1747-1822
Copied from the original on microfiche (file No. 00445)
Register of Wills Office, Lehigh County Courthouse, Allentown, PA
by Leon F. Borst, Glenmoore, PA, 10 Sep 2003
In the Name of God Amen. I, Henry Brobst of Macungie Township in the County of Northampton and State of Pennsylvania, Yeoman, calling to mind the mortality of my body and am, thanks be to Allmighty God, of good & sound mind, memory and understanding, and therefore willing to order and dispose of my worldly estate effects wherewith it hath pleased the almighty God to bless me in this world I do make this my Last Will and Testament. First of all, I commend my Imortal Soul into the hands of Allmighty God through the spirit of our Lord & Redeemer Jesus Christ. And my Body to the Earth to be buried in a Christianlike desent manner at the discretion of my beloved wife, Catharina. And is my Will that all my just debt, if any, and Funeral expenses should first be paid out of my Estate. Item. I give and bequeath to my beloved wife, Catharina, out of my Estate first and forehand for her own -- One Bed & Beadstead with Curtains all complete, One Chair, One Table, and one Chest and the contents in the said Chest of her choice and the choice of my stock of horned Cattle to take & keep two Milk Cows, and one half of the Pewter ware, and one half of the value of all the Iron Kitchen furniture. All the forgoing mentioned articles over and above what I shall herein after and bequeath unto her and as herin after will be mentioned. -- And whereas, I have Made Given and Executed a Deed of Conveyance in an Indenture dated the Eleventh Day of March Anno Dom. One thousand Eight hundred & three unto my Son Henry Brobst & to his Heirs the Issue of his body & their Heirs & assigns if any such there be, but in case no such Heirs as aforementioned, then for his support livelyhood and maintenance during his natural life I do hereby declare the said Indentureas as therin is set forth and mentioned firm and stable for ever, for said premises situate in Macungie Township, Northampton County aforesaid. Item. Also having Made Given & Executed a Deed of Conveyance in an Indenture dated the said Eleventh day of March anno Domm One thousand eighr hundred and three, unto my Stepdaughter, Catherina Siegfried & to her lawfully bodily Heirs born of her body,and their Heirs and Assigns, if any such there be. But in case no such Heirs as aforementioned then for her use, livelhood, support and maintenance during her natural life and subject to the use, possession , support, livelihoodand maintenance & benefit of my said beloved wife Catharina during her natural life which said premises adjoining the premises of my Son Henry Brobst aforementioned. I do hereby declare the said recited Indenture as therin is setforth an mentioned firm and stable for ever.: Item. It is my will that if my son Henry Brobst or my Stepdaughter Catharina Siegfried or any one of them should happen to die without having such Heirs as hereinafore mentioned then and in that case only such Estate or Estates as in the aforementioned Indenture or Indentures as the case may be shall fall back after their or any of such part of their Estate having ____ to my said wife Catharina's use, benefit, possession, livelyhood , support and maintance during her natural life and I will and in that case order _____devise and bequeath the same or such part as aforesaid ¬¬¬¬unto all the children of my seven Brothers and two Sisters by the names of: Martain Brobst, John Brobst (deceased), Michael Brobst, Jacob Brobst, Valetine Brobst, Christian Brobst, George Michael Brobst, Catharina (deceased) who had been intermarried with David Stambach and Maria (deceased) who had been intermarried unto Peter Frees to be equally shared to and among them in equal shares, share & share alike.:Item. It is my will and I give and bequeath all & singular the residue and remainder of my Estate not hereinafore, by me bequeathed in two equal shares to be devided. One full equal share thereof unto my Son Henry Brobst and the other full equal share thereof unto my said beloved wife Catharina and Stepdaughter Catharina Siegfried and to their Heirs and assigns for ever. And lastly I do hereby make ordain constitute appoint my dear beloved Wife Catharina and my truely [?trusty?] Brother-in-law, John Kutz to be the Executors of this my Last Will and Testament and to see the same done and performed according to my true intent and meaning And I do hereby revoke and declare void all former Wills & Testaments by me made. Hereby ratyfying and confirming this and no other to be my Last Will and Testament. In Witness thereof, I, the said Henry Brobst, have humbly set my hand & seal the Twelvth day of March in the year of Our Lord One thousand Eight hundred and Three.
Signed Sealed _______ and _____ by the said Henry Brobst as his last Will and Testament in the presence of us who at his request have hereto set our Names as Witness to the same.
Jonathan Trexler
George Schlicher,Sr.
10 Sep 2003 - Notes by Leon Borst, Glenmoore, PA
Heinrich "Henry" Brobst was born in Albany Township in what is now Berks County in September 1747, the son of John Michael Probst and Margaretha Rosina Schadt. He was married first to (some say) Margaretha Barnhill and this union produced a son, Henry Brobst, Jr. The family moved to Macungie Township, Northampton County (now in Lehigh County since 1812). Henry's first wife died (date not known) and he then married a woman (as you can see in the Will) named Catharina and Catherina has a daughter named Catharina Siegfried, who is mentioned in Henry's Will as his Stepdaughter.
The question now arises, "What was Catharina's last name before she married Henry Brobst?" Was she a Widow of a Siegfried or did she have a child to a Siegfried out of wedlock? Elaine Schwar, a genealogist friend of mine, and I set out to find out the last name of Henry's second Wife. We agreed Henry's second wife did not fit into the vast amount of Siegfried data that we had. Who was this Catharina (X) with a daughter born in 1788 named "Catharina Siegfried"? We know Catharina Siegfried's birth and death dates and that she married John Gernert. This data is on her stone in St Paul's Cemetery in Trexlertown, but it still didn't give us her Mother's last name
The big break came when we got the above Will and saw that one of the administrators named by Henry was his “truly brother-in-law, John Kutz. Elaine checked the Will of Nicholas Kutz II (who by the way was married to Eva Catharine Brobst, sister of the Father of Henry Brobst, i.e., she was Henry's Aunt) and found the Kutz children listed. Catherine was the first child listed, then Elizabeth Siegfried ( was Married to Heinrich Siegfried, son of Joseph), Nicholas III, Dorothea Siegfried (was married to Abraham Siegfried, Son of Joseph), ……, Johannes, …….. As you can see, there is a Catherine listed (she was born about 1758 and the fact that she's listed without a last name signifies her name is Kutz and she is not married). Elizabeth and Dorothea Kutz married Brothers Heinrich and Abraham Siegfried. There is a brother Johannes Kutz (fits in with "my truly Brother-in-law, John Kutz). Nicholas Kutz wrote his Will in 1789 and hia daughter Catharina Kutz had a daughter she named “Catherina Siegfried” in 1788.
What I think:
The Nicholas Kutz family and the family of Joseph Siegfried were close friends as shown by the fact that two of Nikolas Kutz's daughters married two of Joseph Siegfried's sons. Joseph and his brother John Siegfried lived on adjacent farms in Maxatawny Township, had a total of eleven sons and lived about two miles from the Kutz farm. I think Nicholas Kutz's daughter, Catharina, "rolled in the hay" one too many times with one of the Siegfried boys and had a daughter, Catharina Siegfried, out of wedlock in 1788. Catharina Kutz was still single in 1789 when her Father's Will was written.
Along comes cousin Henry Brobst (his Aunt is Catharina Kutz's Mother) a lonely Widower who marries his younger cousin by eleven years, Catharina Kutz. It works out for both of them. He gets a wife to take care of him, she gets a husband to support her and her daughter, Catharina Siegfried. Henry now has a stepdaughter, Catharina Siegfried, and a Brother-in-law, John Kutz (who is also his cousin). No children resulted from the marriage of Henry Brobst and Catharina Kutz.
Thar's it. Proof hinges on "my truly Brother-in-law, John Kutz", but the other pieces of the puzzle seem to fit as stated.
Submitted by Leon.
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