Book Reviews

BOOK REVIEWS Geinter: flits Eherniandisch-Pfalaisches Gescblecht Mit Farnilien-Zweigen in der Baleswins und in libellee. By Rudolf Geimer. [Schnf ten zur Wanderungsgeschichte der Pfalzer, Folge 5.] (Kaiserslautern, W. Germany: Heimatstelle Pfalz, 1959. 112 p. Coat of Arms, genealogical tables, source list, name and place indices. Paper, 10 DM.) This little volume, concerning the Gehner family of the Rhineland and the Palatinate, begun with an introduction discussing the derivation of the name, and then proceeds to list historic instances of its occurrence. The genealogical record begins with Johannes Geymer (Gymer, Gymmers), born about 1495/1500 on the lower Rhine, and his probable five sons: Nikolaus, Gerhard, Peter, Ambrosius and Petermann Geymer. The lines of the first, fourth and fifth sons are then brought down, in many cases to the present time. It is interesting to note that apparently it was descendants of the fourth and fifth sons, Ambrosius and Petermann Geimer, who emigrated to the United States. Descendants of Petermann are presently living in Philadelphia, Havertown and Leesburg, Pa., and others in Vineland and Millville, N J. Ambrosius' descendants were the first to migrate, coming to this country late in the nineteenth century. Petermann's descendants then followed suit early in the twentieth century. The place index (Ortsverzeicintis) at the end of the volume is most helpful in locating these individuals. Although the book is in German, it is relatively easy to trace the various lines with the help of the ten genealogical tables in diagrammatic form. The name index (Nomenverzeicbnis) reveals many names common to Pennsylvania. RALPH D3RNFELD OWEN Die Kurpfdizischen Familien Engetinann lord Hilgard. By Gertrud Baecker and Fritz Engelmann. [Schriften zur Wanderungsgeschichte der Pfalzer, Folge 3.] (Kaiserslautern, W. Germany: Heimatstelle Pfalz, 1959. 120 p. Bibliography, illustrations, genealogical tables, name and place indices. 17.60 DM.) This genealogical account of the Engelmann and Hilgard families of the Electoral Palatinate is bi-lingual. The first portion (pp. 7-73) in German presents an overall account of the various branches of the two families and related lines in Germany. The remaining portion in English includes those lines relating to emigrants to the United States. Thus there is an English translation for some portions of the German text, but not for all of it. The first definitely recorded Engelmann ancestor was Johann Hieronymus Engelmann (ca. 1656-1712), although two earlier generations are tentatively identified as his possible forbears. There are also accounts of German families which Intermarried with his descendants: Stepp, Rupp, Costenoble, Schiitte, von den Velden, Polstorf, Pleas and Graff. It was Friedrich Theodor Engelmann (1779-1854), a great-grandson of Johann Hieronymus Engelmann, who emigrated in 1833 to America with all his family except for one daughter, and settled in the vicinity of Belleville, Illinois. His older sister Maria Dorothea Engelmann (1760-1845) married Johann Jacob Hilgard (1751-1813); their son Theodor Erasmus Hilgard (1790-1873) followed his uncle to this country in 1834 and also settled in Bellevue. Families which intermarried with the Hilgards include Krafft, Tyndale and Tittman. A daughter of Theodore Erasmus Hilgard, Marie Hilgard (1818-1859), married Sharon Tyndale, born in Philadelphia in 1811 who was assassinated m 1871 in Springfield. Illinois, while serving as Illinois Secretary of State. 150 151 Book Reviews A great-nephew of Theodor Erasmus Hilgard, Heinrich Gustav Hilgard (18351900), emigrated at the age of eighteen, and fearing that his father might try to have him sent back to Germany, adopted the name Villard. He married Fanny Garrison, daughter of William Lloyd Garrison, and became prominent through his brilliant work as a journalist during the Civil War. Representing European investors, after 1873, he became wealthy. He gained control of the Northern Pacific Railroad. He helped organize the General Electric (Edison) Company. He also was the owner of The New York Evening Post. In addition to the eight genealogical tables which are helpful in following the various family ramifications, there are three Ablientafeln or ancestor tables and a list of family portraits extant in 1850, some of which are included in the ten illustrations. The extensive three-page bibliography, arranged geographically, provides a useful reference list of source material for search in German families. The English portion of the book is quite detailed in the early generations, but is little more than a genealogical outline of later descendants. Presumably this information was supplied by present members of the family; it is to be regretted that it is not more informative as to localities. RALPH DORNFELD OWEN A Genealogical Atlas of England and Wales. Compiled from original maps by David E. Gardner, Derek Harland and Frank Smith. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1960. vii, 88 p. End-paper indices to map sections. $2.95) The authors have established their reputations in previous publications on British genealogy, and now add to them by publishing this useful atlas, a reprint in sections of a map published in London more than a century ago. The end-papers show an overall or master map of England and Wales divided into eighty-eight consecutively numbered sections, each section representing an area approximately 25 by 45 miles in size, the numbers referring to the pages on which the enlarged sectional maps are shown. Each enlargement, 8 7/ii inches by 5 ,/, inches in size, shows the cities and market towns, parishes and townships, hamlets, rivers, "Gentlemen's Seats," churches, chapels, roads, canals, etc., peculiar to its particular area, with a scale of miles added for reference on each left-hand page. To further aid the searcher, counties are listed alphabetically with references to the pages on which they appear, and the maps are listed consecutively by number, showing which counties are included within the bounds of each map. To make the most effective use of the Atlas, a searcher, if he does not know in which county to look, may first have to consult a gazetteer or topographical atlas, however. To illustrate: a genealogist working on a branch of the Pilkington family has a reference to the town of Rivington, but he does not know its county. From a gazetteer or topographical atlas, he finds that this town is located southeast of Charley in Lancashire. He now turns to this Atlas and from the end-paper index and alphabetical list of counties he sees that Lancashire is reproduced on maps 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 24, 25 and 26. Search in the first three sectional maps will be unproductive, but in map 16 Charley is easily located, and Rivington found to the southeast. A Roman cross before the town's name indicates, by the "Explanation" on page v, that Rivington has a church with a perpetual endowment. The figures 208.2 below the name C.horley indicate the town's distance in miles from London Post Office. Such detail is of considerable value and can very well figure in the solution of genealogical problems. RALPH DORNPEL° °." 152 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine The Barnita Family. By Robert M. Torrence. (Baltimore, Md.: Published by the Author, 1961. 74 p. Frontispiece.) This family history, compiled by a Vice-President of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, presents an account of John Leonard Barnitz (1677-1749) who with his sons emigrated from Germany to Pennsylvania prior to 1733, when he obtained a warrant for land in what was then Lancaster County. The emigrant pioneered in the establishment of the brewing industry in the towns of York and Hanover, Pennsylvania, where he settled, and in Baltimore where his son Elias Daniel Barnitz (ante 1721-1780) acquired the property at the southeast corner of Baltimore and Hanover Streets in 1748. The descendants of John Leonard Barnitz's second son John George Charles Barnitz (1722-1797) who married Anna Barbara Spangler and continued the brewing business in York, were long prominent in the public affairs of York County. His son Jacob (1758-1828) was a Revolutionary soldier, and after hostilities had ceased was elected prothonotary, recorder and register of wills for the county, positions which he held for forty years. Jacob's younger brother George (1770-1844) was commissioned an associate judge of the county in 1811, while Jacob's son Charles Augustin Barrutz (17871850) was even more prominent. He was a state senator in 1815, in 1820 was appointed legal administrator of the York County property of the Penn heirs (Springettsbury Manor), was a member of the United States Congress from 1833 - 1835, and also served as president of the York National Bank and as a director of the Chesapeake and Susquehanna Canal project. One of Jacob's great-grandsons, Harry Wilson Barnitz (18631916), was the distinguished stained glass artist credited with the windows in the West Point Chapel, in Valley Forge Memorial Chapel, and in the National Cathedral in Washington. Sources for Mr. Torrence's account, which appear throughout the text, include statements from present members of the family and both primary and secondary works. An index of names would have increased its general usefulness. The family tradition that its immigrant-founder came from Falkenstein in the Palatinate is incorrect. It is more likely that he came from Falkenstein in Saxony, East Central Germany, a town lying in the "Erzgebirge" eleven miles east of Planen. Family names ending in "-itz" are fairly common in Saxony. RALPH DORNFELD OWEN American Origins. By L. G. Pine. (Garden City, N. Y.: Doubleday & Co., Inc., 1960. 357 p. $7.50.) This latest work by Mr. Pine, editor of Burke's Peerage, Burke's Landed Gentry, etc., falls into the category of a "how to do it" book, advising the inquirer as to the method of bridging the Atlantic in the quest for the European background of his immigrant ancestors. Mr. Pine opens with an "Introduction to Genealogy" which gives the reader a brief look at the historical development of "Genealogical Knowledge." He then turns to the problem of tracing records in the United States, wisely referring the reader to Gilbert H. Doane's Searching for Your Ancestors. The next section—the most useful and really valuable portion of the book—is devoted to the four major parts of the United KM3dom and Ireland: England (pp. 60-107), Scotland (pp. 108-133), Ireland (pp. 134-183), and Wales (pp. 184-196). The six pages devoted to the Isle of Man and the Channel Isles are followed by discussion regarding the rest of Europe. Book Reviews 153 In various places Mr. Pine gives the impression that the bulk of pre-Revolutionary immigrants were from the British Isles, and that of these, few were Scots. While this may be true for many of the original colonies, it does not hold true for New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Scotch immigrants appear as early as the middle of the seventeenth century and continue in increasing numbers down to the period of the Revolution. Mr. Pine describes the census records from 1790 (misprinted on page 30 as 1791), to 1880; perhaps he does not realize that the 1890 census will soon be available, since by law the census, taken every ten years, remains closed to the public for only seventy years. Nor would any American genealogist advise an inquirer to start his genealogical search at the National Archives, or with the census, as suggested by Mr. Pine on page 35; rather he would recommend following the procedure outlined in Mr. Doane's book, as cited by Mr. Pine. The functions of the Committee on Heraldry of the New England Historic Genealogical Society also appear to have been misunderstood by Mr. Pine, since he quotes, "An applicant need not descend from the person who bore the arms which he wishes to have registered." The Committee neither grants arms nor certifies any one's right to bear them. They are, however, endeavoring to build a Roll of Arms including as many as possible of the original immigrants who can be proven to have been entitled to bear them, together with such others as have obtained grants of arms. The Committee studies the evidence submitted, and decides whether in its opinion the entitlement has been proven; If so, the arms are entered on the Roll. As to the books to which Mr. Pine refers the reader, this reviewer feels he would do better to follow the bibliography in the back of Mr. Doane's book. As mentioned above, the section devoted to the United Kingdom and Ireland, is valuable. Here Mr. Pine writes authoritatively on matters which he knows intimately He describes sources and gives excellent advice on hov. ■ to start a search, and how to find material. Perhaps he might have added the standard text, Boutell's Manual of Heraldry, to his own book on the subject, and perhaps mentioned English Genealogy by Anthony Richard Wagner, C.V.O., the Richmond Herald (Oxford, 1960), who has also provided a chapter on English source material for Genealogical Research, Methods and Sources, published in 1960 by the American Society of Genealogists. For some reason Mr. Pine is somewhat vague in discussing the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands, and to this reviewer it is not clear exactly where the early wills are to be found. But for the most part, the text in this section is excellent and very informative. While of considerable interest, the other European sections, listing the locations of original source material and libraries, have not the authoritative r'mg of the United King • does section, and lack much of essential "how-to-do-it" advice. Before initiating search in these European localities, numerous American sources should be examined; much help may be found in articles appearing in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly and the publications of the Pennsylvania German Folklore Society, for instance, for those seeking Swiss or German pre-Revolutionary ancestry; in the works of Dr. Amandus Johnson of Philadelphia for Swedish ancestory; and in the monographs on early Poles, both Roman Catholic and non-Catholic, published by the Polish Roman Catholic Union of America. The author errs in believing there were very few Jews in America before the Revolution; since there was, in most areas, relative freedom of religion, their records are in the maim mixed with those of the gentiles. A number of them were officers in the Revolutionary army. Mr. Pine's book includes a Table of Contents which is quite detailed, but would have been improved by the addition of an index and a separate bibliography. It can be recommended chiefly for the advice it offers on British research. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JO-. 154 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Winchester Consistory Court Depositions, 1561-1602. Selections edited by Arthur J. Willis. (Hambleden, Lyrninge, Folkestone, Kent, England: Published by the editor, 1960. XiV, 69 p. Appendices, bibliography, indices. $2.75) These extracts have been selected from ten volumes included in the series of Court Books in the diocesan muniment room at Winchester, Hampshire. In the Church of England, the term "consistory" signifies a court within a diocese which is held before the bishop or his subordinate, the vicar general. This court had a wide range of jurisdiction, trying all cases of church discipline affecting either clergy or laity. The Court Books from which these selections have been made cover over 1000 causes and nearly 4000 depositions, the bulk of which relate to matters of tithe, defamation, testamentary or matrimonial causes. Of particular interest to the genealogist, therefore, are the records of intestate estates, probate of wills, appointment of guardians for orphans, and such matrimonial causes as breach of promise or divorce, examples of all of which are found in these court records, rather than in civil records. Mr. Willis presents first, several complete transcriptions, written in Latin and English, prefaced by an introduction and explanation of the operation of the Bishop's Court. He then includes extracts from evidence, i.e., depositions, grouped under the several headings of Tithes and dues, Defamation, Testamentary, Matrimonial, Disciplinary and Miscellaneous causes. His Appendix I is a statistical summary of the number of different types of causes which appear in the ten volumes. Appendix II is devoted to a transcnpt of Latin extracts from Court Book 32, all for the year 1572, while Appendix III is in the form of a useful bibliography of reference works relating to similar court records. Subject, name, and place indices, arranged separately, are particularly helpful for genealogical research in southern England. RALPH DORNFtLD OWEN Copies of the reprint of The Doane Family by A. A. Doane, first published in 1902, are now available for sale. In addition, Supplement One, of 51 pages, covering 37 families, is now off the press. For information write Norman H. Doane, 6976 Five Mile Road, Cincinnati 30, Ohio.