HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



561 



ISAAC H. DETWEILER. The Bucks 

 county families bearing tlie patronymic of 

 the subject of this sketch are descendants 

 of several different German emigrants bear- 

 ing that name who arrived in Pennsylvania 

 at different periods, and who bore no 

 known relation to each other, though set- 

 tling practically in the same section. The 

 first Detweiler to own land in Bucks coun- 

 ty was Hans Jacob Detweiler, who arrived 

 in Philadelphia in the ship "Winter Galley," 

 September 5, 1738, and who settled in Frau- 

 conik township, now Montgomery county. 

 He obtained by patent dated September 8, 

 1740, two tracts of land in Bedminster town- 

 ship, of about 175 acres each. Nearly the 

 whole of one of these tracts has remained 

 in the tenure of his descendants to this 

 day. 



' MARTIN DETWEILER. the paternal 

 ancestor, was, however, a later arrival, com- 

 ing from Germany in the ship "Crown," 

 Captain Michael James, which arrived in 

 Philadelphia, August 30, 1749. He also lo- 

 cated in Franconia township, where he mar- 

 ried Maria Meyer, born November 30, 1738, 

 daughter of Christian and Magdaiena 

 Meyer, the former of whom is supposed 

 to have accompanied his parents, Christian 

 and Barbara Meyer, to Pennsylvania when 

 a mere infant, having been born about 1705 ; 

 he died in 1787. He purchased land in 

 Franconia in 1729. Martin Detweiler pur- 

 chased in 1774 a farm adjoining that of his 

 father-in-law. Christian Meyer, containing 

 159 acres, and lived and died there. Martin 

 and Maria (Meyer) Detweiler were the 

 parents of twelve children, viz. : Christian, 

 Isaac, Samuel, Hannah, Susanna, Maria, 

 Abraham, Sarah, Barbara, Joseph, Benja- 

 min and Jacob. 



CHRISTIAN DETWEILER, eldest 

 son of Martin and Maria, was born 

 in Franconia, August 3, 1772, and 

 died there August 20, 1843. He pur- 

 chased the homestead farm of I59 

 acres of his father, on May 28, 1798, and 

 spent his whole life there. He married 

 Elizabeth Reiff in 1796, and had by her 

 seven children: Joseph; Elizabeth, who 

 married Michael Young; Mary, who mar- 

 ried Benjamin Landis ; George; Sarah, who 

 died unmarried in 1884; Ann, who mar- 

 ried John M. Hangey; and Hannah, who 

 married Abraham L. Moyer. 



JOSEPH DETWEILER, eldest son of 

 Christian and Elizabeth (Reiff) Det- 

 weiler, was born in Franconia, Oc- 

 tober 26, 1797, and died in Hilltown 

 township, Bucks county, July i, 1861. 

 March 9, 1826, he purchased a farm of 

 forty-six acres in Hilltown township, 

 Bucks county, one mile west of Dub- 

 lin, and settled thereon, subsequently pur- 

 chasing two tracts aggregating twenty-one 

 acres adjoining, and lived thereon until 

 his death in 1861. He married Elizabeth 

 Alderfer, who survived him, dying in 1875. 

 They were the parents of nine children, 

 36-3 



two of whom died young; those who sur- 

 vived were as follows : Mary, who married 

 Aaron Godshalk; John A.; Elizabeth, wife 

 of Jacob Bishop; George A., of Rockhill, 

 who married Esther Eckert ; Joseph A., of 

 Hatfield, who married Sarah George; 

 Sarah, who married Gideon S. Stover; and 

 Jacob A., of Hilltown, who married Han- 

 nah George. 



JOHN A. DETWEILER, eldest surviv- 

 ing son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Alderfer) 

 Detweiler was born in Hilltown township, 

 March 9, 1823. Early in life he learned 

 the carpenter trade, and followed that voca- 

 tion in Hilltown for several years in con- 

 nection with the tilling of the soil. He 

 purchased in 1847 a small lot in that town- 

 ship, and resided thereon until 1849, when 

 he purchased a farm of forty-two acres on 

 which he resided until 1858, when he sold 

 it to his brother-in-law, Aaron Godshalk, 

 and removed to Bedminster township, where 

 he purchased a sixty-acre farm on which 

 he lived until 1873, when he conveyed it to 

 his brother-in-law, Gideon S. Stover, and 

 returned to Hilltown. He married Maria 

 Leatherman of Bedminster, who was born 

 February 5, 1826, and died April 7, 1898. 

 Five children were born to them : Jacob L.,. 

 Elizabeth G., Albert L., Joseph L., and 

 Granville L. 



JACOB L. DETWEILER, eldest son 

 of John A. and Maria, was born in 

 Hilltown township, February 5, 1847, 

 and was reared and educated in that 

 and Bedminster townships. He learned 

 the carpenter trade with his father, 

 and removed to Philadelphia, where 

 he followed stair building for a few years, 

 and then removed to Perkasie, Bucks coun- 

 ty, and erected the home in which he has re- 

 sided for the past thirty years. He has fol- 

 lowed contracting and building in that thriv- 

 ing town during all that period, and is one 

 of the leading builders of the town. He, 

 like all his ancestors, is a Mennonite, being 

 a member of the Blooming Glen congre- 

 gation. In politics he is a Republican. He 

 married December 1^,1869, Elizabeth Huns- 

 berger, daughter of Isaac Hunsberger, who 

 was born November 25, 1846, and died 

 October 22, 1895, and they were the parents 

 of two children : Mary Ann, born August 

 20, 1870; and Isaac H., the subject of this 

 sketch. 



ISAAC H. DETWEILER, only son of 

 Jacob L. and Elizabeth (Hunsberger) Det- 

 weiler, was born in Bedminster township, 

 June 28, 1872. He was reared and educated, 

 however, in Perkasie, where he has liv^fl 

 from a small child. Early in life he learned 

 the cigar making trade, and has always 

 followed that business. He has always 

 taken an active interest in the affairs of 

 tha town, and is the present assessor of 

 the borough, having been elected to that 

 office in February, 1904. He and his wife 

 are members of the Lutheran church. He 

 is affiliated with Mont Alto Lodge, No. 

 246, K. of P., and in politics is a Repub- 



