Ruchti Ancestry in Europe   Kaufmann Ancestry in Europe

       Christian Ruchty and Anna Kaufman

       Veronica Ruchty and Christian Deppen

       Barbara Deppen and Peter Zimmerman

       Joseph Carpenter and Elizabeth Johnson

       John H. Carpenter and Mary McGaughey

       Susanna Carpenter and George Romulus Freeman

       Aretus Erastus Freeman and Minnie Elsie Morey

       Iva Melvina Freeman and Donald VanHoosier Lawson

       Stephen Martin Lawson

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The information on the KAUFMAN family is obtained from A Genealogy and History of the Kauffman-Coffman Families, by Charles Fahs Kauffman (1940). [Umlauts omitted.]

Jacob KAUFMANN - Probably the son of Jacob, as his great grandson is said to have been the fifth having the name Jacob. Church records indicate he was from Schopfen in the vicinity of Basel, Switzerland. He appears on the 1613-1614 muster roll of Thun, in Steffisburg Parish. Married first by 1580 Christini RABER, who was the mother of three children, and died by 1584. Jacob married second May 11, 1584 in Steffisburg Parish. Either he or his son married Verena BARB on Dec. 13, 1613.

Anni BRUCKI - Recorded as being "of Trimstein," which is in Munsingen Parish, just north of Steffisburg.

1. Anna - bap. Apr. 3, 1580, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Married Jul. 28, 1611 Peter TRAER.
2. Hans - bap. Feb. 19, 1581, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. A Hans KAUFMANN is reported having an illegitimate son, Hans, by Barblie MATTER, bap. Sep. 4, 1603.
3. Magdalena - bap. Apr. 22, 1582, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.
4. Caspar - bap. Apr. 11, 1585, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. First child of Jacob and Anni. A miller, he married between Jul. 13 and Oct. 5, 1612, Barbara KNEUBUHL. Children: Barbara; and Caspar married Barbi BURKI.
5. Margareth - bap. May 29, 1586, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.
6. Jacob - bap. May 1, 1590, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. A bailiff and miller, he is recorded as being a party to a number of financial transactions in Steffisburg. Married first in Jan. 1609 Adalin UMMEL. Married in Mar. 1632, Christina WALTHART (d. Apr. 17, 1644). Jacob, or his father married Verena BARB on Dec. 13, 1613. Children: Adelheid; Anna married Michael BLANK; Michael married Margaret BLANK; Hans (illegitimate son of Jacob and Anna ULLI) married Anna WYLER; Verena; Caspar; Jacob married first Barbara MEIER, and second Barbara JOSS; an unnamed child; Christina died at age 4; and Niclaus married Anna HODEL.
7. Niklaus - bap. Dec. 10, 1593, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.
8. Michael - bap. May 30, 1596, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Married Barbara BLANK. Children: Michael married Anna EYMANN; and a daughter.
9. Verena - Married Hans REUSSER on Dec. 12, 1625, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Children: A son; Christian; and Anna.

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Niklaus KAUFMANN - bap. Dec. 10, 1593, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Son of Jacob KAUFMANN andAnna BRUCKI. He married on Jan. 17, 1617, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.

Elsie BLANK -

1. Johannes - bap. Jun. 29, 1617, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Married first Anna EICHELBERGER; second on May 29, 1648 Elizabeth CHRISTENER; and third on Aug. 23, 1658 Anna OESH. In 1664, his third wife was living with Christian LUTHI, and had a child by him. She testified that she believed her husband was dead, having not heard of him for a long time. Children: Hans married Katrina ARNOLD (their son or grandson Andreas, or Andrew, emigrated to PA in 1717); Barbara married Hans FURRER; Peter; Anna may have married Jacob MOSIMANN; Christina married Michael KAUFMANN of Lueg; Verena; and Jacob.
2. Barbara - bap. Mar. 28, 1619, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.
3. Michael - bap. Oct. 1, 1620, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.
4. Nicholas - bap. Jul. 18, 1624, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.

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Michael KAUFMANN - bap. Oct. 1, 1620, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Son of Niklaus KAUFMANN and Elsi BLANK. Lived at Zullhalten, east of Steffisburg and adjacent to Homberg. Married on Oct. 2, 1646, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.

Anna BRENDLI -

1. Michael - bap. May 28, 1648. Lived at Langenegg until about 1680. He appears to be the Michael KAUFMANN who was the subject of a number of court records, including failure to attend Easter service, playing dice, and distributing wine. Married on Feb. 26, 1668 Elsbeth MIRSING from Schangnau. Children: Barbara, Michael, Christian, and Christina.
2. Anna - bap. Jun. 30, 1650; died in infancy.
3. Anna - bap. Sep. 4, 1651; died young.
4. Isaac - bap. Nov. 20, 1653, probably at Zullhalten, Switzerland.
5. Jacob - bap. Mar. 2, 1656. Lived at Dornhalten near Heimberg. He was charged with feuding with his neighbor in 1677. Married first Anna KROPF, and second on June 8, 1694 Anna MERGERDT. Probable children: Anna, Barbara, Christina, Michael, Hans, Jacob, Anna, Barbara, Anna, and Christian. (These children may have been those of two different Jacob KAUFMANNs.)
6. Christina - bap. Nov. 18, 1660.
7. Barbara - bap. Jul. 24, 1668.
8. Anna - bap. Feb. 17, 1671.

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Isaac KAUFMANN - bap. Nov. 20, 1653, probably at Zullhalten, Switzerland. Son of Michael KAUFMANN and Anna BRENDLI. He became a Mennonite teacher by 1680, and was constantly on the move to avoid arrest. In 1694 he was said to be living in some Alp pasture near Schangnau; in 1699 he was a Mennonite teacher of Homberg, District of Thun, and was sent to Berne, where the authorities desired to banish him to Amsterdam for deportation to the East Indies; in 1700 he had returned to Berne, and was again hunted; he was at Steffisburg in 1701; and in 1709 he was still being pursued by the authorities, now at Grindelwald, Canton or Berne. Married Feb. 18, 1676.

Elsbeth MERGERDT - d. 1715. Claims were made against her estate on Nov. 11, 1715. Likely a sister of Anna, who married Isaac's brother Jacob.

1. Michael - bap. Jan. 27, 1678. Lived at Strichelberg near Steffisburg. He was party to a horse deal in 1712 with his brother-in-law Christian RUCHTI. Married Apr. 22, 1701 Verena STAUFFER. Children: Anna, Jacob, Magdalena, Verena, Michael, Catherine, and Christian.
2. Anna - bap. Feb. 8, 1680, probably at Zullhalten, Switzerland. Married Christian RUCHTY.
3. Barbara - bap. Sep. 10, 1682. Married Apr. 13, 1703 Peter RUCHTI of Homberg, likely the brother of Christian, who married Barbara's sister Anna. Children: Barbara, and Peter.
4. Isaac - bap. Jan. 11, 1685. Lived at Homberg until 1714 when he fled the country. Married Sep. 24, 1706 Anna STREIT. Children: Hans; Barbara; Isaac; Stephen; Christian married first Mary, and second Margaret SCHNAEBELE; and Jacob.
5. Jacob - b. between 1686 and 1689. Lived for a time at Homberg, moving to Bernese Iederbipp and Bernese Oberbipp. Married Feb. 24, 1708 Christina STAUFFER. Children: Christian died young; Barbara; Christian; Jacob; and Hans.
6. Elsbeth - bap. Feb. 9, 1690. Perhaps married Mr. TEHANTZ.
7. Christian - bap. Jan. 8, 1693.
8. Hans - bap. Mar. 8, 1696. Married Elizabeth HAUDENSCHILD. Children: Anna and Barbara.
9. Magdalena - bap. Aug. 23, 1698.
10. Christina - bap. May 15, 1701. Married Apr. 16, 1725 Niclaus GERBER of Steffisburg.

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Christian RUCHTI - b. 1626, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Son of Johannes RUCHTI (b. Mar. 11, 1581/2, Homburg, Bern, Switzerland) and Christine VONGUTEN (b. 1599, Homburg, Bern, Switzerland), and grandson of Jakob RUCHTI (b. 1552, Homberg, Bern, Switzerland) and Madalen BURRI (b. 1556, Homberg, Bern, Switzerland), who were married in Feb. 1576/7. Note that all information on Christian and Verena, and Christian's ancestry, is from unverified sources.

Verena ZIMMERMAN - b. 1630, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland. Possibly the daughter of Christian ZIMMERMAN and Anna BUOSS.

1. Christian - bap. 1662, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland; d. Womelsdorf, PA.
2. Verena - bap. Apr. 26, 1668, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland; d. probably in Holland. Married Johann SCHLAPPACH (b. 1660). He was a member of the National (Reformed) Church, and she a Mennonite. While one source gives an estimated marriage date of 1710, it is more likely that Verena and Hans were married about 1692, if she was the mother of his four sons and four daughters born between 1693 and 1709. Johann, age 50, was a farmer at Eriz, Thun District, Switzerland in 1711 , before the family removed to Holland and subsequently from Rotterdam to Philadelphia in 1733 aboard the ship 'Mary' of Dublin, James BENN, Master. On the ship were Johann SLABACH, his son John Henry SLABACH and wife Maria Elizabeth SLABACH, and three children of John Henry and Maria: Henry, age 16, Dewald (or David), age 13, and Dorothea, age 5. The names of the other seven children of Verena and Johann are not known, and it is likely that they remained in Switzerland and/or Holland.
3. Barbara - bap. Mar. 13, 1673, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland.

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Christian RUCHTY - bap. 1662, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland; d. Womelsdorf, PA. Son of Christian RUCHTI and Verena ZIMMERMAN. He embarked from Rotterdam on Apr. 28, 1736, and arrived in Philadelphia on Sep. 15, 1736 aboard the 'Princess Augusta,' Samuel MERCHANT, Master. On the passenger list he appears with wife Anne and their two daughters. The Ruchty family settled on a farm near Womelsdorf, PA. Married Mar. 24, 1698, Steffisburg, Switzerland when he was noted as being of Homberg.

Anna KAUFMAN - bap. Feb. 8, 1680, probably at Zullhalten, Switzerland. Daughter of Isaac KAUFMAN and Elsbeth MERGERDT. No record is found of Anna in America.

1. Anna - bap. Oct. 15, 1702, Steffisberg, Thurnen Parish, Canton Bern, Switzerland; d. 1784, Lancaster Co., PA; bur. Lichty Cemetery. Married Hans ZIMMERMAN III (d. 1786, Lancaster Co., PA; bur. Litchy Cemetery.) of Cocalico, Lancaster Co., PA. Hans is possibly the son of Hans ZIMMERMAN II and grandson of Hans ZIMMERMAN and Barbara GILGAN.
2. Christian - bap. Apr. 26, 1704, Switzerland. No record in America.
3. Veronica - b. Switzerland; bur. Womelsdorf, PA. Married Christian DAPPEN.
4. Hans - bap. Jul. 12, 1716, Switzerland. No record in America.

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