Pennsylvania Frontier 1750

Profile manager: Butch Smith [send private message]

... ... ... is a part of Pennsylvania history. Join: Pennsylvania Project Discuss: Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Frontier, 1750

... ... ... was an early settler in Pennsylvania.

The goal of this project is to document a few historically interesting areas of Pennsylvania in the years from 1750 to about 1763. Pennsylvania was expanding, people were moving north and west from Philadelphia into land that was mostly just forest, at the same time the Indians that inhabited the land weren't always happy about having new neighbors. Pennsylvania built and stocked a number of forts to try to keep settlers safe when the Indians went on the warpath, a line of forts was built south of the Blue Mountain from the Delaware River to the Susquehanna River and a lot of families lost loved ones in the 1750s to Indian raids in the area. I'm going to be focusing, at least for now, on an area from present day Lehighton to Stroudsburg to Easton then to Allentown as there were a number of families that later came to Luzerne County and Nescopeck Twp from that area that lost family members. This area includes past and present villages of Ballietsville, Danielsville, Slatington, Egypt, Gnaddenhutten (Lehighton), Neffs, Old Zionsville and many others. I'd also like to consolidate, as much as possible, the early church records and land records for that area and hopefully generate a list of people who lost their lives while living there.

Right now this project just has one member, me. I am Butch Smith.

Here are some of the tasks that I think need to be done. I'll be working on them, and could use your help.

• Add records for churches in the area
• Document forts that were in the area and add names of people who manned the forts
• Categorize people who lost their lives

Will you join me? Please post a comment here on this page, in G2G using the project tag, or send me a private message. Thanks!

History of the Area

It has been written that Joseph Nutimus was the Indian chief who called the area north of present day Allentown home when, after the Walking Purchase in 1737, the Indians weren't happy with the outcome and left the land to move north. At the same time the French were arming and inciting the Indians to try to stop the settlers from moving any further, this was the beginnings of what could most likely be referred to as the first world war, but we know it now as the French and Indian War.

People started expanding out from Philadelphia by the early 1700s,I believe,at least for a few years they lived in harmony with the tribes but by the 1750s the Indians were causing the settlers some grief and by about 1754 or 1755 the state government directed Benjamin Franklin to undertake erecting forts for people to seek safety when the Indians attacked.

People Who Were Kidnapped

People Who Were Killed

• Johann Conrad Bittenbender near Fort Hamilton
• George Custer near Lehighton
• Anna Maria Alleman near Deshlers

Moravians

• https://explorepahistory.com/story.php?storyId=1-9-5&chapter=1

Area Church Records

• Egypt Church baptisms starting in 1734
• Schlossers or Union Reform Church
• Moravian Church Records

Cemeteries

• Neffs Union Cemetery

Forts

• Fort Allen,Weissport/Lehighton/Gnadenhutton
• Deshlers Fort Coplay,Egypt,Ballietsville
• Rose Inn and Fort Hamilton,Stroudsburg
• Fort Harris,Fort Hunter,Harrisburg
• Fort Hynshaw,Fort Dupui,Stroudsburg
• Fort Norris,Peter Dolls Blockhouse,Windgap

Fort Augusta

Fort Augusta,built in 1756 was north of the Blue Mountain where the branches of the Susquehanna come together at present day Sunbury,it was a big fort,garrisoned by 400 men and was very important to the settlement of the northern branches of the Susquehanna between 1760 and 1800.

• https://www.northumberlandcountyhistoricalsociety.org/area-history/fort-augusta-hunter-house
• http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/1pa/1picts/frontierforts/ff14.html

Military

• Conrad Weiser Fort Harris
• Johannes VanEtten Fort Hyndshaw
• Jan VanEttenFort Hyndshaw

Sources

• In 1896 a Commission was undertaken to locate the locations of the early Frontier Forts,this is a report from that Commision from the US Genweb Archives