Bontrager is a Mennonite family name of Swiss origin. Martin Bornträger, an Amish Mennonite, was born in Switzerland and on 5 October 1767, and arrived in Philadelphia with three sons—John, Christian, and Andrew. The family located at Meyersdale in Somerset County, Pennsylvania. It is said that Andrew later moved to Virginia and Christian to Indiana County, Pennsylvania. The descendants of John are widely scattered in Amish and Mennonite communities in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, and other states. Among the well-known Amish descendants was Joseph Bontreger (1811-1908), who was a deacon in Elkhart County, Indiana. Of his sons, two were chosen bishops, one a minister, and two deacons. A grandson, Bishop Eli J. Bontrager, of Shipshewana, Indiana, was widely known both in Amish and in Mennonite circles.

In the 1951 Mennonite Yearbook three Old Order Amish Mennonite ordained Bontragers were listed for Illinois, 15 for Indiana, five for Iowa, one for Kansas, three for Michigan, two for Ohio, one for Tennessee, and two for Wisconsin. In addition nine are listed for the Mennonite Church and one for the Conservative Amish Mennonite Church.

Bibliography

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 1, p. 387. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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