Kauffman Family Reunion

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Kauffman Family Reunion

• 28-31 July 2006
• Bozeman, Montana

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Introduction

• Who am I (Grandson of Roy David)
• Basic rules of genealogy
• Where are we from The name tells it all!
• The Kauffman story
• Q A genealogy info exchange

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Genealogy Basic Rules

• Most written records only go back too 1500
• Most Americans are not descendants of a duke or
  duchess
• Hearsay and such not authoritative
• Build a legal case
• Eyewitness accounts
• Documents Births, Deaths, Marriages
• Headstones
• Recorded History

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The Kauffman name

• The spelling of the name Kauffman and what it
  tells us.
• The spelling of the name Kaufmann was
  standardized in the 19th Century.
• Kauffman is an old Swiss rendition of the modern
  name Kaufmann. (Thanks to Abraham Gerber!)
• Thus we can say the Kauffmans came from
  Switzerland.

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Seal of Canton of Bern
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Europe Map
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Swiss Map
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Erlenbach surrounding areas
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The Reformation

• Influence on Simmental
• Peter Kunz

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Europe in 1650

• 30 Years War 1618-1648
• Switzerland was divided between Swiss reformed
  Church and Catholic Churches
• Thuner Region remains Protestant

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Menno Simons

• Influence in the Thuner Region
• Sometime after 1650 the Kauffman
  family left the Swiss
  Reformed Church and became
  Swiss
  Brethren(Mennonites)
• Persecution of Mennonites
  in Simmental

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The Amish Connection

• Born in Erlenbach
• Barred from Interlaken and surrounding districts
  1680
• Moved to Alsace and founded Amish movement

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Putting it all together

• All Kauffman babies were baptized at the parish
  church in Steffisburg.
• Parish records show a Nicklaus was baptized in
  1593 in Steffisburg.
• The last Kauffman baptized as an Infant was Isaac
  Kauffman in 1653.
• Lets take a look a the record!
• No more of Levis direct descendants were
  baptized as children after 1653.

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Putting it all together

• Issac Kauffman joins the Mennonites after 1653.
• Persecution in the Simmen Valley (Simmental)
• Sir William Penn 1691 - Quaker
• At some point after 1700 Issac Kauffman leaves
  the region and relocates to Pennsylvania.
• Levis first American born descendant was Jacob
  Kauffman 1736 in Berks County,PA - (8
  generations!)

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Items for research

• Why did he leave?
• Did he come by himself?
• Where did he arrive?

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Resources

• http//www.swissmennonite.org/history/history.html
  
• http//www.thetemples.de/familyhistory
• jeff_at_thetemples.de

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QA