Final results are in and Kenny Albright, Don (Wilbur) Albright and myself all match perfectly on our 67 marker DNA test. That is the most marker test available to date!
Post from familytreeDNA.com
Y-DNA67 - 67 Marker Test: the highest resolution Y-DNA test in the world: tests the Y chromosome for genetic matches between males. Results are placed in our Y-DNA database and when 2 people show the same identical or near identical results, we will inform both parties if you have both signed the FTDNA Release Form. A perfect match of 67 markers means a very tight connection: a common ancestor in very recent times.
We know now we all descend from Johannes Albrecht b-1701 and Margaretha Moor, for Don and myself we must find which son of Johannes we descend from! We already know Kenny's lineage and that was why he was brought in for testing to prove our lineage to the Zurich, Switzerland Albrecht's. Still working on the translation of German written records discussing the relationship of the Zurich Albrect's to the Von Hapsburg's that I found in the SLC library.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Kenny Albright 37 marker perfect match
Results are back and it is a perfect 37 on 37 marker match. In the words of Eric Albright coordinator for the Albright/Albrecht FamilytreeDNA testing.
"Hi Alan, Marilyn from FTDNA said you can officially call your matches a "lineage". Eric"
There is no need to test anymore, if people want to prove their lineage to mine, they can do the testing.
Still waiting for the translation of records written in German that may link are Albrecht's to the Von Hapsburgs.
Still working with a couple other researchers on which one of the sons of Johannes that is our Jacob's "The Gunsmith" father. I still feel that it is Felix, but should be able to make a good case for that!
"Hi Alan, Marilyn from FTDNA said you can officially call your matches a "lineage". Eric"
There is no need to test anymore, if people want to prove their lineage to mine, they can do the testing.
Still waiting for the translation of records written in German that may link are Albrecht's to the Von Hapsburgs.
Still working with a couple other researchers on which one of the sons of Johannes that is our Jacob's "The Gunsmith" father. I still feel that it is Felix, but should be able to make a good case for that!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Albrecht research
The 37 marker results for Kenny Albright is being done, that is the 26 through 37 markers.
Familytree DNA explanation
A very small percentage of the tests we perform do not return conclusive results the first time we test. In these cases, the samples do not produce a reading that allows our lab to determine with 100% certainty the values for one or more markers or regions. When this happens, we re-test the sample. We repeat this procedure up to 3 times after the initial test fails to give a clear result.
Your result failed to produce a clear result in this run. Below is a status update for your test, as well as an estimated time of when the next rerun is expected to be completed:
PP5 - 9/26/2008 This test failed to yield results for your sample. Your sample is being rerun now. Results from this round of testing are expected by this date.
Anyway 25 markers prove a relationship and I would be totally surprised if anything changes with 37. With that I will be putting together the Albrecht line. My one snag will be finding which of the sons of Johannes Albrecht and Margaretha Moor will be Jacob "The Gunsmith" parents. I am working with a couple of Albright researchers on seeing if we can identify who are the sons of Johannes and what Jacobs belonged to those sons! It is easier said than done!
From Johannes it looks like this
Johannes Albrecht bap 13 Feb 1701 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Margaretha Moor bap 23 Jan 1707 they were married 1726
Johannes b-1701 parents were Hans Albrecht bap 1 Jun 1656 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Barbara Kunz bap 8 Oct 1665 they were married 1687
Hans b-1656 parents were Hans Jakob Albrecht bap 16 Sep 1629 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Margaretha Volkart b-1637
Hans Jakob Albrecht b-1629 parents were Hans Albrecht born 1594 and Elsbeth Scherer married 1625
Hans Albrecht b-1594 parents were Heinrich Albrecht and Verena Hertzog married 1592
I have a German lady looking at the material that lists Albrechts as decended from Hapsburgs.
I was looking at early Zurich Switzerland records, it takes a lot of concentration and will have to go back when I can spend more time and concentrate. It is hard enough following old records let alone records in old German script!
Familytree DNA explanation
A very small percentage of the tests we perform do not return conclusive results the first time we test. In these cases, the samples do not produce a reading that allows our lab to determine with 100% certainty the values for one or more markers or regions. When this happens, we re-test the sample. We repeat this procedure up to 3 times after the initial test fails to give a clear result.
Your result failed to produce a clear result in this run. Below is a status update for your test, as well as an estimated time of when the next rerun is expected to be completed:
PP5 - 9/26/2008 This test failed to yield results for your sample. Your sample is being rerun now. Results from this round of testing are expected by this date.
Anyway 25 markers prove a relationship and I would be totally surprised if anything changes with 37. With that I will be putting together the Albrecht line. My one snag will be finding which of the sons of Johannes Albrecht and Margaretha Moor will be Jacob "The Gunsmith" parents. I am working with a couple of Albright researchers on seeing if we can identify who are the sons of Johannes and what Jacobs belonged to those sons! It is easier said than done!
From Johannes it looks like this
Johannes Albrecht bap 13 Feb 1701 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Margaretha Moor bap 23 Jan 1707 they were married 1726
Johannes b-1701 parents were Hans Albrecht bap 1 Jun 1656 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Barbara Kunz bap 8 Oct 1665 they were married 1687
Hans b-1656 parents were Hans Jakob Albrecht bap 16 Sep 1629 in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland and Margaretha Volkart b-1637
Hans Jakob Albrecht b-1629 parents were Hans Albrecht born 1594 and Elsbeth Scherer married 1625
Hans Albrecht b-1594 parents were Heinrich Albrecht and Verena Hertzog married 1592
I have a German lady looking at the material that lists Albrechts as decended from Hapsburgs.
I was looking at early Zurich Switzerland records, it takes a lot of concentration and will have to go back when I can spend more time and concentrate. It is hard enough following old records let alone records in old German script!
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Kenny Albright
25 marker DNA test is still a perfect match, they are going slower, maybe just to torture me!
37 marker should be any day now!
37 marker should be any day now!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Don (Wilbur) Albright perfect 67 marker match
There can be no doubt that Don (Wilbur) Albright is related. He matches perfectly on the 67 marker test. That is the most markers compared. It is rare that two people would match that closely and not know they were related. 95 % predictability that we are related within 6 generations.(We are not within 6, I figure 7 or 8) Don is probably 2 generations closer to our common ancestor than I am. I was expecting 66 out of 67 maybe, but the Albright gene must not mutate as easy(ha ha). Anyway Don (Wilbur) Albright and I both have ancestors from York County, Pennsylvania in the late 1700's. I am still waiting for the 37 marker test for Kenny Albright a descendent of Felix Albright that matched perfectly on the 12 marker test.
Now Don (Wilbur) Albright has had relatives that believe that they are descended from either Felix Albright or his brother Henry, I believe you must throw the brother Michael into the mix, not forgetting to mention another brother Jacob.
Well if we both match with Kenny then we know we are in the right family that are also in York County Pennsylvania. Johannes Albrecht being the immigrant coming in about 1743. I have recently obtained information that is about the Von Habsburgs, they were a Royal German family that ruled many areas of Europe. In it that have this Johannes Albrecht mentioned in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland. The document is all in German and am working to translate it once I am sure it is our line. Now I don't care if I have Royalty, but it can help in researching our line back as far as is possible. So you can see that the DNA testing can really lead to some great things.
However, if we don't match with Kenny it is back to the drawing board! A lot hinges on his results! And yes if he matches on 37 I will order a 67 marker test!
Should have Kenny's results in the next couple of weeks!
Little info from wikipedia
The dynasty is named after the seat of origin, the Habsburg castle in the Swiss Canton of Aargau. The origins of the name of the castle are uncertain. Most people assume the name to be derived from the High German Habichtsburg (Hawk Castle), but some historians and linguists are convinced that the name comes from the Middle High German word 'hab/ hap' meaning ford, as there is a river with a ford nearby. The first documented use of the name by the dynasty itself has been traced to the year 1108.[1][2][3] The Habsburg (aka Hapsburg) Castle was the family seat in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries in the former duchy of Swabia, which incorporated present-day Aargau, at the time of the Holy Roman Empire. From southwestern Germany (mainly Alsace, Breisgau, Aargau and Thurgau) the family extended its influence and holdings to the southeastern reaches of the Holy Roman Empire, roughly today's Austria (1278–1382). Within only two or three generations, the Habsburgs had managed to secure an initially intermittent grasp on the imperial throne that would last for centuries (1273–1291, 1298–1308, 1438–1740, and 1745–1806).
Also from Questia: Encyclopedia
Now Don (Wilbur) Albright has had relatives that believe that they are descended from either Felix Albright or his brother Henry, I believe you must throw the brother Michael into the mix, not forgetting to mention another brother Jacob.
Well if we both match with Kenny then we know we are in the right family that are also in York County Pennsylvania. Johannes Albrecht being the immigrant coming in about 1743. I have recently obtained information that is about the Von Habsburgs, they were a Royal German family that ruled many areas of Europe. In it that have this Johannes Albrecht mentioned in Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland. The document is all in German and am working to translate it once I am sure it is our line. Now I don't care if I have Royalty, but it can help in researching our line back as far as is possible. So you can see that the DNA testing can really lead to some great things.
However, if we don't match with Kenny it is back to the drawing board! A lot hinges on his results! And yes if he matches on 37 I will order a 67 marker test!
Should have Kenny's results in the next couple of weeks!
Little info from wikipedia
The dynasty is named after the seat of origin, the Habsburg castle in the Swiss Canton of Aargau. The origins of the name of the castle are uncertain. Most people assume the name to be derived from the High German Habichtsburg (Hawk Castle), but some historians and linguists are convinced that the name comes from the Middle High German word 'hab/ hap' meaning ford, as there is a river with a ford nearby. The first documented use of the name by the dynasty itself has been traced to the year 1108.[1][2][3] The Habsburg (aka Hapsburg) Castle was the family seat in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries in the former duchy of Swabia, which incorporated present-day Aargau, at the time of the Holy Roman Empire. From southwestern Germany (mainly Alsace, Breisgau, Aargau and Thurgau) the family extended its influence and holdings to the southeastern reaches of the Holy Roman Empire, roughly today's Austria (1278–1382). Within only two or three generations, the Habsburgs had managed to secure an initially intermittent grasp on the imperial throne that would last for centuries (1273–1291, 1298–1308, 1438–1740, and 1745–1806).
Also from Questia: Encyclopedia
HAPSBURG
| or Habsburgboth: hăpsˈbûrg, Ger. häpsˈboork, ruling house of Austria (1282–1918). Rise to Power The family, which can be traced to the 10th cent., originally held lands in Alsace and in NW Switzerland. Otto (d. 1111) took the name Hapsburg from a castle near Aargau, Switzerland, when he was designated count. Vast estates in Upper Alsace, Baden, and Switzerland were inherited (1173) by his grandson Count Albert III (d. 1199) and passed to Rudolf II (d. 1232) and Albert IV (d. c.1240). The extinction of the houses of Lenzburg, Zähringen, and Kyburg facilitated family acquisitions. The election (1273) of Count Rudolf IV as Rudolf I, king of the Germans, provoked war with King Ottocar II of Bohemia. Ottocar's defeat and death at the Marchfeld (1278) confirmed Hapsburg possession of Austria, Carniola, and Styria; these lands and the Austrian ducal title were declared hereditary by Rudolf in 1282. In 1335 Carinthia too was claimed. Possession of these dominions marked the rise of the Hapsburgs to European significance. Held in common by the sons of Albert I and of Albert II, the many lands were divided, after the death (1365) of Duke Rudolf IV, between the Albertine and Leopoldine lines (named for his brothers). |
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Kenny Albright descendent of Christian Albright
Just received the DNA results for Kenny Albright, we have a 12 on 12 perfect match. I am cautiously holding back my excitement. He is the same Haplogroup and I believe he will turn out like Wilbur (Don) Albright and continue to match as we do more marker tests. This will conclusively prove my relationship to the Albrechts of Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland. Although I may never find what son of Johannes Albrecht b-1701 and Margaretha Moor b-1706 I am from, I may be able to make some educated guesses. Once again I will hold back my excitement until these tests come back!
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Don (Wilbur) Albright DNA results
Results are in on Don (Wilbur) Albright 37 marker test and it is a perfect match 37 on 37.
This is what familytreeDNA says on a 37 marker test
This is what familytreeDNA says on a 37 marker test
37/37 Your perfect match means you share a common male ancestor with a person who shares your surname (or variant). Your relatedness is extremely close with the common ancestor predicted, 50% of the time, in 5 generations or less and with a 90% probability within 16 generations. Very few people achieve this close level of a match. All confidence levels are well within the time frame that surnames were adopted in Western Europe.
My guess would be that Don (Wilbur) Albright's ancestor Jacob Albright born abt 1770 is a first cousin to my ancestor Jacob Albright the gunsmith born abt 1770 also. That would put are common ancestor at about the 8th generation. My question is why do a 67 marker test for Don (Wilbur) Albright? Don't I have enough evidence with the common place of origin and now the perfect 37 marker match. I am having one other individual do the test that was also related to the same York County bunch from Switzerland.
My guess would be that Don (Wilbur) Albright's ancestor Jacob Albright born abt 1770 is a first cousin to my ancestor Jacob Albright the gunsmith born abt 1770 also. That would put are common ancestor at about the 8th generation. My question is why do a 67 marker test for Don (Wilbur) Albright? Don't I have enough evidence with the common place of origin and now the perfect 37 marker match. I am having one other individual do the test that was also related to the same York County bunch from Switzerland.
My thinking is to see how the testing goes for Kenny Albright, descendent of Felix Albright b-1734 in Zurich, Switzerland and died in York Co. Pa in 1780.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
More New DNA testing
I have found a descendant of Christian Albright b-abt 1774 and Christina Brodbeck. Christian is the son of Felix Albrecht b-abt 1734 and Anna Maria Seigrist. I had help locating a male descendant from Cynthia Turk and Sheryl Yocom, who are descendants of Christian, they don't know each other, I am grateful for emails and genealogy posts as I was in touch with both of them years ago and when DNA testing for genealogy became a reality, I realized these connections could prove extremely valuable. The male descendant who lives in the west can give further proof of the Zürich, Switzerland Albrecht's (Albrights). The test date is projected to be done in about 6 weeks, usually it isn't that long but I did have one that they had to redo and it did take a little longer.
So now I await 2 Albright DNA tests. Don (Wilbur) Albright and Kenny Albright.
It is amazing that there was only 13 Albright doing the test, 4 are ones I have involvement with. I had told one of my old wrestlers whose last name was Williams that he ought to do it, there are 525 Williams doing the testing, so it would seem he would have a greater chance for success.
So now I await 2 Albright DNA tests. Don (Wilbur) Albright and Kenny Albright.
It is amazing that there was only 13 Albright doing the test, 4 are ones I have involvement with. I had told one of my old wrestlers whose last name was Williams that he ought to do it, there are 525 Williams doing the testing, so it would seem he would have a greater chance for success.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
DNA Testing
The 25 marker DNA results came back on Don (Wilbur) Albright. We still have a perfect 25 on 25 match. So ordered a 37 marker test. (from familyDNA site) Your perfect 25/25 match means you share a common male ancestor with a person who shares your surname (or variant). These two facts demonstrate your relatedness.
Explanation from ancestry.com on DNA.
For example, a 12 for 12 match tells you that there is a 90 percent probability that your common ancestor lived within the last 48 generations and a 50 percent probability that he lived within the last 15 generations. A 25 for 25 match narrows these time frames, revealing a 90 percent probability that your common ancestor lived within the last 20 generations and a 50 percent probability that he lived within the last seven generations. Additional markers clearly go a long way to bringing test results into genealogically relevant time spans!
My guess is that I am related within about 8 or 9 generations of Don (Wilbur) Albright.
Needless to say I am putting the Zurich, Switzerland Albrechts into my database for future postings!
Explanation from ancestry.com on DNA.
For example, a 12 for 12 match tells you that there is a 90 percent probability that your common ancestor lived within the last 48 generations and a 50 percent probability that he lived within the last 15 generations. A 25 for 25 match narrows these time frames, revealing a 90 percent probability that your common ancestor lived within the last 20 generations and a 50 percent probability that he lived within the last seven generations. Additional markers clearly go a long way to bringing test results into genealogically relevant time spans!
My guess is that I am related within about 8 or 9 generations of Don (Wilbur) Albright.
Needless to say I am putting the Zurich, Switzerland Albrechts into my database for future postings!
Saturday, March 29, 2008
DNA Testing
Still awaiting results on 25 marker test for Don (Wilbur) Albright. Chet Albright's 12 marker results are back and we all 3 have a 12 on 12 match. Further marker test may be in order, we will see how the 25 marker tests turn out. Should be within 10 days!
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Current DNA testing
A Wilbur D. Albright(Goes by Don) had done the DNA testing through family tree DNA. He is a 91 year old man who lives in Fresno, California. He turned out to be a perfect 12 on 12 match. I have since ordered a 25 marker test. It turns out that Don is a 2nd cousin to the 91 year old Chet Albright. These gentleman are descendants of Jacob Albright and Rachel Brown. This Jacob originated in York County Pennsylvania. I believe my Albright's and theirs are descendants of Johannes Albright(Albrecht) and Magaretha Moor. I think there is no doubt as to the Jacob Albright, spouse of Rachel Brown, as being the great grandson of Johannes Albrecht and Margaretha Moor. We know his father was Jacob Albright and his wife is Catherina. I also believe the DNA can prove if Zachariah Albright is also a great grandson Johannes Albrecht and Margaretha Moor. Zacharias parents were Jacob Albright and Catherine Brungart. The question arises which sons of Johannes were the grandparents. Johannes and Margaretha had at least 5 sons, Hans Jacob, Jacob, Felix, Michael and Henry. I do have the records of Neerach, Zurich, Switzerland that does have the baptism and births of this Albrecht family going back a few generations. But Johannes and Margaretha left in about 1743 and their last 2 children, Michael and Henry were born in America. I believe everyone of the sons of Johannes and Margaretha probably had a son named Jacob.
If indeed the DNA proves a link between the Jacob Albright "Gunsmith" family and the Jacob Albright and Rachel Brown family. I will share the possible links, based upon information available at this time.
If indeed the DNA proves a link between the Jacob Albright "Gunsmith" family and the Jacob Albright and Rachel Brown family. I will share the possible links, based upon information available at this time.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Current projects
I am working with others on Albright DNA, we ordered a kit for a 91 year old Chet Albright, he descends from Jacob Albright and Rachel Brown, who we know was a child of Jacob Albright and Catherine of York Co. Penns. Of course my Jacob albright "Gunsmith" wife was also Catherine and many have connected Jacob husband of Rachel as a son of Jacob "Gunsmith". He is not, but could Jacob "Gunsmith" be an Uncle, we hope DNA might prove this.
Been working on McCord's of Dutchess Co. New York, circumstantial evidence would show that my Jane McCord born abt 1817 in New York is daughter of Joseph H. McCord and Noami Titus. Noami Titus being daughter of Gilbert Titus and Jane Hoag. The Gilbert Titus name comes down each generation ie; Gilbert Titus Duffy, Gilbert Titus Alexander, etc. to even current living relatives.
The believed brother of Jane McCord, is Gilbert T. McCord born 1820 New York who was living in Monroe Co. Ohio in 1850 where my Jane McCord Duffy was also living.
Gilbert T. named children Joseph H. McCord and Naomi McCord.
Also Bill Johnson who has done a great job on the Freeburns is talking about a Freeburn reunion in a couple of years, everybody bring pictures and information, and put together the Freeburn descendants. I am on board with that!
Been working on McCord's of Dutchess Co. New York, circumstantial evidence would show that my Jane McCord born abt 1817 in New York is daughter of Joseph H. McCord and Noami Titus. Noami Titus being daughter of Gilbert Titus and Jane Hoag. The Gilbert Titus name comes down each generation ie; Gilbert Titus Duffy, Gilbert Titus Alexander, etc. to even current living relatives.
The believed brother of Jane McCord, is Gilbert T. McCord born 1820 New York who was living in Monroe Co. Ohio in 1850 where my Jane McCord Duffy was also living.
Gilbert T. named children Joseph H. McCord and Naomi McCord.
Also Bill Johnson who has done a great job on the Freeburns is talking about a Freeburn reunion in a couple of years, everybody bring pictures and information, and put together the Freeburn descendants. I am on board with that!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
In Search of Jacob Albright, Gunsmith
Here's a fantastic article on Jacob Albright, published by the Kentucky Rifle Association. I couldn't find any place on the Internet where this article was posted, so I'm providing the text version here:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Search of Jacob Albright, Gunsmith
By Merle E. Campbell, KRA
Jacob Albright (1766-1840), Centre County, PA
Preface
For some time now it has been generally known that Jacob Albright (*J*Alb*), a highly skilled and prolific maker of Kentucky rifles, lived in Penns Valley in Haines Township in Centre County, Pennsylvania, and that he died there in the year 1840.
Beyond this, however, little has been known about his life, family, or real identity. Was he, in fact-as has been assumed for so long by many Kentucky rifle enthusiasts-the son of the legendary Andreas Albright and brother of the famed gunsmith Henry Albright? What relationship, if any, did he share with the gunsmith Zachariah Albright? To the Jacob Albright, gunsmith of Wooster in Wayne County, Ohio? To the gunsmiths who signed their rifles JA and DA and whose work evidenced stylistic similarities to that of Jacob Albright of Penns Valley in Haines Township?
These puzzling questions, together with the acquisition of a *J*Alb* that had been handed down through several generations of an old Penns Valley family, spurred a strong interest in learning more about Albright, in dispelling at least some of the haziness that has shrouded his life and identity.
Finding some of the answers to these questions has proved to be a longish labor of love, complicated no little by the truly astounding number of Jacob Albrechts/Albrights to be found in Pennsylvania during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
The author is greatly indebted to the following individuals whose contributions have been of significant importance in the compilation of this study: Gladys C. Murray, Curator of the Centre County Library and Historical Museum; Florence G. Gordon, a descendant of Anthony Albright and a long-time genealogist and chronicler of Albright families; Mary Hull Dyke, a researcher of the Lancaster County Historical Society; and two members of the Kentucky Rifle Association-John J. Albright, an Albright researcher and descendant of Andreas Albright via his son Henry, and Miles W. Farley, a collector of Albright rifles.
Jacob Albright of Haines Township
In his History of Centre and Clinton Counties (1883) James Blair Linn has Jacob Albright living in Aaronsburg, in Haines Township, as early as 1799, when the Township was still a part of Northumberland County. In 1800 Haines became a part of newly formed Centre County, and in 1801 the name of "Jacob Albright, gunsmith" appears for the first time on a list of Centre County taxables.
It would appear that Albright had established residence in Aaronsburg as early as 1798. In that year, according to Linn, Martin and Catharine Brungart, who lived in the vicinity of Hanover in York County, sold their property and with their sons and daughters resettled in Brush Valley, which runs parallel to Penns Valley on the other side of Brush Mountain. The Brungarts were among the earliest settlers in this area of Centre County. Communications between families living in the two mountain valleys were facilitated by a pass located in Millheim, just west of the village of Aaronsburg.
Mention of the Brungarts is made because, as Linn points out, "one of the Brungart daughters was married to Jacob Albright of Penns Valley." Thus one might assume that Jacob had also come from York County, and correctly so, as confirmed by a letter written in 1854 by Jacob Harter of Millheim to his nephew Mathias Harter in Summit County, Ohio, Mathias was the son of Susanna Albright Harter, daughter of Jacob Albright In the letter Harter writes-apparently in response to a question raised by Mathias-"Your Grandfather Jacob Albright was from York County, Pa. Your Grandmother on your Mother's side was a Miss Brungart perhaps also from York County, Pa."
In the early 1790's the Penns Valley region was still not that far removed from being regarded as frontier territory. The "Great Runaway" of 1778, when virtually all of its settlers were driven back into eastern and south-central Pennsylvania by massive Indian attacks, was still a vivid memory. Within a year or two, however, most of the dispossessed had returned and were being joined by newcomers attracted by the availability of the excellent farmland to be had in the verdant and beautiful Penns and Brush Valleys.
The opportunities presented by moving into an area of this kind must have seemed very promising indeed to one at Albright's level of skill at gunsmithing. Guns were needed for hunting, for protection, for recreation, and as far as can be ascertained Albright would have been the only gunsmith in the whole Penns Valley region at that time.
Seemingly no existing County records can tell us what Albright's age was when he arrived in Haines Township-nor, after his death, any obituary notice, cemetery record, or tombstone marker. However by an extrapolation of age data provided by U.S. Census figures for the years 1800 through 1830 it is possible to conclude that he was born during the period 1766-1770. When he first came to Haines Township, thus, he would have been from 28 to 32 years of age.
According to Township records Albright remained in Aaronsburg until 1814, when he relocated in nearby Millheim ("Home of the Mills"), a growing and thriving trading hub.
His death in the summer of 1840 apparently resulted from an injury of some kind, judging by the nature and timing of the bills for medical services and materials submitted for payment to his executors. His last will and testament, signed and witnessed on April 25, 1840, and found in the Centre County Courthouse, provides us with the first significant insights into his life and times.
In the will, he immediately identifies himself and his vocation ... "I Jacob Albright of the town of Millheim in the County of Centre and state of Pennsylvania, Gunsmith..."
The succeeding paragraphs tell us that he was alert of mind but in failing physical condition; that he was a man of ample means, possessed of real and personal property; that he was a conscientious family man who wished to make certain that his just debts were settled after his demise; that he was a caring man who wanted to be sure that in the years ahead adequate support would be provided for his widow and, after her death, "for my three children, to wit, William, Elizabeth, and Catharine, they being nearly deaf and dumb."
To care for the children he directed that after the death of his widow all of the then remaining assets in his estate were to be sold and the proceeds divided share and share alike and then "paid over to Guardians or trustees that shall be duly appointed to take charge of them and their money..." Named as executors were "my friends Adam Morr and Thomas Weaver, both of Millheim." Witnesses were John Harter and Jacob Bollinger. All four men were prominent and highly respected residents of the Aaronsburg-Millheim community.
The will found in the Courthouse is a copy of the original made by a court scribe. As such, all signatures are in the hand of the scribe. Albright’s is shown as "Jacob Albright in German (seal)". Of speculative interest here is the possibility that the clipped “*J*Alb*” signature found on Albright’s rifles may represent a useful compromise between his personal preference for using his German name (Albrecht) versus the anglicized version of Albright that was apparently in common usage throughout his community.
On October 17, 1840, a vendue was held in Millhein to provide cash for the settlement of Albright’s outstanding debts and funeral expenses. Although pieces of farming gear and a few items of furniture were included in the sale, the bulk of the tools, equipment, and materials listed related to the business of gunsmithing.
With the vendue came a gleam of light as to a probable familial relationship between Jacob and Zachariah Albright. Zachariah was among those attending the sale, and his purchases were:
Lot of patterns $ .50
1 Smiths Vice (sic) 3.50
a Gunsmiths guide 1.20
1 Gunsmith sign .56
The purchase of the gunsmith sign in particular would seem to signal a strong sentimental attachment to the deceased. Within a short time this presumption became a reality with the chance discovery in the Centre County Courthouse of a power of attorney issued on November
26, 1863, by the Judge of Green County, Wisconsin, to Andrew S. Kreamer, a Milesburg, Centre County, attorney.
It is quoted in part:
"Know all men by These Presents, That Zachariah Albright of Clarno, Green County, Wisconsin, and Guardian at law of my sister Catharine Albright of same place, late of the Town of Millheim, Centre County, Pennsylvania, being a deaf and dumb person, and legatee under the last will and testament of Jacob Albright, late of Millheim, Centre County, Pennsylvania, now deceased, do hereby order and constitute and appoint Andrew S. Kreamer... as my true and lawful attorney... to ask, demand and sue for the Legacy due the said Catharine under and by virtue of said will and testament..."
Thus it can now be stated, unequivocally, that Zachariah Albright, gunsmith, was indeed the son of Jacob Albright, gunsmith of Haines Township.
The U.S. Census of 1850 locates Zachariah in Stephenson County, Illinois, and also informs us that he was 54 years of age at that time. With the date of his birth thus established as 1796 it becomes apparent that he was born in York County, before his parents moved to Penns Valley.
An unpublished study-Protocol and Baptism Records of the Aaronsburg Lutheran Church, 1794-1854 (N. D.), translated and copied by the Reverend L G. Shannon, reveals that Jacob and Catharine Brungart Albright had these additional children:
1798 - Susanna
1800 - Juliana
1801 - John
1803 - Jacob Jr.
1804 - Catharine
1807 - Elizabeth
1809 - Daniel
1811 - William
A fifth son, David, is strangely missing from the Shannon study. His presence, however, has been documented by The History and Genealogy of the Brungart Family (N. D.) by Vera Catherine Brungart, Genealogist, and Jasper Royer Brungart, Historian, and by the genealogical records of the late Guy H. Albright, a Jacob Albright descendant.
David first appears in Haines Township tax records as a single freeman in 1827. In Township usage at that time a single freeman described an unmarried male of 21 eligible to own property. This information would set his year of birth as 1806, a date that would seem to fit into the Albright’s busy birthing schedule.
Jacob's first wife, Catharine, died in 1813. A year later he married Barbara Homan Rockey, the wife of Jacob Rockey of Haines Township. This union produced the last three of Jacob's thirteen children:
1815 - Samuel
1817 - Andrew
1819 - Amos
Separating the Jacob Albrights
The separate identities of Jacob Albright of Haines Township and Jacob Albright, son of Andreas and Elizabeth Orth Albright, can best be verified by a comparison of their ages and family situations.
First, and most notably, there was a marked difference in the size of the families of the two Jacobs.
A genealogy of the Andreas Albright family written in 1885 by Thomas J. Albright, son of Henry Albright the gunsmith, and himself a gunsmith and gun trader of St Louis, Missouri, tells us that Andreas' son Jacob had three children-William, Charles and a daughter. It also notes that Jacob "may have died at Northumberland, where he was a tollkeeper" . . . and that his daughter "married _________ Parks and lived and died in Chillisquaque, Pa."
It is interesting to note that Northumberland and Chillisquaque are neighboring communities along the Susquehanna River.
Confirming and expanding upon the above, genealogical records of the Andreas Albright family provided by researchers Gordon and Albright show that it was a Charles Parks that married Jacob's daughter Rebecca, and that Jacob married a Charlotte Leinbach and had five children:
1800- Rebecca
1803 - Charles
1806 - Edward
1809 - William
1813 - Catherine
Second, the ages of the two Jacobs differed. Jacob of Haines Township, born in the period 1766-70, was from five to nine years older than Jacob, son of Andreas, born in 1775.
Thus it is now possible, and at long last, to conclude that the Jacob Albright of Haines Township in Penns Valley and the Jacob Albright, son of Andreas, were two distinctly different persons.
The Jacob Albright Family of Gunsmiths
In view of its ultimate findings perhaps this study should have been titled "In Search of the Jacob Albright Family of Gunsmiths", for it has opened a surprising vista in this regard. No less than five gunsmiths descended from Jacob Albright of Haines Township have been identified thus far.
1. Zachariah Albright (1796-1889), identified earlier in this report. He first appears in the tax records of Haines Township as a gunsmith in Millhein in 1819. He remained there until 1827, when he began a series of resettlements that took him to Mifflin County (PA) to Bedford County (PA), to Stephenson County, Illinois, and finally to Clamo, Wisconsin, where he lived the rest of his life on a large farm.
2. Jacob Albright, Jr., Jacob's third son (born 1803 in Aaronsburg, died 1884 in Wayne County, Ohio), first appeared on Haines Township tax rolls as a gunsmith in 1825. During his years as a gunsmith he signed his rifles variously as J Alb J, J Alb, JA, and J. Albright. Rifles made during his Haines Township period are almost indistinguishable from those made by his father. In 1828 he moved to Mifflin County and then, in 1830, to Wooster, in Wayne County, Ohio.
Some insights into Jacob JR’s life are provided by Genealogy of the Morr Family (1886) by Calvin Moyer (Jacob Jr. married Elizabeth Morr of Haines Township). Moyer informs us that in Wooster, Jacob Jr. "worked at gunsmithing, retailing groceries, and brewing." Eventually, like his brother Zachariah and other members of his family, he turned to farming to make a living.
Moyer relates this interesting story about Jacob Jr.:
"Mr. Albright was the inventor of a stump puller which he frequently used to pull stumps on his own farm. His masterpiece of workmanship was a gun made of curly maple. On it was an engraving of a fox chase, inlaid in gold and silver. The weapon was beautifully carved with silver and gold trimmings. He took the gun to Washington and showed it to President Jackson. He sold it to a government official for $150 with instructions that he was to place it on exhibition there. The gun was valued at $450, but it was considerably damaged at one time while Mr. Albright was defending himself against a vicious dog. Jacob Albright was a man of fine physique and strong personal character."
3. David Albright (born 1806 in Aaronsburg) was the fourth son of Jacob and Catharine Albright. Haines Township tax records for 1827 list him as a single freeman. No occupation is given, but like his brother Jacob Jr. his tax assessment was fixed at $200, seemingly the going rate for gunsmiths at that time. Later assessments show him with a shop, 1 lot, and 1 house.
That he was trained as a gunsmith Is evidenced by a rifle signed DA on the barrel in script letters remarkably like those used by Zachariah and Jacob Jr. Of more significance is a large DA carved in the cheekside of the butt in the same graceful script form and decorative embellishments seen in rifles by Jacob1, Jacob Jr., and Zachariah.
4. Zachariah Albright, Jr. (born in Millheim in 1822, died in North Hampton, Iowa, in 1886). Like his father, Zachariah Jr. appears in the U.S. Census of 1850 as a resident of Stephenson County, Illinois, where he is listed as a "Pennsylvania born gunsmith." Later he is described in the genealogical records of Guy Albright (his grandson) "as a gunsmith by training and a farmer by necessity."
Parenthetically it is interesting to note that the artistic strain so inherently apparent in the Albright family emerged full blown in one of Zachariah JR’s sons-Adam Emory Albright (born 1862, who became a prominent American artist and writer. That prominence, in turn, was carried forward by Adam Emory Albright’s twin sons-Ivan LeLorraine Albright and Malvin Marr Albright (born 1897, both of whom achieved wide-spread recognition in American art circles in the t~~tieth century.
5. Albert Albright, the second son of Zachariah JR., was born in Millheim in 1825. He seems to have followed the trail of his father all the way to Clamo, Wisconsin. The History of Green County; Wisconsin (1903) relates that Albert Albright "learned the trade of gunsmithing, at which he worked a good many years" . . . and that he had originally "purchased a farm of 137 acres" . . . and that "he now owns 185 acres, raises stock and manufactures butter."
To date the author has not seen any examples of the work of either Zachariah Jr. or Albert Albright It would be interesting to note if their rifles bear any imprint of the master, Jacob Albright of Penns Valley, whose characteristic handiwork seems to have been steadily reflected in the work of his other gunsmithing descendants.
In Conclusion, Some Speculation
Thus far in this study there has been an absence of any reference to Jacob Albright's origins. The reason is that quite a bit of murkiness surrounds the subject It needs further illumination, and the author's efforts to date have failed to shed any light on the situation.
The most persistent view of Albright's forebears is that Jacob's parents were Jacob "the Weaver", son of Socias "The Peddler" (merchant), and Clauderena Glocker Albrecht, who came to America in 1759 and settled in southern York County. They were thought to be of Swiss descent
Another view is offered by an Albright researcher who believes that Jacob's father came from the area of SuhI, Germany, and may well have been a brother of Andreas Albright This investigation is alive and on-going.
Perhaps, with further study, the two views may even merge. A fascinating possibility!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Search of Jacob Albright, Gunsmith
By Merle E. Campbell, KRA
Jacob Albright (1766-1840), Centre County, PA
Preface
For some time now it has been generally known that Jacob Albright (*J*Alb*), a highly skilled and prolific maker of Kentucky rifles, lived in Penns Valley in Haines Township in Centre County, Pennsylvania, and that he died there in the year 1840.
Beyond this, however, little has been known about his life, family, or real identity. Was he, in fact-as has been assumed for so long by many Kentucky rifle enthusiasts-the son of the legendary Andreas Albright and brother of the famed gunsmith Henry Albright? What relationship, if any, did he share with the gunsmith Zachariah Albright? To the Jacob Albright, gunsmith of Wooster in Wayne County, Ohio? To the gunsmiths who signed their rifles JA and DA and whose work evidenced stylistic similarities to that of Jacob Albright of Penns Valley in Haines Township?
These puzzling questions, together with the acquisition of a *J*Alb* that had been handed down through several generations of an old Penns Valley family, spurred a strong interest in learning more about Albright, in dispelling at least some of the haziness that has shrouded his life and identity.
Finding some of the answers to these questions has proved to be a longish labor of love, complicated no little by the truly astounding number of Jacob Albrechts/Albrights to be found in Pennsylvania during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
The author is greatly indebted to the following individuals whose contributions have been of significant importance in the compilation of this study: Gladys C. Murray, Curator of the Centre County Library and Historical Museum; Florence G. Gordon, a descendant of Anthony Albright and a long-time genealogist and chronicler of Albright families; Mary Hull Dyke, a researcher of the Lancaster County Historical Society; and two members of the Kentucky Rifle Association-John J. Albright, an Albright researcher and descendant of Andreas Albright via his son Henry, and Miles W. Farley, a collector of Albright rifles.
Jacob Albright of Haines Township
In his History of Centre and Clinton Counties (1883) James Blair Linn has Jacob Albright living in Aaronsburg, in Haines Township, as early as 1799, when the Township was still a part of Northumberland County. In 1800 Haines became a part of newly formed Centre County, and in 1801 the name of "Jacob Albright, gunsmith" appears for the first time on a list of Centre County taxables.
It would appear that Albright had established residence in Aaronsburg as early as 1798. In that year, according to Linn, Martin and Catharine Brungart, who lived in the vicinity of Hanover in York County, sold their property and with their sons and daughters resettled in Brush Valley, which runs parallel to Penns Valley on the other side of Brush Mountain. The Brungarts were among the earliest settlers in this area of Centre County. Communications between families living in the two mountain valleys were facilitated by a pass located in Millheim, just west of the village of Aaronsburg.
Mention of the Brungarts is made because, as Linn points out, "one of the Brungart daughters was married to Jacob Albright of Penns Valley." Thus one might assume that Jacob had also come from York County, and correctly so, as confirmed by a letter written in 1854 by Jacob Harter of Millheim to his nephew Mathias Harter in Summit County, Ohio, Mathias was the son of Susanna Albright Harter, daughter of Jacob Albright In the letter Harter writes-apparently in response to a question raised by Mathias-"Your Grandfather Jacob Albright was from York County, Pa. Your Grandmother on your Mother's side was a Miss Brungart perhaps also from York County, Pa."
In the early 1790's the Penns Valley region was still not that far removed from being regarded as frontier territory. The "Great Runaway" of 1778, when virtually all of its settlers were driven back into eastern and south-central Pennsylvania by massive Indian attacks, was still a vivid memory. Within a year or two, however, most of the dispossessed had returned and were being joined by newcomers attracted by the availability of the excellent farmland to be had in the verdant and beautiful Penns and Brush Valleys.
The opportunities presented by moving into an area of this kind must have seemed very promising indeed to one at Albright's level of skill at gunsmithing. Guns were needed for hunting, for protection, for recreation, and as far as can be ascertained Albright would have been the only gunsmith in the whole Penns Valley region at that time.
Seemingly no existing County records can tell us what Albright's age was when he arrived in Haines Township-nor, after his death, any obituary notice, cemetery record, or tombstone marker. However by an extrapolation of age data provided by U.S. Census figures for the years 1800 through 1830 it is possible to conclude that he was born during the period 1766-1770. When he first came to Haines Township, thus, he would have been from 28 to 32 years of age.
According to Township records Albright remained in Aaronsburg until 1814, when he relocated in nearby Millheim ("Home of the Mills"), a growing and thriving trading hub.
His death in the summer of 1840 apparently resulted from an injury of some kind, judging by the nature and timing of the bills for medical services and materials submitted for payment to his executors. His last will and testament, signed and witnessed on April 25, 1840, and found in the Centre County Courthouse, provides us with the first significant insights into his life and times.
In the will, he immediately identifies himself and his vocation ... "I Jacob Albright of the town of Millheim in the County of Centre and state of Pennsylvania, Gunsmith..."
The succeeding paragraphs tell us that he was alert of mind but in failing physical condition; that he was a man of ample means, possessed of real and personal property; that he was a conscientious family man who wished to make certain that his just debts were settled after his demise; that he was a caring man who wanted to be sure that in the years ahead adequate support would be provided for his widow and, after her death, "for my three children, to wit, William, Elizabeth, and Catharine, they being nearly deaf and dumb."
To care for the children he directed that after the death of his widow all of the then remaining assets in his estate were to be sold and the proceeds divided share and share alike and then "paid over to Guardians or trustees that shall be duly appointed to take charge of them and their money..." Named as executors were "my friends Adam Morr and Thomas Weaver, both of Millheim." Witnesses were John Harter and Jacob Bollinger. All four men were prominent and highly respected residents of the Aaronsburg-Millheim community.
The will found in the Courthouse is a copy of the original made by a court scribe. As such, all signatures are in the hand of the scribe. Albright’s is shown as "Jacob Albright in German (seal)". Of speculative interest here is the possibility that the clipped “*J*Alb*” signature found on Albright’s rifles may represent a useful compromise between his personal preference for using his German name (Albrecht) versus the anglicized version of Albright that was apparently in common usage throughout his community.
On October 17, 1840, a vendue was held in Millhein to provide cash for the settlement of Albright’s outstanding debts and funeral expenses. Although pieces of farming gear and a few items of furniture were included in the sale, the bulk of the tools, equipment, and materials listed related to the business of gunsmithing.
With the vendue came a gleam of light as to a probable familial relationship between Jacob and Zachariah Albright. Zachariah was among those attending the sale, and his purchases were:
Lot of patterns $ .50
1 Smiths Vice (sic) 3.50
a Gunsmiths guide 1.20
1 Gunsmith sign .56
The purchase of the gunsmith sign in particular would seem to signal a strong sentimental attachment to the deceased. Within a short time this presumption became a reality with the chance discovery in the Centre County Courthouse of a power of attorney issued on November
26, 1863, by the Judge of Green County, Wisconsin, to Andrew S. Kreamer, a Milesburg, Centre County, attorney.
It is quoted in part:
"Know all men by These Presents, That Zachariah Albright of Clarno, Green County, Wisconsin, and Guardian at law of my sister Catharine Albright of same place, late of the Town of Millheim, Centre County, Pennsylvania, being a deaf and dumb person, and legatee under the last will and testament of Jacob Albright, late of Millheim, Centre County, Pennsylvania, now deceased, do hereby order and constitute and appoint Andrew S. Kreamer... as my true and lawful attorney... to ask, demand and sue for the Legacy due the said Catharine under and by virtue of said will and testament..."
Thus it can now be stated, unequivocally, that Zachariah Albright, gunsmith, was indeed the son of Jacob Albright, gunsmith of Haines Township.
The U.S. Census of 1850 locates Zachariah in Stephenson County, Illinois, and also informs us that he was 54 years of age at that time. With the date of his birth thus established as 1796 it becomes apparent that he was born in York County, before his parents moved to Penns Valley.
An unpublished study-Protocol and Baptism Records of the Aaronsburg Lutheran Church, 1794-1854 (N. D.), translated and copied by the Reverend L G. Shannon, reveals that Jacob and Catharine Brungart Albright had these additional children:
1798 - Susanna
1800 - Juliana
1801 - John
1803 - Jacob Jr.
1804 - Catharine
1807 - Elizabeth
1809 - Daniel
1811 - William
A fifth son, David, is strangely missing from the Shannon study. His presence, however, has been documented by The History and Genealogy of the Brungart Family (N. D.) by Vera Catherine Brungart, Genealogist, and Jasper Royer Brungart, Historian, and by the genealogical records of the late Guy H. Albright, a Jacob Albright descendant.
David first appears in Haines Township tax records as a single freeman in 1827. In Township usage at that time a single freeman described an unmarried male of 21 eligible to own property. This information would set his year of birth as 1806, a date that would seem to fit into the Albright’s busy birthing schedule.
Jacob's first wife, Catharine, died in 1813. A year later he married Barbara Homan Rockey, the wife of Jacob Rockey of Haines Township. This union produced the last three of Jacob's thirteen children:
1815 - Samuel
1817 - Andrew
1819 - Amos
Separating the Jacob Albrights
The separate identities of Jacob Albright of Haines Township and Jacob Albright, son of Andreas and Elizabeth Orth Albright, can best be verified by a comparison of their ages and family situations.
First, and most notably, there was a marked difference in the size of the families of the two Jacobs.
A genealogy of the Andreas Albright family written in 1885 by Thomas J. Albright, son of Henry Albright the gunsmith, and himself a gunsmith and gun trader of St Louis, Missouri, tells us that Andreas' son Jacob had three children-William, Charles and a daughter. It also notes that Jacob "may have died at Northumberland, where he was a tollkeeper" . . . and that his daughter "married _________ Parks and lived and died in Chillisquaque, Pa."
It is interesting to note that Northumberland and Chillisquaque are neighboring communities along the Susquehanna River.
Confirming and expanding upon the above, genealogical records of the Andreas Albright family provided by researchers Gordon and Albright show that it was a Charles Parks that married Jacob's daughter Rebecca, and that Jacob married a Charlotte Leinbach and had five children:
1800- Rebecca
1803 - Charles
1806 - Edward
1809 - William
1813 - Catherine
Second, the ages of the two Jacobs differed. Jacob of Haines Township, born in the period 1766-70, was from five to nine years older than Jacob, son of Andreas, born in 1775.
Thus it is now possible, and at long last, to conclude that the Jacob Albright of Haines Township in Penns Valley and the Jacob Albright, son of Andreas, were two distinctly different persons.
The Jacob Albright Family of Gunsmiths
In view of its ultimate findings perhaps this study should have been titled "In Search of the Jacob Albright Family of Gunsmiths", for it has opened a surprising vista in this regard. No less than five gunsmiths descended from Jacob Albright of Haines Township have been identified thus far.
1. Zachariah Albright (1796-1889), identified earlier in this report. He first appears in the tax records of Haines Township as a gunsmith in Millhein in 1819. He remained there until 1827, when he began a series of resettlements that took him to Mifflin County (PA) to Bedford County (PA), to Stephenson County, Illinois, and finally to Clamo, Wisconsin, where he lived the rest of his life on a large farm.
2. Jacob Albright, Jr., Jacob's third son (born 1803 in Aaronsburg, died 1884 in Wayne County, Ohio), first appeared on Haines Township tax rolls as a gunsmith in 1825. During his years as a gunsmith he signed his rifles variously as J Alb J, J Alb, JA, and J. Albright. Rifles made during his Haines Township period are almost indistinguishable from those made by his father. In 1828 he moved to Mifflin County and then, in 1830, to Wooster, in Wayne County, Ohio.
Some insights into Jacob JR’s life are provided by Genealogy of the Morr Family (1886) by Calvin Moyer (Jacob Jr. married Elizabeth Morr of Haines Township). Moyer informs us that in Wooster, Jacob Jr. "worked at gunsmithing, retailing groceries, and brewing." Eventually, like his brother Zachariah and other members of his family, he turned to farming to make a living.
Moyer relates this interesting story about Jacob Jr.:
"Mr. Albright was the inventor of a stump puller which he frequently used to pull stumps on his own farm. His masterpiece of workmanship was a gun made of curly maple. On it was an engraving of a fox chase, inlaid in gold and silver. The weapon was beautifully carved with silver and gold trimmings. He took the gun to Washington and showed it to President Jackson. He sold it to a government official for $150 with instructions that he was to place it on exhibition there. The gun was valued at $450, but it was considerably damaged at one time while Mr. Albright was defending himself against a vicious dog. Jacob Albright was a man of fine physique and strong personal character."
3. David Albright (born 1806 in Aaronsburg) was the fourth son of Jacob and Catharine Albright. Haines Township tax records for 1827 list him as a single freeman. No occupation is given, but like his brother Jacob Jr. his tax assessment was fixed at $200, seemingly the going rate for gunsmiths at that time. Later assessments show him with a shop, 1 lot, and 1 house.
That he was trained as a gunsmith Is evidenced by a rifle signed DA on the barrel in script letters remarkably like those used by Zachariah and Jacob Jr. Of more significance is a large DA carved in the cheekside of the butt in the same graceful script form and decorative embellishments seen in rifles by Jacob1, Jacob Jr., and Zachariah.
4. Zachariah Albright, Jr. (born in Millheim in 1822, died in North Hampton, Iowa, in 1886). Like his father, Zachariah Jr. appears in the U.S. Census of 1850 as a resident of Stephenson County, Illinois, where he is listed as a "Pennsylvania born gunsmith." Later he is described in the genealogical records of Guy Albright (his grandson) "as a gunsmith by training and a farmer by necessity."
Parenthetically it is interesting to note that the artistic strain so inherently apparent in the Albright family emerged full blown in one of Zachariah JR’s sons-Adam Emory Albright (born 1862, who became a prominent American artist and writer. That prominence, in turn, was carried forward by Adam Emory Albright’s twin sons-Ivan LeLorraine Albright and Malvin Marr Albright (born 1897, both of whom achieved wide-spread recognition in American art circles in the t~~tieth century.
5. Albert Albright, the second son of Zachariah JR., was born in Millheim in 1825. He seems to have followed the trail of his father all the way to Clamo, Wisconsin. The History of Green County; Wisconsin (1903) relates that Albert Albright "learned the trade of gunsmithing, at which he worked a good many years" . . . and that he had originally "purchased a farm of 137 acres" . . . and that "he now owns 185 acres, raises stock and manufactures butter."
To date the author has not seen any examples of the work of either Zachariah Jr. or Albert Albright It would be interesting to note if their rifles bear any imprint of the master, Jacob Albright of Penns Valley, whose characteristic handiwork seems to have been steadily reflected in the work of his other gunsmithing descendants.
In Conclusion, Some Speculation
Thus far in this study there has been an absence of any reference to Jacob Albright's origins. The reason is that quite a bit of murkiness surrounds the subject It needs further illumination, and the author's efforts to date have failed to shed any light on the situation.
The most persistent view of Albright's forebears is that Jacob's parents were Jacob "the Weaver", son of Socias "The Peddler" (merchant), and Clauderena Glocker Albrecht, who came to America in 1759 and settled in southern York County. They were thought to be of Swiss descent
Another view is offered by an Albright researcher who believes that Jacob's father came from the area of SuhI, Germany, and may well have been a brother of Andreas Albright This investigation is alive and on-going.
Perhaps, with further study, the two views may even merge. A fascinating possibility!
My First Post
This blog has been created to supplement the Albright family history site: www.albrighttree.com, this will give the chance to share thoughts and comments about leads currently being pursued, and things uncovered along the way. Hopefully this blog will help spark the sharing of breakthroughs by members of my family, and others who may be working on similar lines.
Feel free to make comments to these posts if anything coincides with what you are currently working on.
Feel free to make comments to these posts if anything coincides with what you are currently working on.
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