The Reinholz, Rinehults, Rinehuls Family
The Reinholz, Rinehults, Rinehuls FamilyUpdated June 11, 2007 | |
Carole Rinehuls Pelton 15 East 5th Street Emporium,PA 15834 814-486-3662 | This story has been passed on down through the years and undoubtedly has changed somewhat from the original truth. Two German brothers came to this country, during the American Revolution, as Hessian soldiers, fighting for the British.They may have deserted or been captured, but as the story goes, one died and the other ended up staying here.The family story goes on to say that the government owed them land and money.My Great Aunt Jen remembers a meeting of the family, with a lawyer they had called in to investigate their claims.The attorney took their proof of claim and left town.When he returned, he excitedly told them he needed documents signed to prove their claim, and all the family again got together and signed the legal forms.The attorney disappeared and wasn't seen again for several years.When he returned to town, he built a law office and prospered.One of the family members went to see him and asked what happened to their claim.The attorney told him that the proof and papers the family had given him had been in the local courthouse when it burned down, and there was nothing further he could dofor them. In my research, I read about the Hessian involvement in the Revolution, and was intrigued with the idea that the continental congress had distributed pamphlets to the Hessians, offering them land and money for deserting the British and fighting for them.Although I haven't had the opportunity yet to really research this train of thought, I feel that to be the answer to the money and land the family was owed by the government. The first real traces of those early family members came from Church Records of New York State (Scoharie, Claverack and Palatine Counties).The original name seems to be REINHOLZ and JOHANNES was the "founding father".The oldest son was Johannes, John in later census reports. I've only found two branches remaining today, the JOHN branch - some in the John branch are spelling the name RINEHULTS, which is closer to the original - and the second branch, which comes from HENRY RINEHULS. They moved around a lot since 1800.Every 10 years they showed up in a different area, and in 1860-70 they moved to Pennsylvania, where many who carry the name are still residing. In 1996, I found Johannes Reinholz in an immigration list index: "The Brunswick Deserter - Immigrants of the American Revolution", Illinois State Genealogical Society Quarterly, 6:2 (Summer 1974), pp. 77-81, by Clifford Neal Smith.I've been unable to locate a copy of it, but plan to do so this summer (2007). |
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