 'EHRSAME' means HONORABLE. No doubt the family and neighbors of George Bachman showed him a great respect when these words were carved on
      his stone. The tombstone further reveals that he was married 38 years and had 7 sons and 4 daughters."

      1753 Tombstone: [239] Saucon Mennonite Cemetery, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. (English translation of German words on George Bachman's tombstone.)
      Age 67 years
      All here rests
      in God the respected
      George Bachman (who)
      from his marriage has
      left behind his wife
      after 38 years of
      wedded life.

      Together they produced
      11 children, 7 sons and 4
      daughters. (He) died
      22 November 1753

      1753 Bachman Will: [224] "The Will of Johann George Bachman can be found in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania Will Book K, page 179. It was written on 15 Oct 1753 and presented to the court in Philadelphia on 29 May 1754. He leaves all his
      remaining real and personal properties to his wife Anna Maria. He has already distributed land and monies to his married children. To his remaining minor sons, John, Samuel, and Abraham, he asks that his wife distribute land when they reach 21
      years of age. Money is left to daughter Susannah upon her eighteenth birthday (as has gone to all his daughters). He states that should any of his children dispute his will that they be proclaimed disobedient and that the remaining estate be
      sold. He further leaves money to the poor of his congregation. The will was signed George Bachman and witnessed by Jacob Musselman, George Acherman, and John Hooker. The will was undisputed. It should be noted that he named his wife as
      Executrix and his son Henry, friend Abraham Clemens and friend John Joeder, Jr., as overseers."