 1663 - 1727 (64 years)
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| Name |
Theodorus or Durst Eby or Aebi, DD |
| Suffix |
DD |
| Nickname |
Durss or Toris or Doris |
| Born |
25 Apr 1663 |
Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Died |
11 Dec 1727 |
Leacock, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania |
| Buried |
Eby Homestead Cemetery Leacock, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania |
| Person ID |
I519979052 |
Eby/Aebi and Bernethy Family |
| Last Modified |
26 Oct 2014 |
| Father |
Andreas Aebi, DD, b. 1631, Canton of Bern, Switzerland , d. Aft 25 May 1683, Helmstadt, Würzburg, Bavaria, Germany (Age 52 years) |
| Mother |
Elizabeth Pladt Blatti, DD, b. 1633, Trachselwald, Canton of Bern, Switzerland , d. Aft 23 May 1683, Helmstadt, Würzburg, Bavaria, Germany (Age 50 years) |
| Married |
11 Mar 1652 |
Sumiswald, Trachselwald, Canton of Bern, Switzerland |
| Family ID |
F509231165 |
Group Sheet |
| Family 1 |
Unknown Unknown, b. 1664, Probably Germany , d. Bef 1705 (Age 41 years) |
| Married |
1687 |
Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany |
| Children |
| | 1. Johannes Eby, b. 1688, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 21 Feb 1745, Earl, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age 57 years) |
| | 2. Peter Eby, b. Abt 1690, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 05 May 1749, Earl, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age ~ 59 years) |
| | 3. George Eby, b. 1694, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 27 Apr 1743, Warwick, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age 49 years) |
| | 4. Jacob Eby, b. Abt 1698, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 04 Jan 1744, Earl, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age ~ 46 years) |
| | 5. Christian Eby, DD Sr, b. 12 Feb 1698, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 15 Sep 1756, Warwick, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age 58 years) |
| | 6. Barbara Eby, b. 1700, Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany , d. 1744 (Age 44 years) |
|
| Last Modified |
28 Oct 2013 |
| Family ID |
F509225104 |
Group Sheet |
| Family 2 |
Barbara Unknown, b. Abt 1684, Probably Germany , d. Aft 1752, Warwick, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (Age ~ 69 years) |
| Married |
1705 |
Kraichgau, (Upper Palatinate) Germany |
| Children |
| | 1. Mary Eby, b. 1710, Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany , d. |
| | 2. Ann Elsbeth Eby, b. Abt 1712, Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany , d. Bef 1798 (Age ~ 86 years) |
| | 3. Barbara Eby, b. 1715, Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany |
|
| Last Modified |
16 Jul 2013 |
| Family ID |
F509225519 |
Group Sheet |
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| Documents
|
 | Eby Coat of Arms
This is the Eby Coat of Arms found on the cover of "The History of the Eby Family" by Ezra E. Eby |
 | Eby Coat of Arms Explanation
Explanation of Eby Coat of Arms as found on the cover of "The History of the Eby Family" by Ezra E. Eby |
 | Aebi Eby Hausmark
In addition to the Coat of Arms found on the cover of "The History of the Eby Family", by Ezra E. Eby this Aebi Hausmark is found of the cover of "The George Ebey Family", prepared by George W. P. Ebey(6).
The Aebi Hausmark in colour and with a detailed explanation as taken from "The Abee's of North Carolina - Descendants of Andrew Abee", compiled by Charles Moran Abee. |
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| Notes |
Ezra Eby states he was born on 25 Apr 1663 in Canton of Zurich, Switzerland and died sometime in September of 1737 in Lancaster, Pa. The Eby Family Bulletin states that he died prior tp 20 Feb 1734. The dates of 1729 and 1733 have also been mentioned. However, all of these dates are incorrect. The actual date of death was clearly stated in The Eby Family Bible, currently housed at the Lancaster County Historical Society. Translated by a Mrs Charles M. Coldren in 1938, the date of his death is addressed by Andreas Eby, son of Christian Eby and grandson of Durss (Theodorus) Eby. It reads, "This Bible belongs to me, Andreas Eby (b 1747) and I inherited it from my father, Christian Eby, and he inherited it from his father Durss Eby, who was born in Switzerland and died in Pennsylvania in 1727, at the age of 63 years." (144-192)
Theodorus, being a strict Mennonite in faith, left his native country about the year 1704 on account of the religious persecutions. From 1704 until 1715 he resided in the "Palatinate" or Pfaltz, Germany. Finding persecutions here equally severe as in the country he just left, he, in company with others, left for Philidelphia in 1717. In August of the same year he settled on what was called Mill Creek, at a place known as Rolands Mill, situated south of New Holland and near the line of Earl and Leacock Townships, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Here he resided until his death and enjoyed the privileges and freedom of religion for which he had to suffer persecutions and trials in Europe.
I see in Ancestry.com that several people have said his first wife was Maragret Steiner, second wife was Barbara Dysli and his third wife was Barbara Unknown. I would like to see the sources of this information. I see nothing of those names in Dawn Eby Quast's information and I believe she has done extensive Eby research.(Append 2005) In Dieter Eby Newmans book he states in all his searched in Kraichgau Germany and Alsasce France he finds no records that give names to his wives. However, he knows from previous mentioned documents in his book, it is known that he was married twice, the first probably circa 1687 and the second around 1705 and both probably took place in Kraichgau. The birth of his children from the first marriage was probably in the village of Rohrbach in the Kraichgau, and since he seems to be in residence near Mannheim in 1711, the children of his second marrige may have been born there.
*They sailed on the German or Unknown Fleet which consisted of three ships whose names were unrecorded from Rotterdam; first passing through a British Port(final port of departure Doretshire, England) then setting sail for America under command of Captains Richmond, Towers and Eyers, and finally arriving in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 19 Sep 1717.
Found the following in Ancestry:
Name: Theodorus Eby
Year: 1712
Place: Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Source Publication Code: 7820
Primary Immigrant: Eby, Theodorus
Annotation: An index by Marvin V. Koger, Index to the Names of 30,000 Immigrants...Supplementing the Rupp, Ship Load Volume, 1935, 232p. is inferior to Wecken's index in the third edition (above). Page 449 contains "Names of the First Palatines in North Carolina, as Early as 1709 and 1710"; and pages 449-451 contain "Names of Males, Salzburgers, Settled in Georgia, 1734-1741." Contrary to some opinions, this work by Rupp does not duplicate nos. 9041-9042 by Strassburger, although there are thousands of names which are duplicates. Strassburger's work, however, is more accurate and more reliable than Rupp's. See also no. 9330, Urlsperger. The Salzburgers mentioned above were immigrants from Salzburg, Austria.
Source Bibliography: RUPP, ISRAEL DANIEL. A Collection of Upwards of Thirty Thousand Names of German, Swiss, Dutch, French and Other Immigrants in Pennsylvania from 1727 to 1776, with a Statement of the Names of Ships, Whence They Sailed, and the Date of Their Arrival at Philadelphia, Chronologically Arranged, Together with the Necessary Historical and Other Notes, also, an Appendix Containing Lists of More Than One Thousand German and French Names in New York prior to 1712. Leipzig [Germany]: Degener & Co., 1931. 478, 89p. Reprint of the 2nd revised and enlarged ed., 1876, with index from 3rd ed. by Ernst Wecken, 1931, and added index of ships. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1985. 583p.
Page: 437
Also:
Name: Theodorus Eby
Year: 1715
Place: Pennsylvania
Source Publication Code: 8042
Primary Immigrant: Eby, Theodorus
Annotation: Date and place of arrival or settlement. Periodical published by Pennsylvania Folklife Society, P.O. Box 92, Collegeville, PA, 19426. Also see no. 9968 below.
Source Bibliography: SCHELBERT, LEO, and SANDRA LUEBKING. "Swiss Mennonite Family Names: An Annotated Checklist." In Pennsylvania Folklife, vol. 26:4 (Summer 1977), pp. 2-24.
Page: 9
Also:
Name: Theodorus Eby
Year: 1715
Place: Pennsylvania
Source Publication Code: 9968
Primary Immigrant: Eby, Theodorus
Annotation: Composed of 24 articles excerpted and reprinted from Pennsylvania Folklife. Especially important because of the difficulty in finding early numbers of this periodical.
Source Bibliography: YODER, DON. Rhineland Emigrants: Lists of German Settlers in Colonial America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1981. 170p.
Page: 129
Also:
1712 :Hans Georg Schutz , Martin Reninger , Michael Bachman , Jacob Hochstetter , Jacob Kreider , Benedictus Venerich , Jacob Kreutzer , Jacob B?hm , Hans Faber , Martin Urner , Theodorus Eby , Johannes Lein , Heinrich Zimmerman , Emanuel Zimmerman , Gabriel Zimmerman , Johannes Schenck , Michael Danegar , Marcus Oberholtz , Christian Stein , Edward Riehm , Joseph Steinman , Siegesmund Landtart .
____________________________________________________________________________
Newspaper Articles about the Eby's
1704--Theodorus Eby Moved to Palatinate
This year an old patriarch, ancestor of a large Lancaster County family , Theodorus Eby, who was born in Zurich, the 25th day of April 1665, moved to the Palatinate and resided there until 1715, when he came to Philadelphia and thence to Eby's Mill on Mill Creek, afterwards to Roland's Mill, south of New Holland on the line between Earl and Leacock Townships. (History of Eby Family pg. 2 and 3.)
1715--Eby Family Come to Lancaster County.
The Eby family is numerous in this section and the Eby home seemd to be on Mill Creek, at a point known as Eby's Mill. Theodorus Eby was the ancestor. According to Bishop Benjamin Eby's records found in "The Eby Family" pages 2 and 3, Theodorus was a son of **Jacob Eby, and came to America in 1715. Peter Eby, a nephew of Theodorus, came in 1720; also Nicholas Eby. These are all Swiss. But it is said that earlier generations of the family came into Switzerland from Northern Italy. Menno Eby, a young lad living near Terre Hill, is the ninth descendant of Theodorus Eby.
**It should be noted that recent research by Dieter Eby Newman has proven that his father was not Jacob Aebi but Andreas Aebi born 1631.
Also:
The Brubakers, Swarr, Hershey, Tuber, Houser, and Burkholder settled along the Little Conestoga, and some of their land ran to the town. Peter Leman settled near what was afterwards the eastern boundary of the town. Shank and Bare in the southern part. In the same year Hostetter and Greider took up several hundred acres adjoining Shank's and Bare's land. In the same year Theodorus Eby took up three hundred acres, which his heirs, in 1730, sold to Hans Musser.
History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men
Chapter XXIX. City of Lancaster
Also:
A portion of the three-hundred-acre tract, patented in 1717 by Theodorus Eby, is also in the city, and forms the parts quite commonly called Mussertown and Adamstown. Eby's heirs sold the land to Hans Musser in 1739, and Dr. Adam Simon Kuhn1[1 For a biographical sketch of Dr. Kuhn the reader should refer to the chapter on medical practitioners.] purchased fifteen acres from Musser's heirs, Hans and Frena Musser, Sept. 17, 1744. This piece of land which extended up to East King Street, then called the Provincial road, and along Middle Street, was laid out by Kuhn into forty-six lots. These lots, with the exception of three reserved by the owner, were put up at lottery and about three-fourths of them disposed of in November, 1744, each subject to an annual quit-rent of either seven shillings or fifteen shillings. James Hamilton, who owned the central and northwestern parts of the town, purchased of Dr. Kuhn, March 7, 1749, the ground-rents of that part of the plat laid out by him in 1744, paying therefor the sum of four hundred pounds. The yearly rents which were still retained by Kuhn amounted to eighty-five pounds.
History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men
Chapter XXIX. City of Lancaster
Also:
Theodorus Eby, the head of the family in America, was a Swiss Mennonite, and came with the Brubakers, Lemons, et al. On the 10th day of May, 1718, he took out a warrant for three hundred acres of land among the new surveys at Conestoga, at the rate of one shilling quit-rent per hundred acres per annum. The survey was made on the 13th day of May, 1718, on the west side of the Conestoga Creek, adjoining the lands of Henry Funk and Michael Shank. Theodorus Eby remained upon this land five years, when he purchased another tract of land upon Mill Creek, near the old Peter's road, and a short distance south of Earl township line, which is now known as Roland's mill. Theodorus Eby died intestate and before he paid any of the consideration money for the land at Conestoga. He probably died in 1730. This land he seems to have sold to Hans Musser, but never conveyed a title to him. His children (all of whom had attained their majority), for the sum of seventy pounds, made a quit-claim deed to Hans Musser on Feb. 20, 1734. Their names were:
History of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men
Chapter LXI. Lancaster Township<1<[1 By Samuel Evans, Esq.]
Dawn Quast:
The name AEBI as it was originally spelled in Switzerland did not cause any problems to our ancestors who spoke the Swiss-German dialect. However, the problems began as they immigrated to other countries where the rules of pronunciation were different. For instance, the first change we record is when the family moved to Germany. In Switzerland the "A" in the name AEBI was was pronounced the same as in English (Ee-bee) but in Germany it would have been pronounced Ah-bee. For this reason the Aebis in Germany dropped the "A" in their names and spelled it EBI or EBY. Thus their new spelling when pronounced by the German people was consistent with the Swiss sound. These pronunciation problems continued when some immigrated to America, and as they tried to spell their names to preserve the correct sound, many variations were developed.
THE FIRST EBY IN AMERICA
The one thing that all the Eby historians do agree on is that Theodorus or Durst Eby 1 as he was really known, was the first Eby to settle in America prior to May 10, 1718. Family tradition has given his date of birth as 25 April 1663, probably in Berne, Switzerland.
In the 1718 through 1727 assessment rolls for Conestoga Township the name of Durst Eby 1, appears to further establish his residence in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Durst Eby 1, built his first home in 1727, at the line of Earl and Leacock Townships. It is located on Peters Road near the Zeltenriech Church, and we believe that he lived in this home for a short time before his death in late 1727. He was probably buried on his farm property across Peters Road about 500 yards from his home, where at one time two trees marked the grave, but today only one small tree remains to mark the spot.
Durst Eby 1's estate was filed on April 1, 1728, in Chester County by John Eby(2), who appears to have been the oldest son. John Eby(2), was also granted Letters of Administration over his father's estate. We are sure that Durst Eby(1), had the following children: John Eby(2), Peter Eby(2), George Eby(2), Jacob Eby(2), Christian Eby(2), Barbara Bare(2), Mary Eby(2) and Elizabeth Eby(2). The Barbara Eby who signed the deed, which granted land in the city of Lancaster to Hans Moser, was his widow and second wife.
The line of Theodorus Eby(1), is essentially as we have reported it in the first two volumes of "The Eby Report" with the exception being the correction and preliminary assembly of the descendants of his son George Eby(2).
Groff(1978)
WHERE IS HIS HEADSTONE............?????
It is between Yost and Peters Roads. Take Hollander and turn east onto Yost road.
Go down Yost for a few houses. On the left there is a mailbox and a lane north into the fields. Turn there and take the dirt lane to the graveyard. It is fenced in, has a small oak tree and cannot be missed unless the corn
is tall.
When looking across the street (Peters Road) from the Theodorus Eby home, to the left, on the opposite side of the road than the Eby home, is a big Amish farm. The cemetery is in the corn field of this farm. It has a tree by the cemetery but other than that, it is just corn in the summer. See home made map attached to Theodorus Eby's information.
Memorial Stone:
Our immigrant forefather Theodorus Eby 1663-1727. Born in Switzerland and Buried on his homestead in Leacock Township Lancaster Couty PA. We thank Theodorus for coming to this great country where his descendants have been able to practice religious freedom. Erected by a grateful posterity.
[The home of Theodorus Eby stood at the corner of Hollander and Peters roads south of Ne Holland in Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and he is evidently buried in a nearby field cemetery in Leacock Township, This stone was erected in 1982]
01/29/2014
From Denise LAHR:
This is a tale of three neighboring families in Old Warwick Township: the Erismans, Habeckers and Ebys.
Melchior Erisman?s wife, Edith, followed through on a survey her deceased husband had obtained in 1728 for 204 acres and bought the rights to an adjacent warranted and surveyed parcel of 334 acres. On Feb. 20, 1740 she obtained patents for both parcels, making her a landed woman with 538 acres that included Pine Hill and lands on both sides of the Hammer Creek.
Meanwhile, George Eby, son of Theodorus, obtained his warrant for 150 acres southeast of the Erisman parcels along the same creek in 1733. In 1760 it was patented to Christian Eby, his eldest son.
Edith Erisman died. Daughter Magdalena had married Christian Eby, son of George. Her sisters, Anna, Barbara, and Elizabeth had married Jacob and Joseph, and John Habecker, respectively.
Anna (Erisman) and Jacob Habecker got 207 acres, consisting of most of the Pine Hill section of the warrant
Barbara (Erisman) and Joseph Habecker resided in Manor Township.
Flash forward to 1789 when Jacob Habecker died. He left a very controlling will (F-1-105) dated 1784: His only son, Jacob Habecker Jr. was given 170 acres. Daughter Elizabeth was to get the other 100 acres together with ?a locked chest with all its contents and no one else is allowed to search the same. She also got the remaining 100 acres and a good ?bed.? By the time of probate, Elizabeth was married to Jacob ?Old Jock? Eby. The children had the land resurveyed and found an additional 80 acres!
Meanwhile, in 1890, Christian Eby, sold the Eby 150 acres to Jacob Shaeffer, and that land passed out of the family. Son? Old Jock? didn?t need it because he had land from his wife.
Old Jock and Elizabeth had three sons: Abraham, Daniel and Jacob (Grobschmeid). The boys appointed a group of trusted neighbors to divide up the land ?according to the places where they now live.?
Here?s where Hannes Eby saved the day. Abraham?s only son, Jacob (what else), died young in 1841. He left a widow, Susanna (Grube), and a daughter, Fianna, 11 months old when he died.
After that, Abraham gave his share to brother Jacob (Grobschmeid) and moved west to Sugar Creek, Ohio. His wife was called Catherine in the deed, which threw me a bit, because her gravestone says Maria C. It turns out that she was literate and signed her name in Old German ?Catarina Maria.? Thank goodness I learned to read that stuff.
Daniel, I believe, went to Allen County, Indiana. Fortunately, I am going to Indiana in March and can research there.
Anyway, by 1845, all but Jacob had skedaddled west. Jacob remained behind and died in 1858. The property went to his son, John. [I believe there was another son, David, who went west to Sugar Creek and Uncle Abraham.] John left a son, Jacob who died in 1935.
That?s the broad strokes. It needs a lot more work.....
.....I will be putting it into a much more formal format with sources. Maybe even a paper for the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society. Meanwhile you have the gist of it.
When working on Hannes Eby, I was dreadfully afraid of making mistakes. And I'm sure I did make some, but I always tried to say only what I was pretty darn sure of......
....In my work on this, I have also been forced to look at Jacob Eby's family, and I will be trying to sort out more of what happened to George Eby's other descendants.
I can't wait to get to Indiana and Ohio now.
Denise
Buried:
- This cemetery is across the street in a cornfield from Theodorus's old homestead.
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