The Buckwalter Family
The Buckwalter Family

A Story about Durst Buckwalter 1702-1782

A Story about Durst Buchwalder  1702-1782

This story is taken from “The Earth is the Lord’s” by John Landis Ruth.

The first major group (only 29) of Mennonists arrived in PA from Palatine on Sept. 23, 1710, on board the ship, Mary Hope.   The second major group, much larger at 363, arrived in Philadelphia on August 10, 1717. 

By 1728 there were perhaps a 1000 Mennonists in PA.  They continued petitioning the governor for citizenship.  In the spring the PA Assembly took up the petition again and sent two justices to what was then western Chester county to register the foreign born Mennonists.

On April 1-2, 1728, the Mennonists of Conestoga, Mill, and Pequea met at the house of Martin Mylin which contained both a mill and a store. There were about 200 present to represent the 1000 Mennonists in the area.  Our ancestor, Durst Buchwalder, was present at that meeting.     (Appendix A   p 1135.)

In 1730 when the PA Assembly first granted citizenship they did so only to those Mennonists that had arrived before 1718.  Because Durst had arrived about 1720 he was not granted citizenship at that time.
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© Kimberly Buckwalter