Stoltzfus family name
Stoltzfus is an Amish Mennonite family name. Nicholas Stoltzfus and his son Christian (1748-1832; said to have emigrated from Zweibrücken, Germany) arrived at Philadelphia on 18 October 1766. Since they are the only persons by this name to be registered on the 18th-century ship lists, they are presumably the progenitors of all the family in America. Both acquired land in Berks and Lancaster counties by 1770. Nicholas died in 1774 and is buried in King's Cemetery in northern Berks County near Leesport, Pennsylvania. Christian, ordained an Amish bishop, moved to Lancaster County about 1800 and was buried in what is now Myers Cemetery in the Mill Creek section in 1832.
The Stoltzfus name has been most common in eastern Pennsylvania, but it occurs also in Ohio and Iowa, mostly in the Amish Mennonite Church, though in recent years it has become more prevalent in Mennonite (Mennonite Church) circles. The Fisher family history lists approximately 1400 persons with the name of Stoltzfus who are descendants of Christian Fisher. The 1958 Mennonite Yearbook lists 51 ordained men carrying the Stoltzfus name, 30 of whom are Old Order Amish preachers in Pennsylvania. Among the descendants have been Benjamin B. Stoltzfus (1861-1931), a minister and for 16 years superintendent of the Lima, Ohio, Mennonite (MC) Mission; the Christian Stoltzfus mentioned above; Eli B. Stoltzfus (1860-1942), bishop of the Plainview Church at Aurora, Ohio; his son, Elmer Stoltzfus (1896-), bishop of the same congregation; the latter's son, Edward Stoltzfus, pastor of the Bethel Mennonite Church at West Liberty, Ohio; and Nicholas M. Stoltzfus (1895- ), minister in the Manson, Iowa, Mennonite Church. Grant Stoltzfus was a professor at Eastern Mennonite College.
Bibliography
Fisher, John M. Descendants and History of Christian Fisher Family. Ronks, Pennsylvania, 1957, with a supplement Stoltzfus Family, pp. 601-23.
| Author(s) | Grant M Stoltzfus |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1959 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Stoltzfus, Grant M. "Stoltzfus family name." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1959. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Stoltzfus_family_name&oldid=117142.
APA style
Stoltzfus, Grant M. (1959). Stoltzfus family name. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Stoltzfus_family_name&oldid=117142.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4. p. 636. All rights reserved.
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