History: Family: The LEDERACH (LEDDRAUGH) Family: Montgomery County, PA Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Thera. tsh@harborside.com USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: Printing this file within by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ ____________________________________________________ The following is excerpted from The Strassburger Family and Allied Families of Pennsylvania, by Ralph Beaver Strassburger, 1922, pp. 476-491. THE LEDERACH (LEDDRAUGH) FAMILY Andreas LEDDRAUGH and his brother, Johannes Leddraugh, emigrated to this country from the German Palatinate early in the eighteenth century and settled in what is now Lower Salford Township, known in early days as Skippack. They were Mennonites and members of the Lower Salford Meeting of that faith. This name appears under many spellings on the records. The present form is Lederach. On September 12, 1718, James Steele and his wife, Martha, conveyed to John Lederach fifty acres of land adjoining his other land and that of his brother, Andrew Lederach, Dielman Kolb and others, being part of five thousand acres that William Penn, Proprietor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, conveyed to William Bacon, October 12, 1681. John Lederach applied to the Land Office for a patent for his whole tract of one hundred and fifty acres, which was granted him August 22, 1734. He lived here for thirty years and died in the fall or early winter of 1748. He made a will, dated August 17, 1748, and proved December 12, following, in which he appointed his son, John Lederach, Jr., and his son-in-law, Jacob Groff, to be his executors, and Andrew Ziegler and Jacob Shoemaker trustees, to see that the provisions of his will were carried out. The executors advertised the farm would be sold at public auction. The farm was eventually sold to George Weyker, or Weykert, for five hundred pounds, the deed of sale dated January 17, 1749/50, and signed by John Leddraff and Jacob Graff as executors and Andrew Ziegler and Jacob Shoemaker as trustees. Andrew Lederach, the ancestor of this branch of the family, was a shoemaker by trade, but having acquired a large tract of land, followed the occupation of farmer. The Lederachs, the Zieglers, the Clemens and the Kolbs were all neighbors, owning large farms which adjoined each other. In 1717 he purchased of David Powell one hundred and two acres which was surveyed and certified to him May 18, 1720. September 2, 1718, David Powell gave a deed of conveyance to Andrew Lederach for this tract, which was further secured by a patent July 23, 1735. The greater part of the village of Lederachville is built on land originally belonging to the farm of Andrew Lederach. The village is located on a high ridge, at the intersection, or crossing, of three roads, and at the terminus of the Harleysville and Lederachville Turnpike. One of the roads passing through the town is the ancient highway known as the Skippack Road, which was opened in 1728, being the first leading from this section to the city of Philadelphia. The village owes its origin to Henry Lederach, great-grandson of Andrew Lederach, who built the first house here in 1825. He put up a blacksmith shop, carried on smithing for several years, and then opened a store. In 1833, he obtained a license for a hotel. The store, originally built by Henry Lederach, in 1825, is now [1922] occupied by his grandson, John Lederach. A stage line ran through the village before the railroads were built. The stage, drawn by four horses, came down from Allentown on Monday morning, passing through Lederachville between eight and nine o'clock a.m., where it stopped to discharge and take on passengers and then continuing on to Norris- town, the end of the line. It returned the next day, and so on during the week. Situated as it is, on the top of a high ridge, the view from the village street is beautiful. Goshenhoppen Valley is magnificent. Standing on the Spring Mill Road, one looks across the intervening fields and orchards and sees rising over the tops of the trees on a high hill the tall white spire of the old Goshenhoppen Church. Winding its way across the fields in the valley is the creek, a branch of the Perkiomen, which passes under the bridge just above Groff's Mill, near which stood the old Gerhart Clemens mill. The road which crosses over the bridge leads from the Goshenhoppen Church, thence, making a sharp turn, winds up the hill, passing by the Mennonite Meeting House and separating the church property from the old Jacob Clemens house, to end at the pike about one-quarter of a mile away. Over to the immediate left, but shut off from view by buildings, is the original Andrew Lederach homestead, while still to the left and towards the valley stand the ruins of the Michael Ziegler house in the midst of the twelve-acre plot, which comprised his inheritance. In the tax list of 1734, for Philadelphia County, Andrew Lederach is rated for one hundred and fifty acres, and in 1776 his son, Henry, is rated for one hundred and thirty-two acres. This last figure represents the exact number of acres comprising the farm, as a re-survey, made when the patent was granted in 1735, showed that to be the correct figure. John and Andrew Lederach were naturalized April 12 and 13, 1743. Being Mennonites and opposed to taking an oath, they subscribed to the qualifica- tions. The old homestead stands just off Harleysville Road, about an eighth of a mile east of the village, and here Andrew Lederach lived for fully forty-one years, and here he died in 1759. He made a will, dated March 5, 1758, which was probated December 28, 1759, wherein he amply provides for his wife, Magdalena, whom he married in Germany and whose maiden name is unknown, and for his two daughters, Magdalena and Esther. To his only son, Henry, he left the plantation "whereon I now dwell" and "the horse which I have heretofore long promised him," "my Bible and my journal." To his wife, Magdalena, he bequeathed, among other things, "her own apparel, and our large chest which we brought from Germany, and our cupboard in the old house." From the last item it is seen that he had built a new and, no doubt, more commodious house, the first, no doubt, being a log cabin such as the pioneers built upon their arrival for immediate occupation. The chest referred to was long ago turned into kindling wood, and no trace can be found of the Bible or the journal. He named as executors his son, Henry, and son-in-law, John Steiner, and one of the witnesses was Andrew Ziegler, Senior. It is believed that both Andrew Lederach and his wife, Magdalena, are buried in the old Lederach family burial place on the farm, but no tombstones now mark their last resting place. Children of Andrew and Magdalena LEDERACH: 1. Henry Lederach, born about 1710; died December 24, 1799, married Catherine Clemmer. 2. Magdalena Lederach, married John Steiner. 3. Esther Lederach, married Rev. Jacob Overholtzer, a minister of the Mennonite Church. Henry LEDERACH, only son of Andrew and Magdalena, was born about 1710, probably in Germany, and came to Pennsylvania with his parents when quite young. His wife's name was Catherine Clemmer. >From his father he inherited the homestead farm, where he resided all of his life. He made his will September 24, 1799, when "stricken in years." The will was admitted for probate January 1, 1800. He is thought to have been at least eighty years old when he died, December 24, 1799. To the Lower Salford Mennonite Meeting, of which he and his family were members, he left ten pounds for the use of the poor of the congregation. To his son, John, he left the plantation, consisting of one hundred and thirty- two acres, thus demonstrating that he had not disposed of an acre of his inheritance during his lifetime, and he now passed it on to the next genera- tion. He also left to his son, John, the large family Bible bequeathed to him by his father, Andrew. Henry Lederach, like nearly all the early German settlers, kept an account book in which he set down and charged against each child what household goods or moneys he gave them during his life, and particularly what he had presented to each child at the time of marriage. In his will he particularly mentioned that he had given to his children, seven in all, when each married, "household goods and otherways to considerable sums." Unfortunately this book has been lost or destroyed. He names as executors his son, John, and son-in-law, Abraham Shott. The will was witnessed by Godshalk Godshalk and Jacob Ziegler, who made an inventory of the personal estate, which amounted in all to £345, 17s, 19d. When it came to the settlement of the estate and the paying of the legacies, the notebook or journal was freely used, as the account on file in the office of the Register of Wills, Norristown, shows just what each child had received in advance, in household goods, etc. As was customary in those days, the settlements were made with the names of the husbands of the daughters, so, while we know the Christian names of the daughters of Henry Lederach and the names of his sons-in-law, we do not know for a certainty how they were paired. In his will the father named his children in order of age, viz: Molly (Mally), Magdalena, Elizabeth, Henry, Catherine, Ann, and John (being one of the youngest.) He also requested that the first payment of legacies be made to Molly, the eldest daughter, the second to Magdalena, etc. The account appears to follow this same order, and therefore, since we find that the first payment is made to Joseph Tyson, he was, in all probability, the husband of Molly, the eldest daughter. The second name on the account is that of Henry Price, who we know positively, was the husband of Magdalena, named by Henry L. in his will as second daughter. Assuming that this order was followed throughout, we find Molly, wife of Joseph Tyson; Magdalena, wife of Henry Price; Elizabeth, wife of Jacob Clemens; Catherine, wife of Andrew Ziegler (also known for a certainty,) and Anna, wife of Abraham Shutt or Shott. Henry Lederach was buried in the family graveyard on the farm. This plot, located in the field, is overgrown with trees and bushes and almost obliterated. A few years ago there were six tombstones visible, but today only two tiny stones, each about a foot high, are left to mark this sacred spot. Catherine, wife of Henry Lederach, died in 1776. It is claimed that several Indians are buried here, notably one old squaw that remained in the Ziegler family as late as 1800. John Lederach, son and heir of Henry Lederach, with his wife, Mary, sold twenty-five acres of the homestead plantation, March 26, 1827, to his son, Henry Lederach. On April 10, 1840, John and his wife again sold another eighty- seven acres to their son, Henry. This included the old homestead. On June 7, 1841, Henry Lederach, son of Henry Lederach, Senior, and Catherine was at this time living in Worcestor Township. He, with his wife, Anna, sold to Henry Lederach, Jr., Garret Metz and John Moyer, trustees of the "Lederach's Schoolhouse," the land upon which the schoolhouse was erected on the Skippack Road, "in trust for the benefit of the neighborhood to keep a German or English School or both as the Trustees elect ... to be kept for the use only and for no others forever. But if the Common School System should be excepted said schoolhouse shall not be used for that purpose nor for a singing school." Children of Henry and Catherine LEDERACH: 1. Molly Lederach, married Joseph Tyson. 2. Magdalena Lederach, born August 9, 1760, died February 15, 1841; married Henry Price. 3. Elizabeth Lederach, married Jacob Clemens. 4. Henry Lederach, born January 8, 1766; died September 4, 1841; married Ann Alderfer; resided in Worcester Township. 5. Catherine Lederach, born September 4, 1769; died July 2, 1840; married March 29, 1792, Andrew Ziegler. 6. Anna Lederach, married Abraham (Shott) Shutt. 7. John Lederach, born January 23, 1775, died 1848; married, first Mary Kolb, second, Mary Clemmer. END of Lederach Family.