*Note: this page is updated and edited continuously. Please review date at the end for most recent edition.
Proclamation
It is important to start with a proclamation. There are two Peter Wises who both had sons named Cornelius. They were around the same age, both born in Pennsylvania and both lived in Ohio. One Peter is Peter Miller Wise. He is from Stark County Ohio, and his son was Cornelius H. Wise. This Peter is different from the Peter who is from Trumbull County Ohio. There is much confusion and errors between these two Peters. Our family lineage is related to the Not Peter Miller Wise.
Peter Miller Wise
Its important to give details about Peter Miller Wise (PMW), as research on the two Peters can be confusing. PMW,was born 10 MAR 1794, in West Bethlehem, Washington, Pennsylvania. He died 20 MAY 1876, Canton, Stark, Ohio, UnitedStates. He married Catherine Forner(1798-1860). His father was Johann Peter Wise/Weiss and his mother was MaryMagdalene Miller. Johann Peter, alsowent by Peter and was born 1758 and died 1821 in Stark County.
NOT Peter Miller Wise
Peter Wise, was born in Pennsylvaniaapproximately 1795, as calculated by the 1850 Census[1],there are variances in his age. Peter moved from Pennsylvania to Trumbull County Ohio and is first found in Land Tax Documents dated 1826[2],again in the same location in the 1830 Census [3],and living with his son Cornelius in the 1850 Census. We know he moved from Pennsylvania to Ohio as some of his children were born in Pennsylvania, as noted on Censuses. The following are confirmed as Peter’s children through an obtained Will and Testament of the oldest son, Abraham, located by Jimmy Wise who hired a researcher: Abraham, Cornelius, Phebe, Hannah and Elizabeth. A copy of the Will has been passed down to Elizabeth Wise, daughter of Jimmy Wise, who since transcribed the hand copy to typed text.
Rule Outs
History shows that the Weiss family name was common in Pennsylvania as it appears relatives from Europe descended to that location, specifically to the Berk, Lehigh, Northampton Counties of Pennsylvania. (Mathews & Hungford, 1884) Listed in that text is history on the Weiss family and a notation as first settlers to the area along with their connections to churches.
The name Peter is both an English and Germanic common name. Peter is a common name during the time period. Also, it was a practice of Germans to use the middle name.The name Peter and his last name Weiss/Wise are highly common in Pennsylvania and Ohio.
| Name | DoB-Death | Location | Evidence Sp = Married Spouse D = Daughter S=Son M=Mother F=Father P= Parents | Rule In Out Possible |
| Peter Weiss | B. 2 Oct 1797 D. 9 Jan 1869 | Weisenberg, Lehigh, PA | This Peter is shown on Censuses as living in the Weisenberg area. Find A Grave has his death. In addition, a family has him on their tree: M. Rachel Litchy, D. Maria Sp. Stephen Balliet P. Not listed | OUT |
| Note: | Lowhill Reformed Congregation, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, 1769-1881 | |||
| Peter Wise | B. 14 Feb 1790 D. 14 Jun 1864 | Smith, Mahoning, Ohio | Conversation with his descendant supports documented evidence from Census, death and descendant tracing. F. Martin Sr. Wise/Weiss M. Elizabeth May Sp. Hannah G Taylor S. John D. Elizabeth D. Mary Ann S. William D. Sara S. Bayard Taylor D. Pusey S. Caleb | OUT |
Peter Time Line
| Date | Age | Event | Location | References |
| 1795 | 0 | Birth | Pennsylvania | Censuses/Donna Sperry |
| 1816 | 21 | Birth of Phebe | Pennsylvania | Censuses |
| 1818 | 23 | Birth of Hannah | Pennsylvania | Censuses |
| 1820 | 25 | Birth of Cornelius | Ohio/Pennsylvania | Censuses |
| 1826 | 31 | Land Tax | Trumbull Co. Ohio | Tax Doc Online |
| 1830 | 35 | Census | Trumbull Co. Ohio | Census |
| 1834 | 39 | Birth of Peter | Ohio | Census/Elizabeth Wise |
| 1837 | 42 | Birth of Elizabeth | Ohio | Census/Elizabeth Wise |
| 1850 | 55 | Census w/Cornelius | Ohio | Census |
| 1860 | 65 | Census w/Phebe | Iowa | Census |
| 1870 | 75 | Census w/Phebe | Iowa | Census |
Abraham
The Will and Testament identifies Abraham Weiss who leaves his land to his brother Cornelius and other items to his sisters. This Will was witnessed by a Moses Weiss and entered into the county Probate book February 24, 1848. The researcher hired by Jimmy Wise[4] identified that Peter Wise initially purchased land and then sold the land to his son Abraham. As noted, Abraham willed the land to Cornelius. Elizabeth Wise has continued researching the Wise family line and notes that “The document states that this property was conveyed by Benjamin Wise to George Graber, by him to Peter Wise, by Peter to his son Abraham and devised by will to Abraham’s brother Cornelius.” (E. Wise, 2018)
Phebe
Additional research done by Elizabeth Wise traces Peter to Iowa, through his daughter Phebe. Phebe married Joseph V. Elston[5]and they move to Davis Iowa sometime after 1850[6]. Peter is found living with them both in the1860 Census[7],and the 1870 Census[8](names spelled wrong). The 1870 census is the last official document listing Peter. In 1880 there is a Census that list Joseph V. and Phebe Elston (wrong age)[9],but no Peter. Phebe died in “Davis County Iowa in the Bethlehem Cemetery. She died on September 25,1882” (E. Wise,2018) [10].
Speculations
It is more likely than not, that Peter Wise died in Iowa between 1860 and 1880. The Will of Peter’s son, Abraham was witnessed by a Moses Wise. Additionally conversations from E. Gray’s investigations showed and the land owned by Abraham was once owned by a Benjamin Wise.
Unknown
At this time, there is no documentation outside of Censuses that puts Peter Wise in Pennsylvania. Nor is there any information on Peter’s first wife, mother of his children. While there are additional Wise/Weiss members listed on documents, there is no evidence of a family connection. An 1830 Census[11]shows Peter, Jacob and Abraham Wise in the same location. There is an Abraham Weiss[12]of Trumbull county noted as being born 1805 in Pennsylvania
Documented Wise/Weiss Names
Abraham Weiss: Son of Peter. Left a Will and Testament (executed on 24 Feb, 1848) indicating his father, brother, sisters and land.
Benjamin Wise: Owned the land 2x removed, before Peter.
Cornelius Wise: B. 23 June 1820 likely in Ohio, son of Peter. Married Betsy Ann Chatfield and moved/died in Grundy Missouri. He married a second time to Miranda McMickel. His Last Will and Testament indicated the following sons: Abram, Franklin, Calvin and John. Died 2 Dec 1869 Grundy, Missouri.
Elizabeth Wise:B.1837 likely in Ohio, daughter of Peter married Thomas Lock. She likely was born in Ohio. Moved and died (19 Jan 1916) Davis, Iowa.
Hannah Weiss/ Wise: B. 1818 likely in Pennsylvania, daughter ofPeter married Henry Neal. She had three daughters. Moved to and died (23 Aug 1864) Scott, Iowa.
Phebe Weiss/Wise: B.1816 likely in Pennsylvania, daughter of Peter. Married Joseph V. Elston and moved/died in (25 Sept 1882) Davis County Iowa.
Moses Weiss/Wise: Witnessed the signing of Abraham’s Will and Testament.
Geographical Land Information
Trumbull County Ohio is the center of the research for Peter, as it shows up in both Tax Documents and Censuses.
Weathersfield is the specific location noted in the census where Peter is listed.
Warren is the location where Abraham’s Will and Testament identifies him being from.
Lordstown Township is where Peter purchased his land which once was owned by Benjamin Weiss; Peter sold that land to Abraham, who in turn willed it to Cornelius, who finally sold the land out of the family.
Quinby’s Hill is the location of Abraham’s house as indicated in his Will.
Davis Iowa is the last known location of Peter. He was living with his daughter Phebe.
Trumbull County Map
Documents for the Wises indicate different townships. It’s important to understand the location of the townships. In addition to Trumbull, some of the Wises are located in the neighboring Mahoning County which butts up to the primary locations of Weathersfield and Lordstown.
Possible Lead 1
On happenstance, communication through a message board and later emails, was made with a Donna Sperry, an 80 year old descendant of a Wise/Weiss family, who at this time (2018), lives in Trumbull County, Ohio. It was through her research that the family of Johannes and Cathrina Houk Weiss moved to Trumbull Co either with, or many of their 11 children following, from Lynn Township, Lehigh County (called Northhampton up until March 6, 1812) Pennsylvania, and among them was a Peter. Her account indicated that the family was spread between Trumbull and Mahoning County, and that she noted the name Wise was spelled three different ways depending on the documents. Census evidence supports Donna’s account for names she listed as family members. Unfortunately, with the possibility of Peter’s father being a Johann(es), it now makes 4 specific similarities between he and PMW: Peter, Cornelius, Johannes,Pennsylvania. The coincidence is remarkable in perspective to the complication’s genealogy can present.
Following Possible Lead 1
If Donna’s connection with Peter is accurate, this means it is more likely than not that Phebe was born (1816) in Lehigh County PA, possibly Hannah (1818) and Abraham (?DOB). Finding a baptismal record could reveal the mother’s name, and finally link the name of Peter’s wife/mother of his children. Amy Adolph,4th great-granddaughter to Peter is searching Lehigh County Pennsylvania, with hopes of finding any documents listing the children, and in Missouri with hopes of located Cornelius’s death certificate. Elizabeth Wise is searching Iowa with the hopes of locating Peter’s final resting spot.
Elizabeth and Amy are both reviewing family trees, forums and message boards to compile accurate information. Complications have derived from recycled errors shared on the internet, causing a problematic entanglement of misinformation and confusion.
Possible Lead 1 Conclusions
Amy Adolph who has limited knowledge in DNA, did a match DNA comparison (GED Match and Wiki Tree) with a person known to have Benedict Weiss as his ancestor, which is the part of the Donna line. There are numerous factors for error in this test and follow up is needed for conclusion. However, preliminary testing showed no relationship. As of 8 Nov 2018. an error was found in the Tree of the person I tested against. The error was significant. As a result, I must again rule in that Donna’s line is plausible.
No conclusive baptism records were found for Peter Weiss on current online databases.
1774-1840 Northampton County, Pennsylvania Church Records, 1774-1840 at Ancestry.com– ($), births, marriages, and deaths from Lutheran and Reformed congregations of Moore Township
1763-1832 Dryland Union Lutheran Church, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, 1763-1832at Ancestry.com– ($), includes baptism, marriages, and burials.
1 Baptism Records for a Peter Weiss was located, but had no details attached: 1756-1845 Northampton County, Pennsylvania, 1756-1845: Christ Union Church at Ancestry.com – ($), Reformed Congregation of the Christ Union Church located in Saucon Township, includes births, marriages, and deaths.
1 Baptism Record for a Peter Weiss born 2 Oct 1797 . This is not the correct Peter Weiss. 1769-1881LowhillReformed Congregation, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, 1769-1881at Ancestry.com– ($), Lowhill Reformed Congregation Church, includes baptism, marriages, and burials.
Possible Lead 2
A conversation via email with an expert genealogist suggest Peter may be cousins with PMW. Her suggestion is plausible due numerous variances, including but not limited to names found throughout the Wise family genealogy.
Possible Lead 2 Conclusions
However, the Adam Wise Family Book,outlined all the family members marriages and births into the 1800’s and non listed a plausible Peter, except PMW. Therefore it is more likely than not, Peter is not a cousin of PMW.
Possible Lead 3
DNA testing now allows us to make matches where paperwork ends. I have decided to review and use GEDCom to see if there are any possible Wise/Weiss connections not previously considered.
Follow Up on Lead 3
Advancements in DNA now allow for more flexibility. There are several online tools that now allow for testing and comparing DNA. One such tool is GEDMatch. GEDMatch is a depository of users DNA and now family trees. Using this tool, I submitted my DNA and GEDCOM tree to review the matches. What I found was a “landfill”of endless email data. One of the features GEDMatch gives you is a listing of DNA matches along with the participants emails. Unfortunately, it does not say which relative is matched. However, it was possible for me to extract the data to do a comparative study.
Method
GEDMatchalso has a feature which allows you to search family names. This list included the contributor’s email. I was able to extract the email names of those individuals who had done a 1) DNA test 2) had the last name Weiss. The email for my KNOWN DNA and those queried from Weiss, netted solid information to do a comparative study. The known matches for myself included 420 unique DNA email names, with no family names attached. In Excel Data base, my unique DNA names with email was then compared to the Weiss list of names with emails. The comparison, looking for matches in email. Using the Conditional Formatting tool I was able to query between the emails. The search with the Weiss included 4717 contributing unique DNA names.
The Wise name was excluded from the search as the parameter for dates would require pre 1800 and in Abraham’s (Peter’s son) Will and Testament used the name Weiss,indicating his father’s original name was Weiss.
Filters
The following filters were applied to narrow down the results further.
- Names with no location
- Female names
- Dates post 1800
- Hidden Information
- Duplicate Names
- Inside of Pennsylvania only
Results
The initial finding showed Known DNA to Weiss Email = 28 matches. However, once the filters were applied 1 full family unit was discovered and 2 partial family unit was discovered.
1st Conclusion
While family was identified, research and contact to the family line did not yield any individual from the family who emigrated to America. However, the information collected showed that the family in which Peter came from were in the states of Hessen, Bayern and Bad Wuerttenberg.
2nd Look
During a fall weekend, I did another round of search this time allowing dates within1800’s and the inclusion of outside of Pennsylvania. That query resulted in yet another family unit found in Maryland.
2nd Look Conclusion
The DNA query match resulted in the identification of Frantz Weiss and hisdaughters.
3rdLook Conclusion
I included a filtered search of the name Wise. The reason for this inclusion is that Frantz Weiss used Frances Wise on his Land Documents, so it reasonable other members of the family. The query identified a family match in Synder Co. PA.
Final Conclusion Results – results to be update.
4 family matches
| Jost Andreas Weiss b. 25 NOV 1707 | Bestian WEISS b. ABT 1615 Hinzweller, Germany d. MAR 1657 | Hans Simon WEISS b. ABT 1648 Hinzweiler Rhine Pfalz Bayern, Germany d. 1715 | Frantz Weiss b. 07 APR 1705 Germany |
DNA Leads
The DNA matches turned up 4 family units in different locations. The most recent being the Wise family in Snyder Pennsylvania, followed by the Frantz Clan in Maryland.
DNA Lead: Frantz Clan MD – Conclusion
Further investigation is necessary to follow the trail of which of Frantz’s offspring ended up in Pennsylvania. The family is well documented up to the purchase of Traskers Chance. Following that though, the evidence is sparse.
A family tree for Frantz has been established to help connect back to Pennsylvania: https://ancstry.me/2zJuSwA
A family member of Johan Jacob Weese came forward. A DNA match concluded we were not related. What does this mean? It could mean a multiple of things, primarily being errors of who 1) I am related to. 2)The initial testing of DNA matches were faulty 2) connection of who the family members are actually connected to in the family tree. **It appears the individual who inputted Frantz as a family member was wrong. GEDmatch showed over 100 relatives, and I did not match with any but the one. The conclusion is that I am related to the person in the email, but that person and I are not related to Frantz Weiss.
To learn more about Frantz Weiss Family: https://peterwisehunt.wordpress.com/frantz-weiss/
Genealogy Tree Errors
I have now encounter two significant errors that have skewed the results. In my opinion the probabilities of errors is much higher then when doing a standard research analysis. The reason could be that individuals are copying information from erred family trees,whereas some family trees are using documented sources to conclude their trees. There is no way of knowing which family trees are sourced and documented from those which are not. As a protective measure, I will rerun the test I had done with GEDmatch and add in an additional check measure by searching out the finale name to see if other emails are listed that did not show up in my original source. If that occurs, if will at least filter out an error and concluded that while I am related to the person, it may not be the person they have listed in their tree. Frantz Weiss is an excellent example of that error occurring. If I would have checked his name against the database, I would have seen that several other emails should have populated into my findings, which did not occur. In short family trees on the internet seem to have a large rate of errors. Accounting for those errors is problematic, even when factoring in the hard science of DNAresults.
Rerun of Test
I am going to rerun the test. Using GEDmatch I will first gather the autosomal email matches of my DNA. Populate those emails into Excel. Then I will do a search on the name Weiss who have populated their family tree into GEDmatch, and compare those emails with my DNA email matches.
-end. Amy Adolph, 22 Nov 2018
Bibliography [Click Here]
[1] 1850 Census for Peter Wise: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MX3H-5XJ?from=lynx1&treeref=LBWS-NYT
[2] 1826 Land Tax for Peter Wise https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-65Y9-35C?i=5&cc=1473259
[3]1830 Census for Peter Wise https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHGV-BKY?from=lynx1&treeref=LBWS-NYT
[4] Jimmy Wise is his authentic name, but when he applied for his Social Security Card, the person refused to put Jimmy and replaced it with James. (As told by Elizabeth Wise, 2018)
[5] Phebe Wise Marriage: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XZYY-DS4
[6] 1850 Census for Phebe Wise: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MX3Z-42Z
[7] 1860 Census for Peter Wise: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M82N-B4B
[8] 1870 Census for Peter Wise: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MDJY-4XX
[9] Phebe Wise 1880 Census: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MD2W-C2D
[10] Phebe Wise Death: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVLF-86N5
[11] 1830 Census Jacob, Abraham Peter: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHGV-13J
[12] Abraham Weiss: https://books.google.com/books?id=zW9BAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA235&lpg=PA235&dq=Weiss+weathersfield+trumbull+county+Ohio&source=bl&ots=PiV1TshPwS&sig=0BJ04agkQvARSeEgydX83at94_8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjen73A84PeAhWNc98KHbgxDzM4ChDoATAGegQIARAB#v=onepage&q=Weiss%20weathersfield%20trumbull%20county%20Ohio&f=false
The Hunt for Peter Wise 