Thomas Thomas was born in Wales in 1711. As an infant he made the journey across the Atlantic Ocean to America with his parents. Though his name may seem odd to us now, it was an ancient custom in Wales to give a son his father’s surname as his first name.
Unlike his father and brothers, Thomas is said to have been a tall man. He was a farmer, though the inclusion of masonry tools in his will suggests that he may have also worked as a mason. Thomas made his first purchase of land in 1735 at the age of 25. The purchase of a 500-acre farm made him one of the largest landowners in the area. He was one of the few slave owners in the area, and it was at this farm that they worked. Thomas died in January of 1780 at the age of 69. He is buried in the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery, though no legible gravestone exists.
Thomas married twice. His first wife was Margaret Bates, who was born in 1715 and was also from a Welsh family. They were married on April 20, 1735 and had three children. Margaret died sometime in 1746 or early 1747, shortly after the birth of her daughter, Alice. With an infant to be cared for, Thomas remarried very shortly after Margaret’s death. His second marriage was to Mary Williams. They were married on September 4,1747 and had ten children (though the marriage record gives the date of September 4, 1742 for Thomas and Mary’s marriage, this is believed to be a misprint due to the years of birth of Thomas’s children). Records for both marriages are listed at the First Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia.
Thomas’s marriage record(listed second and third from bottom)
Children of Thomas Thomas and Margaret Bates
Morgan was born in 1736 and died in 1778 in New Jersey. There is no evidence that he married.
Ann was born in 1738 and died in 1798. She was first married to John Custard. Legend says that one night, while Custard was serving in the American army in the Revolution, she had a vivid dream in which she owned a valuable black silk handkerchief that was stolen by three crows. Not long after experiencing this dream, three British soldiers coerced her husband to join them, and he was never seen by the family again. Ann later was remarried to Jacob Appenzeller.
Alice was born in 1746 and died on October 25, 1810. She married John Mathias, whose father – John Mathias Sr. – immigrated to Hilltown from Wales in 1722. They had ten children: Thomas, Enoch, Griffith (who was killed by a falling tree), Morgan, Elizabeth (who did not marry), Gainer, Margaret, Mary, Sarah, and Alice (who did not marry).
Children of Thomas Thomas and Mary Williams
Elizabeth was born around 1748. She married Henry Godshalk and their daughter, Mary, married Walter Thomas, the son of Elias Thomas.
Esther was born in 1749 and married William Williams.
Job was born in 1751 and died in June 1798, killed by a falling tree. He married Rebecca Bates. Believing that the war against the British could not be won, he did not enlist in the American army. He moved his family to Buffalo County and Shamokin, Pennsylvania. After his death, his wife returned to Hilltown, where she died on January 30, 1819.
Amos was born in 1752 or 1753 and married Ruth Bates, the sister of his brother Job’s wife, Rebecca Bates. Amos served as a captain in the American army in the Revolution. Legend says that he and two of his men were scouting on foot when three British men on horseback began pursuing them. Amos and his one companion, William Miller, both fired at the Brisish but missed. Their other companion, by the last name of Long, fired and shot one of the British soldiers, all of whom then departed. Amos died in Taneytown, Maryland.
Jonah was born in 1754 and died in 1815. He married Sarah Freeman. According to The Thomas Family of Hilltown, he is said to have been “witty and jocular in speech but given to drinking” (p. 22-23).
Catharine was born in 1756 and died in 1839. She married Irishman Charles Miller.
Sarah was born in 1760. She married Patrick Maitland and moved to Buffalo Valley.Abel and Anna were twins, born in 1762. Abel married Mary James, the sister of his brother Asa’s wife, Martha James. He moved to Maryland and Virginia. Anna married John Mathias.
There is no doubt regarding the high esteem in which William Thomas and his family were held by the people of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where he settled upon his immigration to America from Wales.
Several pages in the History of Bucks County, edited by J. H. Battle, are dedicated to the telling of his immigration and life in Pennsylvania. Furthermore, an entire volume, The Thomas Family of Hilltown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, by Edward Mathews, details his life and the lives of his children and grandchildren. These volumes were published in the late nineteenth century, their content drawing heavily from written records as well as the recollections of then living townspeople who knew William Thomas and his family personally.
It is thanks to these histories that so much is still known about an ancestor who was born in Wales when the United States was still thirteen colonies.
William’s Youth and Immigration
William Thomas was born in Llanwenarth, a small town on the banks of the River Usk and in the shadow of Sugarloaf Mountain, in the county of Monmouthshire in southeast Wales. At some point in his youth he moved south to a farm called Bhassaw of Mwyn in the town of Bedwellty, also in Monmouthshire. Even at the time of William’s birth in 1678, the county of Monmouthshire was one of much history. Romans and Normans settled here, and evidence of ancient Celtic civilizations has also been uncovered. British King Henry V was born in the county, and due to its situation on the English border the correct ownership of the land has been disputed by England and Wales for centuries.
William came from a landowning middle-class family and thus had the privilege of education. He learned the trade of coopering, which would be much to his advantage later in life. William was also a religious young man and demonstrated an interest in entering the ministry. He was well acquainted with Baptist Abel Morgan and possessed skills as a speaker. In 1710, when he was in his early thirties, William married Ann Griffith. Shortly thereafter, he sold a valuable patrimonial estate left to him by his parents. Virtually nothing is known about William’s parents, but it can be inferred that they died around the time of his marriage. With newfound wealth from the sale of his family estate, William decided to settle in Pennsylvania with his wife and infant son, Thomas, where his wealth and fairer laws held promise of large amounts of land and security for his growing family.
However, the family’s plans took an unfortunate turn. With their ship set to sail from Bristol to America in a few days, William and his family left all their possessions, clothing, and cash on board and departed to spend a few last days in the country. When they arrived back in Bristol before the time that their ship was set to sail, they found that it had left earlier than planned, and with all their money and possessions aboard. The ship was still in sight and they pursued it in a smaller ship, but were unable to reach it. Left penniless and with nothing but the clothes on their backs, the family agreed to a voyage on credit on the next ship bound for Philadelphia.
Upon arriving in Philadelphia on February 14th, 1712, William and his family found the ship that their possessions had been left on. The dishonest captain of the ship had sold their belongings to other passengers and William and his family had the horror of seeing other people wearing their clothes and carrying their possessions. Luckily, a family by the name of Watkins, whom William had known in Wales, paid for their voyage and gave William a loan to start his own business as a cedar cooper. William and his family moved across the Schuylkill River and settled for a time in Radnor Township in Delaware County, where he had great success in business and continued to preach occasionally as he had the opportunity. After five successful years working as a cooper, he had paid off his debts and had amassed enough money to purchase property for his growing family to settle.
Starting Fresh in America
On February 12, 1718, William purchased from Jeremiah Langhorne 440 fertile acres in Hilltown, Bucks County, on the border of Montgomery County. It was on this land that he built a stone house of one and a half stories near a natural spring of water. This home was later demolished in 1812. In 1723 he purchased another 300 acres from James Logan, who later became Chief Justice of the colony. This tract was about a mile and a half northward and did not adjoin the property on which William and his family live. Around 1740, William divided these 300 acres into two 150-acre plantations and built two stone homes for his sons Ephraim and Manasseh.
An amusing story regarding William’s first interaction with Logan has been passed down through the history books. Logan was a member of a higher social circle than William and initially looked down upon the simply clad man on horseback when asked about the price of the land. Following Logan’s rude remarks as to whether William could actually pay for the land, the Welshman is purported to have responded: “My name is William Thomas. Let me know the price of the land. If that shall meet my approbation, I will then refer thee to Mr. Langhorne for any particulars thee may wish to know concerning me” (History of Bucks County, p. 591). Logan gave the price of ninety pounds for the acreage and invited William to visit him again later. When William returned, Logan’s attitude had completely reversed. Distrusting William, Logan had indeed spoken to Langhorne, who gave such high regard to the Welshman that he vowed to pay the 90 pounds if William did not. Not surprisingly, William handed over the 90 pounds, and the 300 acres passed into his possession.
On December 28, 1725, William made a third purchase of land from fellow Welshman Rowland Ellis: one plot of 150 acres that adjoined his first 440 acres, and a non-adjoining plot of 106 acres, part of which later became home to the Hilltown Baptist church and cemetery. A fourth purchase of 212 acres was made from James Logan on April 10, 1728. A fifth and final purchase of 50 acres from Benjamin Philips was made on April 30, 1728.
By this time, William’s entire property cost him 361 pounds and totaled 1,258 acres – almost two square miles – much if not all of which had been part of William Penn’s original property. He cleared parts of this land and built 7 farm houses (believed to have been of stone), each given to one of his children upon their marriage.
The Founding of the Hilltown Baptist Church
Over three hundred years after his birth, the people of Hilltown, Pennsylvania still revere William Thomas as the forefather of their community and their church. I had the honor to visit and take a tour of the modern “upper” Hilltown Baptist Church which stands about three miles northeast of where William’s original “lower” meeting house once stood and where he, his wife, and many of his descendants are interred in the “lower” cemetery. The church members I met could not speak more highly of the man who lived hundreds of years before.
William was a fervent believer in the Baptist faith and belonged to the Baptist Church at Montgomery, several miles away from his home in Hilltown (this Montgomery church is said to have been situated along route 309 south of Colmar). He and other residents of Hilltown made the journey to Montgomery each Sunday either on foot or by wagon. However, treacherous roads and the threat of Indian raids made this long journey a perilous one.
Though William was not ordained, he was licensed by the English government to hold meetings, preach, and hold marriage ceremonies. Around the year 1725, William began holding meetings and preaching in order to make Sunday worship more accessible to his fellow Hilltown residents. These first meetings were likely held in his and other residents’ homes, or outdoors in the warmer months. Additionally, William assisted the Rev. Benjamin Griffith in preaching at the Montgomery church and became known as “Elder” William (“Elder” meaning the same as “Reverend” in the Welsh tradition at the time), even though he was not ordained.
Because William was wealthier and owned more land than most of the other residents of Hilltown, he was able and willing to donate land for the construction of a meetinghouse. He set aside 4 acres on the west corner of his 106-acre tract from Ellis, set between a forest and a spring along the Bethlehem turnpike. The first meetinghouse was built in 1737, when William was 59 years of age, and was constructed of either stone or logs. It is said that William finished the interior of the building himself and constructed a pulpit from a hollow gum tree.
An engraving of William and his meetinghouse (from “A Walk Down Memory Lane” p. 25)
Even without the need to travel to worship every Sunday, the threat of Indian attacks was still a reality. It was the eve of the French and Indian War, and nearby Berks and Northampton Counties had been devastated by Indian attacks. Legend says that parishioners at the Hilltown meetinghouse went to the church armed with guns, stacked at the door upon entry, to defend themselves in the case of an attack. William also supposedly knew military tactics and is said to have propped his gun against his pulpit while preaching.
Though William was licensed to preach, he was not able to lead communion, and so the residents of Hilltown still made the long and dangerous journey to Montgomery whenever communion was held there. To lessen the need for travel and accommodate a rapidly growing town and congregation, an “upper” meetinghouse was built in 1756 on land given by John Kelly, three miles northeast of the original “lower” meetinghouse.
It is unknown if Elder William preached as this second meetinghouse. By this time, William was well into his seventies, and his son John, ordained in 1751, was preaching in his father’s stead more and more often.
William’s Character and Physical Appearance
Tradition says that William was short, thickset, yet able-bodied and bony rather than fleshy. It is said that he had dark hair, eyes, and complexion and was sharp spoken in speech. William was very strict in his beliefs and teachings and possessed a strong and vigorous mind.
There is also a legend that in his old age William showed the ability to foretell the future. It is said that shortly before his death, William accurately described the futures of each of his seven children.
At the time, his daughter, Anna, was sick. He came to her one night and said that she would recover and be pursued by and marry one Stephen Rowland (whom she supposedly did not know at the time), but that she would die a year later in childbirth. It is not known if Anna died in childbirth, but she did indeed marry Stephen Rowland and die childless shortly thereafter.
William also proclaimed that all his sons would be good Christian men, and that one would be a preacher. However, he said that one of his sons would stray from the church and die at a young age by violence. True enough, William’s son John became an ordained minister in 1751, and his youngest son, also named William, was murdered under suspicious circumstances.
Sadly, almost nothing is known about William’s wife, Ann.
William & Ann’s Gravestones
William’s Will and Final Years
William lived to be 79 years of age, having spent over 40 of those years building a prosperous life and community in America. In his will, written by Rev. Griffith on Dec. 11, 1753, he left land to each of his children:
To his daughter Gwentlian Morris, 100 acres adjoining the meeting house, to pass in ownership to her oldest son, Cadwallader, after her death.
To his son Ephraim, 150 acres from his tract of 300 acres acquired from Logan.
To his son Manasseh, the other 150 acres from Logan
To his son John, the land that John lived on: 200 acres acquired from Logan, adjoining Ephraim and Manasseh’s land.
To his oldest son, Thomas, 50 acres acquired from Phillips, 50 acres bordering Anna’s land, acquired from Langhorne (known as “the long field”), as well as the 150 acres acquired from Ellis that Thomas lived on.
To his daughter Anna, 100 acres acquired from Langhorne, to pass into her brother William’s possession after her death.
To his son William, the remainder of the land acquired from Langhorne, where Elder William then lived.
It may be noted that, in the case of his two daughters, William ensured that the land would pass to their sons or brothers in the event of their death, not to their husbands, thus ensuring that the property would stay within the family’s bloodline.
Strict in his beliefs and teachings, William was also strict about the future of his meetinghouse. He detailed his wishes for its future in his will, stating:
“I give and bequeath unto the inhabitants of Hilltown, forever, the meetinghouse erected by myself, together with the graveyard in which to bury their dead, and all others, far and near, black and white”
(The Thomas Family of Hilltown, p. 15)
The will further forbids the burial of anyone guilty of “self-murder” in the graveyard, while permitting its expansion on a specified lot as necessary. He forbade the cutting of any timber on the church’s land, except for the repair of the church building. He permitted the land to be used for the schooling of children both from the community and from elsewhere, and for Christian worship. He requested that the Baptists hold meetings there as often as possible, but strictly forbade its use by Moravians or Catholics, or anyone who deny the Nicene Creed or refuse allegiance to a Protestant king.
Large horizontal stones in the lower cemetery mark the final resting places of William and his wife, Ann. William’s gravestone bears an epitaph that he likely penned, himself:
“In yonder meeting-house I spent my breath,
Now silent, mouldering here, I lie in death;
These silent lips shall wake, and yet declare
A dread amen to truths they published there”
The Legacy of the Hilltown Baptist Church
At the time of William’s death in 1757, Hilltown had two Baptist churches: the “lower” meetinghouse given by William, and the “upper” meetinghouse three miles north. In 1771, William’s original meetinghouse was demolished and replaced.
On November 25, 1781, the two meetinghouses became collectively incorporated as the Independent Baptist Church at Hilltown. At the time, the church had 54 members, most relatives and of Welsh, Irish-English, and German origin. Within just two years of incorporation, the church had grown to 94 members. Hilltown was now the largest church in the Philadelphia Baptist Association. John Thomas, William’s son, was the first official pastor of the Hilltown Baptist Church, with services held at both the upper and lower houses on alternating Sundays. John was also the pastor at Montgomery following Rev. Griffith’s death in 1757. John served as pastor until 1789, when Moses Aaron took over as the pastor of Hilltown.
The upper and lower meetinghouse sites have each had four church buildings. The second lower meetinghouse built in 1771 lasted until 1846, when it was also demolished and replaced by a brick structure. This brick structure was again replaced in 1890. The upper meetinghouse built in 1756 was replaced in 1803 and again in 1884. The 1884 chapel still stands and has since been expanded to include Sunday school classrooms, offices, and a large worship space. A cemetery also adjoins the upper meetinghouse, now simply known as the Hilltown Baptist Church.
Upper meetinghouse, photographed in 1902
Upper meetinghouse, photographed in 1957
Although William had given the lower meetinghouse to the People of Hilltown (and not necessarily the congregation of the upper meetinghouse), the congregation of the two meetinghouses was essentially the same since the time that John Thomas was pastor. It fell upon one congregation to support 2 churches financially. Around 1930, the congregation discontinued the use of the lower meetinghouse for regular services, though the building was used for funerals and family reunions until the mid 1950s.
1910’s Photos of the last lower meetinghouse show horse stables and the Penn Oak
In the 1960s a committee was formed with the task of saving the building. However, vandalism and disrepair had reduced the building significantly from its splendor at the turn of the 20th century. Legal actions gave Hilltown Baptist Church permission to take whatever action necessary on the building, and the building was ultimately demolished in 1970. At the time, it was believed to be the oldest Baptist church building in Bucks County and one of the oldest in Pennsylvania.
The property where the lower meetinghouses once stood is now marked with a stone. Along the road stands an enormous oak tree, christened a “Penn Oak” because it stood when William Penn came to an agreement with the local Indians in 1682. In 1932, the tree was believed to be 250 years old, and in 1982 its diameter measured 15 feet, 14 inches.
The Penn Oak stands along the road
The large cemetery of the lower meetinghouse also remains, partially surrounded and shaded by trees, itself a testament to the centuries that have passed since William first set aside this land for the church. The oldest gravestones are made of plain shale or have been lost to the passing of time and the elements. It is believed that some graves are of Indians, as tradition says that some were friendly and would visit the cemetery to honor their ancestors.
This lower cemetery is the final resting place of William, his wife Ann, all seven of their children, and all their grandsons. Including William and his son, John, five Hilltown ministers and their wives are buried here. There are also graves of 22 soldiers, 15 of whom fought in the American Revolution. It is known that one soldier’s grave is unmarked. The cemetery is the final resting place of Benjamin Morris, a clockmaker and Bucks County sheriff, and Mathias Morris, who was a member of Congress in 1839. Also buried here is John Pugh, who was the recorder of deeds for Bucks County, served on the state legislature from 1800-1804, served in Congress from 1804-1808, was also a Justice of Peace. Some people have nine sets of grandparents in this one cemetery.
The “lower” cemetery, present day
A stone wall was built around the lower cemetery between 1812 and 1830. Though some stones were removed to make the foundation for the parsonage in 1895 (standing at the corner of Hilltown Pike and Chalfont Road), the wall remains.
The upper meetinghouse as it appears today, following the addition of a large new meeting hall, Sunday school classrooms, etc. Photo from 1982. (from “A Walk Down Memory Lane” p. 31)
John was born in December 1713, the first of William and Ann’s children born in America while his parents were still residing in Radnor. He married Sarah James, with whom he had four daughters: Anna, Rebecca, Leah, and Sarah. John was ordained in 1751 and gradually began taking over his father’s role as preacher at the lower meetinghouse, while also serving as pastor at the newly built upper meetinghouse. Upon the incorporation of the Hilltown Baptist Church in 1781, John became its first official pastor. John retired in 1789 after a stroke left him paralyzed, and he died on October 31, 1790. His wife, Sarah, died on April 2, 1805, having lived to be 94 years of age. Both are buried at the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery.
Gravestone of John Thomas
Gravestone of Gwentlian (Thomas) Morris
Gravestone of Manasseh Thomas
Gwentlian was born in 1716. Her father preferred to call her “Gwently.” She married Morris Morris, son of Cadwallader Morris from Wales, and had nine children: Cadwallader, Abraham, William, Benjamin, Enoch, Joseph, Morris, and two others who died very young. Gwentlian died in April 1785. She is buried at the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery.
Ephraim was born in 1719. He was a ruling elder of the Baptist church at Montgomery, and it is said that he had great abilities to console those who were grieving. He married Eleanor Bates in 1740 and they had eleven children: Enoch (who died young), Margaret, Elias, Dinah, Enoch, Rachel, Sarah, Elinor, Joseph, Ephraim, and John. Ephraim is said to have been, like the rest of his family, short and stocky with dark hair and eyes. He died on July 31, 1776, at the age of 57 – quite young when compared to his father and most of his brothers. This was attributed to his affliction by dyspepsia (chronic indigestion). Likewise, several of his children were weak and died young of illness. It has been noted that his daughters were very lively and bright, but often sickly.
Anna was born around 1719 – most likely late 1719 or early 1720 – and lived with her father until his death. She married Stephen Rowland (born in Wales in 1722) in August 1757 but died less than two years later on May 14, 1759, as was foretold by her father. She is buried in the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery.
Gravestone of Anna (Thomas) Rowland
Manasseh was born in 1721 and Married Elizabeth Evans around 1750. They had three children: Eber, Amy, and Alice. Manasseh served in the American army in the Revolution, and it is said that he buried jars of money on his property to protect them from any British raids. In The Thomas Family of Hilltown, a story is recounted in which a Hilltown resident saw what he believed to be Manasseh’s ghost looking around behind the house he owned in life. The man who saw the apparition presumed that Manasseh was still guarding his buried treasure 100 years after his death, even though the jars had long since been recovered. Manasseh died on February 7, 1802 and is buried in the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery.
William, the youngest of William and Ann’s children, was born in 1723. William Jr. married Abigail Day around 1750, and they had three children: William, Joseph, and Martha. Abigail was the only daughter of Joseph Day. It is said that as a child she was “evil and wayward” and that after her marriage to William she would attract “admiration and attention from other persons than was credible to a married woman” (The Thomas Family of Hilltown, p. 50). Sadly, William Jr. fulfilled his father’s prophecy that one of his sons would take to “intemperate ways” and meet a violent, premature death. The circumstances surrounding William Jr.’s death in July, 1764, are detailed in The Thomas Family of Hilltown:
“He was found dead one morning within the doorway of his house with a dark streak around his neck, as though strangled. The night had been dark and he had been away from home, drinking. It was strongly hinted and suspected that his death happened through foul means. An investigation took place. His wife was accused of the deed, or as being accessory, and tradition says she stood her trial at Newtown, but was acquitted for want of sufficient evidence”
(p. 50)
Since William Jr. had been willed the house that his father built and lived in, it can be presumed that this violent act took place at the oldest family homestead, built by Elder William almost 50 years before. William Jr. was buried in the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery with his parents, brothers, and sisters. As for Abigail, she later remarried Philip Bitting, a German, with whom she had a family. Later in life she joined the Hilltown church and was buried in the Hilltown Baptist lower cemetery following her death in 1811. However, never satisfied with her acquittal, the Reverend Mathias who was the pastor at the time refused to officiate at her funeral or grave site.
Died: Nov. 29, 1941 (Buried at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Pennsburg)
Children: Margaret Alice, William, Russell
Alice Fox was born on October 1, 1884 and was baptized on November 16 of the same year. She and her husband, Philip V. Thomas, had three children:
Alice and one of her younger brothers (possibly Robert)
Margaret Alice (1910-1982)
William (1913-2007)
Russell (1916-2014)
(These children and their descendants are further discussed on the Thomas page)
Alice worked in at least two of the numerous cigar factories in Pennsburg: the J. J. Hillegass Cigar Box factory as well as a cigar factory on 4th Street in Pennsburg.
After the death of her husband, Alice became diabetic and remained at home. She was taken care of by her eldest daughter, Margaret, until Alice’s death on June 12, 1948. Both Philip and Alice are buried at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church Cemetery in Pennsburg.
Photos of Alice
Alice, far left, with other workers at the J.J. Hillegass Cigar Box factory
Alice is seated in the middle row, second from the right. This undated photo is captioned as being Alice and her classmates
Alice Fox’s ornate birth certificate is in German and calls much greater attention to the father than mother or child
Gravestone Photos
Gravestone of Alice and her husband, Philip Thomas, at St. Mark’s Lutheran in Pennsburg
Aaron Fox was born on October 31, 1842. In 1872, at the age of thirty, he married Rebecca Hess, born on April 1, 1854.
According to the 1910 census, Aaron and his family lived at 70 Main Street in Pennsburg. This is directly across the street from St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, where many descendants are still members of the congregation. Russell Thomas, grandson of Aaron and Rebecca and son of Alice, recalls the house in Pennsburg that his grandparents lived in:
“When she (Alice) was young, she lived across the street from St. Mark’s… with her parents. That was the Fox’s home. Big ol’ porch in the front. That was a big house, almost like a double house. The youngest, Percy… he lived on one side and grandmum lived on this side. It wasn’t exactly a double home, it was big enough to be a double house!
“We lived on Seminary Street, and my mom used to walk up to visit her mother. And I was a little boy and I went with her and I sat on the porch. There where Bauman Paint Shop used to be, that was the livery stables, the blacksmith shop. At that time, there were a lot of horses and horse buggies yet and I’d sit on the porch, and I can still hear them – the blacksmiths’ ‘clunk, clunk,’ making horse shoes and shoeing the horses.
“That was an interesting corner there, that shitty little corner there. There was Bauman’s Paint Shop and there was the blacksmith shop, and on one side was a fish market, and B&H was there. Across the street was a drug store and grocery, and on the corner a butcher shop. Big fish laying outside the fish market.”
Aaron was a contractor, and he built the Pennsburg High School on Main Street in Pennsburg. The building is now a medical complex and is situated across the street from Dairy Queen. During renovations, a large stone engraved with Aaron’s name was removed and discarded. At the time, Aaron’s teenage grandson, Russell Thomas, attempted to retrieve the stone bearing his deceased grandfather’s name with the help of Rev. Henry Kistler (of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church), but the stone was lost.
Aaron died on October 17, 1922, and Rebecca died on January 20, 1935. Both are buried in the cemetery of the United Church of Christ at Niantic, the same cemetery as Aaron’s parents, younger brother, John, and several of their children. The family plot is marked with four square stones bearing the letter F.
The Children of Aaron and Rebecca
Aaron and Rebecca had fifteen children:
Horace was born in 1871 and died in 1904. He married Elmira Romich and is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Oscar was born in 1873 and died in 1962. He married Telara and is buried at New Goshenhoppen UCC in East Greenville. He had one daughter (according to Russell Thomas), also named Telara.
Rose was born in 1875. She had a son named Clarence (last name Horn?), who was a counselor at Upper Perkiomen High School for many years (according to Russell Thomas).
Mary was born in 1877 and lived less than one year. She is buried at United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Andora was born in 1878 and died in 1935. She married Charles Thomas (cousin of her sister Alice’s husband, Philip Thomas) and is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic. Her husband is not buried in this cemetery.
Twins Laura and Clara were born in 1880 and both lived less than a year. They are buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Elmer was born in 1882 and died in 1893. He is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Robert was born in 1887 and died in 1903. He is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Morris was born in 1889 and died in 1961. He married a woman by the name of Jennie and is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Lottie was born in 1891 and had a son named James (according to Russell Thomas).
Adeline was born in 1894 and died the following year. She is buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Percival was born in 1896 and died in 1974. He married Erma Kriebel Urffer (a descendant of Schwenkfeld immigrant Anna Krauss) on April 15, 1916. They had twelve children who lived to adulthood: Mary, Ann, Esther, Margaret, Marlene, Linwood, Robert, Chad, Marion, Betty, Harold, and Donald. Percival and Erma are buried in the cemetery of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Pennsburg.
An unnamed infant child is also buried at the United Church of Christ at Niantic.
Photos of Aaron and Family
Rebecca (Hess) & Aaron FoxAndora (Fox) & husband Charles Thomas
Died: July 4, 1863 in Gettysburg (Buried at the Christ Union Church at Niantic)
Few conclusive records exist regarding John Fox’s short time in the Union Army during the Civil War. Furthermore, due to his short time in service and the lack of good record keeping at the time, determining which of the at least 37 Pennsylvania soldiers named “John Fox” is the correct one is very difficult. Therefore, most of what is known of him has been passed down through the family: that he fought and died at Gettysburg on the second day of that infamous battle.
It is most probable that John Fox, son of Israel and brother of Aaron, served in the 27th Emergency Pennsylvania Infantry Militia. Government records show that a “John J. Fox” and a “John W. Fox” served in this infantry, one of several emergency units formed in June of 1863 to face General Lee’s invasion of Pennsylvania that summer. The emergency unit, which did serve at Gettysburg, consisted of 903 men and was disbanded at the end of July, 1863. While John’s tombstone appears to have “N.” as his middle initial, no Pennsylvania regiment with a “John N. Fox” listed served at Gettysburg (*Edit: On closer inspection, the middle initial appears to be a B). Considering all records at the time were handwritten, an incorrectly transcribed middle initial is certainly plausible.
The only known photo of John Fox, taken in his uniform
According to Samuel P. Bates’ History of the Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-1865, the 27th was positioned on Cemetery Hill for much of the battle at Gettysburg, and was among the first regiments to march into the town of Gettysburg on the morning of July 4th. Unfortunately, John did not survive the battle and thus was no longer among them at this time.
More is known about John’s death than his military service. At the age of approximately 23 he served his first and last day in the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg where, it is said, he was decapitated and killed by a cannonball. John’s family sent for his body to be returned to Montgomery County, and he was laid to rest in the cemetery at the Christ Union Church at Niantic.
His rest was not a peaceful one, however. Due to expansions made to the church building, John and his parents’ graves were moved from their initial locations. John’s tombstone was also struck and split in half by lightning on two separate occasions. Today, his tombstone is secured by metal bars and sunken into the ground to prevent further damage.
Israel Fox, second child of Johann Jacob and Catherina Fuchs, was born on December 1, 1811, and baptized at New Hanover Lutheran Church in 1812. Census and death records indicate that he was a farmer. He married Catharina Nace, also born in 1811, on October 4, 1835.
Israel died on September 10, 1859. According to his death record, he died of stomach cancer at the age of 47 after six months of illness. Catherina died on June 12, 1885. They are buried, along with their son, Johannes, in the cemetery of the United Church of Christ at Niantic (now Christ Lutheran Church) in Barto. Several of his other children and grandchildren are also interred in this cemetery.
The Children of Israel and Catherina
Records indicate that they had twelve children:
Samuel, Kate, and Elizabeth, about whom little is known.
Matilda was born in 1836 and died in 1839. She is buried in the cemetery of New Goshenhoppen.
Jacob was born in 1837.
Catherine was born in 1845.
Mary was born on October 20, 1846. She married William Hunsberger (son of Jesse Hunsberger & Barbara Greiss). She died on January 12, 1931.
Born: January 4, 1774 in New Hanover, Montgomery Co., Pennsylvania
Baptized: March 5, 1775 at New Hanover Lutheran
Died: 1830 (Buried at New Goshenhoppen UCC)
Spouse: Catherina Huber
Born: 1789
Died: 1870 (buried at New Goshenhoppen)
Married: May 17, 1807 at New Hanover Lutheran Church
Children: Rebecca, Israel, Carl, Sarah, Johannes, Isaac, David
Johann Jacob Fuchs, eldest son of Matthias and Anna Maria Fuchs, was born on January 4, 1774, and baptized March 5, 1775 at New Hanover Lutheran Church. He married Catherina Huber, born in 1789, at the same church on May 17, 1807. Johann Jacob died 1830; Catherina died forty years later in 1870. Both are buried in the cemetery of New Goshenhoppen UCC in East Greenville.
The Children of Johann Jacob and Catherina
According to baptismal records, they had seven children:
Rebecca was born on June 4, 1810 and was baptized on September 24, 1810.
Died: April 22, 1783 in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania (Burial place unconfirmed)
Spouse: Anna Maria
Born: 1739
Died: March 1792?
Married: February 23, 1759
Children: Johannes, Antony, Anna Catharina, Maria Elizabeth, and Johann Jacob
Our Fox lineage can be traced to German immigrant Matthias Fuchs, born on December 12, 1719, in Württemberg, Germany. The following synopsis of his immigration and life in Pennsylvania was provided by Mr. Leslie Gerhart:
“Matthias Fuchs came to America on the ship Lydia, James Allen, Master, from Rotterdam and qualified at Philadelphia, September 27th 1740, at the age of 21 years. He was born in the Kingdom of Wurtemburg, Germany, December 12, 1719, and died April 28(?), 1787, age 64 years, 5 months, and 18(?) days. He was a member of the Faulkner Swamp Lutheran Church, and is buried there. His resting place is marked with a good tombstone. The name of all his children are in the Baptismal Record of said Church.
He resided on the “Manor of Douglass” formerly “The John Penn’s Manor,” later “The McCall’s Manor” including the whole of Douglass Township (then in the County of Philadelphia in the Province of Philadelphia) Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Deed Book H 12, pp 484-86 at City Hall, Philadelphia on Record: Andrew Elliott and Elizabeth (McCall) Elliott, his wife, grated unto Matthias Fuchs (alias Fox) and his heirs assigns a tract of land in Douglass Township (part of the McCall Manor) containing 156 acres and 61 parches of land.
December 3, 1774 Martin Sensenderfer and Hannah, his wife granted unto Matthias Fuchs 50 acres and 15 parches of land situated in the Manor of Douglass, aforesaid.
And whereas he became in his lifetime seized in his demesne as of fee he made is last will and testament dated the 19th of April A.D. 1783 and duly proved and remaining in the General Register Office at Philadelphia, in which said will he Nominated, Constituted and Appointed his second son, John Fuchs and his friend, Bernhart Gilbert as executors. In which said will are the names of all his children – which names are the same as those in the Baptismal Record of the Faulkner Swamp Lutheran Church.”
Matthias married Anna Maria (maiden name unknown) on February 23, 1759. Anna Maria lived from 1739 to approximately March 1792. Matthias died on April 22, 1783.
Matthias’s Parents
Tracing Matthias’s parents is difficult due to the scarcity of records from that time period. Some family trees on ancestry.com that list a Matthias Fuchs with the same birth and death dates as our Matthias show three earlier generations:
Matthias’s parents, Johann Cristophel Fuchs (1683-1711) and Johanna Elizabeth Korsing (1688-?)
Grandparents Johann Phillip Fuchs (1663-1698) and Catherine Neitzert (1664-1698)
Great-grandparents Christoffel Fuchs (1636-1698) and Maria Lnu (1640-1680).
The accuracy of these names and dates can only be speculated, however.
The Children of Matthias and Anna Maria
According to the baptismal records of New Hanover Lutheran Church in Gilbertsville, the couple had five children who survived infancy:
Johannes was born on June 10, 1761 and married a woman by the name of Margaretha. Based on church records, it can be inferred that among their children were Johann Jacob (b. 1784), Catharina (b. 1785), Matthias (1793-1795 and buried at New Hanover), Friederich (b. 1794), Margaretha (1796-1797), David (b. 1797), Susanna (1799-1801 and buried at New Hanover), and Salome (b. 1801).
Antony was born on March 25, 1763. He died on November 29, 1843 and is buried at New Hanover Church. He married a woman by the name of Elizabeth. Based on church records it can be inferred that among their children were Jacob (b. 1792), Margaretha (b. 1795), Susanna (b. 1797), Johann Jonas (b. 1800), Elizabeth (1802-1814), Lydia (b. 1804), Ruben (b. 1810), and Judith (1813-1840).
Anna Catharina was born on January 28, 1765.
Maria Elizabeth was born on April 3, 1767 and died on October 16, 1776 at the age of 9 years, 6 months.
The exact location of Matthias & Anna Maria Fuchs’ final resting place remains something of a mystery. The account of Matthias’s immigration and settlement (page 6) states that “He was a member of the Faulkner Swamp Lutheran Church, and is buried there. His resting place is marked with a good tombstone. The names of all his children are in the Baptismal Record of said Church.”
However, no “Falkner Swamp Lutheran Church” ever existed. This confusion likely arises from the close proximity of the Falkner Swamp Reformed Church and the New Hanover Lutheran Church; both churches exist within half a mile of each other in Gilbertsville, are the oldest of their type still existing in the country, and once shared a Sunday school building.
Matthias Fuchs’s name is found in “A History of the Lutheran Church in New Hanover, Montgomery Co., Penna.” along with his daughter, Maria Elizabeth, a few of his grandchildren, and several other “Fuchs” who may or may not have belonged to the same family. The record lists Matthias’s death date as April 22, 1783, at the age of 64 years, 6 months, and 18 days. Notably absent from New Hanover’s list of deaths, however, is Matthias’s wife, Anna Maria.
Representatives from New Hanover Lutheran Church have confirmed that, despite the family’s presence in the church for many years, no record of either Matthias’s or Anna Maria’s interment in the cemetery exists. Extensive searches of the cemetery have also been unsuccessful in locating their final resting places.
Upon inquiry into whether Matthias and Anna Maria may have been interred at the neighboring Falkner Swamp Reformed Church, a representative of that church provided the following information on an “Anna Maria Fuchs,” one of only two “Fuchs” in their death records:
“On page 10 in our Death & Burials (meaning the pastor’s records) we show: Anna Maria Fuchs, widow of Matthew March 1, 1792 53-3-14
I show no other reference to the name FUCHS in our burial or cemetery records. In the first book on Death & Burials (our reference pg. 10) there is a place for the pastor to record the place where the deceased is buried, in the case of Anna Maria Fuchs this was left blank.”
Since no information regarding when Anna Maria was born has been found to date, it is impossible to know whether this Anna Maria Fuchs is the same. Chances are high that it is, however, especially since “Matthew” is an Anglicized version of Matthias. Assuming that “53-3-14” indicates that this Anna Maria lived 53 years, 3 months and 14 days, she would have been born in 1739. This would make her 20 years younger than Matthias, but old enough to have borne their first child in 1761.
The best theory I can propose is that Matthias’s funeral was likely held at New Hanover, but that if he was buried in the church’s cemetery it went unrecorded, and any tombstone he may have had has since been lost. As for Anna Maria, assuming that the record at Falkner Swamp is for the same Anna Maria Fuchs, it is likely that she moved to the Reformed church after her husband’s death. This would have been around the time that the present Falkner Swamp church building was constructed. Her funeral was most likely held there, but like Matthias, if she was interred in a church cemetery there is no written record of it and no surviving tombstone to serve as proof.
A final possibility is that the couple was buried on their property, though locating such a burial ground over two centuries later would, unfortunately, be nearly impossible.
The oldest part of the cemetery behind New Hanover church. It is surprisingly difficult to get a non-blurry photo in this cemetery, even in broad daylight.
After spending all of that time and typing explaining why I couldn’t just assume that Nathan was Josiah’s son… I came across a couple new pieces of evidence that make it almost impossible for me to refute this possibility anymore.
First of all, and this was like striking gold – a photo of a gravestone for a Nathan Thomas appeared on findagrave.com! Better yet, this stone has a birthdate of June 13, 1809 – our Nathan’s estimated time of arrival on Earth – and is located in a huge cemetery in the middle of Allentown. This city is not far from Bucks and Montgomery County, and the fact that this cemetery is not affiliated with a church plays into the speculation that Nathan’s involvement with the church was limited, either voluntarily or due to his birth out of wedlock (his presumed parents were married Nov, 21, 1809, four months after this Nathan was born). The page on findagrave has the following note: “Although Nathan’s tombstone gives a death date of 2/22/1898, the Allentown, Quakertown, and Doylestown papers all say he died 2/19/1899 (his obituary appears in the Feb 1899 editions of all three papers).” I am working on tracking down the obituary, which will solidify once and for all whether this Nathan is our Nathan or not.
The second piece I found was an 1810 census record of Josiah. Back then, names of others in the household were not listed. Instead, the number of people within a certain age range was recorded. This 1810 record of Josiah’s house reads (with my anecdotes):
Name:
Josiah Thomas
Home in 1810 (City, County, State):
Hilltown, Bucks, Pennsylvania
Free White Persons – Males – Under 10:
1 <- This would be a child
Free White Persons – Males – 26 thru 44 :
1 <- This would be Josiah
Free White Persons – Females – 26 thru 44:
1 <- This would be his wife
Number of Household Members Under 16:
1 <- This would be the same child as above
Number of Household Members Over 25:
2 <- This is Josiah & his wife
Number of Household Members:
3
The rest of Josiah & Elizabeth’s children’s names are known, and none of them were born in 1810 or earlier. Therefore, the probability of this nameless child referenced on the census being our Nathan is pretty high.
Findagrave also came up with a photo of Hannah (Renner) Thomas’s gravestone in the cemetery of St. John’s Ridge Valley. I had searched there before and never found it – guess I just never looked far enough.
In my last post I presented three theories regarding Nathan’s parents, the most possible of which connects him to a Welsh minister who founded Hilltown Baptist Church. In this post I will present additional evidence supporting this theory, what evidence is still missing, and the churches I have visited in search of Nathan and his parents. Let’s go one location at a time:
Hilltown Baptist Church
My brother, Philip, reading the gravestones
of Elder William and wife Ann Thomas
When I learned that Nathan might have been descended from the Welsh minister William Thomas who founded Hilltown Baptist Church, that was the first place I went to see if any evidence would surface there.
In July of 2011 I traveled there with my mom, brother, and grandfather Russell Thomas. My grandfather very much enjoyed the trip and learning about the church that his potential forefather created. We met with a friendly church member, Carolyn, who happily gave us a tour of the current church, a few miles away from where the original stood. The congregation at Hilltown is obviously still grateful to their founding minister and has done much to preserve and teach their history. I was also given a small book entitled “A Walk Down Memory Lane,” written by a parishioner, which details the church’s history and contains many records.
Huge ancient tree and stone
marker where original church stood
After a tour of the church building, which has many glass cabinets of old church memorabilia, we traveled a few miles away to where the original building once stood. At the edge of the road stood an immense tree – I’ve no doubt that it was there when “Elder Thomas” built the original church in 1737. In the green lawn behind the tree is a stone monument to the original church. And behind that lawn is a surprisingly large and old cemetery.
Josiah Thomas’s gravestone
My brother and I raced about with a camera taking photos of any gravestones that might be Thomas relatives. Most stones were heavily weathered and difficult to read. The gravestones of Elder Thomas and his wife Anna Thomas are large, lay flat, and are still very legible. Reading these stones, and particularly how immensely long some of the Thomas’s lived (into their 80s and 90s… in the 18th and 19th centuries!) I could not help but think that perhaps our long-lived line is descended from these individuals. Though the stone wall bordering the cemetery had recently seen some damage, it was evident that the current congregation miles up the road continues to tend and care for this land and grave site.
Though Josiah, Nathan’s possible father, is buried here at Hilltown, Nathan is not.
Tohickon Union Church / St. Peter’s UCC
We know one thing: Josiah, Nathan, and Nathan’s
son Jeremiah were all married here
The hunt for Nathan’s parents then took us to Perkasie. Both Nathan and his theorized father, Josiah Thomas, were married at Tohickon Union Church (now known as St. Peter’s UCC), which is on Old Bethlehem Road in Perkasie. What’s even more significant is that Jeremiah Thomas, Nathan’s son was also married here. Three generations of Thomas men married in the same church? That is probably the strongest evidence I have. This information comes from a volume of “The Pennsylvania-German Society” in which records of the Tohickon Church are listed. This is also where the theory of Nathan being born out of wedlock comes from. Josiah and his wife Elizabeth Hoffman were married on Nov. 21st, 1809. Based on census records, Nathan’s year of birth was 1808. This would mean Nathan was born prior to his parents’ marriage.
In the spring of 2012 I met with a member of this church in a small old school-house looking building across the street from the main church. I was hoping to find some record of perhaps Nathan’s baptism, or luckier yet his death or burial. The church member had the same volume from which I had learned of the marriage location, but no other information that might place Nathan in the congregation or its cemetery. Another dead end, but my chase of Nathan and his parents was taking me on the path that this man potentially traveled over the course of his mysterious life.
St. John’s Ridge Valley
Thomas corner in the Ridge Valley
“old” cemetery
As my mom, brother, and I were departing Tohickon/St. Peter’s, we took a “back-road” back to her father’s house. We chatted about the legends of “Thomas woods” in Tylersport, and the path that the Thomas family gradually made from township to township until they ended up in Pennsburg. We speculated that, if Nathan were indeed descended from Elder William, it would make geographic sense for the family to have slowly migrated from the Baptist church in Hilltown, to Tohickon in Perkasie, to where we knew they were at St. John’s Ridge Valley in Sellersville, to St. Mark’s in Pennsburg where family members still attend. It was around that time that we realized we were, on our back-road route, going to drive right past Ridge Valley on our way back to Pennsburg. We were unwittingly making the same trek that they did over many years.
I have known about and visited St. John’s Ridge Valley Lutheran Church in Sellersville for several years. It was here that I learned many new names in the Thomas line, adding three generations to the meager knowledge I had at the time. Though there is no record of Nathan being buried at Ridge Valley, where his wife and children are buried, there is evidence at this church that further forges a possible link to Josiah and, thus, Elder William. It is known that Josiah had a son named Ephriam. So, if Nathan was also Josiah’s son, then Ephriam and Nathan were brothers. Why is this significant? Because Ephriam, his wife, and most of his children were active at St. John’s Ridge Valley AND ARE buried there. That makes two churches – Tohickon and Ridge Valley – at which both Nathan’s and Josiah’s immediate families were active. Ridge Valley may hold more secrets about Nathan and his forefathers that I have yet to uncover.
To see the “road traveled” between these four churches, click on this link:
Leaves on the Tree 