Johann Christoph Bayer

Arrived in Philadelphia 10 September 1731.

According to the 7th Edition of "American Boyers' he is our oldest traceable ancestor. He represents the first generation of our direct line of Boyers in America. It is from him we came, and because of him we exist as we are today.

Long before his birth, Palatinate had been a victim of its southeastern German location--near Rhine Rivers and the border of the most aggressive, most powerful, and most violent country of Europe--France.

France was continually invading Germany and other European lands. Palatinate itself had previously been totally destroyed by the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). That war was followed by major loss of population, severe hardship, poverty, disease, and famine. This is the world into which Christopher was born.

In 1689, at the age of 12, Christopher's state of "The Palatinate" was overrun by the invading French armies of Louis XIV. The French burned every town, building, fortification, stores, fields, and vineyards as they retreated back into France--so nothing could serve as the base for an offensive by their enemy. Everything in Palatinate was burned to the ground--except the castle in Heidelberg. (which itself was eventually destroyed by the French in 1893).

From the age of 39 through age 51, records at The Lutheran Parish Records of Gross--Karlbach and Dackenheim indicate he resided at Dackenheim from 1716 to 1728.

Vineyards, and the resulting grapes and wine produced, were the main source of farmers income in this area during that period. However these farmers were required to give at least 40% of their income to the local prince, to the King of Prussia, and to the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. That is, providing they had any income after the ongoing plundering of the French.

Throughout the 1600's and 1700's--during his entire life before leaving Germany--The Palatinate would be the object of numerous intrigues and fighting. Louis XIV of France had designs on the territory of The Palatinate. Frustrated in his attempts at conquest, it is said he systematically destroyed the area..."Louis XIV carried fire and sword into the Palatinate and across the Rhine again and yet again, culminating in the holocaust of 1689 when the great palace, castle, and the whole town of Heidelberg went up in flames".

Germany itself, was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor, but the real power resided with the individual Princes of the many German states--such as Palatinate. It was they who decided whether to pay tribute, make an alliance, make peace, or go to war with a potential threat.

During Christopher's time there were no large cities existing in his immediate state of Palatinate. Even Heidelberg was predominantly a castle at that time. Most Germans lived in forests and cultivated the soil.

They dwelt in scattered and separate areas near springs and meadows. Their villages were laid out in rows of adjoining buildings. However their actual houses were surrounded by vacant space--to serve as security against fire. Being unfamiliar with tiles or mortar, they employed raw timbers to build their log homes.

At the age of 54, Christopher and his family left Palatinate on a journey which would take 6 months to reach America. They would have boarded boats on the Rhine River near Heilbronn. They then would have traveled west on the river, on the water route to Rotterdam, Holland, in the Netherlands.

They would pass through about 36 custom houses on the way to Rotterdam. At each, the ships had to be examined--at the slow "convenience" of the custom house officials. This leg of the trip alone took 4 to 6 weeks--while the Bayer family would have had to spend much money for tolls, food, and necessities.

Upon reaching Holland, they would have been detained there for 5 to 6 weeks. Then they boarded the brigantine "Pennsylvania Merchant". The ship master was John Stedman.

(Memo: According to "Rupp's Thirty Thousand Names", John Stedman was still delivering immigrants two years later aboard the Philadelphia Merchant. On 9/18/1733 he delivered 71 males and 56 females above age 16, and 64 males and females under age 16= total of 191 Palatines.)

Passengers were packed densely--with one person likely to receive a place scarcely 2 feet wide and 6 feet long.

Depending on the wind, it then took them 2 to 4 weeks to make it to the Plymouth on the south coast of England. Here they were again delayed 8 to 14 days as everything was examined at the custom house, duties paid, and cargoes completed. The immigrants at this point may have spent the last of their money and consumed much of the little stock of provisions which had been reserved for the ocean voyage.

An average of 159 immigrants were packed on each ship that year, although some ships held as many as 300 "Palatinates" (as all German immigrants were referred to at that time). The smallest of the ships were 63" in length X 21' wide, while the largest were 99' long X 26' wide .

At this point the real misery began. During the voyage, which would have taken about 6 to 9 weeks, immigrants suffered under extremely difficult conditions. Ships had insufficient space for their "human freight". Since fares were low, ship had to be packed full with immigrants in order to maximize revenue. Little space was allowed for trunks containing their belongings. Also space for food and water were very limited. The drinking water was polluted, and the biscuits swarmed with red worms and spiders. These necessities usually ran out or deteriorated to inedible conditions before the end of the voyage. There was no regard paid to sanitation. Excessive mortality usually occurred.

They would try to spend most of their time during the long voyage up on the deck where offensive smells of the crowd could be overwhelming in a close-space. Negatives noted included stench, fumes, vomiting, fever, dysentery, heat, boils, scurvy, and mouth rot They had learned from those who went before to scrape the cabin floor, under the beds, and sprinkle vinegar about the cabin.

Christopher and his family would have had one or two huge wooded chests that held the family bible, a few heirlooms, and a few household treasures. These items, stored down in the hold, were often at risk of being coveted and robbed by their English crew.

Despite the horrible conditions they knew they would face on an Atlantic voyage, in most cases they felt they had little choice but to leave the fatherland. There were three main motivations that tell us why they risked so much to leave Germany, and start anew in the English Providence:

First, more than any other reason, our German ancestors were seeking an improved standard of living. Most were farmers who had the desire to own their own land. Immigrants who had went before sent back word of the availability to own land, and news of the fine quality of the soil.

Second, there was a disgruntlement with living conditions in Germany. As previously noted, the southwestern part of Germany around Palatinate was unbearably violent. The constant attacks by armies of various nations--robbery, torture, the burning of entire villages and fields increased and saw no end, continuing well into the 1700's.

Third, during the period around 1731, King Frederick William I reasserted the dynasty's Calvinist heritage, doubled the size of the military, exalting military service to be a citizen's supreme self sacrifice. This may not have set well with our mild mannered Lutheran ancestors.

The geographic objective of the earliest Germans immigrants (prior to the Bayer's crossing) was "Penn's Woods"--due to it's liberal government. Previous immigrants had also sent back word that there was "liberty of conscience" in Pennsylvania,--where "everyone might live there without molestation". Previous immigrants who settled in New York sent back word warning that "it had shown itself to be unjust". Thus, New York Germans were moving to Pennsylvania.

At the time of Christopher's arrival in 1731, there were 17,000 German Lutherans and 15,000 German Reformed living in Pennsylvania. They settled originally in an arc stretching from Bethlehem and Allentown through Reading, Lebanon, and Lancaster to York and Chambersburg, Pa.

Christopher and his family spoke what is known as "Palatinate German" language. This evolved into The Pennsylvania Dutch language--which is therefore a derivative of the Palatinate German language. The adjective "German" is "Duetsch" in the German Language. Upon arrival in Philadelphia, they would find half of the street signs in German, and find many settlements around the area where German was the only language heard.

Pennsylvania itself was a Proprietary Colony governed by a private family--the Penn's--who owned most of the unsettled land. William Penn had by then passed away, and his sons now ruled Pennsylvania. It was unlike New York and most other colonies, since they were Royal Colonies--ruled by the king and his ministers. Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware remained under their Proprietors until just prior to the Revolution.

Making up the Bayer family, aboard our ancestral ship was Christopher, his wife Anna Maria Kuehleisen Bayer (whom were married long before in Germany (1702) and their several children--including our direct bloodline ancestor (their 22 year-old son) Andreas Bayer (later Americanized to Andrew Bayer).

The Bayer family's arrived in Philadelphia aboard the Philadelphia Merchant on Sept 11, 1931. Three other ships were to arrive that year with a total from the four ships of 631 new German immigrants.

Upon arrival in Philadelphia all male passengers above the age of 16, had to sign a "Declaration of Allegiance". This specified that they "declared their allegiance and subjection to the King of Great Britain, and fidelity to the Proprietary of this Providence (Pennsylvania) , and will demean themselves peacefully towards His Majesty King George the 2nd and his successors, and conform to the Laws of England and the Government of Pennsylvania".

They then each paid 12 pence to the official administering the oath, and each had to pay their "duty" of 40 shillings ($200 today) "head tax".

After debarking from the ship Christopher and his family would have explored some of Philadelphia. They would have found it to be a handsome city with stone and brick houses with roofs of cedar shingles. Streets however were unpaved. People were friendly, greeting one another on the street. There was great religious diversity--with Lutherans, Mennonites, plus Reformed, Catholics, Moravians, Pietists, Baptists, Presbyterians, and Dunkers. Discipline however was very strong for issues such as swearing in public, which could result in a trial, a fine, and or even a penalty of 50 lashes, if fine could not be paid.

Being farmers, Christopher and his family would begin to inquire about the availability of land. Traveling northeast outside the city they found extremely fertile land but it was taken by the Mennonites who had arrived in the earlier waves of Germans. 

They then traveled north about 35 miles to first settle in Frederick Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. This area was known and named after the Perkiomen Indians, and thus know as the Perkiomen Valley, with Perkiomen Creek serving as their water source. This area was also known as "Old Goshenhoppen.

It is not clear if they worked the land of another land owner, to work off the cost of their passage, or worked their own land. However we do know that six years after arrival, Christopher obtained his own land when a warrant for 50 acres of land in Upper Salford Township, Montgomery County. was issued to him on March 3, 1737.

The tract of land was near Spring Mountain House (which today is Spring Mountain Resort). This would have been an area where they may have had friends or countryman who preceded them. Also, this was an area where the German language was spoken, and manners and customs of the Fatherland were practiced.

It was the German custom in that day, that upon of a new family, the nearest neighbors quickly gathered about the new comers and aided them in constructing a humble log dwelling. These neighbors also aided in putting out grain and vegetables as the season would allow. Often a cow and other domestic animals were bestowed by a well to do neighbor. Thus the new families' needs were relieved until the settler was prepared to take care of himself and his family.

Patches of forest had been cleared to create fields for the growing of corn, buckwheat, flax and hemp. Mills had been built along the Perkiomen Creek to grind meal, make flour, saw lumber, and press oil. Log dwellings and barns dotted the landscape, later to be replaced by roomier stone and brick buildings.

In 1744 Christopher and his family would have been among a few dozen families who founded and erected the Old Goshenhoppen Church in Upper Salford Township. Three generations of Boyer records are known to reside in the church's records there.

The village of Kroppestettel, which in Pennsylvania Dutch means Crowtown, evolved into the village of Mechanicsville, and then later became known as Woxall. Woxall is one of five villages today which makeup Upper Salford Township. Another is the near by Salfordville which was a busting village in the 1700's with a thriving market for livestock and farm goods.

Surrounded by farms the small village had two hotels, a one room schoolhouse (Gemeinhaus), a cigar factory, a blacksmith livery and a general store. The general store sold a variety of items including barrel molasses (used in making beer and pies), quilting thread, furniture, and fine clocks.

Christopher and his family settled and farmed that land. He lived to the age of 74, and died there in Upper Salford Township in 1751--twenty years after arriving in America.

The marriage produced 12 children in this birth order: Johann Philip, Gotthart Lorenz, Andrew (1709, our direct ancestor), Christina Agnes, Johann Heinrich,Johann Jacob, Johann Theobald, Johannes, Ferdinand, Hanna Regina, John Henry, and George. (Note that five of his sons were given his Germanic first name of Johann--with only their middle name to distinguish their individuality). The children probably attended the "Gemeinhaus" (schoolhouse) next to the Old Goshenhoppen Lutheran Church, which still stands today, and is pictured here.

Some of his sons and grandsons are listed on the Federal Census for Montgomery County in 1790. By then, they all had Americanized their names--dropping the Johann, and spelling the name Boyer. Listed on this 1790 census were Andreas, George, Henry, Jacob, John, Leonard, and Philip. Since the same names were often repeated in generation after generation in those days, it is near impossible to distinguish his sons from his grandsons, unless further research provides more details.

One of his sons, John Henry, migrated to Salt Lake City, Utah with the Mormons. The rest of the surviving children apparently remained near their parents. As these children grew, they tended to marry young, and in tern generate their own large families.

Our tree follows the line of son Andreas.

The crest shown on Christoper's leaf (in place of a photo) is the official coat-of-arms The American Boyer's.

The upper third of the shield is silver white, signifying light, brightness, joy, courage, fidelity. The star signifies the strong desire to live in the light, night as well as day. The French lily, "Fleur de lis", within the star imbedded shield--shows the connection of the Boyers d"Equilles with the throne.

This coat of arms resides inside the front cover of "The American Boyers".

However, the image on this page is from a photo of the ceramic and glass crest given to Larry A. Boyer by his uncle, Dr. Robert A Boyer, who at that time served as the President of the Association of American Boyer's. It is currently displayed in Larry's home office in Virginia.