YODER NEWSLETTER
Vol. I No.
3-------------------------------------------April, 1984
| Back to INDEX | Back to CONTENTS |
MELCHOIR YODER Research Summary By Mrs. M.Fred Coffman There is not much evidence on this family and their
descendants and what is available conflicts to some
extent. Census records for Northumberland Co. PA (see note #1) for
1810 lists a Melchior Yoder, over 45 with wife, and
the following males, all aged 26-45, all married and with children: John,Jacob, Henry, Melchior,Jr,
and Peter. Since they all appear on the same census page (288) of Center Twp.,
one could reasonably expect that there was a relationship. In the 1800 census,
same place, there are 5 Youter families listed, again
all on the same page. They are Milear (Melchior?), Benjamin, John & Jacob (these aged 26-45),
and Henry, age 16-26. In 1790, only Melchior Yoder is
listed in Dunkelberger, in his Story of Snyder County, (PA), 1948, p 166, says
''This land extended as far west as the land known later as the Peter Yoder
farm. Beyond this was the The above
quotation would appear to conflict with census records and Orphans Court
records of Snyder Co. The Godshalk/Gottschall Family records (5) state that Ann Godshalk the daughter of Godshalk
Godshalk who died in 1786 was married to Melchoir Yoder, a carpenter of Phila.
While John
Yoder (born 1768) son of Melchoir Sr. is listed as a
weaver on the tax records, the other sons were carpenters (6)
. Together they built the Seiber's of Globe
Mills Lutheran Church and a public school in 1805 in Middle Creek Twp., Snyder
Co. Glatfelter (7) does not list any early -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1.PA Census: 1810, Northumberland Co,Center
Twp., Roll#53,p288; same Co. 1800 Reel 142:03,p747; Montgomery Co,1790,p159. 2.PA
Archives,3rd S.Vol.XIV p349,611;Vol.XV,p50, 418;Vol
XIV p598. 3.Original Tax Lists, 4. Fisher, Dr. Charles A.,SNYDER 5. MSS collection, Montgomery County Historical Society, THE
GODSHALK/GOTTSCHALL FAMILY,Rev.N.B.
Grubb (1924) 6.Fisher, op.cit. 7. Glatfelter, Charles H.,GERMAN
LUTHERAN AND REFORMED CHURCHES IN THE PENNSYLVANIA FIELD,1717-1793, --------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITOR'S Note: Mrs. M. Fred Coffman, 30 Grouse Rd.,Malvern,Pa.19355, would be interested in hearing from any
readers who may have knowledge of this Yoder family. ************************************************************ Captain Jacob Yoder-Early Adventurer The
illustration above was provided by Mr. Earl Joder,
the prominent German researcher of our family. Captain Jacob Yoder, a member of
the ************************************************************
FROM THE EDITORS --------------------------------------------- Chris Yoder, --------------------------------------------- It was a little over a year ago that we put together the
first issue of the YNL. We really didn't know what to expect in terms of
interest. As issue #3 goes to press we are happy to say that your
newsletter has grown to over 514 subscribers across the United States, Canada,
Switzerland, Africa, Germany, France and Hong Kong. Our 500th subscriber was Elioise
Cunningham of --------------------------------------------- READERS CHALLENGE !! CAN YOU
ANSWER?? Among the items contributed by our readers was a cryptic
reference obtained by Mr. Lester Yoder of (Note- Later found to be a Souder) --------------------------------------------- ARTICLES WELCOME--Share your research with fellow readers!
The Yoder Newsletter would welcome the submission of any original research and
findings by Yoder historians. Because of space limitations and the need to
prioritize the sequence of publication, we cannot guarantee early use, but do
invite contributions. They may be edited. --------------------------------------------- ************************************************ Perhaps it should be known to all readers that if you are in
receipt of an offer to purchase THE YODER FAMILY HERITAGE BOOK by Beatrice
Bailey we would advise you to save your money. Although it does have a section
on heraldry, general genealogical advice, etc., all it contains pertinent to
YODER is a list of Yoders (over 7000 with addresses) gleaned from public sources, that would be of
interest to Yoder related readers. The offer as it comes infers that you will receive
information on the Yoder family. This is not true (except for the above list).
Paul W. Yoder of The YODER NEWSLETTER will furnish you more YODER information
you seek for a lot less money. ************************************************ EXCERPTS OF LETTERS
FROM OUR READERS We certainly appreciate all letters that we've received.
Those that contain information that might be of interest to some of you we
print. ================================.==== ======== "I am most happy to see in the MFH that you have a
newsletter. I am deeply interested in this. I am a Yoder.(My
mother's maiden name was Voder and all my brothers
and sisters had "Y" as middle initial except me!)" Ira A. Kurtz,
Jr. Mennonite Centre, = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
= "I was very happy to be able to answer the query of
Jean Yoder of ============================================= "My husband's grandmother, Margreet
Amelia Yoder married Joseph Thompson. She was the dau.
of William Sherman Yoder who settled in Jefferson Co.
PA. I believe they are from the Oley Yoders. I
researched the Thompsons and traced them to Maryland,
Harford Co., but I am stuck there. I have always wanted to do the Yoders. I like the newsletter very much." ============================================= I am interested in developing a chart of descendants of my
Yoder forbears. My grandfather was John A. Yoder of Smithville and my mother
was Crissie C. Yoder." Ernest C. Shank, ============================================= From Pauline Yoder, Greencroft, ============================================= Eloise Cunningham of ============================================= NEWSLETTER
READER STARTS HIS OWN... MR.H.
Walter Yoder of *********-************************************* FAMILY KEEPS IN TOUCH THROUGH TRAVELING LETTER.. The children of Menno S. Yoder (1863-1952) have spread
far and wide. To solve the problem of keeping in touch they have a traveling
letter which makes the circuit every few months. Each party adds their own news to the package and then takes it out again
and provides new when it comes back. Would this work for you? ************************************************ PLACES NAMED YODER
SERIES Located in Eli Yoder was born February 6, 1844 in Union County,
Pennsylvania, but grew to manhood in the Amish community of Long Green,
Maryland, where his parents had moved about 1849. Eli's father, Solomon, was
bishop of the Four months after arriving in In the fall of that same year, a third Amish youth, John Nafzinger, arrived in None of these three young men chose to remain in the Amish
faith in which they had been raised. Perhaps they even thought they could
escape from their plain past by moving far away from their home communities. If
this was the case, it must have come as quite a surprise to them nine years
later when Amish families from Eli Yoder now found himself with Amish neighbors. He showed
no interest in their church, and it is said that he tried to hide the fact from
them that he had been raised Amish--a seemingly impossible task with a name
like "Yoder". E. F. Peachy related many years later how Eli was
finally exposed . Mr. Yoder was the first Amish man to settle in this
community, but when Amish people followed him and organized a church, he never
united with them. In fact, Mr. Yoder tried to keep it hid from the Amish folks
that he had belonged to them. Jake Bontrager once
said they were threshing for Mr. Yoder. After supper they were sitting in the
room talking. Mrs. Yoder then went in the bedroom and brought Mr. Yoder's
long-tailed coat and barn door trousers and showed them to us in the absence of
Mr. Yoder. No sooner had she shown them to us until Mr. Yoder happened to come
in and saw what she was doing. He rebuked her rather severely for it, right in
the presence of the entire threshing crew. (3) When the In 1899, Eli Yoder sold his farm to an Amishman,
Rudy M. Bontrager, for $6,ooo
and moved to ...a five-room consolidated school, a very good and strong
bank, a big hardware and lumber company owned by Alvin Fry, a big elevator 100
feet high and another storage bin
with a capacity of 350,000 bushels, one food locker, one very busy gas station
and repair shop, one all-purpose blacksmith shop, and a big road
contractor with big machinery. (6) A mile west of town is a police academy located on the
former naval air base which displaced Amish farmers in 1942. Yoder is not listed in the index of the 1982 Rand McNally
Road Atlas, but does appear on the Footnotes: 1. Thomas, Clarke and Glenn Williams, "They Preserve
Old Simplicity," The News-Herald, May 20, 1951. 2. Borntrager, D. K.,
"History of the Amish Mennonites in Reno Co., 3. Ibid. 4. Ibid. 5. Genealogical data for Eli Yoder and his parents were
obtained from Amos L. Fisher, Ronks, PA. 6. A letter to the author dated May
21, 1973, from D. K.Borntrager. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (The article above,which
originally appeared in the July 1973 issue of "Family Life", has been
updated by the author especially for the Yoder Newsletter) ********************************************************* GINGERICH/KREIDER BOOK STATUSs Many readers are looking forward to the publication of Dr.
Hugh Gingerich and Rachel Kreider's
monumental work on the Amish immigrants and their descendants through 1850.
Levi L. Stoltzfus has informed us that the
prepublication price of $35.00 ended as of April 1, 1984. Information on this
fine book and its expected publication date (sometime next summer) can be
received by writing Levi L. Stoltzfus, ********************************************************* Self righteousness, derived from abstinence from a a habit or practice, is the
greater sin. ********************************************************* This article was used
with the permission of Mennonite Family History and is taken the from Oct. l983 issue---- Hans Joder of There are more than fifty genealogies on various Yoder
families in The immigrant and progenitor of this family was one Hans Joder or John Yoder Sr. Although the specific date of his
immigration is not known, it can be reasonably fixed between 1713 and 1720, and
most likely 1717, the year in which some of his friends and neighbors who
settled at the Great Swamp also immigranted.(l) He
and his wife Anna, whose surname is unknown, were born in Europe in the latter
part of the 17th century.(2) They were friends of and contemporaneous with
George Bachman (1685-1753) and Maria Bachman (1698-1776) who once were their
immediate neighbors and possibly related.(3) The size of their family when they
immigrated is unknown but the fact that their son John required naturalization
and their son Casper did not suggests that the former was born in Europe and
the latter in America. The earliest record of John Yoder Sr. is based on hearsay
evidence in the form of notes kept by Isaac Yothers
(1884-1959).(4) These notes state that John Yoder Sr. bought from Joseph Growden on Jan. 17, 1720 ninety-nine acres at Great Swamp
in Richland adjoining (actually between) lands of Jacob Clemmer
and George Bachman. That property is at present bound on the north by Route
663, on the east by the Milford and Richland Township boundaries, on the south
by the road from Quakertown to Milford Square and the Upper Bucks County
Airport, and extends westward by two-thirds of a mile or half the distance between The earliest existing document identifying John Yoder Sr. is
a petition dated Sept. 17, 1730 requesting a road be laid out from the new
meetinghouse to Montgomery Road on the county line in order to have access to
Philadelphia.(6) In 1734 the names of both John Yoder
Sr. and John Yoder Jr. appear on a single document; a petition for
naturalizations. The purpose for naturalization was to secure the right to own
and transfer real estate under existing English law.(8)
Between 1720 and 1740 naturalization virtually required an act of the
Provincial Pennsylvania Assembly and few Germans achieved this goal, and then not
without political bribery.(9) The results of this particular petition were that
only 14 of 55 petitioners obtained naturalization by an act passed on March 29,
1735 (10) Fourteen years elapse before further evidence of John Yoder
Sr. is found. That evidence, in the form of estate papers of his friends and
neighbors, reflects that he was a responsible member of his community.
Considering his associates, the strategic intermarriages, and religious
activity of his deseendants, it would be a reasonable
speculation that he was an elder or trustee under the bishopric of Valentine Clemmer. In 1748 he signed a renunciation to the executorship of the estate of Samuel Shoup
who lived at Great Swamp with John Drissell.(ll) In the same year he helped take inventory for the
estate of John Landis of Great Swamp.(12) In 1751 he appraised the estate of
Jacob Clemmer of Lower Milford.(13) During the year 1750 he apparently had intentions toward
retirement and it was not coincidental that his son John chose to engage in
real estate transactions in December of 1750. These actions were well
coordinated with John Yoder Sr.s retirement
plans.(l4) The last known document concerning John Yoder Sr. is dated April 2,
1753 when he witnessed the purchase of land by his son Casper.(15) When he and his wife died or where they are buried are
unknown. Although there is no list of children or a family Bible record now
known, there is evidence that such a record may have existed. Among the
confiscated personal property of his grandson during the Revolutionary War
there were two Bibles sold at public auction. One belonging to From a legal viewpoint there is neither proof nor primary
evidence that John Yoder Jr. and Concerning descendants that In addition to these arguments, there was among some
colonial brothers the practice of naming their sons identically. It is more
than curious that John Yoder Jr. and There is a speculative third child; a daughter, in the
intriguing personage of one Michael Sell was a son of Henry Sell (1724-1786) and Mary
(Shell) Sell (b. 1726). The similarity of these two surnames has caused many
genealogists to error, (19) but it is within the error that a greater
revelation is found. Mary Shell was the only daughter of Michael Shell
(1693-1769) and it is HIS second wife's name that was Magdalena.(20) This, in an probability, is the To speculate further, Magdalena Yoder was also a sister to
John and Ken Hottle, -------------------------------------------------------- Footnotes: l. John C.
Wenger. History or the Mennonites of the Fronconia
Conference (Telford, Pa.: Franconia Mennonite Historical Society, 1937) p. 398.
in the year 1717 many more of our fellow believers
came to us from 2. See footnote #7. Allowing that John Yoder Jr. at least 21
years Of age in 1734, his parents would have been born
in the 17th century. 3. Dorothy R. Landis. Report or the 31st Reunion of the
Landis-Landes Families ( 4. These notes were generously shared by a grandson of Isaac Yothers, Richard J. Yothers, Jr.,
259 W. Newton St., Boston, MA 02116. 5. On a draught of that property dated 1821 the Row to 6. William W.H. Davis. History or 7. Petition to the Assembly in 1734 for Naturalization by
Divers Inhabitants or Bucks County at Historical Society of Pa., Streiper Collection, Bucks County Papers, 1:47. The names
on this petition are not signatures in spite of the fact that some are written
by various German hands. Attached to the petition is a clerical copy of
these names. A rendering of this petition appears in 8. Upon the death of an unnaturalized alien, his land, along with improvements,
would theoretically revert to the proprietary government under existing English
law. Although never enforced, this law served as a constant threat to the
German-born immigrant. 9. Richard K. MacMaster, Samuel L.
Horst, & Robert Ulle. Conscience In Crisis (Scottdale, Pa.: Herald
Press, 1979). Naturalization statistics and their corresponding legislative
process are compactly and effectively treated here as well as tracing political
bribery revealed in 10. James T. Mitchell & Henry Flanders. Statutes At
Large of ll. Will of
Samuel Shoup of 12. Will of John Landis of 13. Will of Jacob Clemmer of 14. John Yoder Jr. negotiated a complex sale of 250 acres in
l5. Deed, John Lester to 16. 17. Joseph Growden s great tract
of 1490 acres was sold in part to Divers Dutchmen prior to 1725 when the
residual average was sold to Robert Fletcher. On 1785 a resurvey of this
remainder was made basically identifying the family names of these Divers
Dutchmen. 18. Will of Michael
Sell (pro. April 10, 1772) Northampton Co., Will File #556.
The fact is that Michael was 24 years old when he died, his wife s name was
Barbara and he had a son named Michael. l9. May Mathis Green-Watson. Nold Family History & Genealogical Background. (Corpus
Christi, Tex:1941) p.7. The Shell and Sell surnames
are erroneously considered as one family and it is through this error that the
records of the Shell family are preserved. 20. Will of Michael Shell (pro. Feb. 19,
1770) Phila. (Editors' notes ---If
your Yoder ancestors had longstanding Mennonite roots (as opposed to those who
converted from the Amish), this excellently researched article by Mr. Hottle should be of particular interest. All of the
Mennonite Yoder lines that we are aware of descended from the "Hans Joder of ********************************************************** Conrad Yoder monument, erected in 1958. The above picture was copied from Fred Roy Yoder's book History of the
Yoder Family in ********************************************************** "Oldest Unaltered Church"-1777 The above print was on stationery received from Ben Yoder,
of Mohrsville PA. He wrote, "Rev. Jacob R. Yoder preached in the ********************************************************** THE Of all the Yoder immigrants of the 18th century, Conrad
Yoder was unique. He is the only one of our name known to have settled outside
of the Laban Yoder, a great grandson of Conrad Yoder wrote in a letter
to S. C. Yoder, Goshen College, dated January of 1928, that Conrad was a
Mennonite and owned a Mennonite Hymnal. He also stated that Conrad visited with
his brother Jacob Yoder in Laban goes on to d iscuss the children
of Conrad who moved to We are all certainly indebted to Dr. Fred Roy Yoder, Laban Yoder, Colin M. Yoder, George M. Yoder and other
members of this family who have over the years documented bits of their
heritage. It can be expected that the Yoder Newsletter will provide further
details in future issues and hopefully break new ground on the descendants of
Conrad Yoder who moved west. ******************************************************** *************YODER
INQUIRIES************************* Who was Elvina Yoder (Elseyra Yoeter?) who married
Milton Willeford. Her mother was a Miller and her son Samuel Willeford was born Dec.1853 in ************************************************ Would like info. on Andy or Andrew Yoder who lived
in ************************************************ Info. desired on John Yoder/Yoders
b.ca.1785, m. ************************************************ DUAL QUERY: Wanted: info.re.Soloman
Yoder (1776-1866) and Barbara Miller (1774-1858) family. Soloman-son of Christian Yoder and
Barbara Hooley; Barbara-dau. of Daniel Miller & Veronica Mishler.
Reply to both:1)C.P.Yoder,141 S.E.49th, ************************************************ What were the names of Daniel Yoder's parents? Daniel died
Mar.18,1800 in Union Twp,Berks
Co, Ph. His parents may have come from the Oley area. Daniel's wife's name was
Anna, who died
Mar.28,1801. Reply to: Ralph Levengood,
************************************************ What became of Henry Yoder, b.1782.
Son of Christian ("Schweitzer") and Barbara Hooley.
Believed to have left Amish faith. Respond to:C.Yoder, ************************************************ TWO FOR ONE: Who were the parents of Veronica Yoder, wife of
Stephen Kurtz? Seems too young to have been dau. of 1742 im. Christian Yoder. Also want full name of Yost Yoder's
first wife (m2 to Mary Siever). Reply to John M.Byler,Rt.4, ************************************************ I would like all records pertaining to the Yost and Barbara
Yoder family. Their oldest child, Christian was born 1761. Was the Isaac Yoder
in a 1809 Amish ministers list another son? Their immigration data?--John M. Byler, Rt.4, ************************************************ What is the ancestry of William Brown Yoder,born 7-30-1845.Married Mary LaDorna
Artman 3-7-1871 in (?) Union Co.,PA. Possible son of Joshua (b.circa 1805) and Elizabeth (b.circa
1810). --Marli Yoder,526 W. ************************************************ Need info on ChristianYoder b. 22
Jan l824, son of Joshua Yoder. Christian m. Maria Lantz and the family was in Middlebury IN around 1888. Where was Christian born
and from whom was Joshua descended? Willis Yoder, ************************************************** Who was Jonas Yoder, b. June 5, l827 m. Catherine, d. of Joesph Kanagy, ************************************************** Want information on Daniel Yoder b. 1793 Somerset Co.,PA m. Susanna Ramsparger l834. Daniel d. 1849. Susanna m. J. J. Bauman (2). Daniel
Yoder's dau. Mary m. Samuel
C. Mast in l853 by Moses Burkholder. Where were they married? Please
reply to Mrs. Frank ************************************************** Need info proving or disproving that Joseph FORNEY's l/w was Barbara YODER,
Joseph warranted land in Brothers Valley Twp., Bedford Co. 15 Dec 1774.
Christian YODER's land was warranted 2 Dec l773 in *************************************************** Searching for roots of William Peter Yoder (1863- 1934) d.
in *************************************************** Want ancestors of Benjamin Yoder (8-29-1817-5-21-18 99) and Brigitta Yoder, wife,(7-15-1821-5-13-1909).
Both bur. Frieden's Union Cem., Oley, Berks Co.PA. Brigitta was dau. of Jacob & Mary
(Reinhart) Hausman. Children: twins, Jacob &
David, William, Frank; James, Emily, Amanda, Sarah, Louisa and Mary Ann.
--Marilyn S. Markley, **************************************************** Who was Jacob Yoder (son of Barbara Shellenberger
Yoder) who served as executor of John Shellenberger's
will (b. 1731) ? John Shellenberger
died in Manheim Twp., Lancaster Co., PA in 1813 and was the brother of Barbara,
Jacob's mother.--Virginia C. Jansen, ****************************************************
Seek Anna Yoder's parents and dates. She married Henry
Leonard ca. 1820. Widowed; married ca. 1829 Force, Wayne Co.,
************************************************** Information needed on Veronica Frances YODER, m. to Michael
DENLINGER: 3 children known of: Mary (m. Jacob Hockman);
Jacob & Henry. Veronica's father may have been Daniel YODER (which
ones? Michael came to ************************************************** Is J/YETTER variation of YODER? Seek origins Peter J/YETTER
(c 1740-l781), (No. Annville Twp?) Lebanon Co., PA (wife a Stoever).
Children Eva Maria, Maria Catarina, Anna Maria.
Related John Peter Jetter. Christened l766 CA 94122 ************************************************** Wanted INFORMATION REGARDING THE DESCENDANTS OF
PETER YODER (l805-ca l870). Malenda b. l835, m. John Jacobs. Johannes Sidney b. 1837,
James b. 1840, Newton b. 1843, Franklin b. 1846, Barbara b. l848. Children of
marriage with Martha Covington: Mary
Elizabeth b. l864; William Peter b. 1866, Virginery
Caroline married Henry Wiggins, Samuel b. 1871. Most were in ************************************************** Seek parents and ancestry of Barbara Yoder who m. John
Oyster ca. 1780 FA. Both went to ********************************************** Christina Gerig b. 17 Apr. 1831,
d. 21 Oct 1909, m. to Moses Schrock b. to June 1828, d. 22 Apr 1909. Christina Gerig's mother was Christine Yoder. Does anyone have any
information on this Christine Yoder, who had m. Joseph Gerig?
Mrs. Paul Wade, R#1-- ************************************************** YODER GENEALOGIES IN PRINT This newsletter will identify Yoder-related books currently
available for purchase. Most of these deal with one specific branch (twig), and
may not be of
interest outside that immediate family. We will attempt to provide sufficient
data for you to gauge your interest. Further details can be obtained from
addresses indicated. Give us full details of any books available regarding
cost, etc. The David Yoder Family -l22 pages, quite a few pictures,
"a little historical information" , and
memories from each of the ten children. David s/o Samuel s/o Isaac s/ o Yost
s/o Henry born in *************************************************** William J. Yoder Familv Historv Book-covers the family of this Amish bishop of
Nappanee IN (1858-1936). $7.50. May be ordered or
information obtained from: Elizabeth D. Nisley, RR#l, ************************I************************* Familv Record of Jeremiah Yoder and Fannie Bender (m.
Jan. 22, 1882), 1975, by Sylvan Yoder. There is
also a 1977 supplement. Sylvan has a limited amount left at $2.75 each. His
address Sylvan Yoder, 1112 Irvin, ************************************** ************ Familv Record of
Peter W Magdalena (Gingerich) Yoder (m.
Nov. 10,1864), 1975, by Agnes Yoder and Edna Swartzendruber. There is also
a supplement to July 1, 1980. Price $4.00. Order from Agnes Yoder 2020 South Downing, Denver CO 90210 ************************************************** Your Newsletter staff would like to learn more about the
following Yoder families : Joseph Yoder-b.cl806 in Jacob (b.1767), Elias (b.1777) and Daniel (b.1780) Yoder of Adam Yoder-(b.1785) of N.C. Poss. descendants in
TN, GA, and *************************************************** HOW ABOUT?? Henry Yoder- born ca.1776 in
PA. Lived in as of 1850.
Please SEND any NEWS to C.Yoder, THE YNL, **************************************************** YODER WORKS IN PROGRESS In our first issue we listed several Yoder related books
being researched for future publication. We encourage our readers to inform us
of any not here mentioned for the benefit of both author and the family
involved. Here are two more we've heard of : Mr. Richard J. Yothers of 259 West
Newton St., Boston MA 02116, is working on the descendants of Jacob Yothers (of Mr. Levon Yoder, 2499 Sword Hwy,
Adrian MI49221 is working on a history of the Allen County, IN Yoders. He is a descendant of the Alsatian immigrant Joseph
Yoder (1825-1911). We are sure either of these gentlemen would welcome hearing
from fellow descendants who might have information of use in their efforts. ******************* ********************** YODER, Hatten Schuyler, Jr. American petrologist
Born Mar. 20, 1921, Cleveland, Ohio, NOTED YODERS OF THE PRESENT SERIESs Dr. Hatten Schuyler Yoder, Jr.,
Director of the Carnegie Instition Geophysical
Laboratory in Washington, is one of a number of our family who have distinguished themselves in varying lines. Dr. Yoder
has been the recipient of many awards, has held prominent research, academic,
and editorial positions in his field, and is the author of a multitude of
papers which have been translated into other languages including Russian. We are glad to number him among the readers of our
newsletter. Of interest to you all will be one of the tributes he received
during his very active career. A spectacular purple mineral that occurs in (the sketch of Dr. Yoder is from
Modern Men of Science, vol. 2, 1968, McGraw Hill Inc., and is reproduced with
permission of the publisher) ************************************************************ READER SERVICE After hours and hours
of effort, we have over 2,000 Yoders from the last
century indexed in our records. We also have made a start in assembling all
1850 Census records for Yoders in the ************************************************ NOTES ON LAST ISSUE-NO.2---The demographic map on page one
provides a representative proportional distribution of Yoders
from one address sampling. It does not reflect total Yoders
in the ************************************************ Yoder Descendants Meet at Pioneer Spirit Marks 150-Year Moses Yoder was a true pioneer going always west from
Mifflin to Mercer County, Pa to Indiana, to Missouri to Kansas and finally, in
the Cherokee Run, he homesteaded in Oklahoma Today his living descendants
number 774 and live in 25 states from Florida to Alaska and Hawaii and one in
England. A total of 69 Moses H. Yoder descendants, with 37 other Yoders descendants of his brothers Dan and Simeon and his
sisters Anna and Alvin and Lee Yoder of the Simeon family prepared and guided
a historical tour on Saturday afternoon Two school
buses transported 90 people to the top of ON THE WAY down the tour leader pointed out Gypsy Dan
Hollow, named for Moses brother Dan who had returned to the valley seven times
earning the name Gypsy Dan. A memorial
stop on the tour was the Keifer Christ homestead
where Grandpa Mose was born. At the home of Stephen Zook,
descendant of Moses sister Sarah, the entire tour group was impressed with a
historic German Bible brought to Saturday evening's program was given to history- " Our Fathers Lived in This Valley" by Alvin Yoder
and "And Grandpa Mose Went West" by J. Otis
Yoder. Charts of family lines and maps helped to clarify the family history. SEVERAL historical documents had been photocopied or printed for
sale to the children. Alvin Yoder provided copies of the will of Christian
Yoder, Moses father, the settling of the estate, and a court order appointing a
guardian for Moses H. who was not of age at his father s death. These documents contain signatures as well as information.
The J Otis Yoders provided printed copies of the
English translation of spiritual counsel Moses mother Esther Hertzler Yoder, wrote in German for her children and
grandchildren six weeks before her death. The translation was done by Amish Bishop Ezra Kanagy of H. Yoder story and genealogy in 1970,
brought the statistics up to date and challenged the group to be growing on its
roots. ORPHA COOPRIDER (Mrs. Ezra) Hershberger, of Mabel (Mrs O J )
Yoder of THE FINAL challenge of the morning came in considering "The
Pioneer Spirit Must Not Die", Harold
Yoder, professor at The spiritual pioneer spirit was presented by J Otis Yoder,
international radio speaker of Heralds of Hope, THE PIONEER spirit was reflected in the menus, especially
the bean soup and moon pies, and in the total expense of the weekend being met
by freewill offerings which overflowed in a surplus to supply Heralds of Hope
with postage to mail 140 Bibles to the third world listeners to Hope For Today. The above report is a reprint from the Sept. l, 1983 issue
of the MENNONITE WEEKLY REVIEW, ************************************************************ Elizabeth Yoder Private graveside services for Elizabeth Yoder will be
Monday at She was born June 22, 1898, in Wolford, N. D, to John and After graduating in 1921 from For 40 years she owned and operated She was listed in Survivors include her sisters Doris (Dottie) Humble of The family suggests contributions in her memory to the
Linn-Benton Diabetes Association. These may be sent in care of McHenry Funeral
Home, The above obituary was sent in by Sylvia Martin, author of POPPY's Dozen. Sylvia has been a faithful correspondent to
YNL. She also informed us that Poppy's Dozen has lost the second member, Fred
P. Yoder, of Sylvia also informs us that she should have had more copies
of PosDv's Dozen printed since the demand was larger
than she'd planned. Maybe she could be convinced to have reprints made if
enough requests were made. It is a history of Peter and Nancy Yoder and their
twelve children and is interesting reading. A lineage chart proves this clan coming from almost a solid
Yoder background from both parents. Sylvia's address is: 2058 1/2 Pine Grove Ave.
Springs CO 80906. ************************************************************
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