On the Trail of Our Ancestors
Donna Speer Ristenbatt Genealogy
In memory of those who died September 11, 2001
"God is our refuge and strength............." Psalm 46
In memory of those who died September 11, 2001
"God is our refuge and strength............." Psalm 46
WELCOME to the home page of Donna Speer Ristenbatt! This genealogy home page is dedicated to the memory of my aunt, Laura Elizabeth ROGERS, the woman who started researching our family's history over 50 years ago. This page is also a thank you to my father's sister, my aunt Harriet SPEER Bush. Inadvertently, she sparked my interest in our family's history by sending me a copy of the discharge papers of my great great grandfather, Henry H. Speer Jr., who fought in the 13th New Jersey Regiment during the American Civil War. This, combined with a trip to Gettysburg, PA, where I found out that the 13th NJ Regiment had fought, was enough to start a keen interest in genealogy. Combine this interest with the computer knowledge of my husband, and voilą - a genealogy home page evolved.
What started primarily as a home page concerning my ancestors' surnames has evolved into a page containing much more, with the hope of helping others in their research. Research in the Netherlands is one of the primary focuses of ON THE TRAIL OF OUR ANCESTORS as well as research in Lancaster County, PA and in Lebanon County, PA. To aid this research, you will find a Dutch Research Corner, a PA and Mennonite Research Corner, Ships' Passenger Lists and Cemetery Lists/ NJ and PA. (Many of my early Dutch ancestors [1600s] settled in Bergen County, New Jersey, USA.) Additionally for the researcher, there are sections entitled Genealogy For Beginners, Finding a Civil War Ancestor, Palatines in NYC, 1710, and Loyalist Muster Rolls. (Some of my Bergen County, NJ ancestors were Palatines who settled first in New York City. Some of my collateral lines subsequently went to Canada as Loyalists around the time of the American Revolutionary War.)
Most of my family's roots begin in New Jersey (mostly in Bergen and Burlington Counties) and lower New York state, but my Howland line and my Allen line started in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. My husband's family is primarily from Lancaster County, PA and Lebanon and Berks Counties, PA. After researching the origins of immigrant ancestors for both my husband and myself, I have discovered that our ancestors are, among other nationalities, Dutch, English, German, Swiss-German, Scots-Irish, French and probably more!
Donna Ristenbatt, the author of this website, went home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who she loves so very deeply on June 3, 2021. It is her hope that you will be able to glean something useful from these pages and she wishes you well in your research! View Donna's Obituary
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