Last year, I gifted my parents our family tree for Christmas. I spent a few months pouring myself over, and into, the project which materialized into a two-dimensional mosaic of names, places, and far off times that served to both overwhelm, and enliven, our wonderings.
This Christmas, at our family gathering, my dad began to talk about his family in detail for the first time in 80 years, and that two-dimensional tree sprouted leaves. I hung off his every word as the people on my paper stood up and took color and life. The only direct ancestor of my father's I ever met was his mother, my "Mom WIlt." Of course, she was everybody's "Mom Wilt," that's what everyone called her. Her small stature, and sweet demeanor. she wore simple house dresses every day, never learned to drive, gave all she had to the church and those in need, read the Bible over 100 times through. She lived 101 years on this earth.
"Mom Wilt" was born in Hooversville, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Her paternal bloodline arrived in Philadelphia aboard the Phoenix on September 15, 1749 when Ulrich Gindlesperger (Ullerick Kindlifhberger), his wife, and one daughter emigrated from Kaiserlauten, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Ulrich and his family were Amish-Mennonites; therefore, family passed through the city and settled immediately in the Amish - Mennonite community in Bern Township, Berks County, and later migrated with many members of that community to Quemahoning/Stonycreek Township in Bedford (now Somerset County), Pennsylvania. It is believed that prior to their immigration to America, Ulrich and his family were members of the same Amish-Mennonite community who migrated from their homes in Canton Bern, Switzerland, down through the Rhein land to escape religious persecution.
Her maternal bloodline, "Hershberger," arrived and settled in Berks County, Pennsylvania, on October 8, 1737 on the ship "Charming Nancy.," when Christian Hershberger, who was unable to write, boarded the ship and a clerk wrote his name upon the Captain's List for him; however, the clerk wrote it by pronunciation, as "Hertzberger." The list also listed women and children as: Barbara, Anna, and Peter "Hersberge."
My dad was captivated as I continued to fill in the story around "Mom Wilt's" heritage for him for the first time in words. He did not know the Hershberger's were an old family from Basel, Switzerland (Goetz, Adalbert, "Swiss Place and Family Names", Mennonite Family History, April 1987, pages 50-54) area and a Hershberger was imprisoned there for his Anabaptist faith as early as 1529. Hershberger's lived in that area as Anabaptists for four or five generations before leaving the country. Christian and his family may have left Switzerland due to severe religious persecution at that time, or they may have chosen to leave to better their living conditions.
Christian's name is among those who settled in the first real Amish settlement in America in northern Berks County, Pennsylvania at the foot of the Blue Mountains. He also is listed among those who petitioned the Pennsylvania Assembly for the rights of naturalization in 1742. Due to the turmoil of the Revolutionary War and better economic opportunities, further west, the community began to break up in 1757 and the family moved to Lebanon County and later nine Hershberger brothers moved across the mountain to Somerset County.
My father's mother, my "Mom Wilt," was a descendant of the 6th generation of Christian H. Hershberger (1708-1770), and she was a descendant of the 6th generation of Ulrich Gindlesperger (1713 -1784).
My dad talked about a farm he visited in Somerset County as a child where Wilt family reunions were held, with a trail from one farmhouse to another, a goat, a cow, and a spring house. He recalled faces, names, feelings, and memories of his grandfather, Martin Luther Wilt (for whom my father was named), a Methodist Minister, who sat and rea his Bible all day. And the story paths trailed off in so many directions.
I created our family tree last year because material objects mean very little to me. That is not what Christmas is about. The color that filled the page of my project this year was the fruit of the effort which I affectionately call my obsession at times. Rooting down through my family tree is the greatest Christmas gift I could be given. And making those pages come to life was the best holiday time I could ask to spend with my family.
As a Braucher, connecting to my roots deepens my connection to God. I feel closer to the Earth when I intimately know my ancestry, which helps me work on behalf of others to the fullest extent of my heart. The more connected I am, the more open I am in my connection to God; therefore, "trying for" others becomes clearer, wider, and deeper. I feel blessed.
Merry Christmas and may you all find light and love guiding you forward into the New Year.
by Gretchen Swank; 12/25/2022; photo by Gretchen Swank
Resources: WikiTree Biography Christian H. Hershberger (abt. 1708-1770)
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hershberger-10
My Own Family Tree
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