Hopfengartner Research

This document is meant to explain our research and conclusions having to do with the Hoopengardner, Hopengarder, Hopfengartner, etc., families and individuals, stemming backward from Sarah Hoopengardner, born in 1800 and married to Robert Towns. This research was originally done in 2011 and revisited in 2019. There is a lot of process of elimination and circumstantial evidence, but that also means there is a fair amount of useful information accumulated for others interested in this family. The picture is certainly not complete; anyone with answers or good guesses is welcome to contact us.. Our aim is not necessarily to be complete, but to be accurate so that others can meld whatever information they have with this and trust it somewhat. We try to be clear about what is documented and what is speculation. If your family connection first appeared in Dayton, OH, in 1850, this family is not yours, though there may well be a German connection.

Our thanks to John Carles for sharing his research and insight.

Before 1760

There is a Hopfengartner family in Stuttgart which we’ve tried to connect with the American Hopengardners, with no luck—no Georgs or Caspars are born and go missing in the right time frame, no Georgs marry any Anna Margrets, etc. Furthermore, the Stuttgart Hopfengartners are doctors and makers of fine furniture, while Georg and Casper are illiterate. See the tree for details, but we don’t believe the connection is there.

1760

Georg Hopfengartner has emigrated to the US with his wife Anna Margret and his nephew, Conrad, landing in Philadelphia and taking an oath of allegiance there in 1752. Georg and Anna have three sons, George (1752), Casper (bef. 1755), and John. Note: We have evidence only for the arrival in Philadelphia of Georg and Conrad, and there are multiple theories about Conrad. We subscribe to the one that while Conrad’s name is transcribed Onkel or Cinkel, it indicates that Georg is his uncle (German: Onkel) and that his name is Hopengardner, as transcribed by the clerk for Georg.

1790

Four (or five) Hopfengartner families now have some American variant of the name and are in south central Pennsylvania. Three are in Bedford County. George, 38, is married and has a daughter or maybe a mother with him. Conrad has a wife and a son, also Conrad, and appears twice, or son Conrad has his own place and each have a young son. John has wife and a son, (not John L. until late in the year). Caspar is in Fulton County and has a wife and a son under age 5, and either a daughter or a mother. It is not clear where Georg is, but Anna Margaret may be the second female in either George’s or Caspar’s household. If so, Georg is deceased in 1790.

1800

George, 48, is still in Bedford County. He has sons George, John, David, Harvey, and Henry. There is a daughter or relative or servant between 16 and 25 whose name we don’t know. Anna Margaret is likely deceased; the only female over 45 in 1800 almost has to be George’s wife, Elizabeth

Conrad has moved to Bullitt County, Kentucky, by October 6, 1800, according to the Kentucky tax list of that year, or else his son Conrad, now possibly as old as 26, has.

John has moved on to Washington County, Pennsylvania. The son who appears in the 1790 census appears here again, but we don't know his name or what became of him. John's other son age 10-15 is John L. Three sons under 10 are Jacob, Daniel, and another whose name we don't know but who is still with the household in 1820. George is born within four years after the census, but not before it. The daughter under 10 is Elizabeth.

Caspar moves to Napier, Bedford, Pennsylvania. He has a son, age 10-15, and five daughters under 10.

1810

George, 58, remains in Bedford County and now has seven sons. George and David are probably the two between 16 and 25, John, Harvey, Henry, and Abraham are the four ages 10-15. Jonathan and Lewis are two of the three sons under 10; another son of that age is missing from the tree. There is again a daughter or relative or servant between 16 and 25 whose name we don’t know. She could be the same person as in the 1800 census if she was just 16 at the 1800 census and not quite 26 in 1810. Daughter Mary is under 10 years old.

Conrad’s son Conrad, is in Kentucky. Conrad Jr has children John, Jacob, Catherine, George, and Daniel, along with some others we haven’t identified.

John may already be in Tuscarawas County, Ohio (no record in Pennsylvania or Ohio found). He has children John L, 20, Jacob, 18, Daniel, 15, George, 9, Elizabeth, 8, and Peter, 4. An older son and a younger daughter who appear in the .

Caspar, about 54, may have died; there’s no male of the right age in the 1810 census. If so, his son is also Caspar. On the other hand, a male of Caspar’s age reappears in 1820. If Caspar is alive in 1810, he now has a son and seven daughters.

1820

George's Family: George, 68, is still alive and in Bedford County. His sons George and John are married and have their own residences. The named children listed above are still living.

Conrad’s Family: Conrad, Junior, is in Jackson County, Indiana. Conrad, Senior, who would be at least 85, has died by now.

John’s Family: John and his son Jacob are next door neighbors in Goshen Township, Tuscarawas, Ohio. Daniel, 25, a son in his early twenties, George, about 19, Elizabeth, 18, and Peter, 14, live with John. Jacob is married and has two sons. Oldest surviving son John L lives nearby in Dover Township.

Caspar’s Family: Caspar is back and living in Napier Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania. He’s at least 65 and his wife is between 54 and 64, but there are two boys under ten in the household. Son John's whereabouts are unclear in 1820, but he’s eventually in Ohio, then Michigan. Only two of the seven girls are still in the house. At least one probably died (there were three under ten years old in 1810), and at least one is married: Margaret is married to Israel Towns, and a couple of years later Sarah will marry his brother Robert Towns. Israel and Margaret are in Pennsylvania at census time, but Robert is not to be found (by us, anyway).

Hoopingarner 1820 Census Entries

Head (Father)	Males < 10	Males 10-15	Males 16-25	Males 18-25	Males 26-45	Males > 45	Females < 10	Females 10-16	Females 16-25	Females 26-45	Females > 45	Location
George	1	2	0	3	0	1	0	1	0	1	1	Bethel Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania
Caspar	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	1	0	1	Napier Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania
George (George)	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	Bethel Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania
John	0	1	0	3	0	1	0	0	1	0	1	Goshen Township, Tuscarawas, Ohio
John (George)	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	Bethel Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania
Jacob (John)	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	Goshen Township, Tuscarawas, Ohio
John (John)	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	Dover Township, Tuscarawas, Ohio
Conrad (Conrad)	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	1	Jackson, Indiana
Jacob (Conrad, Junior)	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	Jackson, Indiana
Israel Towns	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	Napier Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania
John Towns	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	Napier Township, Bedford, Pennsylvania

1830

George's Family: We haven’t listed them in the census data below. Basically they all stay in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, and have a bunch of kids.

Conrad’s Family: We haven’t listed them in the census data, either. The ones we know about are still in Jackson County, Indiana.

John’s Family: They are spreading out in Tuscarawas County, OH. John himself and his wife are still living; he’s in his seventies. The son whose name we don't know is still living with his parents in his early thirties and five other sons live around the county.

Caspar’s Family: We think that Caspar is now deceased, and that a large portion, at least, of his family is in Stark County, Ohio. Two daughters are married to two Towns brothers, the John in Manchester Township, Stark, Ohio, is his elder son, and the census entry for Mary Hoppingarner fits the profile of Caspar’s widow Mary Mowen in terms of living near her son and having two daughters. However, she should be at least 64 in 1830, not 50-60. The two women in the house could be two daughters brought along from Pennsylvania, except that one should be Sarah, now married to Robert Towns and out of the household, and we don’t know what would have happened to the two boys who were under 10 in 1820.

Hoopingarner 1830 Census Entries

Head (Father)	< 5	5-9	10-14	15-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50-59	60-69	70-79	80-89	Location
John-Males	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	Goshen Township,
John-Females	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
Jacob (John)-Males	2	2	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	Goshen Township,
Jacob (John)-Females	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
John (John)-Males	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	Dover Township,
John (John)-Females	2	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
Peter (John)-Males	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	Goshen Township,
Peter (John)-Females	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
Dan (John)-Males	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	Sugar Creek Township,
Dan (John)-Females	1	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
George (John)-Males	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	Warren Township,
George (John)-Females	1	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
John (Caspar)-Males	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	Manchester Township,
John (Caspar)-Females	1	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio
Mary Hoppingarner-Males	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Paris Township,
Mary Hoppingarner-Females	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	Tuscarawas, Ohio

Missing Hopfengartners

If you’re looking for Hoopengardners or some variant who aren’t named above, these are our best guesses: There are two boys born between 1810 and 1820 living in Casper’s household who are unaccounted for. There’s a son still living with John in 1830 whose name we don’t know. There are two Daniels, one 65 and one 66, in the area in 1860; one’s father is John, but who’s the other? Finally, both Conrad and Conrad Jr have one son unaccounted for. Or check Dayton, Ohio, in 1850 for another branch entirely. But this ought to narrow your search considerably.

After 1830

John, Jr. (John L II), dies in 1834. His widow, Elizabeth Walters, remains in the area in Ohio until after 1870.

Our ancestor, Sarah Hoopengardner Towns, is heading west with husband Robert and family in 1854 when she falls ill and dies.

The family of John (son of Casper) and Rebecca Wilson has some anomalies and mysteries. In both 1830 and 1840 they are in Stark County, Ohio, neighbors to several Towns brothers who arrived from Maine by way of Pennsylvania. In 1830, they have one son and one daughter under five and two daughters ages 5-9. These map to John, born 1827, and three daughters whose names we don’t know. In 1840, they have one son age 5-9—probably John, age 13-15--one daughter under 5, one daughter 5-9, and two daughters 10-14. The younger daughters are Amanda, age 7, and Euphemia, age 3. Of the two older daughters, we still don’t know the name of one, another should be 15-19, and another is missing—buried or married, but not with the family anymore. The 1850 census, which finally names names, doesn’t clear much up. By this time John and Rebecca, along with the family of Thomas Towns, a Towns brother who by now has been a neighbor to the Hoopengardners for a couple of decades in Ohio, move to Jackson County, Michigan. The younger John is 25 (or 23) and has just gotten married, but the older John is living in some sort of home listed as an illiterate pauper. He dies in 1861 of palsey (Parkinson’s?) after an 11-year illness. His wife, Rebecca, is alone with the kids—twice. She is listed on consecutive pages of the 1850 census, once with daughter Euphana, 13, and son Truman, 12, and once with sons Ephraim, 13, and Truman, 10, and daughter Amanda, 11. Rebecca is living with the younger John and his wife by 1860, and the elder John’s death certificate in 1861 lists him as widowed. Of the kids, Ephraim/Euphana/Euphemia is correct in the census at age 13 (and is female), but Amanda was 17, not 11. We lose track of Truman, who must have been born post-census in 1840, after 1850 (the Civil War may be the cause) and of any of the three older daughters.

Another John, about the same age as the unfortunate John above, is the son of Conrad Jr and lives to at least age 80 in Vigo County, Indiana.

There’s a fairly major migration out from Ohio in the 1840’s and 50’s. The set mentioned above go to Michigan. Our ancestors were going “west of Chicago” (family oral history), but only made it to Kosciusko County, Indiana. Daniel and son Daniel and possibly others went to DeKalb County, Indiana, but apparently the two Dans, at least, went back to Tuscarawas County, Ohio, by 1860.