Platted Property Deeds for Michael Dosch and His Neighbors During the Late 1700s; plotted on a 1953 Topographic Map of Lower Windsor Township (Platting and Addition of Road Names by S. H. Smith, 2012)
I will be presenting a talk entitled “Private Burial Grounds, Discovering Their Stories,” at the monthly meeting of the South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society. This meeting will be held in the Meeting Hall of the York County Heritage Trust, at 250 East Market Street, York, Pennsylvania on Sunday February 3rd. The business portion of the meeting begins at 2:15 PM and the program begins at about 2:30 PM.
South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society Meetings are free and open to the public. Winter meetings are canceled if roads are snow covered or icy, or if there is that possibility by the conclusion of the meeting. Continue reading for links to quick background family history posts associated with my talk:
Michael’s acreage that is contiguous with his homestead property is shown through the middle of the map at the beginning of this post. Neighboring landowners who figured significantly in the family history of Michael Dosch, the originator of the Dosch Burial Grounds, surround his 552 contiguous acres. These neighbors include families surnamed Gilbert, Shenberger, Ruby, Kline, Rathfon and Dritt. To draw the map, I platted property deeds for Michael Dosch and his neighbors during the late 1700s; then plotted the deeds on a 1953 Topographic Map onto which I added road names.
South Central Pennsylvania Genealogical Society, Inc. (SCPGS) is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization of genealogists. As genealogists, we study our ancestry and family history, and are interested in preserving our family heritage for future generations. This talk provides tips on locating and visiting private burial grounds in York County, however much of the talk focuses on a case study of the Dosch Burial Grounds in Lower Windsor Township.
Following my talk last October at the Lower Windsor Area Historical Society that focused solely on the Dosch Burial Grounds, several people asked for previews to the genealogy details on several of the families noted in my talk. These inquiries resulted in the following posts:
- Christian Rathfon Family in Pleasant Garden from 1784 to 1827
- Michael Dosch Family; Late 1700s in Eastern York County
- Christopher Dosch Family; Father of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
- George Dosch Family Part 1; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
- George Dosch Family Part 2; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
- George Dosch Family Part 3; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
- George Dosch Family Part 4; Stepfather of York Co.’s Peter Klein
- Susquehanna River Bridge Planned at Long Level in 1793; George Dosch Family Part 5
- Peter Kline Family from about 1773 in Eastern York County
- John Gilbert Family Part 1; from 1772 in Eastern York County
- John Gilbert Family Part 2; Canadochly Church
This is my 121st post. An inventory of the general topics and locations that have been the subjects of my first 100 posts are presented in a 100-tile mosaic that breaks down these posts into seven general categories.
Wish I could be there. I have strong connections to the area: My mother was Helen Myers Keller and her mother was a Leibhart (Leiphart), who was a sister of Byrd and Oscar. And we’re tied in with the Ruby family. Also tied to the Gnaw (Gnau) family, who once owned the Dritt mansion.
I enjoyed the blog posts about the area.
Is your interest familial, and are you related to any of the above lines?
Phil … Sorry you will not be able to attend the talk; although if snow becomes bad enough on Sunday and forces a cancellation, it will be rescheduled. I have a strong ancestral interest in that area of Lower Windsor Township. My Grandma Iva (Gilbert) Smith and Grandpa Luther Smith grew up in East Prospect before moving to the City of York (Iva in 1898 and Luther in 1899); followed by marriage in 1900. Grandpa’s parents lived most of their adult life in East Prospect Borough and are buried in Riverview Cemetery in East Prospect. Grandma’s ancestors lived in the area around East Prospect since before the Revolutionary War. In 1769 her great-great-grandfather Andrew Gilbert bought 123-acres of land in the area; which passed down to her great-grandfather John Gilbert. John Gilbert’s first wife was Mary Dosch, a daughter of Michael Dosch; they had 10 children, including Iva’s grandfather Samuel Gilbert. After Mary (Dosch) Gilbert died, widower John Gilbert married the widow Catherine Shenberger; who is another daughter of Michael Dosch. A possible family connection is through Iva’s grandfather Samuel Gilbert; he married Rebecca Keller (1816-1883), daughter of Peter Keller (1774-1873) and Julianna Weinhold.
You’re right about Rebecca Keller. Her brother Peter was my great-great-grandfather.
My mother grew up in the Canadochly area on a farm just over the hill, to the north, from the church. The farm was off Schmuck Road, in Skunk Hollow.
Thanks much for the info. Fascinating stuff.
Phil … Good to know we’re related. Do you know of any interesting story for the naming of Skunk Hollow Road; besides the obvious?