The order in which names are mentioned here does not imply the order in which they came though I am trying to keep some resemblance of time to the discussion and the time is approximately the early 1730's. The family to be discussed next is well documented, perhaps the best of the Germanna families. This documentation is basically due to the immigrant himself, Andreas Gar. The information is reported in the " Garr/Gaar Genealogy " which was researched over a period of time spanning over forty years, from about 1850 to 1894. The over 600 pages of the genealogy are, I believe, the largest of the Germanna genealogies and the earliest significant genealogy.
Andreas Gar lived in Illenschwang, Bavaria in 1732. Desiring to emigrate to Pennsylvania, he sought letters of recommendation from his pastor and the mayor. Both obliged him with letters of testimony, respectively on April 25 and April 26 of 1732. These letters were preserved within the family and translations of them were published in the Gaar Genealogy. At church, the Gars were faithful in the observance of the church rituals. The mayor and council of Dinkelsbuehl acknowledged he was well-behaved citizen. They also noted that he left no blood relations or debts behind and had on all occasions conducted himself praiseworthily.
The statement that no blood relations were left behind was not strictly true. The importance of the statement though was that he left no children behind who would become wards of the state. The state administration of Bavaria was Catholic and they required proofs that Lutherans (which Gar was) left no children. Andreas Gar did leave relatives, specifically his father and some brothers.
Before he left, Andreas Gar paid three florins for a cross. This cross was in case he died at an inopportune moment when he could not obtain a cross, say during the travels, on the ship and shortly after his arrival.
The trip of Andreas Gar, his wife Eva (Seidelmann), and five children, John Adam, Lorenz, Rosina, Maria Barbara and Elizabeth, went without loss of any of the family members though Maria Barbara, 5, died shortly after arriving in Philadelphia. News of the trip was sent back to Germany in letters. The eldest son, John Adam, wrote his godfather on 1 Feb 1733 from Germantown, Pennsylvania. Actually, Andreas Gar had written sooner, on 18 Nov 1732, to the pastor. Highlights of the trip were a long and dangerous voyage. At Rotterdam there was a wait of six weeks for a ship because of the great number of people. It took 18 days to cross to Cowes in England with a wait of 16 days there. The trunks were inspected very closely because of the high tariffs. The ship arrived in seven weeks and four days. Six old persons and thirty-six children died of smallpox.
Andreas wrote,
"The wine is the life of man. Nice flour, dried meat, and dried fruits are very good. The land is good. Plenty of apples, and better than in Germany. One man preserved twenty-five barrels of apples. There is plenty of fruit, but as dear as in Germany. Cattle are twice as dear as in Germany. There are plenty of forges, smelting-works, foundries, and mills. Everything is free. Anybody can hunt, wherever he wishes, bears, wolves, etc."
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.