Family History Tips-Part 20

Solving the Puzzle: Working Two Ends of a Family Tree

by Brenna Corbit, Technical Services Librarian

When working a family tree, you start with yourself. Doing it the other way around simply makes no sense. I can’t go back into the early 1800s, find a Corbit and work my way forward until I hopefully arrive at me. But I have been in a few situations where I did just that. Well, sort of.

Recently, I was working on my Eisenhower ancestors in Lebanon County, Pa. I had them traced back to the early 1800s in the northeastern section of the county, primarily Bethel Township. My 5x great-grandfather Benjamin was born in 1815 to Heinrich and Susanna (Wolf) Eisenhower, who were married in 1813. Other than that, I was at a dead-end. Therefore, I decided to work from the beginning of the Eisenhower line in America.

Basically, what you would need to do is see who was living in a particular area at a given time, and use the process of elimination. In this particular case, the process of ruling out Eisenhowers would be easier since the search would encompass an earlier time frame. The population would be smaller and the surname is not too common. Names like Miller or Moyer would be a nightmare, but not impossible.

Early histories state three Eisenhower brothers came to Pennsylvania. Brothers or not, Philadelphia ships’ records show three arrived aboard the Europa in 1741: Hans Nicholas Eisenhauer—28 yrs, Johann Peder Eisenhauer—25 yrs, and Johann Eisenhauer—16 yrs. A later arrival in the same port was Johan Jacob Eysenhawer in 1753. Incidentally, U. S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower descended from Hans Nicholas.

Moreover, 18th century Pennsylvania land records, tax lists, and the 1790 U. S. Census indicate the Eisenhowers settled primarily in the two neighboring Bethel Townships in Lebanon and Berks Counties. These clues indicate five possibilities of grand/parentage—Benjamin, John, Nicholas, Philip and Michael. Since my Benjamin was born in 1815, his father Heinrich would have been born somewhere between 1770 and 1795. Alas, none of these records include ages. My next step was to examine all available wills, probate, land records, and church records that are online.

So far I have not found any definite answer in cyberspace. Contrary to public opinion, not everything is online. Therefore, my next step is to go to the courthouses and historical/genealogical societies in Lebanon and neighboring counties. Lebanon was formed from parts of Dauphin and Lancaster in 1813, and Schuylkill is just over the border from Bethel Township. I may have much ground to cover, but I have confidence I will narrow down the five candidates. 

Since only a few Eisenhowers arrived that early, I am sure I have descended from one of the three “brothers,” and I am probably distantly related to a past president. I have used this method in the past with other dead-ends and have found my proof of decent. Therefore, I have much hope for your same ancestral conundrums. If you are stuck, you know where to find me.