Abstract
The first reunion of the Bergey family was held in Bucks County, Pennsylvania in 1900. The family descends from Hans Ulrich Bergey, a Swiss-born Mennonite who settled in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania around 1717.
Biography/History
"The Bergey family held its first annual reunion in Menlo Park, Perkasie, [Bucks County, Pennsylvania], [in 1900], which was attended by representatives from Bucks, Montgomery, Lehigh, Northampton and other counties. The ancestor of this family was Hans Ulrich Bergey, a native of Saxony, Germany, who came to America about 1717 and settled in Montgomery county. His wife Mary was the daughter of Gerhart Clemens. They had eleven children: John, Michael, Isaac, Samuel, Mary, Elizabeth, Christian, Abraham, Anna, Fronniea, Salome.
"Hans Ulrich Bergey on his arrival in this country sought a home in the wilderness lying to the north of Philadelphia. In his travels to spy out the land he came to Salford township, where he purchased of Hugh Roberts, in 1726, 250 acres on the banks of the Perkiomen. There he made his home for many years. He was one of the original members of the Mennonite church in Lower Salford township, organized about 1738. It is probable that he came to America because of religious persecution, as did many others about the same time. The eleven children settled in different parts of Bucks and Montgomery counties, and numerous descendants are now living in these two counties."
Bibliography
"Reunions in Menlo: Bergey and Hockman Families Hunt in Family Trees." 1900. Unidentified newspaper clipping found in collection.
Scope and Contents
This collection includes two minute books of the Bergey Family Association, a scrapbook with newspaper clippings and ephemera, and correspondence. There is also a manuscript by D. H. Bergey (David Hendricks Bergey, M.D.), author of A Record of the Descendants of John Ulrich Bergey and His Wife Mary (New York: Braunworth and Co., 1925).
Finding aid prepared by Celia Caust-Ellenbogen and Michael Gubicza through the Historical Society of Pennsylvania's Hidden Collections Initiative for Pennsylvania Small Archival Repositories.