My mother’s relatives probably came to this country from Germany before 1790. She traced our family roots back to western Pennsylvania when on April 10, 1790 one of my great-great grandparents, David, was born.

Unfortunately, written records of that era are few and incomplete. This prevents her from finding other, earlier relatives.

My mother and I plan to visit western Pennsylvania this summer to review the records there. We hope to have an adventure of combing old records, and maybe even visiting cemeteries, looking at the names on old headstones.

I’ve been told that Pennsylvania keeps very old records. Birth and death records, Census information, wills, military service records, and land transactions are the best way to prove a modern relationship with someone from that time.

In the first U.S. Census, conducted in 1790, I found three men who spelled their last name the same way as my mother’s side of the family. One, a man named George, lived in the county in Pennsylvania where we believe David once lived.

The 1790 Census records indicate that George had six male children, one of whom may have been infant David. We hope to establish a documented link between David and either George or one of the other two men with mother’s maiden name.

I’ve checked genealogy forums on the Internet where people post requests for information that others may have about their common relatives. I found several posts from people who are kin to David, as we are. Unfortunately, they have been unable to document who his parents were.

Also, I found a record on the Internet for a man with the same last name as George who served as a corporal in George Washington’s army during the Revolutionary War.

Our known kin, David, served in the War of 1812. He received a land grant as payment for his service. As I understand it, his land grant was for undeveloped land in the Ohio territory. He sold his land grant rights probably not thinking that the rights was much of an investment. If only he knew back then what we know today about the value of land.

My mother and I surmised that perhaps our family came from Germany to the new world during Queen Elizabeth’s reign when she openly encouraged all Europeans to settle the new world in the name of England. We may never find out, but our road trip to Pennsylvania may help us find new clues.

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