Johann Valentin Lauck

GEDCOM Note

Laux history: The German home of the family was in Hesse Darmstadt, now a part of Hesse Nassau, near Wallau. This was the area called the Palatinate, which was the garden spot of Germany. How ever the Thrty-years War and the Wars of King Louis XIV ravaged teh area, leaving nothing but blackened ruins of citys towns and hamlets.

To flee from these horrors became the goal of thousands of families. King Louis desired to completly destroy the population, (who had been his Protestant subjects that had fled from his tyranny), a goal of his that was almost accomplished. IN 1708 and 1709 30,000 Palatines left the valley of the Rhine and went to London where the kind-hearted English Queen Ann invited the Protestants of Germany to make their home in her American Colonies.

Among this group were three cousins, Phillip, Nicholas and Valentine Laux and their families. The Laux families were among 4,000 Palatines which left England in 10 vessels on Christmas day, 1709. After a 6 month journey they arrived in New York on June 14, 1710. Over 1700 died at sea, among them Valentine and his wife. Many of the widows, the sick and orphaned were left in New York, where they were badly treated, many apprenticed with no way of ever seeing their families again.

Since it cost Queen Anne considerable money to transport the emigrants to the Colonies, they were expected to reimburse the government for the 10,000 pounds they spent getting them there. They were basically indentured. The government did not honor agreements and left them to starve. Finally 150 families struck off on their own and move to Schoharie, about 60 miles nw of Livingston Manor. After arrival famine was imminent, until the friendly Indians showed them where to gather edible roots and herbs.

In 1778 they followed other German settlers to migrate from New York to the Tulpehocken settlement in Pennsylvania.

Förnamn Johann Valentin Johann Johann Mellannamn Valentine / Velten Valentine Valentin Efternamn Laux Lauck Efternamn vid födelse Laux Födelsedatum 3 Oktober 1658 1658 1658