Rev. Abraham C. Weber

Other Events:

• Name: Abraham Weaver
• Name: Abram Weber
• Residence: 748 Old Zeller Dr., Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Eby ID Number: 00127-7889
• Occupation: 1852, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; farmer
• Occupation: 1861, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Farmer
• Residence: 1861, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Mennonite
• Occupation: 1871, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Farmer
• Residence: 1871, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Mennonite

Notes:

Abraham C. Weber," the youngest son of Abraham and Elizabeth (Cressman) Weber, was born in Berlin, Waterloo County, Ontario, March 14th, 1817. On October 23rd, 1838, he was married to Judith, youngest daughter of Peter and Anna (Zimmerman) Martin. She was born January 2nd, 1821, and died March 12th, 1884. After their marriage he moved on his father's farm, being composed of part of lot No. 15, German Company's Tract. Here they resided until the Grand Trunk Railway was built in 1855, when they sold their large farm and purchased that of Benjamin Shantz and Stafford's farms at Freeport. Here they resided until his death which took place July 6th, 1874. She resided until his death which took place July 6th, 1874. She resided with her son, Moses, on the west side of the Grand River, near Chicopee, where she died. He was ordained as minister of the Gospel for the Mennonite denomination, December 22nd, 1850. He preached regularly and attended frequently at funerals. His time was largely occupied in visiting the sick and giving words of consolation to such who were seeking their spiritual welfare, and his life was a busy one. So much of his time was devoted to his pastoral duties that he was almost unable to attend to his private affairs. Although sacrificing much of his time in the service of the church of his choice, he would not receive any compensation for the time devoted in behalf of the church, but looked for his reward beyond the present life where the faithful labors in His vineyard shall be spiritually rewarded for all ages of eternity. They had a numerous family, being composed of sixteen children"


Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

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First Mennonite Church

The first church built in Waterloo County was erected in Berlin in 1813, and was known as Benjamin Eby's Meeting House.

Benjamin Eby had come to Canada in 1807 and in 1809 was ordained preacher. Three years later, in 1812, he was ordained bishop. His "parish included sections of Waterloo, Wilmot and Woolwich" (Uttley 1937: 27). In 1818 a frame addition, which was to be used as a winter school, was built on to the church. The log meeting house was replaced in 1834 by a larger frame church, and the old building was taken to Breslau to become the first meeting house in that community. (The Breslau church was known as Cressman Meeting House, a name which was changed in 1968 to Breslau Mennonite Church.) A Sunday School was opened in the church in 1841.

Benjamin Eby died in 1853. He was followed by Abraham C. Weber who served the congregation until his death in 1874. In that same year, a division in the church brought about the departure of a group who organized a congregation of Reforming (or Reformed) Mennonites, to become United Mennonites in 1875 and then Mennonite Brethren in Christ in 1883. Their church is the present-day Bethany Missionary Church on Lancaster Street East. Christian Eby was the next minister of the Berlin Mennonite Church, until 1879. The church was known over the years as Benjamin Eby's Church, Christian Eby's Church (from 1854-1904), and the Berlin Church (from 1904 until 1917.) The name of the church became First Mennonite Church in 1917.

A new brick church was built in 1902. A Bible Study School was begun in 1907, and in 1928 a separate brick Bible Study School building was erected. Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church was formed by some members in 1924 as a result of a division in the church.

Of interest: when the new church was built in 1902, the 1834 frame church was bought by D.B. Betzner who moved it to Cedar Street where it became a woodenware business and then a furniture factory. It was destroyed by fire in 1937.

Waterloo County Churches A Research Guide To Churches Established Before 1900 By Rosemary Ambrose

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In the 1851 Census of Waterloo Township the birthdates of the children don't agree with Eby's book.

Residence:
The Woolner Farmstead buildings, located at 748 Zeller Drive, are situated in the north end of the City of Kitchener on 6.47 acres off scenic Zeller drive. The original Mennonite Georgian farmhouse and outbuildings were constructed in 1830. The farmhouse addition was built circa 1858, and the barn and concrete silo were built circa 1870.

Abraham married Judith Martin 23 Oct 1838, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. Judith (daughter of Peter Martin and Anna Zimmerman) was born 2 Jan 1821, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 12 Mar 1884, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

1. Peter M. Weber was born 1 Nov 1839, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 13 Jun 1925, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
2. Isaac M. Weber was born 9 Oct 1841, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 4 Feb 1917; was buried , Martin Meeting House Cemetery, Waterloo City, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
3. Daniel M. Weber was born 11 Sep 1843, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 26 Aug 1920, German Mills (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
4. Abraham M. Weber was born 8 Oct 1845, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 13 Feb 1895, Near Chicopee, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
5. Elizabeth H. Weber was born 15 May 1847, Woolwich Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 5 Feb 1941; was buried , Martin Meeting House Cemetery, Waterloo City, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
6. Martin M. Weber was born 22 Sep 1848, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 21 Apr 1915.
7. Levi M. Weber was born 14 Mar 1850, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 24 Oct 1923, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
8. Anna Weber was born 20 Aug 1851, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died Yes, date unknown.
9. Moses M. Weber was born 29 Aug 1853, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 27 Aug 1890, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
10. Judith Weber was born 4 Jul 1855, Freeport (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 9 Apr 1942, Pinehill, Wilmot Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
11. Menno Weber was born 18 Jan 1857, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 5 Jan 1870, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
12. David M. Weber was born 25 Oct 1858, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 25 Aug 1909, , Alberta, Canada; was buried , Didsbury Cemetery, Didsbury, Alberta, Canada.
13. Maria M. "Mary" Weber was born 2 Jan 1862, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 30 May 1937; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
14. Tilman Weber was born 2 Nov 1863, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 6 Nov 1940; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
15. Lydia M. Weber was born 11 Jan 1866, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 14 Jul 1933, Bridgeport (Kitchener), Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada.
16. Leah Weber was born 23 Jan 1867, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; died 22 Feb 1882.

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171204899
• Eby ID Number: 00127-7876
• Land: Bef 1831, Waterloo Township - German Company Tract Lot 016, Waterloo County, Ontario
• Residence: 1852, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Residence: 1861, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; Mennonite

Notes:

Abraham Weber," the second son of Henry Weber, was born October 2nd, 1787. In 1807 he in company with Benjamin Eby and wife, Joseph Schneider, wife and family, Peter Erb and wife, David Eby, Samuel Eby, and others, came to Canada and arrived at what is now Berlin, Waterloo County, on June 21st. Here Abraham Weber located on lot No. 15, German Company's Tract. His buildings were located on the west side of King Street, a little to the south of the Grand Trunk Railway where now is the beautiful residence and lawn of W. H. Bowlby. Soon after his arrival he was married to Elizabeth Baumann who was born October 16th, 1788, and died June 12th, 1847. They raised a family of three children"

Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

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On the 19th of February, in Waterloo township, Waterloo Co., C. W., of , Bro. ABM. WEBER, aged 79 years, 4 mo., and 17 days. He was born in Lancaster Co., Pa., in 1787, and went to Canada in 1807. He lived and died a faithful member of the Mennonite Church. He was buried a (sic) Eby's burying ground. Funeral sermons were preached by Joseph Hege and George Schmidt, from Heb. 13;14.

HERALD OF TRUTH - Volume IV, Number 5 - May 1867 - Page 78.

________________________________

Back to 1807 and 20-year-old Abraham Weber. He built his farmstead in the centre of his lot, close to 2017's King and Victoria. All vestiges of Weber's buildings have disappeared but one incidental structure lingers. At some point, Abraham gave refuge and work to an ex-slave named Levi Carroll. Levi and his family are among the earliest identifiable blacks in the German Company Tract. They appear in a later, well-known photograph from the 1880s featuring their home, the original 1820 Waterloo schoolhouse. It was then located on Lot 16 near the collegiate but is now in Waterloo Park.

Abraham left the farm in the late 1830s when son Abraham C. took over. Then, in 1855, the Grand Trunk Railway route split Lot 16 in two, so Abraham C. sold most of his land to George Grange who had the property surveyed and began selling industrial and residential lots.

mills, r. (2017). Flash from the Past: Lot 16: From Aboriginal village to factory | TheRecord.com. TheRecord.com. Retrieved 28 September 2017, from https://www.therecord.com/living-story/7577349-flash-from-the-past-lot-16-from-aboriginal-village-to-factory/#.Wc1fDR29Ijo.facebook

Residence:
At the time of the Woolwich Census in 1852 Abraham and Susan were staying with Isaac and Elizbeth Weber.

Abraham married Elizabeth Cressman 1808. Elizabeth (daughter of Daniel Cressman and Esther Bechtel) was born 16 Oct 1788, , Montgomery Co., Pennsylvania; died 12 Jun 1847, Waterloo Twp., Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171205031
• Name: Elizabeth Weber
• Eby ID Number: 00028-2106

Notes:

Elizabeth Cressman, "was born October 16th, 1788. In 1806 she came to Canada with her mother and in 1808 she was married to Abraham Weber who was born October 2nd, 1787, and died February 19th, 1867. They resided on a farm where now is situated a part of the town of Berlin. Here she died June 12th, 1847. To them were born three children,"

Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: 00127-7832.5

Henry — Veronica Hershey. Veronica (daughter of Hershey) was born Abt 1757, Of, Earl Twp., Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania; died Yes, date unknown. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name: Veronica Weber
• Eby ID Number: 00127-7832.4

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: 00028-2105

Notes:

Daniel Cressman, "the second son of old Nicholaus Cressman, was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, October 25th, 1762. In 1787 he was married to Esther, daughter of Abraham and Mary (Hoch) Bechtel. She was born July, 1766. They resided in Chester County, Pennsylvania, where he was accidentally killed by a heavy laden waggon passing over his body, March 1st, 1795. To him and his wife were born three children, namely:...The widow, in 1804, was again married to Philip Bliehm (See Philip Bliehm's family) and in May, 1806, they moved to Canada and settled in Waterloo County where she died."


Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

Daniel married Esther Bechtel 1787. Esther (daughter of Abraham Bechtel and Mary Hoch) was born Jul 1766, Of, Montgomery Co., Pennsylvania; died 20 Jan 1833, , Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , First Mennonite Cemetery, Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name: Esther Bliehm
• Name: Esther Cressman
• Eby ID Number: 00007-0809

Notes:

Esther Bechtel "daughter of Abraham and Mary (Hoch) Bechtel, was born in July, 1766. She was married to Daniel Cressman and had a family of three children, namely: VI Elizabeth, VI Abraham, and VI Mary. After the decease of her first husband she was married to Philip Bleam, with whom she had four children".


Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: 00127-7832

Notes:

Henry Weber," son of Heiner Weber and brother to old Christian Weber, was born in Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1728. He was married to a Miss Hershey,† sister to his brother Christian's wife. They resided in Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, on the old Weber homestead. To them were born several children, namely: III Henry, III Daniel, and three daughters whose names were not received. We shall here follow the descendants of III Henry Weber who was born in 1757 and was married to Veronica Hershey.* They resided on the old Weber homestead near Blue Ball, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. To them was born a family of seven children, namely: IV Benjamin, IV Abraham, IV David, IV Henry, IV Franklin, IV Daniel, and IV John. Of the named family the three sons, David, Franklin, and John, never lived in Canada. Their descendants are to be found in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, while the remaining four sons, namely, Benjamin, Abraham, Henry, and Daniel, moved to Canada during the beginning of the present century and settled in Waterloo County, Ontario, where their numerous descendants are to be found. We shall now give their descendants in their proper order."

From Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].


† It seems the Webers took an extra fancy for the Hershey women.

* A niece to the two Hersheys married to the two elder Webers.

Henry — Miss Hershey. Miss (daughter of Hershey) was born Abt 1728; died Yes, date unknown. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• Name: Miss Weber
• Eby ID Number: 00127-7832.1

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: 00127-7832.3

Other Events:

• Eby ID Number: 00028-2043.1

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/67850623
• Residence: 55 Fallbrook Lane, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada
• Eby ID Number: 00007-0736
• Land: Bef 1831, Waterloo Township - Beasley's Old Survey Lot 03, Waterloo County, Ontario

Notes:

Abraham Bechtel "son of III Abraham who was first-cousin to III Rev. Martin Bechtel, was born March 7th, 1739. He was married to Mary Hoch who was born February 22nd, 1745, and died July 18th, 1841. In 1800 he with his wife and family moved to Canada and settled near Blair where they both died. He died October 2nd, 1825. Their family consisted of one son and four daughters"

Eby, Ezra E. (1895). A biographical history of Waterloo township and other townships of the county: being a history of the early settlers and their descendants, mostly all of Pennsylvania Dutch origin: as also much other unpublished historical information chiefly of a local character. Berlin [Kitchener, Ont.]: [s.n.].

___________________

Beside the many hardships, labors and sufferings in getting here and making themselves homes, quite a few settlers along where Blair is now situated were visited by a fire this spring of 1806.

On the 6th of May fire was set to a Job [a tract of land with timber slashed down ready to be burned so that the land could be farmed later] of 10 or 15 acres, soon after which a great wind arose, and swept through the new clearings and destroyed fences, houses and barns.

Abraham Stauffer had his barn burnt.
Abraham Bechtel had his house and barn burnt.
Jacob Bechtel's house was saved but his barn and everything else were consumed.
Nathaniel Dodge who was the last of the settlers along the river, had two barns with all their contents burnt.

The fire went on making the most fearful destruction of all kinds of valuable timber. Thus those settlers who were probably the most advanced with their new homes were suddenly left without house, food or clothing, and were obliged to go below Dundas through mud, water, swamp and forest for provisions and other necessaries, which were not obtainable from their neighbors.

MENNONITE IMMIGRATION TO WATERLOO COUNTY - THE MOYER JOURNAL

Attributed to Samuel S. Moyer 1849 - 1941

Abraham — Mary Hoch. Mary was born 22 Feb 1745, Of, Montgomery Co., Pennsylvania; died 18 Jul 1831, Near Blair, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada; was buried , Blair Cemetery, Cambridge, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. [Group Sheet]

Other Events:

• FindAGrave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/67851091
• Name: Mary Bechtel
• Eby ID Number: 00007-0736.2