Typed by Mrs. Maurice Buckland  1952

Submitted by James Stegner
 
 HISTORY OF JOHN ADAM STEGNER AND FAMILY
 
 John Adam Stegner, father of Mary Stegner Beurket,  was born January 3, 1831  in Dellfeld , Palatinate, Bavaria, now part of the  German Empire consolidated  by Kaiser Wilhelm I , Emperor of Germany in 1870, after  the war with France. He
 came here with other refugees to escape conscription  in the German Army when  he was 18 years of age.
 
 So far as I could find out from Aunt Barbara Galvin,  he was the only member  of the family to come to America at that time, which  was about the year 1850  or thereabouts.
 
 On arriving in New York , he presumably was  attracted by acquaintances made  on the boat to come to Honesdale, Pa. Which was the  terminus of the Delaware  and Hudson Canal . He got a job on one of the boats  carrying coal to Rondout,
 now Kingston, N. Y. , and from there the boats were  tuggrd to New York City  the main market for the coal. Later on, he bought a  boat on contract from the  canal Co, and paid for it on the installment plan, or so much per ton per trip.
 
 He married Barbara Bauman, who resided at upper  Lady Wood Land, now  Riverside Drive, in 1855. ( Her sketch will be given later. ) Grandmother Stegner  who made her home with us from 1909 until 1925 at  645 Main Street, was the  former Barbara Bauman.
 
 Palatinate was satuated halfway between the source and the mouth of rhe  Rhine River and extended some distance on both sides. Its capital was first  Heidelberg, later Mannheim. The two Palatinates ( east and west ) are now  districts of Bavaria, Germany. 

 The Baumans came from Feuctwang, Bavaria, a flat fertile farm land section  about 30 miles out of Munich, somewhere near the same country where John Adam  Stegner and his half brother, Joseph Stegner came from.
 
 John Adam Stegner later bought a boat for his eldest son John H Stegner  father Of the six Stegner boys, Prominent bakers and grocery store proprietors, in  Honesdale , today.
 
 Aunt Barbara Galvin cooked on one of the boats and  Mother ( Mary Stegner ) Made several trips as a cook on the other boat after they finished at the  Parochial school here at about 12 years of age. 

 

Mrs. Barbara Bauman Stegner was compelled to remain at home on Cottage  street and look after the five or six younger  children, her husband having died in 1880. Her sister , Jennie Bauman, now M rs. Meyers, left Honesdale for  Brooklyn were her husband had secured work. On one of the trips to New York she  took back Aunt Barbara Galvin and got her a job as a domestic at a family by  the name of Simonsons, at 119 East 70th st. New  York City, where she worked for three years, at two dollars a week. She got Mother work there as a second  maid for About the same pay ; untill she married  Henry Beurket in 1885.
 
 Aunt Frances Stegner , Mothers sister, also got a job in New York City at a  Mr. Leisner,s on 50th st. he was a wallpaper manufacturer and later she went to work for John Gales at Galesburg, Pa. In Warren Co. , where she met and married Henry Allen.
 
 Aunt Barbara remembers one of the canal songs, as follows:
 
                                                        The Lord above,
                                                       send down a dove
                                               with wings as sharp as a razer
                                        To cut the throats of the big-headed bloats
                                           That lowered the the boatmans wages.
 
 In 1866 Joesph Stegner, a half brother of John Adam Stegner, and later the  father of Nicholas Stegner, the artist, also came over from Germany to escape  conscription in the Army of Germany. He first escaped to Plymouth, England and  worked there in a shipyard where he helped build boats. While he was engaged  there, he met up with some rich Germans, in one of the saloons or pubs, as
 they are called there, who were from the United States and had been on a trip  to the Fatherland for a visit. These men were from out in the middle west  and told him of glowing possibilities in the new world and offered him work if  he would come over to their farm, out in Wisconsin.
 
 He arrived in New York on a sailing vessel and went over to Brooklyn with  some of the men who were on the boat and while there, maid inquiries as to the  whereabouts of his half brother, John Adam Stegner, whom he had never seen and  did not know the name of the town where he resided.
 
 While in a saloon on the Brooklyn water, he made inquiries about his  brother, John Adam Stegner, and one man there told him he had met him at Becks  Hotel in Rondout and advised him ( Joseph ) to go there and meet him and perhaps  he would be his brother. He went up to Kingston ( Rondout ) N. Y. and arrived  there the day after John Stegner had departed for Honesdale, Pa.
 
 He made inquiries and got a job as a boathand and came to Honesdale, Pa. And  missed his brother again. After a few trips he met up with John Stegner Sr.  and decided to remain here, which he did, and married Elizabeth Stock and  raised a family of six children, namely:
Elizabeth born 1866               died 1939             Joseph, the father
 Mary         “     1871 (Bates)     “    1945                 1845 -  1922
 Joseph      “     1874                 “    1921
 William      “     1878                 “    1928
 Nicholas    “  9/16/1882                Living           Elizabeth, the mother
 Margarete  “ 10/1/1886                 Living               1845 -  1911
 
 Joseph Stegner, the half brother mentioned above, I knew personally and Talked to him many a time, and also his wife. They resided at 332 Grove  Street,  Honesdale, Pa. He was an artisan and weaver in Germany and worked from the  time he was 14 years of age until he was 20 for the nobility, making or  weaving fancy brocades and tapestries for rugs and apparel, Pictures, ect. He was born in Dellfeld, Palatinate, Germany in February 1845 and was about 15 years younger than John, his half brother.
 
 Joseph Stegner died February 9, 1922 and was buried in the German Lutheran Cemetery, Honesdale, Pa. ( Aunt Barbara did not know anything about the father or mother of John Adam Stegner or whether there were any other children besides the two mentioned above. The parents of these boys never immigrated to the United States. )
 
 Barbara Bauman, the mother of Mary Stegner Beurket, was born in Feuctwang, Bavaria, Germany on January 18, 1834 and died in Honesdale, Pa. On November 3, 1926, at Aunt Annie Coats on 7th street, just a year after Mother left Honesdale for her new home in Johnson City, N.Y.  Grandmother Stegner was a grand old lady in every sence of the word and had all her faculties at the time she died, at the advanced age of 93.

 

Barbara Bauman came to United States around 1850 with her two brothers, Billy and Michael, and two sisters Mary and Jennie. Mary married a man by the name of John Kritz of Dunmore, Pa. And they had one son Peter Kretz, a miner. Jennie married a man names Meyers who worked in the brewery in Honesdale and around 1880 went to Brooklyn N.Y. to live. These five children came over on a sailboat with an uncle named Bill and left their parents behind, presumably in 1852 or thereabouts.

 

In 1853 Barbara Bauman married a man by the name of Munger and they lived together for about one year and they parted because he didn’t support her. She was about 19 years of age at that time. In 1855 when 21 years old , Barbara married John Adam Stegner and was the mother of ten children.

 

The names and ages of their 10 children are as follows:

 

John H Stegner                                            born  1/28/1858             died  2/24/1924
Frances Stegner       ( Allen )                          “             1860                “        12/1943
Henry  Stegner                                                “             1861                “             1942
Barbara Stegner       ( Galvin )                        “     6/20/1862                 “     8/31/1950
Mary  Stegner          ( Beurket )                       “      2/5/1865                  “       8/6/1947
Anna Stegner           ( Coates )                        “      7/8/1867                  “       8/1/1935
Joseph Stegner                                                “            1870                  “        12/1938
Christopher Stegner                                         “            1872                  “             1899
Frank    Stegner                                                “            1877 ( 9 Mo)     “             1878
Jacob    Stegner                                                “            1879                 “     3/18/1933

 

John Adam Stegner Died in 1880. In 1883, Barbara, his widow, married a man named Guintherstuff but they separated in 1891. He was a tailor by trade and a drunk, by habit, And failed to support her.

 

The first child of John Adam Stegner and Barbara Bauman Stegner , John H. Stegner was born in 1858 and died in 1924. He was the proprietor of a grocery store, which is now operated by his sons. In 1884 he married Theresa Sporer Stegner, who was born
May 28, 1863 and is still living.

 

John H Stegner and Theresa Sporer were the parents of nine children, six of whom are still living and prominent business people in Honesdale, Pa. They are as follows:

 

John   B.   Stegner        born    2/23/1885             died    2/14/1975
Frank  X.   Stegner           “     12/22/1887               “        1/18/1978
Catherine  Stegner           “              1889                “                1891
Leo            Stegner           “              1891                “                1892
Rose         Stegner            “              1892                “                1899
Noah         Stegner            “      1/14/1895                “        5/25/1990
Edmund    Stegner            “     11/16/1897  
Robert       Stegner            “      2/18/1900 
Walter  H.  Stegner            “     10/10/1904 

 

Frances Stegner, the second child of this union, was born in 1860 and died in 1943.
She married Henry Allen and they were the parents of six bright children. The family lived in Elkland, Tioga Co., Pa. Were she died. The names of their family folloes:

 

Robert     Allen                    Roaring  Branch
Thomas   Allen                    Wellsboro 
Florence  Allen ( McKay )    Andover, N.Y. 
France 
Marian 
Josephine        ( Bellows )   Little Marsh, Pa.

 

Henry Stegner, the third child, was born in 1861 and died in 1942. He married Linda and they lived in Jersey City, N.J. , were they both died. They were the parents of the following six children:

 

Kitty   Stegner                 ( Woerner )                          Jersey City N.J.
Mary  Stegner                ( Ostrander )                         Hasbrouck Hights, N.J.
John  Stegner            ( married and had 5 children )  Texas
Barbara Stegner born in 1893 died in 1899           in  Honesdale, Pa.
Henry   Stegner     “        1895     “      1899            in  Honesdale, Pa.
Lena     Stegner                                                           New Jersey

 

Barbara Stegner, the fourth child, was born June 3, 1862 and died August 31, 1950, at the age of 88. On July 26, 1890, she married Martin Galvin who was born November 14, 1862 and died June 8, 1942. No children were born of this union, but they did adopted one child, Anna ( Burns ) who was born in 1901

 

Mary, the fifth child of John Adam Stegner and Barbara Bauman Stegner was born February 5, 1865 and died August 6, 1947. On July 16, 1885 she married Henry Beurket who was born in 1855 and died August 17, 1917. They were the parents of the following nine children:

 

John Leonard Beurket         Born  3/30/1886           Died   1/3/1928 
William Henry Beurket             “   10/22/1887      
Christopher Edward Beurket    “    9/27/1891               “   1/15/1950   
George Simeon Beurket           “    8/16/1893              
Eva Barbara  Beurket               “   12/ 4/1895              
Benjamin Francis Beurket         “    8/23/1897             
Raymond Thomas Beurket       “  11/22/1899              
Jeanette Elizabeth Beurket       “    3/22/1904              
Albert Joseph  Beurket              “    1/12/1907              

 

Anna Stegner, the sixth child was born July 8, 1867 and died August 1, 1935. She had three husbands, but no children by any of the marriages.  Their names were Stuart Pinkey, Eugene Coates and Otto Herbold. She died in Honesdale, Pa. , and left a tidy sum of cash in three New York banks.

 

Joseph E. Stegner the seventh, was born in 1870 and died in 1938. He married Birdie Wendall of Winchester, Va. And to them one son, Wendall Stegner, was born. They were divorced and he later married a Newark, N.J. school teacher. Two daughters were born to them, Barbara and Frances. His widow lives in Brimfield, Mass., where she still teaches school.

 

Chris Stegner, the eighth child, was born in 1872 and died in 1899. He never married.

 

Frank Stegner, the ninth, was born in 1877 and died in 1878 at the age of nine months.
Jacob Stegner, the tenth child, was born in 1879 and died March 18, 1933. He married Maggie Mebs and they had one son, Alexander, who is in the Allentown Hospital. She is still living and is now Mrs. Davis of Scranton, Pa.

 

Data Compiled by Wm. Burkhart from information obtained from Aunt Barbara Galvin and Nicholas Stegner.

 

Note by James Stegner August 10, 2008
As I typed this letter for letter, I found several errors and would like to make corrections with out changing any of the work done on original in 1949 throe 1952.

 

John A Stegner list his birth as 1824 in his sworn petition for citizenship on April 18, 1862.  In it he list his arrival in USA as March 1852. At that time he should know his age and when he arrived.

 

John would be much older than his ½ brother Joseph, born 1845.by 19-20 years.

 

The # and order of Henry’s children is different.
Frora Anna Stegner born in Vermont, July 13, 1889 and died in Vermont July 19, 1890
A year and 6 days old. Buried in Burlington Chittenden County
Was first child of Henry and Melinda Bergeron ,
John Henry was 2nd born on canal boat in N.Y. on May 1, 1891
Katharine  was 3rd born in February  1893 us census 1900
Mary  was 4th born in January 1895  us census 1900
Minna was 5th born in 1899 in N.J. us census 1910 but not listed on 1900 census?
Harry was 6th born in  1905 in N.J.  us census 1910 on next page from Henry and others.

 

Barbara born in 1893 and died in 1899 buried in St. Marys In Honesdale Pa. Problematically, not Henry’s child.
 Henry  born in 1895 and died in 1899  buried in St. Marys In Honesdale Pa. Problematically, not Henry’s child.

 

In 1900 us census Joseph Stegner list his birth as June 1855 and age as 45, 10 years younger than his wife. Problematically , He list arrival in USA as 1866 and has lived here 33 years came to USA at 11 years old?

 

John Henry Stegner son of Henry & Melinda, never lived in Texas. He left home 1910 /11, went to Chicago Ill, at some point he lost the tows on his right foot in RR accident,
Got Grandma to send money to have Dr remove it before gangrene set in. it seams wile recovering he wrote letters to 3 or 4 girls and ask them to Marry him. One Julia Swartz answered yes and met him in Chicago, for some reason they could not get married in Chicago so they went across the river to Essex Ontario Canada on January 19, 1913
And got married ( she may have been Jewish and he was R.C. ) their first child Eleanor E was born in Michigan, April 1,1914. 2nd child Virginia H. born in Illinois, July 6, 1915, 3rd Ruth was born in Wisconsin, September 26,1917. 4th David J. born in Springfield Mo. August 17, 1920.  
Julia left John H in 1921 / 22 and took the children with her.
By 1924 John H was married to Tidy Ruth Siman / simon and they had a garage west of Cumberland Md. And he worked in RR shops in Altoona Pa , they bought a farm in Hesston Pa. And a house on Water street south of Altoona.

 

Their first child Jacqueline Ruby. was born April 23,  1925
2nd Betty Lucele        Stegner , Simpson . born September 5,   1926
3rd Florence  May     Stegner , Benedyk .  born         April 21,   1928
4th John Henry           Stegner Jr.               born           May 2,   1930 died     2007
5th Paul  F                 Stegner                    born September 5,   1935  died 1937
6th Frank Joseph   Stegner                      born  September 30, 1937  died 1974 in Dallas Texas 
7th Edward Fenton Stegner                  born         August  25, 1939
8th James Emanuel Stegner                 born       January  29, 1945 
9th Daniel  Thomas  Stegner                 born        August    3, 1946

 

John Henry died August 3, 1955 in Hesston, Pa is buried White Church ( Jacob’s ) Hesston Pa.
Tidy Ruth died in Greensburg, Pa. May 5, 1987, is buried next to John and Paul their son.