Johannes (Schmidt) Smith (abt. 1718 - 1791)

Born about 1718 in Germany

Husband of Christiane (Harshall) Smith — married 1750 in New Jersey, British Colonial America

Descendants

Died 1 Oct 1791 at about age 73 in Readington, Hunterdon, New Jersey, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Jennifer Wood [send private message], Matthew Smith [send private message], and David McConaughy [send private message]

Biography

Johannes was born about 1718. He passed away in 1791.

^[1]

Name

Name: Johannes Schmidt /Smith/^[2]

Birth: SEP 1718

Death: 3 OCT 1791 in Hunterdon Co., NJ

See John Smith, 1718-1791, descendants, FHL film 1320600 Item 1.

See also GMNJ articles on Smith & Harshall families.

Children

1. Christopher Smith b: 1752 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
2. Magdalena Smith b: ABT 1753 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
3. Martin Smith b: 1756 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
4. John Smith b: 1757 in NJ
5. Elizabeth Smith b: 1761 in NJ
6. Charity Smith b: 1762 in NJ
7. Andrew Smith b: 1762 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
8. Peter Smith b: 1764 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
9. Mary Ann SMITH b: 13 FEB 1764 in Stanton, Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
10. Christiana Smith b: 1767 in NJ
11. Catherine Smith b: ABT 1768 in Lebanon Twp, Hunterdon Co., NJ
12. Rebecca Smith b: 14 DEC 1769 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ
13. Jacob Smith b: 27 AUG 1770 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ
14. Sarah Smith b: ABT 1771 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ
15. Joseph Smith b: 1774 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ
16. Isaac Smith b: ABT 1776 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ
17. Zachariah Smith b: 23 MAR 1780 in Readington Twp, Hunterdon, NJ

^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Unsourced family tree handed down to Matthew Smith.
2. ↑ Source: #S35 Page: Ancestry Family Trees
3. ↑ https://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=morrvoort&id=I46276

• I am not sure why in this story obtained online (source below) a Hiram Deats (relative of John Deats?) asks for Johannes tombstone to be removed or why it was in the family's attic?

Birth: 1719, Germany Death: Oct. 1, 1791 Readington Hunterdon County New Jersey, USA

"John Smith was interred on his farm 'at the head of Brook and Mountain Road, one field in' where the Smith burial ground was 'in half-acre of trees.' There were several other tombstones there but any inscriptions had been obliterated by the weather. The John Smith stone was removed from the field and taken to the Band Box house around 1900 when Willard Smith 1855 - 1912 was the owner. He was a descendant of John Smith through Martin Smith 1756-1840. In 1922 the family living in the house requested that it be removed from the attic of the house. It is thought that Oscar Smith 1886-1966 was the Smith Association representative who removed the tombstone at the request of Hiram Deats. In any event, the tombstone now,,in 1986, rests on the farm of John Dayton Smith of Far Hills, also a John Smith descendant."

Smith, William Francis, and Beverly B. Smith. John Smith, 1718-1791, Descendants. Limited ed. Bethesda, Md.: W.F. Smith, 1987. 307. Print.

The following biographical information is provided from the work of genealogist Kenn Stryker-Rodda who published "Part of our ancestry in the Stryker family and related branches of the Harshall, Rüdig and Smith families", Brooklyn, N.Y, 1959:

"Concerning the origin of Johannes there is no certainty. Traditionally, he was a German who came to this country via the Netherlands and appeared in Hunterdon County about 1743. If so, he seems never to have been naturalized, though he held much property.

He always signed his name in German script, "Johannes Smith"; but he could have used that script if he had come from the Netherlands or even been born in this country. No contemporary references bears out the tradition that his name was John Henry Smith. Moreover, the given name Henry is conspicuous by its absence from the lists of his own children's children; and, had his name been John Henry, he would almost certainly have been known as Henry Smith- just as John Christian Harshall was known as Christian- rather than Johannes, John or Hannes. He has been confused with the Johan Hendrick Smith who had a son John Peter baptized at Remerbuch 26 Dec 1741 and was an official of the "church in the hills" by 1731; this person died about 1766.

Until his tombstone which had originally been placed above his grave in a grove of trees on his own farm, was discovered in the attic of the Bandbox House near Stenton in November 1922 by Hiram Deats, even his dates were disputed. That he was born in 1718 or 1719 is apparent from the homemade inscription below a rudely carved heart:

Here Lays The / body of John / smith Who Dep. / This Life october / The 1 1791 in the / 73 year of his age

The stone is currently in the home of another descendent, Oscar Smith, Jr. of Peapack.

Johannes has also been confused with another John Smith who was a son of Matthys Smith of Amwall. The confusion was very natural, especially because our Johannes was a son-in-law of John Christian Harshall, and the other contemporaneous John Smith was a son-in-law of Harshall's second wife, Elizabeth."

John married Christeen Harshall about 1753.

Issue: (from will; not in order of birth) at least

1. Crysteyan (later Christopher); m Gertruad(Charity)... and had children bap. at Lebanon; lived in Morris Co. 2. MARTEN 3. John 4. Peter; m. Mary Caricuff 12 Dec 1784 (New Germantown Zion Lutheran records); lived in Morris Co. 5. Andress; possibly the Andrew Smith of Readington who m. Elizabeth Smith 21 Dec 1782 (NJA); had wife Catherine in 1801, when he lived in Sussex Co. 6. Jacob, b. 27 Aug 1770, bap New Germantown 24 June 1771; m (1) @ Ringwood, 9 Nov 1790 Grace Stout; (2) Pheby Burke. (GSNJ Bible #65 & Bible record at NJHS) 7. Joseph; m. Alice... and lived in Readington 8. Isaac; m. Jemima... and lived in Readington 9. Zaccharias, b. 23 March 1780; m Mary Smith; d 24 Jan 1848 10. Sarah - probably the youngest; unm in 1790 11. Leanah; m. Benjamin Goff 12. Elizabeth; m Derrick Demott 13. Charity; m. Joseph Shets 14. Mary, or Maria; m 21 Jan 1783 at New Germantown Zion, B. Henry Pickel 15. Catherine; m. John Seversand 16 Christeen; m Henry Garrabrant; they were living with Johannes's widow in 1802 17. Rebecca; m. Tunnis Cole

The descendants of Johannes Smith are legion. On 6 Sep 1876 there was hold on the farm of the late Zaccharias Smith, at Peapack, the first Smith Picnic. According to Snell (SnHS 739), 483 carriage loads of people - about 2500 individuals - attended. Thereafter, for many years, the Smith picnic on the first Wednesday of September was the unofficial close of the summer season. For no reason that anyone now living seems able to give, the banner used for so many years sported the purported portraits of Johannes and his wife Christeen and the legend, "Arrived 1686, Organized 1876". Could it be that the organizers of the first picnic knew something of Johannes's ancestry that is not now known?

source: https://familysearch.org/search/catalog/oclc/866546043?availability=Family%20History%20Library

Family links: Spouse: Christeen/Christiana Harshall/Harsel Smith (1720 - 1814)*

Children: Christian Christopher Smith (1750 - 1834)* Charity Smith Sheets (1762 - 1861)* Mary Ann Schmidt Pickell (1764 - 1834)*

• Calculated relationship

Burial: Johannes Smith Family Farm Readington Hunterdon County New Jersey, USA

Created by: mesmith26 Record added: Sep 10, 2014 Find A Grave Memorial# 135679650

Filby, P. William, ed. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s. Farmington Hills, MI, USA: Gale Research, 2012. Name: Johannes Heinrich Schmidt Arrival year: 1743 Arrival Place: New Jersey Primary Immigrant: Schmidt, Johannes Heinrich Source Publication Code: 1137.50 Annotation: Date and place of arrival, date and place of naturalization, date and place of church confirmation, date and place of mention on the New World. Compiled from city and church records, tombstone inscriptions, and books of wills. Name of parents, place of or Source Bibliography: CHAMBERS, THEODORE FREYLINGHUYSEN. The Early Germans of New Jersey, Their History, Churches and Genealogies. Dover, NJ: Theodore Frelinghuysen Chambers, 1895. Reprinted for Clearfield Co. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore, 1999, 2000. Household Members: Name Relation Johannes Heinrich Schmidt

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/135679650

• Source: S35 Title: Ancestry Family Trees Publication: Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.; Repository: #R1 NOTEThis information comes from 1 or more individual Ancestry Family Tree files. This source citation points you to a current version of those files. Note: The owners of these tree files may have removed or changed information since this source citation was created. Repository: R1 Name: Ancestry.com Address: http://www.Ancestry.com E-Mail Address: Phone Number:

Acknowledgements

• Second hand information from the family tree of Nancy Smith Lisk, 11/2017.

• Smith-76383 was created by David McConaughy through the import of My-Perine-families_2015-01-24.ged on Jan 24, 2015.

• Thank you to Mike Morrissey for his data on rootsweb.com trees and Updike