Familienverband Schmeiser
Schmeißer/Smyser Family Association

The Schmeißer’s as Peasants

The first record of our family, dating from 1436, is to be found in the archives at the 
counts, later princes, of Öttengen and is the written confirmation of the feudal tenure of 
‘der Smeisser”, a peasant of the Monchsoroth Cloister in Himmelreichstall (now: 
Himmerstall), Frankonia. He was born in 1405 and was the begining of a long line of 
flourishing Frankinian farmers. The family lived and today still lives in the area around 
Dinkelsbühl.

The family divided with the brothers. Hanns Schmaißer (born ca. 1510) and Wolff 
Schmaißer (born 1523), in the beginning of the 16th century. The two branches came 
together again in the 1970’s after decades of intensive research by Paul Schmeiser 
(Mannheim). The first born son, Hanns Schmaißer, like his great—grandfather in 
Himmelreichstall, was the Monchsroth Cloister’s peasant in Schonbronn, while his younger 
brother, Wolff, became a peasant of Dinkelsbühl’s Leprosenpflege St. Leonhard in 
Wolfhartsbronn (now. Wolfertsbroom).

Several members of the Schmeißer family were elevated into the nobility. Emperor 
Maximilian II appointed Ambros Schmeißer, Court chancellor to the Archduke of Austria, 
Karl II, in 1570 and later consul ‘an dec Turcknischen Porten zu Constantinopl” (1576—
1582). His father, Atgustin Schmeißer, had already carried a family cost-of-arms before 
1530, Which shows two crossed martals on a white and red background. It is spoken of as a 
“redendes Wappen” (spoken coat—of—arms). In 1568 and 1573, the brothers, Andreas 
and Hans Schmeißer, were elevated into the nobility by Emperor Maximilian II, and in 
1585, Erhart Schmeißer and his cousins granted nobility through Emperor Rudolf II.

Martin Schmeißer, born on August 14, 1680 in Trieber (now: Tribur), was a descendant of 
the afore mentioned Wolff Schmeißer of Wolfertsbronn. He was a subject of Dinkelsühl 
and a peasant of the Dinkelsühl Heiliggeistspital. He also managed a farm in Riegelbach 
which be had acquired on February 6, 1710. On May 6, 1710 he married Anna Barbara 
Kucher in Marktlustenau, the daughter of the master miller Johann Georg Kucher of the 
Rotmuhle. On April 15, 1730, Martin Schmeißer  sold his property in Riegelbach for a 
good profit and prepared his family for the trip to the New World. The unfortunate 
consequences of the Thirty Years’s War (1618— 1645) and especially the Palatine War of 
Succession (1688— 1697) in which the troops of the French king, Louis XIV, ranged far 
and wide over the Palatine ravaging and murdering, were certainly inducement enough for 
emmigration.

It had been scarcely 50 years since the first German immigrants had reached Philadelphia, 
Pennsylvania in the three mast ship ‘Concord1’ (October 6, 1683). but they had obviously 
sent confident reports back to the old homeland so that many families decided to seek their 
fortunes in a new world.

Martin Schmeißer himself never reached his goal, but his widow and her children, Anna 
Margaretha, 20 years old; Matthias, 16 years old, and the younger brother, Georg, 9 years 
old, set out together on the arduous journey. They embarked from Rotterdam on the British 
sailing ship, ‘Britania”, Probably a so—called English gulleyship, a late form of tue 
Spanish-Portuguese galeone) under Captain Michael Franklin and landed, with a stopover 
in Cowes Harbour on the Ilse of Weight in the English Channel, on September 21, 1731 in 
Philadelphia. The snip sas approximately 90 ft. long and brought 104x 104 male 
immigrants, with 37 under 16 years old, and 81 female immigrants, with 45 under 16 years 
old, (a total of 267 immigrants) to America.

The 16 year old son, Matthzas Schmeißer(in America: Smyser), took care of his mother 
and siblings alone. He developed a textile trade, which was the foundation of his later 
fortune and to which he brought much helpful knowledge as he had learned the weaving 
trade. However, he turned soon to farming. He acquired on May 3, 1745 good arable land 
three miles west of York, Pennsylvania (the seat of the United States of America 
government from September 30, 1777 until June 27, 1778). The first large family reunion 
took place on this farm exactly one hundred years later. Meanwhile, the descendants of the 
immigrant family numbered 1,200. The family association was founded during this 
reunion. Only fourteen years after the immigration, his farm, called “Ruegelbach” after 
Matthias’ birthplace, was approximately 500 acres.

Samuel Smyser, born October 29, 1813, Was Matthias Schmeißer’s great—grandson and 
heir to the old farm, Ruegelbach. He also owned land west of Penn Street and south of 
Princess Street in York, a region called Smysertown until its incorporation into York. He 
sold 73 acres of this land, which belonged to West Manchester township, in 1887 to the 
city of York for $29,300 for the building of the York Fair Grounds. The Samuel Smyser 
Lewis State Park, located east of York and above the Susquehanna River, carries his name.

The Schmeißer/Smyser Family Association, soon 150 years old, is blossoming again. The 
family reunion, already become a tradition, takes place alternately in West Germany — 
with an obligatory visit to Dinkelsbuhl - and in the United States with an obligatory visit to 
York, Pennsylvania.

The next Schmeiser/Schmeißer/Smyser Reunion, in Germany from July 30 until August 6, 
1989, is being organized by tne historian, Edwin Schmeiser (Nieder—Olm). He has already 
received a large number of committments from family members, also from overseas. The 
Schmeiser Family Association would gladly accept any further ideas or commitments of 
participation for the reunion this year.

Paul Schmeiser (Mannheim)
February 1989