Rapho Township, Pennsylvania One Place Study

Date: [unknown]
Location: Rapho Township, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States
Surnames/tags: One_Place_Studies Pennsylvania Rapho_Twp

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Contents 1 Rapho Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania One Place Study 1.1 Name 1.2 Geography 1.3 History 1.4 Population 1.5 Notables 1.6 Records 2 Sources

Rapho Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania One Place Study

• Official Website
• Wikidata: Item Q7294112, en:Wikipedia
• WikiTree Profiles that link here

Name

Rapho Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, USA is named after the parish of Raphoe, County Donegal, Ireland.

Geography

Continent: North America

Country: United States of America

State/Province: Pennsylvania

County: Lancaster

GPS Coordinates:40.2, -76.501389

Elevation: 150.0 m or 492.1 feet

History

One of the earliest recorded indigenous groups who populated the area that is now Rapho Township were the Susquehannock people. They were an Iroquoian-speaking people who moved into the area in the early 1500's^[1]. Other tribes who were encountered were mostly Algonquin-speaking groups including the Shawnee, Gawanese, Lenape (aka Delaware), and Nanticoke peoples. More can be read at the History of Lancaster County page at Wikipedia

The land that is now Rapho township was first organized in 1682 as part of Chester County, Pennsylvania, or at least would have been in the western frontier of Chester County. The western boundary of Chester was not well defined and was generally taken as the westernmost area settled by those of European ancestry.

Some of the first recorded pioneers settled in what is now Rapho Township were William Patterson, of Scotch-Irish descent, who settled on 300 acres in the southern part of the Township; and Samuel Scott who in 1721, built the Chiques Hotel along the Chiques Creek.^[2]

This area was organized as Donegal Township, Chester County, in 1724. When Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was created in 1729, Donegal Township was transferred to the new county. A little over a decade later in 1741, the new Rapho township was carved from Donegal township.

Rapho Township's only major loss from these original boundaries was when Manheim Borough was created in 1838. Since then there have been some minor losses to Manheim Borough as the town expanded, as well small losses to Mount Joy Borough (created from Mount Joy Township in February of 1851), between 1910-1970.

Population

1790 - 1604 inhabitants in 255 households. Including 11 slaves and 26 other free, non-white persons. Of the free white inhabitants, the gender split was almost exactly 50%: 783 males, 784 females

1850 - Approx. 3160 inhabitants

Notables

Records

Rapho Township Tax Records 1751-1825 From LancasterHistory.org (formerly known as Lancaster County Historical Society) Returns usually have the name and a tally of property, both land and personal property. Assessments usually list the name and tax owed, initially in shillings (s) and pence (d). Later records added pounds (£, s, d)

• 1751 - single list of 78 entries with name and tax assessment in s, d only. Names are in random, presumably geographic, order.
• 1756 - single Return and Assessment pair. The assessment has a cover page and two pages of 143 names and tax owed, listed in s and d. Return consists of 4 pages on 3 images and includes:
  • Name
  • Land in acres
  • Winter Grain (acres of?)
  • Located Land (? mostly blanks)
  • Horses
  • Mares
  • Horned Cattle
  • Sheep
  • Bound Servants
  • Neogors [sic]

• 1757 - 4 separate assessments, no return
  • the Additional tax of Rapho for the Kings Life, Joseph Flory, Collector
  • Rapho Township the County Tax [rest is illegible] John Ebersole, collector. Names in random (presumably geographic) order.
  • Rapho Assessment of the County Tax, Decem 10, 1757, Jn Eversole, Collector. Names in random (presumably geographic) order.
  • Assessment of Rapho for the Additional Provincial Tax, 1757, Joseph Flory, Collr; also signed by Robert Willms [sic] and David Taylor. Names in random (presumably geographic) order.

• 1758 - single Assessment and Return
  • Rapho Tax For the Kings Use, Carn Starret Coll, Rectified and Transcribed. I and the Constable have been Eight days Taking the returns, and Two day aby[?] assesments, one day to be qualfied, 1 day as appeal, December 18, 1758 Abraham Cassall. £ 145:11:9, MH & HW. Quasi-alphbetical.
  • Rapho Return, 1758, \ finished. Includes the following:
    • Name
    • trads (like leasing out land?)
    • Land (acres)
    • Colted (?) (collection?? Cultivated??)
    • Corn (acres?)
    • Horse
    • mar
    • Catel
    • Shep
    • Rent
    • Servat
    • Negros
    • age
    • Mils

• 1759 - One Return, 3 Assesments (2 for the king, one for the county)
  • Returns, 4 images, with the following information:
    • Name
    • Traid [trade/occupation, besides farming]
    • Mens Names which hath Tennants
    • acres of Land
    • Ground rent
    • Cultivated
    • Sowed
    • Negroes
    • Age of Negroes
    • Horses and Mares
    • Sheep
    • Horned Cattle
    • quitrent
    • Gris mill
    • Saw mill
  • Assessment Rapho Tax for the Kings use, 1759, David Hay, Collr (one title page, three images of names and £ s d
  • Rapho Assm for the Kings use, 1759 David Hay, Collr [cover page and two images of names and £ s d
  • Rapho Tax for the County, David Hay [title page and images, names and tax assessment s d]

• 1769 - one assessment only

• 1770 - A Return and two assessments
  • A just and free return of the Township of Rapho, made by me, Samuel Sawyer [signature hard to read]
  • Rapho Assessment, 1770: A just and free assessment of the township of Rapho made by me the subscriber this 14th of December, 1770
  • Rapho Assessment by John Wingard

Sources

1. ↑ Susquehannock at Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susquehannock
2. ↑ History of Rapho Township at RaphoTownship.com

• Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapho_Township,_Lancaster_County,_Pennsylvania
• History of Rapho Township at RaphoTownship.com
• LANCASTER COUNTY, Diversity of People, Ideas and Economy, by John Ward Willson Loose, F.L.C.H.S. President Emeritus, Lancaster County Historical Society [1]
• Manheim Central Region Comprehensive Plan