Verena Trachsel Yoder (Joder)

Verena Trachsel Yoder (Joder)

Female 1647 - Aft 1714  (> 68 years)
Person ID: I33159  Sharon Vitter's Relative


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  • Name Verena Trachsel Yoder (Joder)  [1, 2
    Notes 
    • It is very speculative who Barbara Rupp's parent are. The ones currently listed were 50 years old at Barbara's birth.

      Her supposed mother Verena Yoder (Joder) is listed in several genealogies as dying in 1756 (which would put her death age at 109 years old!), but it appears to be based upon a death record of a Verena Yoder who was married to a Niclaus Rupp and died on 27 Dec 1756 in Wolfbach at the age of 36. So it is not the same Verena Yoder.
    Born 12 Sep 1647  Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Female 
    Died Aft 1714  Wolfbach, Homburg, Thurgau, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Siblings
     1. Johannes Hans Trachsel Yoder (Joder) (ID:I33139),   b. 21 Apr 1644, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Dec 1694, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 50 years)
     2. Peter Trachsel Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43605),   b. 1649, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1689, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 40 years)
     3. Jakob Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43606),   b. 4 Apr 1652, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1702, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 49 years)
     4. Barbara Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43607),   b. 28 Oct 1655, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1700, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 44 years)
     5. Christian Trachsel Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43608),   b. 10 May 1657, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1687, Eppstein, Frankenthal, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 29 years)
     6. Anna Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43602),   b. 1 May 1659, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. DECEASED, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location
     7. Jost Yoder (Joder) (ID:I47091),   b. 17 Nov 1661,   d. DECEASED
     8. Casper Trachsel Yoder (Joder) (ID:I47085),   b. 1664,   d. DECEASED
     9. Catharina Trachsel Yoder (Joder) (ID:I43610),   b. 8 Jul 1666, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1695, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 28 years)

    Parents

    Family ID: F35684 Group Sheet  |  Family Chart  
    Father Jost Yoder (Joder) (ID:I47060),   b. 30 Nov 1607, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Aft 1666, Ortbuhl Farm, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age > 60 years) 
    Mother Anna Trachsel (ID:I47061),   d. DECEASED 
    Married 14 Oct 1642  Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  [2

    Family 1

    Family ID: F25099  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Husband 1 Niclaus Rupp (ID:I33158),   b. 1647, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Abt 1727, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 80 years) 
    Married 1672  Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
      1. Barbara Rupp (ID:I33154),   b. 3 Mar 1698, Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1751, Bern, Berks, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 52 years)

    Family 2

    Family ID: F25231  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Husband 2 Peter Reusser (ID:I44219),   d. DECEASED 
    Married 7 May 1714  Bern, Switzerland Find all individuals with events at this location  [1, 2
  • Event Map

    Link to Google MapsBorn - 12 Sep 1647 - Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 1672 - Steffisburg, Bern, Switzerland Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsMarried - 7 May 1714 - Bern, Switzerland Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDied - Aft 1714 - Wolfbach, Homburg, Thurgau, Switzerland Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 
  • Source Citations

    1. [S837] Switzerland, Select Marriages, 1532-1910, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2014;), Verena Joder.
      Name: Verena Joder
      Gender: Female
      Marriage Date: 7 mai 1714 (7 May 1714)
      Marriage Place: Bern, Switzerland
      Spouse: Peter Rüsser
      FHL Film Number: 2005964

    2. [S1199] Yoder Newsletter, (Location: Goshen, Indiana, USA;), "Caspar Yoder Married to Verena Stauffer, Is Redefined!", Issue No. 55, April 2010.
      https://www.yodernewsletter.org/YNL/YNL55_files/image005.jpg

      In the last YNL, we provided information that established that Jacob Amman, founder of the “Amish”, had attended a religious meeting in a Joder home in Steffisburg, and that it appeared certain that this home was that of Caspar Joder, son of Jost Joder who married Anna Trachsel. This Caspar left Steffisburg and moved to Alsace, where he and his wife, along with nine children lived at Weiler in 1708 and were referred to as “well to do”. Descendants of his are shown in Weissenburg (Wissembourg in French) and Sankt-Germanshof and later on in Salzwoogerhof. He is identified as the ancestor of 1825 immigrant Michel Yoder (YRC8), who shares the “Amish Yoder” DNA mutation of the YR1 and YR2 Yoder immigrants of 1742.

      For years this Caspar has been identified as being the same Caspar Joder who married Verena Stauffer (see YNL2 article by Lois Ann Mast based on the work of German researcher Karl Joder and his partner Otmar Jotter). From Steffisburg death and contract data, it is now clear that Caspar and Verena Stauffer lived and died in the ancestral village, and that Caspar was the son of Hans Joder who married Verena Reusser! I’ll attempt to spell this out for our readers in a logical order.
      In the earlier listings by Karl/Otmar, the birth/baptismal year for the Caspar, son of Jost Joder and Anna Trachsel, was given as 1660, with no day provided. A review of the actual church record shows the baptismal date was actually 5/22/1664. Infants were normally baptized soon after birth, so it can be assumed he was born shortly before that date. Had this Caspar been the fellow who married Verena Stauffer on Jan. 21, 1681, it would have meant that he would have been married at the age of 16. In 1686, at the birth of Caspar and Verena Stauffer's son Hans, the father is noted as the "Kirchmeier,” i.e., the person who looks after the church property, collects rents, sells harvests etc. This would have been an unlikely role for an Anabaptist firebrand. But had this been true, and were he Jost’s son, he would have only been 22 at the time, very young for such a position of responsibility. Bruce Stahly pointed out this age issue and started us on the hunt for another, older, Caspar.

      Among the new information identified in a review of the Steffisburg Church Records is the fact that a Casper DID exist in the community who had not previously been included in the Karl Joder listings. He was the son of Hans Joder who married Verena Reusser.

      Hans Joder who married Verena Reusser could be considered “the other Joder.” He is referred to in some of the Steffisburg record as Hans Joder “in der Au.” He was about the same age as the brothers Nicolas and Jost Joder, each married to cousins named Anna Trachsel, who have been the focus of researchers looking for American Joder ancestors. These three were in fact, one generation off, see the relationship chart on page 1. The Amish and Amish Mennonite Genealogies (AAMG) by Gingerich and Kreider, refers to him by the code “YB.” The updated AAMG version correctly identifies his son Jakob as the fellow who married Margareth Stähli, but still lists only four of his seven children. The actual family is shown below (b=baptismal dates, children not in AAMG but identified in the Steffisburg Church records are underscored).

      YB- Hans Joder m. 6/13/1656 Verena Reuesser
      YB1- Margaret b 10/25/1657
      YB2- Caspar b 1/2/1659 m. Verena Stauffer
      YB3- Jakob b 10/7/1660 m. 1684 Margreth Stähli
      YB4- Niclaus b 8/24/1662
      YB5- Barbli b 10/13/1664
      YB6- Hansli b 3/3/1666
      YB7- Madlena b 12/16/1669

      Caspar (YB2) who was born/bapt. in 1659 would have been 22 when married, and 27 when a “Kirchmeier”, much more reasonable ages to match with this identification. Birth data alone calls into question the Caspar son of Jost to Verena Stauffer marriage. Death records raise further doubt about this fellow:

      From the Steffisburg death records:

      8 April 1735 - Caspar Joder the old of Glockenthal "biz 70 years old". Glockenthal (Bell Valley)
      7 Jun 1735- Froni Joder, born Stauffer in Glockenthal “uber 70 years old"

      This information seemed to match to the Caspar/Verena Stauffer couple. But they were supposed to be in Alsace, breeding a large progeny! Furthermore the age of the Caspar here matches exactly to that of the son of Hans (YB2). Stähli family researcher Bruce W. Stahly shared his experience and contacts to arrange for the services of professional Swiss researcher, Therese Metzger. Estate settlements for Steffisburg are kept in the contract records at the cantonal archive in the city of Bern -- i.e. Staatsarchiv des Kantons Bern. Based on the death information we had discovered on the Steffisburg church CDs, we focused her efforts on Caspar and Verena and several other Joders of the same generation. The records relevant to Caspar and Verena Stauffer are as follows, by file number:

      Steffisburg Contract Records:

      241 Obligation. Primary guarantor is Caspar Joder in the Gloggenthal. 1716. (YB2)

      248-249 Debt Contract. Debtor is Hans Joder in the Au. Guarantor Caspar Joder in the Gloggenthal his son. 1716 (YB and YB2)

      79 Promisory Contract. Caspar Joder the old Kirchmeir of Gloggenthal. He is satisfied with with the adjoining land. (YB2)

      97 Receipt. Caspar Joder in Gloggenthal. (YB2)

      179 Obligation. 1000 pounds. From 1707. Chief guarantors were Hans Joder in the Au; the old Kirchmeier in the Gloggenthal; and Jakob Joder in the Pfaffenhalter, sons. The surety was the mill in the Au, belonging to the chief gurarntor. Cancelled 1719. [Three pages of text, not all read.] (YB and YB2 and YB3)

      A284 (Hans Joder/Verena Reusser family- YB)

      12-13 Estate Settlement. The late Hans Joder in the Au of Steffisburg. His sons and grandsons: Caspar the elder son in the Gloggenthal and his sons Christen and Caspar, Jakob the younger son of Pfaffenhalten and his sons Hans and Caspar Joder. 1719/1721. (YB family)

      A285

      91 Debt contract. Caspar Joder the old Kirchmeier and as guarantors his son Hans Joder and son-in-law Christian Reusser both of Erlen. 1723. (YB2)

      111 Obligation. Caspar Joder acknowledges to his mother Verena Stauffer, who acknowleded it with the hand of her husband Caspar Joder the old Kirchmeier. 1722. (YB2 and YB26)

      212 Lease contract. The same people listed above in item 91.

      A296

      p. 63- Brothers Hans and Christen Joder exchanged for themselves, and their mother Verena Stauffer with the consent and permission of Caspar Joder (YB2) her husband and their father, with Caspar Joder, a son, and Christen Spring and Hans Zaugg their sons-in-law and their mother, property in Gloggenthal. two houses, a barn, an oven house, a granary, in return for an Alp (pasture) in the area of Röthenbach for pasturing about 10 cows in the summer. No date, it must have been 1733. Written in 1737 , the transaction was cancelled because the signatories were dead and no promise had been carried through.

      p.224 - Verena Stauffer with the consent of her husband Caspar Joder (YB2) old Kirchmeier of Steffisburg sold the rights to pasture two cows in the Alps, 29 May 1734.

      https://www.yodernewsletter.org/YNL/YNL55_files/image007.jpg

      APRIL 2010 STEFFISBURG CHART UPDATE

      A298
      p. 132-144 Estate settlement- Estate settlement of the late Caspar Joder old Kirchmeier married to the late Verena Stauffer; parents of Hans; Christen; Caspar ; Anna married 1st Christen Reusser; 2nd Christen Spring; Barbara married 1st Christen Gasser; 2nd Hans Zaugg; [Description of the estate and property. 3 pages. 11 August 1736.]

      These records clearly show that Caspar Joder and his wife Verena Stauffer remained in Steffisburg and died there in 1735. The Amish Alsatian Caspar (at Langenberg by 1712 and still there in 1735) seems certain to be the son of Jost Joder and Anna Trachsel, and his wife may have been named “Verena” (an Anabaptist Caspar Joder and his wife Verena Hoffin (Hoffer) had a male child born at Durrenentzen 3/20/1695. The child died unbaptized 5/31/1695.) But this Caspar WAS NOT the Caspar who married Verena Stauffer. The research by Karl Joder and Otmar Jotter that created a matching family in Alsace must have made assumptions based on similar naming patterns among the next generation. From the baptismal and contract records, the following family can be constructed for the Steffisburg couple;

      YB2- Caspar Joder (in the Au) m 1/21/1681 Verena Stauffer, both died in Steffisburg in 1735 (b. represents baptismal dates)
      YB21- Anna b 4/16/1682
      YB22- Anna b 5/20/1683 –m 1st 6/8/1708 Christen Reusser; 2nd Christen Spring
      YB23- Barbara Joder b. 1/4/1685
      YB24- Hans b 10/24/1686 - baptism refers to father Caspar as “the Kirchmeier,” pos m. Barbara Berger
      YB25- Christian b 2/15/1691 , pos. m.1715 Rosina Schwendimann
      YB26- Caspar b 9/1/1695
      YB27- Peter b 2/18/1700
      YB28- Barbara b 10/29/1703 Barbara married 1st Christen Gasser; m2. 3/7/1731 Hans Zaugg
      (Barbara had children by Christen Gasser starting 3/4/1725
      *******************************************************

      NOTE: Stähli researcher Bruce Stahly contacted us about a reference that had been found which told of Jakob Joder buying a piece of land from his brother-in-law Caspar Stähli, who was brother to Margareth Stähli, Jakob Joder's wife. Being himself a Yoder descendant as well as a Stähli one, that got his attention and jogged his memory of having seen an unresolved issue regarding a Joder/Stähli marriage in Steffisburg. And, ironically, he found this Stähli family, from Oberhofen, is not at all related to his own Stähli family. This contact led to a re-look at the Steffisburg CDs, and the contract research which, as Bruce describes this, is “a good example of the strange twists and turns genealogical research can take.” We now know that Jakob who married Margareth Stähli is the brother of Caspar Joder who married Verena Stauffer.
      https://www.yodernewsletter.org/YNL/YNL55.htm