Martin Alt. Baer (1659 - aft. 1717)

Born 1659 in Reihen, Heidelberg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany

Descendants

Died after 1717 after age 58 in Ittlingen, Heidelberg, Baden, Germany

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Margaret Cook [send private message]

Biography

Parents possibly Oswald Bär and Anna Ringger of Rifferswil in Kanton Zürich, Switzerland.

In 1662 Martin Bär was living with 10 people in Richen, Kraichgau, and is named 1679 as Hofbauer in Ittlingen (per research in the Generallandesarchivs Karlsruhe under Fredrich BÄR).

1679 Martin BÄR is working as a hand on the Hof of Oswald BÄR — if he had been Oswald’s son, he wouldn’t have simply been designated a Knecht.

1687 Martin and Anna Magdalena were operating an estate farm at Ittlingen, with 10 people in the household.

Martin (II) und Anna Magdalena Bär "bewirtschafteten [farmed] um 1687 in Ittlingen ein Hofgut [estate farm]. Der Haushalt umfasste damals zehn Personen. Als Kinder von Martin (II) und Anna Magdalena Bär werden genannt:

Hans Georg (1682)?,

Felix (1684)?,

Hans (Johann) (1687/8),

(Johann) Martin (III, 1686 oder 1690),

Maria (1696),

Magdalena (1699/1700) und

Veronika (1702/3)

This Martin BÄR and his probable father Martin may be the Martin ‘alt’ and ’jung’ apppearing in Kraichgau documentation. “They are among nine families listed in a letter to the court of the Barons von GEMMINGEN at Ittlingen. Dated 14 May 1715, it is preserved in the Generallandesarchiv at Karlsruhe. They were protesting a fine of six guldens imposed in exchange for permission to follow their Anabaptist faith. They said that in other knights’ lands people had to pay only three guilders, and for this reason they hoped not to have asked in vain.” The letter was signed by Alt Martin BÄR and by his wife Anna Magdalena MAYER as well as 8 other Mennonite families in Ittlingen, with all women and children listed.

1717 Martin Bär and his wife [then about age 75 and 70 years old] and their 3 youngest daughters emigrated to Pennsylvania, travelling with their son Martin Bär and his wife Anna Elisabeth GRAF (m. 1712) and their two children Barbara (1713) und Martin (1716) and settled in Lancaster County. The younger Martin BÄR (III) died there in February 1758, per Ehret.

Per Best, this Martin’s son Martin BÄR and his wife Anna Elisabeth GRAF (m. 1712) immigrated with two children Barbara (b. 1713) and Martin (b. 1716) and settled in Lancaster County. Ehret thinks the younger couple traveled along with his parents in 1717 with the large Mennonite group.

Martin and Anna’s son Hans, b. 1687, d. 26 March 1741, stayed in the Kraichgau and in 1708 was working at the Streichenberg Hof. He married in 1710 Magdalena FREY, daughter of Heinrich FREY of the Birkenauer Hof by Weiler. They later joined their relatives in America.

I find no record of the older Martin BÄR’s death - will and intestate records from 1729 don’t show him in Lancaster Co. He and his wife Anna Magdalena were probably both buried on the plantation owned by their son Martin.

TAXES in early Lancaster County show only one Martin BÄR until 1722 - if this older Martin came with his son Martin, he must have been living with the younger family and didn’t take land himself - likely died within a few years of arrival at age 75.

1718 Martyn BERR Conestogoe Rate, Dutch inhabitants

1719 Martyn BERR Connestogoe Rate and Hance TAYLOR - note that the early Hans TAYLOR settled west of later Lancaster City, in E. Hempfield Tp.

1720 Martyn BERR Conestogoe Rate

1721 Martyn BERR Palatines at Conestogoe

1722 Martin BEAR East Conestogoe & Martin PEIR East Conestogoe

1724 Martyn BERR Conestogoe Rate

1726 Martin BARE Conestogoe Rate

1750 taxes show a Martin BEAR in Strasburg Tp with a merchant mill, and Martin BAIR in Earl; 1751 Marten BAR in Lampeter (‘Mennonite Bishop’s line’)

Notes

The Lancaster Mennonite Vital Records^[1] give that the immigrant "Alt" Martin Bär married Anna Magdalena Meyer and had three daughters :

1. Maria b.c.1696
2. Magdalena b.c.1699
3. Veronica b.c.1702

Evidence is needed to confirm the other children currently (October 2021) identified as being born to Martin and Anna Magdalena : Elizabeth b.1678, Hans George b.1682 and Felix b.1684.

Sources

1. ↑ Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Mennonite Vital Records, 1750-2014, citing "PMH Jan. 1984 p.26". Viewed at https://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/60592/images/43954_345960-00518

Acknowledgments

• Thank you to Margaret Moyer for creating WikiTree profile Baer-298 through the import of mmcook3.ged on May 24, 2013. Click to the Changes page for the details of edits by Margaret and others.