[ i. ] JOHAN PHILLIPUS BOHMER, b. Feb 08, 1738/39, Near Frankfort-Am-Main, Germany; d. Dec 07, 1811, Waterford, Norfolk, Ontario; m. ANNA MARIE DEWITT, Dec 18, 1761, New Jersey, USA; b. Mar 03, 1746/47, New Jersey, USA; d. Oct 08, 1811, Waterford, Norfolk, Ontario, Canada.
"PHILLIP BOHMER, came to the Port of Philadelphia, on the sailing ship, NEPTUNE on September 23, 1751. The NEPTUNE, sailed from Rotterdam, last from Cowes, with 154 passengers, but only 83 names are given - men and boys above twelve. James Weir was the captain. This informaiton is taken from the book compiled by Prof. I. Daniel Rupp's - THIRTY THOUSAND NAMES OF IMMIGRANTS - a collection of upwards of 30,000 names of German-Swiss-French-and others. IMMIGRANTS in Pennsylvania - 1727 to 1776. In this list the names of JOHAN WILHELM BOHMER and JOHAN PHILLIPUS BOHMER appear.
"This same information is included in CHAMBERS GERMAN PIONEERS, Vol. 1, page 466: Present at Court House of Philadelphia, Monday the 23rd, Sept. 1751.
"From the fact that the FAMILY BIBLE was purchased from the HAUSSLARS, a book store, in FRANKFORT-AM-MAIN. It may be supposed that the BOHMERs came from that area.
"The name spelled with the two dots above the "O" is the German spelling. In New Jersey, and in Ontario, the spelling is either Beemer or Beamer; only the oldest son, John, used the Bemer spelling as fas as I can find out. His sons all used "BEEMER." The name came from baum - a tree. Not Bohemia, as was formerly supposed. A tree-log was used for the bar on the toll road. From that the keeper of the toll bar was first called the baumer, and later it became BOHMER (with unlaut), but pronounced Beemer.
"It is said that JEHAN WILHELM and his wife died in New Jersy. The likely had other children, but so far I can find no information on them, nor on Philip till his marriage. Philip was born in Germany on February 8, 1739, and was twelve years old when he came to Philadelphia. He married Anna (Marie ?) DeWitt on December 18, 1761. She was born on March 3rd, 1747. No data on her parents.
"They went to what is known as German Valley, in Morris County, New Jersey in 1763. There they raised their 13 children and lived there till they fled to the Long Point Settlement. They were the D.P.'S of our Revolutionary War, and were known with the many many thousands who went to Canada as UNITED EMPIRE LOYALISTS. Many were given homesteads of 200 acres by the crown.
"They both lived out their latter years with their son, Henry. in Waterford and are buried in the old Cemetary where the old Bowlby Stone House stands in Waterford.
"Miss Anna Turnbull gave me the names of their children and the dates.
"There are many other Beemer descendants in both the United States and also in Canada. I have not been able to connect them with this family. A small booklet - BEEMER LORE - was printed after a Society Meeting of Beemer Descendants in 1928. I am confident that the Peter Beemer, - as is Mrs. Violet Beemer Duncan on page 27, is the second son of Philip and Anna.
"Joseph, who was the seventh child of this family was my ancestor, along with his many ancestors and descendants. He must have very recently married Julia Smith from down on the Susquehannah River in Delaware, when they came to Canada.
"Julia Smith, had a sister, Dorcas..... or she may have been a Mrs. Darkis. The three brothers were - William - David - and Jesse. They went to Florida in 1804.
"So far I have not learned where they first settled, nor what Joseph did. They lived at Alymer, and the sons, Abram and John lived there. Not too much information on either family.
"Mary Ann Beemer, daughter of Joseph Beemer and Julia Smith, married Capt. Richard Howarth. His life story has been written by a grandson and will be given in full as he wrote it.
"Julia lost her husband, Joseph, on August 14, 1813. The minister of the Alymer Baptist Church, at about the same time, lost his wife. He was the noted Elder Crandall, who had established Baptist Churches in that area. Elder Crandall and Julia were married very soon after the deaths of their mates, and the church did not like it. And so, in my research, the Minister of the church who delivered the address on the early preachers at the 100th Centinniel, sent me his notes to include in this booklet. So it is an interesting side-light on the family and the thinking of that time.
"Many of the grandsons have been named for him in the Howarth families."
same source, page 6:
same source, page 6:
-- src: Beemer Book 1964
Endnotes:
Notes For JOHAN PHILLIPUS BOHMER:
Following is a large passage from page 4 of the Beemer Book, 1964 by Vera Van LydeGraff:
"Johan Wilhelm Boehmer and wife, name unknown, and 12 year old son, Johan Phillipus Bohmer, cmae [sic] on the ship Neptune to Philadelphia, Spetember [sic] 23, 1751. 'ROUP'
The family Bible was bought in Frankfort-am-Main, so it is likely that they came from the Rhine or Neccar River Valleys in that area. The name comes from baum... a log or tree and means a toll-gate keeper.
Except that the parents died in New Jersey, it is not known where they first settled, nor is anything known of Philip till his marriage to Anna Marie Dewitt.
The eldest son John, the old Squire of Colbourn, left for Canada about 1787, with his wife and two or three small children. The rest of the family left the farm in German Valley in 1794. Some of the older children were married. They went to the Long Point Settlement. Philip and Anna lived out their latter days in Waterford with son Henry."
" Julia Smith came from Delaware. Her brothers, William, David and Jessie went to Florida in 1804. Her sister was DORCAS ? Julia married Elder Reuben Crandall after the death of JOSEPH BEEMER."
1. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Ancestral File (TM), (July 1996 (c), data as of 2 January 1996).