Henry (Motz) Moats (1805 - 1879)

Born 1805 in Franklin County, Pennsylvania

Ancestors

Descendants

Died Jul 1879 at about age 74 in Quincy, Franklin County, Pennsylvania

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Biography

Henry Moats lived in Franklin County, Pennsylvania and worked variously as a shoemaker and day laborer. His first home after marrying Catherine Thomas was in Washington Township.^[1] Seomtime between the 1830 and 1840 census, he and Catherine moved to Quincy Township.^[2][3][4] He is believed to be a son of Simon Motz. In the 1810 census, Simon indeed had not one but two male children in Henry's age bracket.

Henry is listed in various Franklin County historical records dated between 1830 and 1880 with his surname written Moats, Moates, and Motes. Simon lived in the same area of Franklin County with his surname written variously in records dated between 1798 and 1820 as Moats, Moates, Moatz, and Motz. Motz was the original German spelling.

On 28 April 1816, Simon Motz and wife took communion at the Grindstone Hill German Lutheran Church in Guilford Township of Franklin County. On the same date, Henry's four eldest siblings had their first communion there. Henry was just eleven years old and thus too young, according to church ordinance, to take communion.^[5][6] On the same date, the following children of Simon had their first communion at the church: John Motz, Jacob Motz, Elizabeth Motz, Susanna Motz. Henry would have been too young for his first communion. Unfortunately, the church's records are very spotty, but a grandson of Henry was buried at Grindstone Hill, and another grandson married into a family that had three children baptized there.^[5]

Sometime between 1820 and 1830, reportedly 1825, Henry's presumed father, Simon Moats or Motz, moved to Wayne County, Ohio with some of his children.^[7] In 1825, Henry would have been 20 years old and was soon to marry. Could it be that Henry chose not to go along to Ohio because he was courting and perhaps even establishing a career? Sometime in or before 1827, Henry married Catherine Thomas, daughter of Samuel Thomas. His eldest child, Jacob, was born on 27 February 1828.

Henry and Catherine had a total of seven children: Jacob, Daniel, Mary, Ephraim, Catherine, Edward, and Henry. The couple lived out their days in Quincy and died, according to the 1880 U.S. mortality schedule, in Franklin County. Henry's date of death is there listed as July. Since the schedule is for deaths "during the Year ending May 31st, 1880", Henry would have died in July of 1879.^[8] Sadly, there is no record of where either Henry or Catherine lies at rest, though it very likely is at the Quincy Cemetery.

Sources

1. ↑ "United States Census, 1830," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XH57-KLK : 20 February 2021), Henry Moates, Washington, Franklin, Pennsylvania, United States; citing 342, NARA microfilm publication M19, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 151; FHL microfilm 20,625
2. ↑ "US Census, 1840", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRT-F15 : 16 August 2017); citing p. 245, NARA microfilm publication M704, roll 458; FHL microfilm 20,544 [erroneously indexed as "Stotes"]
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4C4-9C6 : 22 December 2020), Henry Moats in household of Peter Dolman, Franklin, Pennsylvania, United States; citing family , NARA microfilm publication (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.)
4. ↑ 1860 Census, Quincy, Franklin Co., PA, p. 8/746
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Grindstone Hill German Lutheran Church Record
6. ↑ "A discourse portraying the history of the Grindstone Hill Ev. Lutheran Church, in Franklin County, Pennsylvania". Discourse > image 17 of 46. Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Image [images 17 and 18]
   28 Apr 1816: Simon Motz and wife, Christina; John, Jacob, Elizabeth, Susanna Motz; Also, Andrew Frey, Frederick, Samuel, George, Elizabeth and Salome McConnally Frey.
7. ↑ 1830 Census of Lake Township, Wayne County, OH, p. 8
8. ↑ "Pennsylvania Mortality Schedules, 1850-1880", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:ZM59-29PZ : 19 April 2020), Henry Moates, 1880