As before intimated, until the beginning of the fourth decade of this century,
or a little more than fifty years ago, the inhabitants of the county were
chiefly of English and Scotch-Irish origin. But a new element now began to
assert itself in the body politic, in the persons of natives of Alsace, France. It
seems quite appropriate that natives of France should at last become occupants
and owners, in part at least, of a region which was first explored and
occupied by Frenchmen; but, indeed, in personal appearance and in the spelling
of their names, the Alsatians who have established themselves so strongly in
Warren county seem more like Germans than French. Nevertheless, whether
Germans or Frenchmen, they are good and honored citizens, and when
Americanized compare favorably with those who came before them and since.
John Reheim, Jacob Escher, Martin Escher, and Francis Louis Rinck were
the first Alsatians to make declaration of their intention to become citizens of
this State and county, and such declarations were placed on file July 13, 1832.
The next to appear were Jacob Leonhart, Jacob Lesser, Henry Sechrist,
Lewis Arnett, George Strubler, Laurent Ott, and Jacob Wirt, who made similar
declarations in November, 1834. These were followed during the next dozen
years or more, and in the order named, by Charles Weaver, Andrew Fisher,
Frederick Strubler, Philip Sechrist, Henry Reich, George Sechrist, George
Trier, Henry Trier, Philip Baldensperger, Jacob Shuler, John Reicker, John
Simmerly, Joseph Hauser, Adam Hannan, Samuel Grosenberg, Jacob Schmick,
Philip Lesser, Lawrence Snavely, George Arnold, Mathias Leonhart,
Christian Smith, Philip Trushel, William Messner, Theophilus Messner,
Christian Gauder,Andrew Haas, Jacob Huntsinger, Christian Keller, Marcus Holtz,
George Leonhart, Philip Leonhart, George Amann, George Zimmerlie, John Shuler,
John Arnold, Christian Smith, jr., Philip Shuler, Mathias Shuler, Joseph Arird,
John Reig, Martin Shaffer, John Hanhart, Martin Hartwig, Jacob Jahl,
George Offerlee, Jacob Fahlman, Michael Gesselbrecht, and Jacob Offerlee,
all of Alsace, France.
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