(Continued from Monday.)
Christian Kreider was the second son of Michael, who settled at Fairland, and the second child unless the daughter married to Benjamin Moyer were older. Christian was married to Magdalene Stover, born Nov. 19, 1785, and died April 23, 1836. Both are buried in the Kreider cemetery, directly north of Cleona. Whether there was any blood relationship between Christian's wife and his mother we know not. Both were Stovers and likely of Lutheran extraction. The fact that they are buried in the family cemetery, and not at the Hill Church close by, suggests, at least, that the family became Mennonite rather than Lutheran.
It might be well to take a preview of the homestead of Christian Kreider now under consideration. We understand that he lived in the house now on the farm of his grandson, Rev. Christian Kreider, and tenanted by Nestor Long, northwest of Cleona. The house was built in 1809; but what suggests that Christian farmed his inheritance before building the house is the fact that the barn was erected six years earlier, in 1803. He had a son born in 1806. The buildings were supplied with water from the old family spring near the present campmeeting grounds of the United Christians, owned by Rev. Christian. But the spring is not on this property, but on the eastern farm, which the ancestor gave to his son Tobias. We have been a little confused about springs. This spring supplies also Cleona with water.
The 170 acres, 14 perches which the ancestor gave to his second son, Christian, included, as stated, the greater part of the present farm of Rev. Christian and also of the present Kettering farm, joining on the west, and 9 1/2 acres south of the pike. April 3, 1839, Christian conveyed all of this tract to his son Daniel. This tract at time was bounded as follows: On the east by the land of Tobias Kreider, on the north by the land of George Keller and church land on the northwest by land of Jacob Rupp, on the west by land of Christian Long, and on the south by land of Abraham Long and Tobias Kreider. South of Tobias Kreider was the land of Adam Stoever, and to the east of Tobias was Light land, now the Winters farm, and the Snavely estate.
Daniel Kreider divided his land north of the pike between his sons, Rev. Christian, who received the homestead with 84 acres and 45 perches, which constituted the eastern part; and Ezra, who received the western part of 88 acres and 75 perches. But Daniel bought land north of the entire tract, some from the Kellers and some from the church, so that Rev. Christian had 97 acres and Ezra 92.
The 9 1/2 acres south of the pike Christian transferred to his son, Michael, who bought to it from the land of his uncle Tobias and from Stoever land, till he had a farm of 150 acres, later known as the Henry farm. Michael thus had 150 acres to his brother Daniel's 170, but some of Daniel's land was well up on the hill, so the two farms may have been about equal in value.
Christian lived in the days that the Mennonites in large measure were becoming United Brethren. In this branch of Kreiders there seemed also a special openness toward the "church people" - the Lutheran and Reformed - due perhaps to early marriage with Stoevers. To what church Christian and his wife held we have been unable to learn; but their burial in the family plot leads us to believe they were still Mennonite. The course taken by their children in general leads us to the view that they were rather headed toward the United Brethren.
Christian and Magdalene Kreider had 6 children:
Daniel Kreider, the second son of Christian the First, of Fairland was married to Mary Funk, b. Dec. 15, 1811, and d. Aug. 17, 1865. Mary Funk was a sister to Jacob Funk, m. to Mary Kreider, daughter of Jacob, Jr. of Snitz Creek, see The News of June 16 and June 19. As we shall see later a sister of Daniel married John Funck (as many of the family spell the name), another brother of Mary.
On April 3, 1839, Daniel Kreider received from his father, Christian [received from his father, Christian,] 160 acres and 95 perches of land, being, the deeds tell us, from the 170 acres and the 14 perches which Christian had received from his father Michael Nov. 9, 1811, being part of the 310 1/2 acres which Michael had received from his father John Jan. 28, 1772, being one of the tracts which John had received by Patent Deed from the Penns Feb. 8, 1747. It might further be said that the Penns had bought it from the Indians 15 years before, or in 1732, the year of Washington's birth; and that William Penn had received it by grant from the King of Great Britain some time prior to 1682; and that the Lord Almighty had given it to mankind when he settled upon our father Adam his inheritance. We do not know at what exact moment God made this particular bit of dry ground to appear above the waters. Whether the Lord God prepared it for human habitation in the twinkling of an eye or through a process of thousands of years, the gentle reader will likely decide according to his understanding or lack of understanding. But this we know, that it came into the hands of the Kreiders, and they have made pretty good use of it, raising large crops. And we presume that they have and still render due praise to the Giver of all good things. If they haven't and don't, they ought to be ashamed of themselves, otherwise Lebanon county will have to be ashamed of them.
Daniel Kreider, we are told, was a wonderful worker. Whether he said to himself: "My Father worketh hitherto, and I work"; or whether he so worked because the more work the more dollars ahead, or whether it was to provide for his family, we know not, nor does it matter. Some work faster than the Father, some slower, some against Him, but the happiest employ is to work with Him. Daniel having two sons as preachers would suggest that he worked with.
Daniel Kreider and his wife were members of the United Brethren church, but they took issue with those United Brethren who took over the Academy at Annville, and followed Hoffman. Hoffman was not slow in saying that the school was from the Devil. A peculiar kind of unity among brethren. Daniel and his wife, however, are buried in the United Brethren cemetery at Annville.
They had the following children:
FANNY (VERONICA) KREIDER, second daughter of Daniel of Fairland, m. Rev. John K. Moyer, b. Jan. 12, 1827; d. Feb. 16, 1887; farmer on Gravel Hill and later retired in Palmyra. It seems that he was the grandson of John Kreider, m. Anna Troxel, and this Rev. John K. must have been the grandson, son of the daughter Mary, m. Martin Moyer, to whom John Kreider conveyed his Troxel farm of 167 acres, in Lodonderry township, on Nov. 25, 1854.65
We shall here insert the record, just gathered, of this only child of John Kreider, m. Anna Troxel.
Mary Kreider, the only child of John and Anna Troxel Kreider, m. Martin Moyer. He was a farmer and likely lived on what had once been a Troxel farm, the one bought by her grandfather Michael Kreider. Their farm residence was about one mile north of Annville. When he retired from farming, he moved on a small property near by, where he ended his days. They were members of the United Brethren church, but went with Hoffman when he withdrew because of buying the school at Annville. They had 12 children:
[...]
They are all buried along with their mother in the United Brethren cemetery in Annville.
Rev. JOHN F. KREIDER, afore, m. Nov. 8, 1863, to Maria (Mary) Kreider, oldest daughter and child of Henry the Aged (See the News of June 12); farmer immediately east of Campbelltown, where his son Eld. Henry now resides. Elder Henry has a chain of titles to this land. The land to the north, 233 acres, was surveyed by John Purly for Leonard Leininger (Deininger) Nov. 20, 1772, Derry township, Lancaster county. Doubtless a warrant of Oct. 7, 1751, had been granted for it. Our notes would indicate that at this time it was surrounded by lands of Thomas and Robert McCallon, George Henry (likely the ancestor of the judge), John Balm and Conrad Rice. The present Kreider farm was conveyed by one Jacob S[v]ar March 30, 1818, to Christian Sheller, who on March 30, 1830, conveyed it to Michael Baum who conveyed it to John Wolfersberger, who Jan. 23, 1839, to Peter Shutz, who Oct. 25, 1852, to Henry Coble, who April 24, 1854, to John Baccastow, who August 15, 1855 to Michael Kreider, from whom Rev. John F. Kreider doubtless bought it. The Kreider farm was originally patented to one Jane Sloan, in trust, for herself and children, March 19, 1764. The present barn on the farm was built in 1813.
Rev. John Funk Kreider was a minister of the Brethren in Christ. He had 8 children:
The Dauphin-Lebanon church district of the Brethren in Christ, over which Bishop Henry Kreider of Campbelltown presides, comprises the counties of Dauphin and Lebanon. The Kreiders have and are playing an important role in this district. We have stated that preceding Henry as Bishop was Rev. Jacob K. Kreider, of Fairland. So a short account of this district will be pertinent and likely of interest.
The membership of the District is 310, this, as in the Church of the Brethren, doubtless includes only baptized adults, or those who out of faith made intelligent self choice.
The duties of the deacons we are told is about the same as among Brethren, tending tables, caring for sick and poor, and making the yearly church visit to all the members, to ascertain whether they are still in the faith of the Gospel, and if they have anything to bring before the church of consideration. There are four such deacons in this district: David B. Wenger of Fairland, Henry Baum of Palmyra, Enoch McCorkle of Middletown, R. D. 3, and Henry Garman of Harrisburg.
The preachers of the district are: Rev. Jacob D. Books, of Cleona, father was not only a preacher before him, but a bishop; Rev. Jacob B. Funk, also of Cleona, and partly a Kreider; Rev. Jacob L. Brubaker, of Lawn, Palmyra, R. D. 2, superannuated; Rev. Harrison M. Hostetter of Campbelltown; Rev. Samuel E. Brehm, of Hummelstown; Rev. Clayton M. Engle, of near Hummelstown, on farm for more than 100 years in the Engle family, the Engles were largely the founders of this denomination; Rev. George Detweiler of Harrisburg; and Rev. John A. Garman, of Harrisburg. This makes with the bishop, 10 ministers in the Dauphin-Lebanon District.
The church houses are as follows:
(To be continued next Monday.)