Back in the late 1980s, I was either "given the opportunity to" or "saddled with the responsibility for", depending on your point of view (grin), investigating the Hope family genealogy. Since then, Dot and I have made numerous trips to the Shenandoah Valley and Front Royal Virginia, even more to South Carolina, especially Orangeburg, to Waynesboro and Augusta Georgia seeking Hardwick information and innumerable visits to the Virginia, Georgia and South Carolina Archives and State and County Libraries in search of information. We have become members of more genealogical and historical societies than I can remember (but they all remind me once a year). Beginning about 1990/91 (Geeze, could it have been 10 years?) I have sent around bits and pieces of stuff as Dot and I found it but I have lost track of what I have, and have not, sent out and to whom I have (or have not) sent it. On several occasions, I have started writing stuff up but never gotten it to the point of being ready to mail out (Heck, maybe this one will join the stack – grin). I have now forgotten which things I sent and which I didn’t, so I am going to start over and try to unload everything we have learned up to the time that this gets shipped out. I am going to start with our grandparents (you younger generations will just have to add a few additional "greats" to correct the data for yourselves), Florence Marion Zorn and George Henry Hope, Jr. – Fat Mama and Po Papa - and go backward. The "family trees" from Po Papa and Fat Mama are presented below. Please realize that I have included some ancestors who have not been proven, but they appear to be the most likely candidates given what we know at this point. I can’t claim credit for much of this data – others have graciously shared their research with us. By the same token, I have not verified much of the shared information so it must be taken with the proverbial "grain of salt" (or maybe a whole shaker!). All unverified data that I have included is generally internally consistent with that which I have verified. However, the objective was not to generate data that would stand up to legal scrutiny but to try to get an idea of where we came from and where we fit into the grand scheme of things. Some of this will just be a restatement of stuff we all know, but for those who come later, it may be new information. By the way, I don’t claim exclusionary rights to this activity so if anyone wants to jump in and help or take off on their own, feel free. I’ll be overjoyed to provide copies of everything I have to help you get started. Finally, if anyone knows of anything in addition to what is presented here, or if you have evidence - or even suspect - that any of this material is erroneous, please notify me!!!

Our Hope family line is the most frustrating of all of our ancestral threads. We started out with the information identifying our grandfather, great grandfather and great-great grandfather and haven’t been able to get beyond that point. We have scoured the county courthouses, libraries, state libraries and archives of Virginia with no success. We have been totally unsuccessful in linking James Thomas Hope to any of the numerous Hope families in Virginia during, and prior to, the early/mid 1800s. There is one on the Eastern Shore that offers some hope (no pun intended) because of similarity of given names but we have no firm evidence that James Thomas is related to this family.

The message is now very hard – virtually impossible - to read but we deciphered it before it had deteriorated to this level. The inscription is the reason that we believe that Eliza is buried in the plot with George Henry.

James Thomas Hope, George Henry Sr.’s father and our GGGrandfather was born in Virginia in 1793 or 94, according to the 1850 census (the first census that lists exact ages) and other records. Precisely where in Virginia, and to whom, is unknown – in spite of a great deal of searching. There were a number of Hope families in Virginia during the 1790s, including one in Winchester, but we have found no evidence linking James Thomas to any of them. The first records we find of James Thomas are related to his marriage to Phoebe White in Frederick County in 1825. Frederick County covered what is now Warren County and Front Royal at that time, so we can’t pin down exactly where they married. The minister was a Buck, an old line Front Royal family, and they lived there (until?) some time later – around 1833 - so it is possible they were married there as well. They were presumably in Front Royal in the early 1830s because James T. donated to the building fund of the Methodist Church in 1833. They apparently moved down the Shenandoah Valley during the middle or late 1830s. There is a mill site, town, post office – or maybe all of the above - called Hope Mills on a tributary of Hawksbill creek where we know James Thomas bought land, including the Hawksbill Mill, in Page Co. just north of Luray, Virginia, in the period spanning 1837-41. We don’t know, though, if this mill/post office/community was named for the Hope family and/or the mill he owned. At any rate, various court actions and land transactions locate the family in Frederick, Rockingham, Augusta and Page Counties during the period between 1833 (when last found in Front Royal) and the early 1840s when James T. and Phoebe White re-appeared in Front Royal. Clearly, however, James Thomas was running or working at mills in Rockingham and/or Page Co. about the time George Henry Sr. was born. The Hope family apparently returned to Front Royal shortly after 1841 and James Thomas became proprietor of the Hope and Haynie Mill. This mill was located on Happy Creek, as nearly as I can determine, between present day Happy Creek, Happy Creek Rd. and Commerce Avenue. We have walked/searched this stretch of the creek but found no remaining evidence of a mill site. James Thomas was involved in numerous law suites during the 1870s as the surviving partner in the Hope and Haynie Mill. These appeared to be suits in which James Thomas was attempting to collect debts owed to the company.

Lucy Rebecca Buck’s diary gives insight into the Hope family’s life during the war. James Thomas was over 70 years old at the time and Phoebe White Hope, our GGGrandmother, was in her 60s and in poor health. Lucy Buck describes several incidences wherein "Mrs. Hope" was thought to be dying – but didn’t. In another entry, she mentions that Mrs. Hope appeared to be staying alive only to see George Henry one more time. Apparently, James T. and Phoebe lived in the Mill or in an adjacent building because at one point, Lucy Buck describes helping to remove the Hope possessions when the Yankees were threatening to burn the mill (apparently, they didn’t actually burn it). On the other hand, a publication, Caty Jett’s diary, of another Front Royal young lady has a footnote in it indicated that the Hopes lived in a "very nice" house on the banks of Happy Creek but that the creek eventually destroyed it. We don’t know exactly where they lived but there is a curve on the creek between the Buck mansion (Bel Aire) and the railroad. It is possible that that is the area where the creek impinged on the house, eventually destroying it. James Thomas is next found in the 1870 census living with his daughter, Mrs. James H. (Fanny Hope) Moffett, in Front Royal without Phoebe. This implies that Phoebe had died between 1865 and 1870. He apparently went to Georgia during that year and, for some time, lived with his younger daughter, Eliza, who married Peyton Randolph Hutchins of Lawrenceville, Gwinnett County Georgia during, or shortly after, the war. He returned to Front Royal for a visit in April of 1884 and a newspaper (Sentinel, Front Royal, Va.) article acknowledging the visit read:

James Thomas died in Lawrenceville Georgia in 1888 when he was 93 years old. His obituary indicated that he had been blind for two years before his death, mentioned that he was a Mason, indicated that he had been interred with Masonic Honors and listed George Hope, Eliza Hutchins, Julia Little and (Fanny) Moffett as surviving children. There is evidence for at least twelve children of James Thomas and Phoebe White Hope. One, William Ezekiel, died of consumption at about twenty years of age. We know nothing of the fates of the other seven. We have been unable to locate either James Thomas’ or Phoebe’s grave sites.

Obituary of James Thomas Hope from the Sentinel, Front Royal, Va., February 3, 1888.

"DEATH OF MR. JAMES T. HOPE

Our Hope line is depicted below in tabular form. We are confident of these relationships as they are well proven.

1 James Thomas Hope

.. +Phoebe White

...... 2 George Henry Hope

.......... +Eliza Walthena (Murphy) Spencer

............... 3 George Henry Hope, Jr.

................... +Florence Marion Zorn

....................... 4 Cecile Hope

...........................+Micah Pate

....................... 4 John Hardwick Hope

...........................+Elizabeth Cone

....................... 4 George Marion Hope

...........................+Jessie Candler Norman

................ 3 Edna Earle Hope

................... +Herbert Ernest Gregory

............... 3 Ann Catharine Hope

............... 3 Louise Gertrude Hope

............... 3 Clarence Barron Hope

................... + ______ Nix

............... 3 James Thomas Hope II

............... 3 Florence Virginia Hope

............... 3 Helen Istalina Hope

............... 3 Lillian Spencer Hope

............... 3 John David Alexander Hope

...... 2 Sarah W. Hope

...... 2 Mary F. Hope

...... 2 Julia A. Hope

...... 2 Eliza C. Hope

...... 2 Sarah F. Hope

...... 2 Lutitia A. Hope

...... 2 Elizabeth R. Hope

...... 2 William E. Hope

...... 2 Seatta E. Hope

...... 2 Lucy V. Hope

...... 2 Louis A. Hope

Our White ancestry was a major "brick wall" until our last trip to Northern Virginia. We finally had a breakthrough and – primarily due to Dot’s recognition of a possible clue in one of George Henry’s brothers who was named William Ezekiel – discovered Phoebe’s parents. We hope to be able to follow this back even further. There is a White who was on the Mayflower and many of his descendants migrated into Pennsylvania and Virginia. It is possible that our line may relate to this one. However, White is one of the most frequently encountered surnames in genealogy so it is probably much more likely that our line was entirely independent of the Mayflower Whites.

We know very little about Phoebe White Hope. She was one of the older daughters of Ezekial and Rachel Willis White. For reasons that are obscure, Ezekial White apparently had some sort of problem with Phoebe and James Thomas. He indicated that his daughter would receive $1.00 from his estate. He then repeatedly specifies that his estate is to be divided among all of his children except his daughter Phoebe. This could mean that he had already given Phoebe her inheritance but nothing of this sort is mentioned in the will, just that she was to get nothing except the dollar. Phoebe had a brother named Judge White who is referred to in some of George Henry, Sr.’s letters as Uncle Judge. Lucy Rebecca Buck describes visits to Mrs. Hope and her daughters and comments numerous times on Mrs. Hope’s poor health. She stated in one of her diary entries, on hearing that George was at home for a visit, that she wished it could have been one of her brothers, then retracts the wish saying that Mrs. Hope only seemed to be staying alive to see George one more time. On another occasion, she relates that her mother went to Mrs. Hope’s aid when it was believed that she was dying – she didn’t die at that time. James and Phoebe had 12 children in the 22 years between 1825 and 1847, so she had every right to be in poor health. George Henry was the 10^th and had two younger sisters. Lucy Buck describes many visits between the Hope girls, "Mrs. Moffett" (Mary F. Hope married a Moffett) and the Buck girls. There are also references to the Yankees searching the Hope house looking for George. Phoebe Hope apparently died sometime between 1865, when Lucy Buck’s diary entries cease, and1870 when James Thomas is found living with the Moffetts without her.

Phoebe’s father Ezekial White is a mystery. We have no evidence to identify his parentage with certainty, but we did find George and Elizabeth White in Northumberland Co. Virginia who had a son named Ezekial born in 1773 – about the right time to be our GGGGrandfather Ezekial White. Since we were able to find no other Ezekial Whites, we assume that these were his parents. Ezekiel married Rachel Willis in 1802 in Frederick County. Ezekiel White died before March 30, 1843 when his will was probated. As noted above, he specifically cut Phoebe White Hope out of his estate. Beyond that, we have no information on him.

Rachel Willis was the Daughter of Nancy Willis and _____ Willis. We have no information on her parentage beyond that tidbit. Rachel and Ezekial White were married in 1802, about three years before Phoebe was born. Rachel and Nancy were residents of Frederick County at the time of the marriage. Nancy Willis lived beyond Rachel’s marriage but we don’t know when she died. Rachel Willis White presumably died before Ezekiel because she isn’t mentioned in his will, thus she apparently died before 1843.

George White was found in the Northumberland County, Virginia Birth Records as father of Ezekiel White born January 19, 1773 and married to Elizabeth _______. George and Elizabeth had several other children, including a George Jr. This may be the source of George Henry’s name – if, indeed, this George White is our Ezekiel’s father. We have no additional information on George and Elizabeth at this time.

The relationships in this line, Hope/White, of our genealogy, are presented in tabular form below beginning with George White – simply because he is the most distant ancestor we feel we can possibly identify (not prove!). These, like all of the relationships in this summary, are presented as our current "best guesses".

1 George White

..+Elizabeth

...... 2 Ezekial White

.......... +Rachel Willis

............... 3 Phoebe White

...................+James Thomas Hope

.......................4 George Henry Hope

........................... +Eliza Walthena (Murphy) Spencer

................................ 5 George Henry Hope, Jr.

.................................... +Florence Marion Zorn

........................................6 Cecile Hope

............................................ +Micah Pate

........................................ 6 John Hardwick Hope

............................................ + Elizabeth Cone

........................................ 6 George Marion Hope

............................................ +Jessie Candler Norman

Our Spencer line is pretty obscure beyond E.T.L. and Paul Spencer. There were several Spencer families in the Charleston area between the Revolutionary War and the 1790s when our Spencer ancestors first appear in the records. Unfortunately, we have been unable to relate our Spencers to any of them at this time.

Our Great Grandmother Eliza Spencer, or Pet as George Henry Sr. called her, was a genealogical thorn in our sides for some time because of her status as adopted and the red herring provided by her adopted name, Murphy. However, we had a couple of break-throughs and were finally able to identify her ancestry with certainty. Eliza was the daughter of Edward T.L. Spencer and Eliza Pooser Spencer. Eliza Pooser Spencer died shortly after Eliza/Pet’s birth on January 1, 1849 and she was adopted by her aunt, Ann Catherine Pooser Murphy and John David Alexander Murphy. Eliza shows up in the 1850 census as Eliza Spencer in the Murphy household. Ann Margaret Pooser identified Eliza as her granddaughter in her will. Additionally, A.S. Salley provided information identifying E.T.L. Spencer as the son-in-law of Ann Margaret Pooser in an interview with her sister. Eliza Pooser Spencer was found in the death index to the 1850 census as dying in 1849 in Blackville. These factors identified Eliza/Pet as the daughter of Edward T.L. and Eliza Pooser Spencer. Eliza and George Henry Hope, Sr. were married June 16, 1864 and had ten children, three of whom died within the first couple of years. Eliza was 15 years old when they married and she died February 6, 1892 in Charleston. We presume she is buried in the Hope family plot in the Blackville Cemetery with no separate headstone (see rational above under George H. Hope). Most of our personal information about "Pet" comes from George Henry Hope’s letters home during the war and the our Great Aunts’ comments about her. She was apparently wealthy, probably as a result of the Murphys, because her Pooser inheritance wasn’t that great financially and I got the impression that her father, E.T.L. Spencer, was not very successful at finances. However, her wealth was primarily in cash and was, reportedly, wiped out as a result of the war.

Eliza’s father, and our GGGrandfather, was Edward Thomas Lawrence Spencer, born 1808. We don’t know much about him though. E.T.L. Spencer was assigned a guardian (John Simmons, his stepfather) in Clarke County Georgia in 1820, the instrument indicating that his father, Paul Spencer, was deceased. E.T.L. married Martha Collier in Jasper County in 1825. Apparently, he inherited a substantial sum from his father, W. Paul Spencer because the bond posted by his guardian was $7000 – very high in 1820 (guardian bonds were related to size of estates). He is next found having his household furnishings sold at auction by the Butts Co. sheriff but we don’t know what precipitated this action. He may have been involved in a business in the area, and/or may have inherited a business from his father, and it was unsuccessful. He is seen as a juror in Butts County in 1826. We don’t know what happened to his first wife but he appeared in the Orangeburg District and remained there until sometime after 1850. He is found in the 1840 census in the Orangeburg District with 13 males aged 20-40 years engaged in agriculture, one female aged 20-30 and four slaves in his household – interestingly, on the same census page (suggesting proximity of residences) are a number of Poosers, including his mother-in-law, Ann Margaret Stroman Pooser. He married Eliza Pooser in 1829 so he was presumably in SC by that time. We found a small bit relating that a bell from the Old Giesendanner Church was given to the Methodist Church in Orangeburg by ETL Spencer in Salley’s History of Orangeburg Co.. The woman providing the information to Salley indicated that ETL Spencer was married to her sister’s daughter. Her maiden name was identified as Strohman and other records identified her as Ann Margaret Stroman’s sister, establishing E.T.L. Spencer as Ann Margaret Strohman Pooser’s son-in-law. There are several references in Cullers history of Orangeburgh District to E.T.L. as a teacher in Orangeburg from about 1848-1850 and he is shown as a teacher in the 1850 census. We have no further information on E.T.L. Spencer, including when/where he died although I have seen somewhere that he remarried around 1852.

E.T.L. Spencer’s father was Paul Spencer (our GGGGrandfather). He first appears in the Charleston area when he was granted land in Craven Co. He actually bought it but they called sales of vacant land from the government "grants". He shows up in several legal actions in Charleston (legal center for most/all of SC at the time) in 1802 in which he was suing others for unpaid debts. We know nothing of Paul’s life after 1802 when he was located somewhere in the Charleston legal district except that he died in 1811. He was married to Eliza Riggs and had four children by her. Two, Paul Jr. and Sarah died in 1814 and 1816, respectively. We have found a several legal papers where Paul was listed as William Spencer with William changed to Paul or W. Paul. It is possible that many references to him are available under the name of William but it is difficult to identify him uniquely under this name. Elizabeth (Eliza) Riggs parents are believed to be Samuel Riggs and Elizabeth Lemon.

Our Spencer line, beginning with Matthew Beard – the oldest presumed known ancestor in this line - is presented below in tabular form. The relationships shown are certain through Elizabeth Riggs Spencer. Her parentage has not, as yet, been verified – although we have no reason to question it.

1 Matthew Beard

......2 Elizabeth Beard

...... +Samuel Riggs

.........3 Samuel Riggs

......... +Elizabeth Lemon

............4 Elizabeth Riggs

............ +Paul Spencer d: 1811

...............5 Edward T L Spencer b: 1808 d: Aft 1850

............... +Eliza M Pooser b: 1821 d: 1849

..................6 Eliza Walthena (Murphey) Spencer b: 1849 d: 1892..................... ... +George Henry Hope b: 1841 d: 1897

........................8 Cecile Hope b: 1901

........................ +Micah Pate

........................8 John Hardwick Hope b: 1903 d: 1963

........................ + Elizabeth Cone

........................8 George Marion Hope b: 1905 d: 1945

........................ +Jessie Candler Norman b: 1912 d: 1994

.....................7 Edna Earle Hope b: 1882

..................... +Herbert Ernest Gregory

.....................7 Ann Catharine Hope b: 1874 b: 1884

..................... + ______ Nix

.....................7 James Thomas Hope II b: 1866

.....................7 Florence Virginia Hope b: 1865

.....................7 Helen Istalina Hope b: 1870

.....................7 Lillian Spencer Hope b: 1869

.....................7 John David Alexander Hope b: 1877...

..................6 Margaret P Spencer b: 1843

..................6 William P Spencer b: 1845

...............5 Mary E Spencer

...............5 Sarah Spencer

..................5 Paul Spencer

The Pooser line is one of our several entries into the Orangeburgh German/Swiss (OGS) Colony dating from 1735. Fortunately, there are extensive Church records from this group from the earliest times of their arrival. The OGS group arrived beginning in 1735 (first ship) to, at least, 1741 or 42 – and probably later. The first several ships got most of the genealogical and historical attention, however. There is a stone in the Old Pioneer Cemetery in Orangeburgh listing many of these early immigrants. There is an old (Church?) Cemetery in downtown Orangeburg which contains several early settlers’ graves as well.

Eliza Pooser (our GGGrandmother) is something of a mystery. I have found virtually no information about her except concerning her marriage and death. There is a record in the 1850 death index (adjunct to the 1850 census) of an Eliza Spencer dying in Barnwell in early September (I believe)1849. Also, Eliza Spencer, wife of E.T.L., was listed in an obituary as dying in Orangeburg in late August 1849. At this time, I am not sure if this is two different listings of the same person or two different Eliza Spencers, both dying within a week or so in 1849! Given the Pooser connection, I suspect that these are two listings for the same person - with one (at least) being erroneous. Eliza apparently died "after a long illness" or "of dysentery", depending on which of the two reports you believe, at the age of 28 years.

Eliza Pooser Spencer’s father was William H. Pooser (our GGGGrandfather). We know little of him although there are several references to him in the legal records. He was involved in legal actions against a Louis Pigne in 1802. These actions suggest that he owned a dry goods store or was a tailor – or maybe both – because the lists of items for which money was owed were mostly clothing, some of it "making" items ranging from coats to pantaloons. He bought some 500 acres of land in 1818-1819. In 1823, William H. Pooser individually and "Hunter and Pooser" sued, in Barnwell District, an estate for debts incurred by the deceased. I assume Hunter and Pooser was a company, probably a store, in which William H. was a principle. He married Ann Margaret Stroman in 1808 and was dead before 1850. His father may have been either Henry Pooser or George H. Pooser – both were in the area and were about a generation earlier. We have no information linking him to anyone yet although he had a son named George H. Pooser. The name "Pooser" is interesting. It probably began as Buser, Boozer or Booser and got translated as Pooser somewhere along the line. We have encountered several legal documents which used Boozer and Pooser interchangeably. A genealogy of the South Carolina Boozer family has a footnote indicating that (paraphrased) George Boeser (Boozer or Pooser) had converted his name to Pooser before 1771, was probably the father of Henry and Elisha Pooser, the latter apparently the ancestor of the Poosers of Orangeburg District.

Ann Margaret Pooser, born November 23, 1786, was Eliza/Pet’s grandmother and our GGGGrandmother. She was the daughter of Paul Stroman and Ann Baltzegar Stroman. Ann Margaret married W.H. Pooser in 1808. Ann Margaret and William H. Pooser had seven known children. She died March 14, 1856 and, as noted above, identified Eliza/Pet as her granddaughter in her will. She mentions a plantation "in the forks of the Edisto" which is probably included the 500 Acres that William H. bought in 1818-19. Again, we know very little about Ann Margaret Stroman. Her Stroman family, however, has been well researched back to the original German/Swiss immigration in 1735.

Paul Stroman, our 4Ggrandfather and known in his youth as "Balzar", the German name for "Paul", is one of our more interesting ancestors. Anyone want into the DAR/SAR? Well, Paul is probably your best bet. Paul was born in 1751 to John Jacob Stroman and Anna Margaretta Schaumloffel in Orangeburg. He married Ann Baltzegar, daughter of Hans Baltzegar, about 1775. Paul Stroman – along with his father and (I believe) brother - served in Col. Jacob Rumph’s company in the revolution. During his service, Paul is reported to have come home to attend to some business without "permission". When Col. Rumph came looking for him, he hid in the loft of the barn. Rumph searched the barn but didn’t go into the loft. Paul is reported to have said that if Rumph had climbed the ladder, he would have shot him. Paul died September 2, 1844 and was buried on Caw Caw Swamp. Later, his grave was moved and is now situated on the site of the Battle of Eutaw Springs, a National Revolutionary War Battlefield Site near Eutawville. This site is sometimes identified as a National Cemetery but it only contains two graves, Paul Stroman and a Major Majorbanks (yep, that’s right), a British major who was severely wounded in the battle and died later at a nearby farmhouse. He was buried on the grounds of the home and later moved to the Eutaw Springs National Battlefield Site when the location was to be flooded by Lake Marion. Paul Stroman’s grave is in the wrought iron fenced area near the main entrance to the site.

Hans Baltzegar, Jr.

Hans (John) Baltzegar, Jr. (5Ggrandfather), was born in Europe, probably Switzerland, in 1722. He was the son of Hans Baltzegar, Sr. and came to Orangeburgh with his parents in 1735. He married Jenny Keys (Kies, Kees?) in 1760. She reportedly was English and came to Orangeburgh with her uncle, Gideon Jennings. They had two daughters, one of whom was Ann Baltzegar who married Paul Stroman. Hans Jr. accumulated a substantial amount of land in the Orangeburgh District.

Hans (John) Baltzegar Sr. (6Ggrandfather) was born about 1696 in Switzerland. He, with his wife Mary (B. 1897) and two sons, John, Jr. and George, came to Orangeburgh in 1735, on the Ship Samuel. He died there in 1756 and was buried in the Orangeburgh Churchyard. This burial ground is marked with a large stone monument indicating some of the original settlers buried there. Hans (John) Baltzegar (arrow) is among them.

Hans (John) Jacob Stroman, father of Paul and our 5Ggrandfather, was born about 1721, 22 or 23 to Balthasar Stroman and Salome Heckendorf in Zelingen, Basel, Switzerland. He immigrated to America in 1735 as a child with his father. Hans Jacob married Anna Margaretta Schaumloffel July 18, 1741 (other sources say ‘42 or ’48). Hans Jacob Strauman/Stroman was listed on Roster of the Company of Captain Lewis Golson, of Col. John Chevilette's Regiment, organized for the Cherokee War of 1759-1762. He was also in Col. Jacob Rumph’s Company in the revolution – along with one, and possibly two, of his sons. Hans Jacob was granted land in 1749 and again in 1750. He died August 28, 1773, Orangeburgh.

Anna Margaretta Schaumloffel, wife of John Jacob Stroman (our 5Ggrandmother) was born April 24, 1721 in Germany. She was the second of five daughters born to John Schaumloffel. We don’t know the name of her mother. John Schaumloffel was in Charleston some time before the Orangeburgh German/Swiss group immigrated in 1735 to 1740. We know virtually nothing more about Anna Margaretta or John Schaumloffel except that John married Magdalena Dirr (Dilles, now Till) in Orangeburgh, February 24,1738 and died in Orangeburgh after 1758.

Balthasar or Baltzer (German for Paul) Strauman, our 6GGrandfather, was born about 1662 or 63 in Waldenburg, Basel, Switzerland. Records show that Balthasar was a butcher in Waldenburg. "On Apr. 23, 1735 Baltzer Strauman of Waldenburg with wife and family started down the Rhine to go to Carolina." He paid the emigration tax and, in 1736 some of his property was released after being held, presumably for security against his emigration taxes. The SC Council Journal of Sept. 17, 1736 shows that on Oct. 9 1735, Lot 146 + 300 acres was surveyed for Baltzer Stroman. Baltzer was married to Salome Hekendorf in Switzerland, probably around 1690. Baltzer and Salome had at least three children, Henry, Barbara and Paul. All of them came to South Carolina with their parents.

Our Stroman/Pooser line is shown in outline form. I believe these relationships are all pretty well established, some published several times and, in general, can be relied upon.

1 Balthasar Stroman

.. +Salome Heckendorf

.........2 John Jacob Stroman, R.S.

.......... +Anna Margaretta Schaumloffel

............... 3 Paul Stroman, R.S.

................... +Ann Baltzegar

....................... 4 Ann Margaret Stroman

...........................+William H. Pooser

................................ 5 Eliza M. Pooser

.................................... +Edward T. L. Spencer

...........................................6 Eliza Walthena (Murphy) Spencer

............................................ +George Henry Hope

................................................. 7 George Henry Hope, Jr.

..................................................... +Florence Marion Zorn

.......................................................... 8 Cecile Hope

.............................................................. +Micah Pate

......................................................… 8 John Hardwick Hope

.............................................................. +Elizabeth Cone

.......................................................... 8 George Marion Hope

.............................................................. +Jessie Candler Norman

The following information is copied from the Red Leather Covered Family Bible (copyright 1828) which was entrusted to George Marion Hope, Jr. By Hope Pate Schuch and Nona Pate Sullivan. This Bible was the property of George Henry and Eliza Spencer Hope and probably originally belonged to J.D.A. and Ann C. Murphy, Eliza's adoptive parents. The first entries are in a distinctly different handwriting from later entries and relate to J.D.A. and Ann C. Pooser's births and marriage and the births of their son and Eliza. Most of the entries following these were written by Geo. H. Hope, Sr. (according to an earlier transcription by a daughter of G.H.H.). All of these early entries are in ink which was probably originally black but has faded to brown. In a few cases, someone has overwritten some of the dates with blue ink or pencil, apparently to make them more legible. Several later entries are in blue (modern) ink and/or pencil and relate to Edna Earle and Louise' marriages (blue ink) and Helen Istalina's death (pencil). Finally, there are two newspaper obituaries that have been glued onto the last page of the family record. I have gone through the Bible, literally, page by page and the only notes found were those on the Family Record pages. These have been transcribed below. The only other notable items were a cryptic piece of paper (apparently a blank page originally inserted in binding between the Old Testament and the Apocrypha) with what appear to be dates subtracted from later dates, all in pencil. I assume that someone was calculating ages at significant times. Three of these have 1901 with 18__ subtracted from it. In one case, 1841 (GHH Sr.'s birth date) is subtracted from 1901. There are also a number of items (pressed flowers, hair, etc) inserted between pages scattered throughout the Bible. These are listed below in the order in which they were found and we can only speculate on the sentimental value these items had for the person(s) who entrusted them to these pages.

(1) What appears to have been a corsage of a single rose, a larger flower (may have been a lily) and a spray of ferns with a piece of wire wrapped around the stems.

(2) a small spray of what appear to have been small ferns

(3) a small printed red flower that looks somewhat like a rose - appears to be something like one of the modern stamps that one might stick onto the back of an envelope.

(4) two small sprigs of tiny flowers arranged in a column on each sprig

(5) a very small flower - probably a violet.

(6) a swath of medium brown hair with a touch of gray bound with a piece of "baby" blue ribbon.

(7) another printed red paper flower stamp - different flower (looks like a wild rose) from the one above.

(8) a small piece of a ledger book page with "Rev 21st.y.vr" (I think) written in pencil and what appears to be GHH's handwriting .

(9) a VERY small piece of fern.

The records below have been copied exactly as they were written except for a few cases where the symbols could not be duplicated on the computer. The "th" and "st" following dates was written (when by GHH) in superscript with a pair of short vertical lines below the letters (like a quotation mark, "). I have used ~~~~~ to indicate "squiggley" lines, ------- to indicate single lines and ===== to indicate double lines where these were found in the original material. I have added some parenthetic descriptive notes, as well as the page and column headings set off by ************** s just to separate the blocks of text. These were, of course, not in the original material.

Family Record.

**************** Page 1, Column 1 (Marriages) ****************

John David Alexander Murphy was married to Ann Catharine Pooser on the 26th November A.D. 1829

(Note: the entry above was not written by G.H.H. - GMH)

Geo. H. Hope of Va. and Wife Eliza Welthana Murphy (Adopted daughter of J.D.A. & Ann C. Murphy) were married at 8 1/2 O'clock on Thursday Evening june 16th 1864.

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Jake A. Nix and Florence V. Hope were married on July 12th, 1888, at Charleston S.C.

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John David Alexander Murphy and Ann Catharine Pooser his wife was born (viz) John David Alexander on the 20th February A.D. 1801 and Ann Catharine on the 5th November A.D. 1811

(Note: the entry above was not written by G.H.H. - GMH)

Geo. H. Hope son of J.T. and Phoebe Hope was born 9th of July 1841 --

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Edna Earle Hope born Sunday Mch 12/82 at Charleston S.C.

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Clarence Barron Hope born March 31st 1879

**************** Page 2, Column 2 (Births) ****************

John Francis Murphy was born the 10th day March A.D. 1832 -----

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Eliza Welthana Spencer was born Jany. 1st 1849

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(Note: the two entries above were not written by G.H.H. - GMH)

Florence Virginia Hope was born Wednesday (at 3 1/2 O'clock) March 15th 1865

Helen Istalina Hope was born on 18th December 1870.

== 27- (Note: "27-" was written in pencil as though added later - G.M.H.)

Geo. Henry Hope Jr. was born on 10th March 1872

John David Alexander Hope was born at Augusta Ga. Sept. 2nd 1877 30< (Note: "30<" in pencil as above. Perhaps someone calculating Eliza's age at birth of her children??? - G.M.H.)

**************** Page 3, Column 1 (Births) ****************

George Henry Hope, Son of James Thomas & Phoebe Hope was born at Burgess Mills Page Co Va., July 9th 1841 -----------------------------------------------------

Eliza Welthana Spencer (adopted Daughter of J.D.A. & A.C. Murphy was born Jany 1st. 1849

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Louise Gertrude Hope was born July 16th 1884 at No 28 Savage Street Charleston S.C. (at 5 1/2 O'clock Wednesday Morning)

(Note: this entry is on a piece of ruled paper pasted over an entry of Geo. H. and Eliza's marriage which is overwritten with "See Births" diagonally across the text - G.M.H.)

x

born at the Wheeler House augusta Ga.

(Note: this entry is at the bottom of the first column on this page - note the x'd entry immediately following which was at the top of the second column - G.M.H.)

**************** Page 3, Column 2 (Births) ****************

Florence Virginia Hope, daughter of Geo H. & Eliza W Hope, was born half past three o'clock on Wednesday March 15th A.D 1865

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James Thomas Hope, Son of Geo. H. & Eliza W. Hope, was born at the Planters' Hotel (J.S. Nickerson Proprietor) on the 21st of December A.D. 1866 ---at about 1 1/2 oclock P.M. wed ("wed" struck out - GMH) Friday P.M. ("P.M." struck out - GMH)

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Lillian Spencer Hope was born the 20th day of April A.D. 1869 -----

Ann Catharine Hope was born March 7th 1874 at Athens Ga

**************** Page 4 Column 1 (Deaths) ****************

John David Alexander Murphy died near Blackville, So.Ca. January 3rd (Monday) 1870 at about 12 1/2 O'clock A.M.-- aged 68 years 10 mos. and 13 days---

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Lillian Spencer Hope died near Blackville So.Ca. August 16th A.M. A.D. 1870 aged 1 year, 3 months & 26 days

======================

John David Alexander Hope died May 20th, 1878 at Charleston S.C. -- aged 8 1/2 mos.

Obituary.

Hope -- Died, at Charleston, S.C., on

the 20th instant, J.D.A., infant son of

Geo. H. and Eliza W. Hope, aged eight and

a half months. The remains will be taken

to Blackville, S.C., for interment.

Dear little Johnnie, we miss you

From this transient earthly home;

But your heavenly father calls you

To a brighter, fairer one.

Andf my Darling, we must bear it,

Though the parting is severe;

For time is short at the longest,

Ere we all can come to you.

Mrs. S.

Orangeburg, S.C. May 1878

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(Note: the date, May 1878, is hand written in old ink and was added to the published obit. - G.M.H.)

FELDER -- Died, July 2, 1883 at her home,

near Orangburg, S.C., Mrs. Ann M. Felder,

wife of Paul S. Felder, in the 59th year of her

age.

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**************** Page 4 Column 2 (Deaths) ****************

Ann Catharine Murphy died at Charleston S.C. on February 17th A.D. 1889 -- Aged 77 years, 3 months and 12 days.

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Eliza Welthana Hope died at 25 Savage St. Charleston S.C. on Saturday February 6th A.D. 1892 -- Aged 43 years, 1 Month & 5 days --

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Helen Istalina Rice Died 21st June 1905

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(Note: the above entry is written in pencil and is not in GHH's handwriting - GMH)

Edna Earle Hope and Herbert Ernest Gregory were married at Denmark, South Carolina, June 30, 1908.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Louise Gertrude Hope and Charles Grant Montgomery were married at San Francisco, California, Saturday, July 2, 1949.

(Note: The two above entries are written in blue ink and are not GHH's handwriting - GMH)

****************** End of Family Record Pages *********************