#5392 Solomon Knepper ( John Knepper • Johann Knepper • Johann Gottfried "Gottfried" Knepper◊ • Clemens Knepper◊ • Hans Peter Knepper◊ • Tilmann Knepper◊ )

Solomon was born 10 Dec 1820 in Brothersvalley Twp., Somerset Co., Pennsylvania. He was baptised 20 May 1821 in Berlin Evangelical Church, Brothersvalley Twp., Somerset Co., Pennsylvania. He died 17 Feb 1854 from bronchitis.

The following is from History of the Church of the Brethren of the Western District of Pennsylvania:

Solomon Knepper, son of John and Elizabeth (Stahl) Knepper, was born near Berlin, Somerset County, Pennsylvania, Decmeber 11, 1820, and died at his home, two and one-half miles south of Berlin, February 17, 1854, aged 33 years, 2 months and 6 days. His parents were Pennsylvania Dutch, but were undoubtedly of German descent. They were farmers and Solomon was reared a farmer. He received his education in the private schools of his day and Berlin Academy, and specimes of his penmanship, still in existence, are hard to equal, both in style and beauty. He taught school in the winter and farmed in the summer.

On November 19, 1843, he was married to Miss Eve Schrock, Elder Jacob Myers performed the ceremony. Two sons blessed this union, the younger dying in infancy. The other son is Elder John H. Knepper, who has been for a number of years pastor of the First Brethren church of Altoon, Pennsylvania.

He was elected to the ministry in the Berlin congregation, but the date has not been preserved. His preaching was done both in English and German, but mostly in the former. It is said that he was the first native "Dunker" preach of Somerset County who could preach in the English language. He was very active in all work of the church. He was called upon to preach many funerals of persons not members of the church. While officiating at a funeral service he contracted a severe cold, which developed into bronchitis, causing his untimely death. He was buried on the old Knepper farm, but some forty years ago his son, John H., had the body removed to his own private lot in the Berlin cemetery.

∞ Solomon married #6272 Eve Schrock.

Eve was born Abt 1825 in Brothersvalley Twp., Somerset Co., Pennsylvania. She died 1872.

In the History of the Church of the Brethren of the Western District of Pennsylvania it says:

In 1855 [Solomon Knepper's] widow was united in marriage to Deacon John J. Bittner, Elder Jacob Blough officiating. Her death took place in 1872, and she was laid by the side of Brother Knepper.

Children of this relationship:

Clifford T. Wig & Dorothy H. Wig, The Knepper Family Tree, (unpublished, Apr 1997). Ref. as [Wig].

Howard E. Blackburn & William H. Welfley, History of Bedford and Somerset Counties, Pennsylvania, (New York/Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Co., 1906), 305-307. Ref. as [Blackburn/Welfley].

Jerome E. Blough, History of the Church of the Brethren of the Western District of Pennsylvania, (Elgin, Illinois: Brethren Publishing House, 1916), p. 448.

Line Generation: 7

Relationship: Second Cousins Four Times Removed through Johann Gottfried "Gottfried" Knepper◊