From Glen Swartz: According to her original baptismal record, Anna Franzina's place of birth was in Lambsheim, Kurpfalz, actually part of the Holy Roman Empire at that time. On modern maps, that is in the Rhineland-Palatinate. She was baptized at the Evangelische (Lutheran) Kirche (Church), Heuchelheim-bei-Frankenthal, Kurpfalz, which is about two miles north of Lambsheim.
Anna Franzina was the first wife of Michael Rugh. Various records show that Anna's maiden name was spelled Mercklen/Mercklin/Markle/ Merckling. According to Glen Swartz, it is quite common for people today to focus on the spelling of someone's last name, but in her era, there really was no such thing as the correct spelling of a last name. The closest you will find are the original records in which it is recorded. In a dozen different original records, her last name is spelled half a dozen different ways. Unless she was literate and recorded her own name, just accept the fact that there are numerous variations of the spelling.
It is very likely that Anna was killed in an Indian raid at a wedding reception, the day after a wedding, at "Miller's Blockhouse," or "Miller's Station," the home of the Samuel Miller family, 2 miles south of Hannastown, on July 13, 1782. The party was suddenly attacked by Seneca Indians, incited by, and accompanied by, the British, during the American Revolution. The warriors stormed the celebration without warning, and many of the guests fled for the trees. Those who resisted were killed; and 15 men, women, and children were taken captive. On the same day, another element of the same Seneca/British group had attacked, burned, and destroyed the county seat of Hannastown.
Anna and Michael's son Michael Rugh, Jr., his wife, Phoebe, and their children were among the 15 who were taken captive by the Indians. Anna's daughter, Anna Christina, may also have been killed in the raid.
Information from:
Westmoreland County Historical Society; Glen Swartz, Member #46889224; and the book Battlefield Pennsylvania, A Guide to the Keystone State's Most Sacred Ground, by Brady J. Crytzer, c. 2018.
Submitted by 6-great granddaughter Angela, Member #48520699.
Anna Franzina was the first wife of Michael Rugh. Various records show that Anna's maiden name was spelled Mercklen/Mercklin/Markle/ Merckling. According to Glen Swartz, it is quite common for people today to focus on the spelling of someone's last name, but in her era, there really was no such thing as the correct spelling of a last name. The closest you will find are the original records in which it is recorded. In a dozen different original records, her last name is spelled half a dozen different ways. Unless she was literate and recorded her own name, just accept the fact that there are numerous variations of the spelling.
It is very likely that Anna was killed in an Indian raid at a wedding reception, the day after a wedding, at "Miller's Blockhouse," or "Miller's Station," the home of the Samuel Miller family, 2 miles south of Hannastown, on July 13, 1782. The party was suddenly attacked by Seneca Indians, incited by, and accompanied by, the British, during the American Revolution. The warriors stormed the celebration without warning, and many of the guests fled for the trees. Those who resisted were killed; and 15 men, women, and children were taken captive. On the same day, another element of the same Seneca/British group had attacked, burned, and destroyed the county seat of Hannastown.
Anna and Michael's son Michael Rugh, Jr., his wife, Phoebe, and their children were among the 15 who were taken captive by the Indians. Anna's daughter, Anna Christina, may also have been killed in the raid.
Information from:
Westmoreland County Historical Society; Glen Swartz, Member #46889224; and the book Battlefield Pennsylvania, A Guide to the Keystone State's Most Sacred Ground, by Brady J. Crytzer, c. 2018.
Submitted by 6-great granddaughter Angela, Member #48520699.
From Glen Swartz: According to her original baptismal record, Anna Franzina's place of birth was in Lambsheim, Kurpfalz, actually part of the Holy Roman Empire at that time. On modern maps, that is in the Rhineland-Palatinate. She was baptized at the Evangelische (Lutheran) Kirche (Church), Heuchelheim-bei-Frankenthal, Kurpfalz, which is about two miles north of Lambsheim.
Anna Franzina was the first wife of Michael Rugh. Various records show that Anna's maiden name was spelled Mercklen/Mercklin/Markle/ Merckling. According to Glen Swartz, it is quite common for people today to focus on the spelling of someone's last name, but in her era, there really was no such thing as the correct spelling of a last name. The closest you will find are the original records in which it is recorded. In a dozen different original records, her last name is spelled half a dozen different ways. Unless she was literate and recorded her own name, just accept the fact that there are numerous variations of the spelling.
It is very likely that Anna was killed in an Indian raid at a wedding reception, the day after a wedding, at "Miller's Blockhouse," or "Miller's Station," the home of the Samuel Miller family, 2 miles south of Hannastown, on July 13, 1782. The party was suddenly attacked by Seneca Indians, incited by, and accompanied by, the British, during the American Revolution. The warriors stormed the celebration without warning, and many of the guests fled for the trees. Those who resisted were killed; and 15 men, women, and children were taken captive. On the same day, another element of the same Seneca/British group had attacked, burned, and destroyed the county seat of Hannastown.
Anna and Michael's son Michael Rugh, Jr., his wife, Phoebe, and their children were among the 15 who were taken captive by the Indians. Anna's daughter, Anna Christina, may also have been killed in the raid.
Information from:
Westmoreland County Historical Society; Glen Swartz, Member #46889224; and the book Battlefield Pennsylvania, A Guide to the Keystone State's Most Sacred Ground, by Brady J. Crytzer, c. 2018.
Submitted by 6-great granddaughter Angela, Member #48520699.
Anna Franzina was the first wife of Michael Rugh. Various records show that Anna's maiden name was spelled Mercklen/Mercklin/Markle/ Merckling. According to Glen Swartz, it is quite common for people today to focus on the spelling of someone's last name, but in her era, there really was no such thing as the correct spelling of a last name. The closest you will find are the original records in which it is recorded. In a dozen different original records, her last name is spelled half a dozen different ways. Unless she was literate and recorded her own name, just accept the fact that there are numerous variations of the spelling.
It is very likely that Anna was killed in an Indian raid at a wedding reception, the day after a wedding, at "Miller's Blockhouse," or "Miller's Station," the home of the Samuel Miller family, 2 miles south of Hannastown, on July 13, 1782. The party was suddenly attacked by Seneca Indians, incited by, and accompanied by, the British, during the American Revolution. The warriors stormed the celebration without warning, and many of the guests fled for the trees. Those who resisted were killed; and 15 men, women, and children were taken captive. On the same day, another element of the same Seneca/British group had attacked, burned, and destroyed the county seat of Hannastown.
Anna and Michael's son Michael Rugh, Jr., his wife, Phoebe, and their children were among the 15 who were taken captive by the Indians. Anna's daughter, Anna Christina, may also have been killed in the raid.
Information from:
Westmoreland County Historical Society; Glen Swartz, Member #46889224; and the book Battlefield Pennsylvania, A Guide to the Keystone State's Most Sacred Ground, by Brady J. Crytzer, c. 2018.
Submitted by 6-great granddaughter Angela, Member #48520699.
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