Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was organized in 1729 from the western portions of Chester County. However white settlers had begun moving in as early as 1710. A group of Mennonites, led by Hans Herr, secured a land grant from William Penn. In that year, Martin Kendig, Jacob Miller, Martin Oberholtzer, Martin Mylin, Christian Herr and his father Hans Herr sailed from London to Philadelphia on the Mary Hope. They came first to Germantown (now part of Philadelphia). The following year they began the process of moving to what is now Lancaster County. Others soon followed: more Mennonites, a group related to the Mennonites known as Amish, Lutheran, Reformed, Seventh Day Baptists, and Brethren. Many of the Mennonites, originally from Switzerland, had migrated to the Palatinate (Pfalz) section of Germany because of religious persecution. Some French Reformed had also migrated there for similar reasons. Most of the early settlers of Lancaster County came from the Palatinate.
This page lists those families among the early settlers of Lancaster County who were the ancestors of the persons to whom this web site is dedicated. Links will be created to these families as the web pages are created.