Laufer family researchers call him The Pioneer and a Zealous Patriot. He was among the thousands of Germans who adopted this land as their own and fought valiantly for her independence. It is said that his descendents in the United States number in the tens of thousands.
Christian Laufer emigrated to this country in 1731. He traveled from his homeland in the Palatinate area of Germany along the Rhine River in the accompaniment of his stepfather, Barthel Gucker, mother Anna Catharina and brother Lorentz. The family arrived in Philadelphia on September 10 on board the ship the Pennsylvania Merchant. Christian was 8 years old.
Eventually the family settled in Moore Township of Northampton County, Pennsylvania, a sparsely settled area that was still occupied by Native Americans. Sometime in 1751,
Christian married Susanna Best, the daughter of Wilhelm Best and his
wife, Anna Susanna Schaeffer. Life was difficult on this Pennsylvania frontier as they struggled to protect themselves from attacks during the French and Indian War (1754–1763), a forerunner to the American Revolution.
On October 5th, 1757, Christian, along with almost all the heads of the households living in the region along the Blue Mountain met at Peter Doll's Block House and sent a petition to the Governor of Pennsylvania asking for arms and ammunition to protect themselves against hostile Indian attacks.
Records show that Christian was a land owner and tax payer in Northampton county. In 1762 his name is listed as a tax payer in Lehigh township. In 1768 he was taxed for 40 acres of cultivated and 120 acres of uncultivated land. On Nov. 13, 1771, he purchased a tract of 40 acres of land and in the year 1772 he paid tax in Lehigh township.
Showing his ever increasing support for the fight for the independence of this country, Christian became a naturalized citizen in 1765 in Lehigh township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. The patriot spirit was growing among he and his neighbors.
In 1774, Christian Laufer moved across the Allegheny Mountains to the newly formed Westmoreland County, taking with him his whole family, with the exception of Peter, who remained in Northampton County. Bellows, in his book, The Lauffer History said, "We can be proud of our hardy pioneer ancestors, who crossed the Alleghenies to hold the marauding Indians in check, to build homes and protect the western outposts in the troublous days of the American Revolution." Christian Laufer was just such a man. He and fellow pioneers built homes and cleared land for farms, producing food staffs for themselves and the people living in the outlying fort towns. Their bravery helped stem the tide of the Indian aggression. With the endurance of German pioneers like Christian and his family the western outposts secured our claims to the Ohio and Mississippi.
The Daughter's of the American Revolution recognize him for having provided Patriotic Service and cites that he “suffered depredation.” A monument to his honor is placed in the Denmark Cemetery in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Christian was born in May of 1723 and died in 1796. His wife Susanna was born in Germany in 1735. She died July 19, 1796 in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. They were the parents of six sons and five daughters. Christian was the 3rd great grand father of Estella Kunkle Smith.
More to come with the story of Peter Laufer, our 5th great grandfather.
More to come with the story of Peter Laufer, our 5th great grandfather.
Henry W. , Bellows. The Lauffer history; A genealogical chart of the descendants of Christian Lauffer, the pioneer. New York Public Library, 1905. Ebook. <http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/henry-w-henry-whitney-bellows/the-lauffer-history-a-genealogical-chart-of-the-descendants-of-christian-lauffe-eer.shtml>.
For more about the Laufer family please visit their website at http://www.lauffer.us/index.htm
This page © 2013 Cynthia H. Smith
Email to chsmith47@yahoo.com
Christian Laufer is my 6th great-grandfather, his son Peter is my 5th.
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