The European origin of Martin Greiner of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is an area of Germany known as the Northern Kraichgau, located just south-east of the town of Heidelberg. Martin, our immigrant ancestor, most likely lived in the town of Meckesheim until he left for America in 1730. Although definite proof of his birth and marriage has not been found, other evidence exists to support this assumption. This chapter will describe my research with German church records.

Map of Meckesheim area

       My initial source of information on the German home of Martin Greiner was a book by Annette Burgert entitled Eighteenth Century Emigrants from German-Speaking Lands to North America, Volume I: The Northern Kraichgau.[1] Following her lead, I obtained microfilm copies of church records from the Family History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.[2] I searched surviving records for Meckesheim and surrounding villages for the time period between 1650 and 1730. The scattered pieces of information I found enabled me to construct an outline of the Greiner family.

       The first appearance of the Greiner name (or any close resemblance) was in 1694. (Reformed Church records began in 1658 for Meckesheim.) The marriage of Daniel and Susanna Greiner was recorded on 16 March 1694. Beginning with the birth of Anna Margaretha in 1695, baptism and confirmation records revealed that this couple produced at least nine children through 1713. I could find no baptism record for Johann Martin and Maria Margaretha, although they were both confirmed in 1717.

       Several years after my Greiner family history book was published, another researcher discovered more information that I had not found. Trudy Schenk, working for Judy Cooper, deciphered more information from Daniel and Susanna's marriage record. Susanna was the widow of Philip Zimmermann. Using that information she found the earlier marriage record for Susanna and Philip. That record revealed her maiden name to be Welcker. Ms. Schenk also found Susanna's baptism record in Meckesheim and documented the family of her parents, Hans Welcker and his wife Margaretha.

       Daniel and Susanna Greiner's marriage record also stated that Daniel was from Ochsenbach. Vital records for that village were recorded at the church in Gauangelloch.[3] These villages are about 6 miles west of Meckesheim. Ms. Schenk was able to find Daniel's family in the Gauangelloch church records. Daniel's parents were Johann Jacob Kreiner [sic] and wife Anna Margaretha, whose maiden name was not discovered. Their marriage and Daniel's birth occurred before Gauangelloch church records began in 1675. Subsequent entries in the church book enabled Ms. Schenk to reconstruct the entire family of Jacob and Anna Margaretha.

       Susanna Greiner's death was recorded at Meckesheim in March 1730 at 62. Her age as stated in the record corresponds to that of her baptism. One has to wonder if she died before or after her son Martin left for America. He arrived in Philadelphia about 5 September 1730, when he signed the declaration of allegiance at the Courthouse in Philadelphia. Daniel's death was recorded in January 1739 in the church book at Neckargemünd. This town is located on the Neckar River about 5 miles north of Meckesheim. Daniel's age at death indicated that he was born in May 1671. The record states he was a resident of Meckesheim. It is evident from these facts that Martin Greiner's parents lived and died in Meckesheim.

       I looked for marriage records for the children of Daniel and Susanna. I was never able to find one for Martin and his wife Barbara Klein. Two of their children were baptized in Meckesheim, however. The baptism of Johann Valentin [sic] was recorded in 1724. He immigrated with his parents in 1730. Johann Daniel was baptized in 1729. No further evidence of him was found.

       In 1721 Martin's brother Johann Valentin married Anna Catharina Müller in Meckesheim. A child named Johann Martin was born to them in 1722. Martin Greiner was the sponsor. Another child of the same name and with the same sponsor was born in 1724. (It was not uncommon in those days to reuse a name if the first-named child died young.)      

       Death records in the Meckesheim church book show that Valentin and his family probably remained in the village for their lifetime. Valentin died in 1759. The recorded age of 60 corresponds closely to his birth date. His wife Anna Catharina died at age 66 in 1768, so her birth was approximately the later half of 1701. Their son Martin died at 57 in 1781, so he is most certainly the same child born in 1724. Valentin was found at least one other time in the church records, when in 1737 he was responsible as a caretaker for the alms.

       Martin Greiner's sister Maria Margaretha married Johann Conrad Glassbrenner (from Daisbach) in 1728, as recorded in the Neckargemünd church book. Although no baptism record has been found for Margaretha, her confirmation in 1717 states that she was 14 years old at the time. Conrad and Margaretha had two children born in Meckesheim before they left for America. George was born in 1730 and Ehrhart in 1731. The sponsors for the first child were George and Anna Maria Greiner, both children of Daniel Greiner and thus Margaretha's siblings. Johann Ehrhart Bäer and his wife Barbara sponsored Ehrhart. Margaretha was also a sponsor for a Bäer daughter born in 1725. Conrad and Margaretha emigrated in 1732. Births of several other children, from 1733 to 1737, are enumerated in the records of Muddy Creek Lutheran church in eastern Lancaster County. Maria Barbara Greiner, Martin's wife, sponsored two of them.

       The Neckargemünd records also show baptisms for two children of Johann George Greiner and wife Catharina in 1740 and 1742. No marriage record, nor any other information, was found for that family.

            There are a wealth of church records for a variety of Greiner families beginning in 1771 and throughout most of the 19th century. Many of these are found in a section of the Meckesheim church book called a Family Register. The register usually listed a husband and wife and all of their children, with birth, marriage and death dates. Unfortunately, I was not able to connect any of these families as descendants of Daniel Greiner and his children. They may not have been. Burgert notes several other Greiner families in the Kraichgau region. But there were no records found during the mid-1700s that could prove a connection. There is also the possibility that some of these Greiners immigrated to America in the mid-1800s, but I have not conducted research in that direction.

            The Greiner family of Meckesheim in the early 1700s consisted of Daniel and Susanna Greiner and their family. From the evidence in the village church books, several of their children remained in Meckesheim. But Martin, with his wife Barbara, and Margaretha, with husband Conrad Glassbrenner, left for America. Both families settled near each other in Warwick Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. From there they produced large families that remained in Lancaster County for many years.

Daniel Greiner Family

 

Valentine Greiner baptism

Parentes

Infantes

Testes

Tempos

Marthin Kreiner und Barbara

Johann Valenthin

Valenthin Kreiner

Den 15 8bris 1724

 

[1]Annette K. Burgert, Eighteenth Century Emigrants from German-Speaking Lands to North America, Volume 1: The Northern Kraichgau,  (Breinigsville, PA: The Pennsylvania German Society, 1983), in possession of Robert C. Greiner.

[2]Meckesheim, Germany Evangelical Church records, film #1189203, #1189204, #1272782 and Neckargemünd, Germany Evangelical Church records, film #1189164, Family History Library, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT.

[3]Gauangelloch, Germany Evangelical Church records, film #1189175, Family History Library, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT.