By the early 19th century, many people were already moving west, partially because of the allure of cheap land and partly from the pressure of Native American raids on German settlements in Pennsylvania. The first Anspach to make the migration was a Jacob Anspach, son of John Jacob Anspach and a brother to my ancestor John (1775-?). He made his way through Ohio, finally settling in Decatur County, IN. Friends named Solomon and Margaret Leffler died in 1826, leaving their 4 children (3 daughters, 1 son) under Jacob's care until they reached a certain age. When Jacob made his trek into Indiana a couple years later, he took these children with him, along with his own. One of the daughters was named Salome Leffler, who would eventually marry into the Anspach line. "Old Uncle Jacob", as he was called, laid out the path for other Anspach travelers. The Anspachs built a schoolhouse, surprisingly named the Anspach schoolhouse, that was used as a Lutheran church until an official church could be built. Along with the Thornburg family, "Old Uncle Jacob" helped to found the Union Chapel Church in St. Paul, IN, around 1833.
The front of Union Chapel in St. Paul. The most recent revision was in 1924, but it is on the site of the original church and Anspach schoolhouse.
"Old Uncle Jacob" had a brother named John (or Johannes) Anspach (1775-?), a blacksmith. Since there is no death or burial record for him in Berks County, PA, many family genealogists have assumed that he must have come with one of his children on the trek. At least one of his children lived and was buried in Montgomery County (the Dayton area), OH, so some family historians think that perhaps he died in that area, sometime after 1833. There is also confusion on whether his wife came with or died before the trip. Either way, there is no record of this ancestor, a chilling hint to the possibility that he died on the journey. If he were to have died on the journey, since he was almost 60, the family could not have made a proper gravestone, so he could have been quickly buried where ever it was convenient. To this day, all family genealogists still try to dig up any information on this missing Anspach.
The son of John that I'm descended from was named Jacob Anspach (1815-1860). He likely made the trip to the Midwest, just like his siblings, as soon as he was old enough. This could have been the same trip in 1833 that we lost trace of John Anspach. A few years after arriving in Decatur County, IN, he married Salome Leffer, who, as mentioned earlier, had been raised by his uncle. It is unclear whether Jacob lived in Indiana in time to help fund or build the Union Chapel Church, but he did attend there and is buried there. His wife, who outlived him by 40 years and remarried twice, still was buried next to her original husband in the "Anspaugh row" at Union Chapel.
Jacob Anspach's Grave in the Union Chapel Cemetary. Notice how the new spelling of the name was used, even though his son's and his wife's grave, both who died after him, have the original spelling of "Anspach".
Somewhat difficult to read, the text says "Salome, Wife of Jacob Anspach." This grave is next to the grave of her first husband, Jacob Anspach, even though she remarried twice after he died.