ENGLE-FAMILY
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I designed this web page to provide a forum for my living relatives to document their genealogy and/or family history starting from our most remote common ancestor, a Caspar Engels (I) born about 1646 in Solingen Germany. We have identified many living descendants in the U.S. from Peter Engels (Sr) and his brother Johann Peter Engels (Sr) who immigrated to the "English Colonies" from Klingenthal, Alsace, France in the Fall of 1754 with their families and a married sister. Their father was Caspar Engels (II) born 1684 in Solingen Germany and who died in Klingenthal prior to his two sons and one daughter's immigration. Johann Peter Sr and Peter Sr left a brother in France by the name of Clemens who has many descendants in that country today. The Engels family was famous for making fine steel blades of the 17 and 18th century. Solingen products are sold in many cutlery stores in the U.S. today. (The sword which has been over my fireplace since 1995, was one I bought in Toledo Spain which is noted for making swords only second in quality to Solingen Germany)- 15 April 2000.
In the U.S. we have identified many descendants of a Peter Engels Jr son of Peter Engels Sr along with Michael (Ingle) and Clemens, sons of Johann Peter Engels Sr. We also have located one Henri Engels of Strasbourg France, who has published a family web page ancestry tree that includes his ancestry back through his Clemens Engels to Caspar I. By publishing our Family Tree with associated narrative biographies, it is hoped that more living cousins will be identified and their links to Caspar Engels can be added to this page and hopefully contributing some more biographical information and thereby enriching our knowledge about the family. We know a large number of the grandchildren of Peter Sr. and Johann Peter Sr reached adulthood and there easily can be many more living descendants or "cousins" alive today but as yet unidentified.
My "cousins" include first cousins, immediate family, and nth cousins, now living or recently deceased who would like to use this web page as a shared home page or links to their own personal home page and who can trace a lineage to Caspar Engels I. I do not track spousal ancestors as it would be a daunting task at best.
This introduction includes a small sample of the historical background of how and why Germans were immigrating in such large numbers to the U.S. prior to the Revolutionary War along with a partial list of reference sources and links to other genealogical sites of interest. As a general principle, we have attempted to gather original source materials and remain skeptical of information based on second or third hand information. We acknowledge the many family members who made major contributions to the extensive data base of this site.
This page covers the Engels family history in Solingen Germany from Caspar Engels I in 1646 until the family immigrated to France in 1730 at the inducement of the French government because of their skills in forging metal. They were members of the Reformed Protestant Church.
This page covers the Engels family history in Klingenthal Alsace France where they continued their profession of manufacturing bladed weapons. Two brothers and one sister immigrated to America in 1754 making a party of twelve but a third brother Clemens, remained in Alsace Province as a cutler.
The brothers Peter Engels Sr and Johann Peter Sr along with their sister Maria Catharina Dellenbach and their families arrived on two separate ships in Philadelphia in the Fall of 1754. Peter Sr appears to have moved to Maryland as early as 1756 but Johann Peter Sr and his Sister do not arrive there until 1762.The only record we can find of Johann Peter Sr and sister Maria Catherina for the period 1754 to 1762 is the baptism of their son Michael in July 1760 York County.
In the Frederick MD German Reformed records of 1756, an Anna Maria is born to Maria Catherina and Peter Engels which confirms his relocation to MD by that time and with a new wife. Johann Peter Sr does not appear until 1762 when a son Samuel is born to him and his wife Susanna in Frederick. Sister Maria Catharina and her husband Samuel Dellenbach were god parents to Samuel in 1762. Maria Dellenbach attended church with Maria Catherina for many years. No record of any Dellenbach children being born has been found.
The family of Peter Engels (Sr) (14 Nov 1717- 5 Nov 1793 (2) Maria Catherina in America:
Somerset CO. PA records suggest Michael is a brother of Clemens and his
age at death can be extrapolated back to get his birth date.
The family of Johann Peter Engels Sr. and wife Susanna Vautrin in
America is projected to be:
Peter Sr and wife died in 1793 in Frederick and Samuel is listed as one of the heirs of Peter Sr after his death. There is no record of Johann Peter Sr or Johannes death. This suggests both died about 1776 and Samuel was raised by his uncle, Peter Sr. There is also no record of births to Maria and Samuel Dellenbach.
Family Tree of Caspar Engels descendants, is a family tree that includes descendants of Caspar Engels I and their spouses but does not include the spouse's ancestors or siblings. Additional spousal information can possibly be found by contacting a cousin below. Our privacy policy for this tree is that no one under 21 is listed and no dates are shown for anyone born after 1920 or married after 1940, as they are consider living.
I have opted to include spousal ancestral lines for spouses of the 18th century or earlier. It seems of interest to see our ancestral lines running back to Europe as we are blood related to those lines as well. If we included spousal ancestral lines after the 18th century, it would expand the list of potential "cousins" well past the point of manageability. Some 18th Century spousal surnames are Graff, Weimer, Vautrin, Staley, Faw, Pugh, Lantz, Kershner, Matter, Swartzel, and Hutzel.
According to a German genealogical research professional, we will not find documentation of our Engels earlier than Caspar I in 1646. The German principalities were in even in greater turmoil prior to that date. We shall see, as Cousin Henri is a dedicated researcher in Europe.
Email to Ken Engle the Webmeister at 
if you
think you are a likely descendant of Caspar Engels with sufficient genealogy
to make such a determination. As a minimum, you could be included in group
mailings of family information.
See the List of Engle-Family cousins for major contributors to the family genealogy and links to their home page or Email address.
Many of my living cousins have provided me with interesting stories or mini-biographies of their great and great-great grand parents which I have reproduced here.
This
history of our European relatives details the ancestry of Henri Engels of
Strasbourg France back to Caspar Engels.
Select picture of Henri to see his immediate family.