Grabill, Johannes Samuel

Other Events:

• Residence: 1880, Vermillion, Ashland, Ohio, USA

Notes:

"JOHN S. GRABILL was born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1818. In the fall of 1833 he left Germany in company with his parents and arrived in America Christmas week of 1833, spending the holidays of that year in Philadelphia. In January, 1834, the left Philadelphia for Ashland county, Ohio, traveling some five or six weeks by team, and located in Vermillion township. Mr. Grabillwas fiftenn years old when he arrived in Ashland county, and has resided in Ashland county ever since. His father died in 1845, and his mother at a later date. Mr. Grabill has given his whole time to farming, and by industry, economy, and good management occupies a front rank among the best farmers of Ashland county. On August 21, 1845, he married Miss Nancy Harper, of Vermillion township. They had one son, Samuel, born August 29, 1846, who was married March 13, 1877, to Miss Anna Ewing, by whom he has two children. Father and son live in the old house happily. In 1877 Mr. Grabill made a southern tour, visiting Atlanta, Jacksonville, St. Augustine, Charleston, and many other cities, returning by way of Washington city."

Source: History of Ashland County, Ohio; George William Hill, M.D., published by Williams Bros., 1880

Johannes S. Grabill was nearly sixteen years of age when on February 9th,1834 he with his parents, five brothers and a sister arrived at the Hayesville cross-road in the State of Ohio. It was this John who wrote the letters from Havre de Grace in France, to his grandmother at Altleiningen describing their journey from the Pfalz through south-west Germany and France to the port where they embarked for America.

These and other letters which were written by members of this family from their pioneer home in America to their relatives in Germany were ultimately retrieved from there.

Still more letters which were received by Johannes from his brothers and sister after they had left the vicinity of Hayesville and settled in other localities were contributed to the Bluffton College Historical Library at Bluffton, Ohio, by present descendants of Johannes Grabill.

These letters provided the earliest information about our common ancestor Friedrich Krebill that we have. The following excerpts are from notes kept by "Johannes."

"1833. I was born of Christian parents who fed, clothed me and saw that I received a good school education as well as Christian instructions.

1837. Now I am nineteen years of age. We have left the Fatherland and came to the United States of America. My father's home was in a mill near Altleiningen. His name is Friedrich Krebill. My mother's name was Anna Risser and her home was at Friedelsheim near Bad Durkheim. They were married in 1818 and moved on to a farmstead called Messerschwanderhof, near Otterberg.

I was born May 4, 1818
Bro. Samuel was born October 24 1819
Bro. Abraham was born May 10 1821
Bro. Jacob was born Nov. 28 1822
Bro. Heinrich was bornJune 18 1824
Bro. [Peter] b-May 13, 1825 & d-Jan. 4, 1827 ( ed - Should read Christian)
Peter was born Nov. 5 1827
Sister Agnes was born Sept. 12 1830

We lived on the Messerschwanderhof for about 14 years. My father then sold this farm and rented half of the large Quirnheim estate. About three years later we left the Fatherland and moved to America where we settled on a farm near Hayesville Cross-Road. Father bought this 80 acre farm with a Saw Mill, a windmill, two small houses and half under cultivation for $1050/00."

The following he added later: "When I was attending school in Germany I wrote my name "Johannes Krebill" and was told that we were not related to the "Krehbiel" families in the Pfalz. In America the teacher suggested I spell my name Grabill. If I had it to do again it would not be done."

In a letter written in 1849 to his uncle Heinrich Krebill in Germany, Johannes mentioned that his wife was English and could speak only a few words of German. They, with their two year old son, were living on an eighty acre farm about a half mile from his parents' place.

After the demise of his father that year and of his mother early in 1857, it was to "John" that his brothers Abraham, Jacob, Henry and Peter as well as his sister Agnes Eyman-Eberle directed their letters from their new homes farther west.

Abraham was probably the first to leave the old home vicinity when he settled in Bureau County in Illinois. Jacob and his sister Agnes Eyman were the next for they arrived in Lee County, Iova in the fall of 1856. Henry who was following a trade as a craftsman had been working in various localities and did not settle down right away. Peter and his wife and newly born babe
left in the spring of 1857 for Lee County in Iowa which made three of these Krebill descendants living within walking distance of each other.

After so short a space cf time as 22 years only one of the descendants of Friedrich and Anna Krebill remained in the Hayesville vicinity in Ohio.

It was in the 1920s that my uncle Fred. H. Krebill of Donnellson, Iowa had come into possession of the letters written by the Friedrich Krebill pioneers to their relatives in Germany. Of the five translated copies which Uncle Fred made, the one he gave to me was typed on some John L. Donley business stationery at Ashland, Ohio. Mr. Donley had married Elizabeth Grabill, a
granddaughter of John S. Grabill.

This seemed to have been about the last time that the Ohio and Iowa Krebills were in contact with each other until a few years ago Howard Grabill from Ashland contributed some letters and other papers to the Historical library of Bluffton College at Bluffton, Ohio and finally more recently when we began to solicit reports about the John S. Grabill descendants for our genealogica lbook.

Donley descendants still possess some acres from the ancestral properties in the Hayesville, Ohio area.

Source: Olga A. Krebill Hirschler, The Altleiningen Krebills 1730-1966 (Paul and Olga Hirschler, 020 Lassen Street, Richmond, CA: 1966), Newberry Library, Chicago, also personal collection of Michael Hervey.

Johannes married Harper, Nancy on 21 Aug 1845 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. Nancy was born on 12 May 1822 in Virginia, USA; died on 27 Mar 1876 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Grabill, Samuel Harper was born on 29 Aug 1846 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA; died on 2 Nov 1931 in Ashland, Ashland Co., Ohio, USA.

Notes:

Altleiningen, near Grunstadt, Germany

Friedrich married Risser, Anna on 16 Dec 1816 in Friedelsheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Anna (daughter of Risser, Sr Johannes and Strohm, Maria) was born on 15 Nov 1794 in Friedelsheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany; died on 17 Jan 1857 in Hayesville, Ashland, Ohio, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Residence: 1885

Notes:

Friedelsheim, near Durkheim, Germany

Notes:

Miller Samuel Grehbiel

In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries a Samuel Grehbiel family occupied what was known as the Altleiningen mill in the RheinPhalz area in southwestern Germany. The mill stood on the banks of a stream called Echbach, a short distance down stream from Altleiningen towards Grünstadt. These flour mills Were typical in this part of Europe wheresoever streams of sufficient flow existed to turn the water-wheels which operated the mill machinery . Much of the water which spilled from these wheels would find its way back into the stream and continue down to turn the wheel for other mills.

In those times flowing streams were the principal source of power for many industries.

About two centuries before there existed a protestant movement called Anabaptism. This was somewhat more radical than that which was initiated by
Martin Luther.

This movement was met with vehement actions by State and Church. Many were destroyed, many more tortured and driven into the vallys of the Alps or into the swamps of the low-lands. A converted catholic Priest, Menno Simons, made an effort to gather some of these refugees into groups and under his leadership formed the branch known as Mennonites. In the 1600s and 1700s many of these Mennonites fled to America and settled in the state of Pennsylvania and Virginia.

By the time of the Grehbiels at the Altleiningen mill, the Mennonites were starting to conform to the practice of other protestant Evangelical churches. In certain areas officials permitted Mennonite members to erect their own churches. However, all young men were required to serve two years of military training and be subject to conscription in case of war. This was contrary to the belief of the Mennonite religion and so these people were still at odds with the Church-State government and therefore not accorded full citizenship.

In addition the farmers were subjected to exorbitant rents and taxes. Because of the scarcity of land young men were unable to prwide a home and in consequence were not permitted to marry. Teen-aged boys were required to serve a four year apprenticeship in sane craft or trade and after being discharged they were permitted to travel as journeymen and work for others or perhaps ultimately establish a business for themselves.

Abraham, a son of Samuel and his first wife Katharina, was Mayor of Altleinigen for a period of time. While he was thus in office he signed all Official papers spelling his name, Abraham Krebill instead of the way his father spelled it. There is evidence that the rest of this family followed his Practice from then on.

Source: Olga A. Krebill Hirschler, The Altleiningen Krebills 1730-1966 (Paul and Olga Hirschler, 020 Lassen Street, Richmond, CA: 1966), Newberry Library, Chicago, also personal collection of Michael Hervey.

Mill Location: 49° 30' 39.28" N 8° 5' 3.72" E

Samuel married Würtz, Agnes in 1774. Agnes was born in 1750 in Munchhof Bhochspeyer, Germany; died on 22 Jun 1838 in Altleiningen, Rheinpfalz, Germany. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

She came from Munchhof near Hochspeyer, Germany.

Johannes married Strohm, Maria. Maria was born in 1750. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Abraham married Lehmann, Anna on 2 Jun 1746. Anna was born in 1725 in Geisberg, Alsace; died on 18 Sep 1782 in Friedelsheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]