A drawing of Fort Amanda in Allen County as it looked in the early 1800’s.
File photo | The Lima News
LIMA — Remnants of the Native American and early settler life abound in Allen County.
Pam Thaman and the Allen County Genealogical Society work diligently to authenticate and expand upon the area’s local history.
Thaman explained the background of the county’s history and the role the organization takes to identify individuals who are related to its earliest settlers.
In 1817, the Shawnee tribe was assigned to two reservations in Allen County to make way for the first settlers. The first was Hog Creek reservation which was about 25-square miles in present-day Shawnee Township. The second was near Wapakoneta, which was part of Allen County at the time.
Fort Amanda in Allen County, like Fort Jennings in Putnam County, had served as a major defense against attacks on supplies by the British and Native Americans in the War of 1812 but was now being repurposed as a post office.
Allen County was officially founded on March 1, 1820. By 1829, Lima was established as its seat of justice. The population of Allen County residents was just 578 in 1830. In 1831, in the Treaty of Wapakoneta, the land was given to the government and the Shawnee were resettled in Kansas in 1833. With the removal of the tribe, Allen County grew rapidly to 9,017 residents by 1840.
The purpose of First Families is to recognize the descendants of individuals living in Allen County by 1840.
Today there are 1,438 individuals (living or deceased) who have been inducted by the Allen County Genealogy Society as First Families members. They are the descendants of 497 ancestors who lived in Allen County by 1840.
This year, Laura Plaugher will be inducted into First Families of Allen County based on her father’s line, and Plaugher’s mother, Cheryl Huber will be inducted into Settlers and Builders of Allen County. The latter requires that a direct ancestor lived in Allen County before 1870.
Huber’s ancestor was Sarah Elizabeth Snider Boyer Anspach who was in Jackson Township before 1870. George Boyer married Sara Elizabeth Snider in 1866, but he died at the age of 28 in 1870. They had two daughters. After 10 years as a widow, she married Charles Anspach (a farmer who migrated to Allen County from Muskingum County) on Oct. 12, 1880. They had three children, but one died at age 2. The surviving child, Walter Anspach (b. Oct 21, 1881, d. May 20, 1955) survived and is Cheryl’s great-grandfather.
Plaugher’s relative was Jacob Frederich (Americanized to Frederick) Huber (b. April 15 1789-d. Dec. 16, 1845), a farmer, married Barbara Elizabeth Maier (b. Nov. 19, 1792, d. 1870) in Rielingshasen, Germany, where she was from, on October 3, 1815. The couple immigrated to America in 1832 from Horkheim, Germany. They located near Bluffton in Richland Township in Allen County in 1835. The couple’s children included Wilhelm (Americanized to William) Huber, Karl Huber, Augusta Carolina Huber, Jacob Frederich Huber, Theresa Huber, Henry Huber, Johan Jakob Huber and Frederik Huber.
William Huber married Sally Ann Cunningham and together they had 13 children.
Dale Huber, Plaugher’s grandfather, was inducted as a member in 1975. He had served in WWII and became the first farmer in the family to earn a degree from the College of Agriculture at Ohio State University in 1950, according to Thaman.
The induction ceremony, to which the public is invited and is free of charge, will begin at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, August 20 in the Seward-Folsom Auditorium at the Allen County Museum, 620 W. Market St., Lima. It is anticipated that Beth Seibert, Allen County Commissioner, will again present a resolution of appreciation to the Allen County Genealogical Society for its enhancement of the history and heritage of Allen County through its First Family program.
Individuals who would like to become members of either First Families of Allen County or Settlers and Builders of Allen County must submit a completed application by June 1st of each calendar year. Inquire with the Allen County Genealogical Society to obtain an application.
Reach Shannon Bohle at 567-242-0399, by email at [email protected] or on Twitter @Bohle_LimaNews.
