The Conard family was one of the most well-known families in Whitpain Township. There were many members of the Conard clan who lived in Whitpain for a long time, but I wanted to know from whom they descended.
Thones Kunders
Thones Kunders was one of the early settlers in Germantown after William Penn founded the city of Philadelphia.
Fun Fact #1: His home was where the first meeting of the Germantown Society of Friends took place.
During the William Penn era in Philadelphia, some Quakers actually held slaves. Other Quakers began to oppose this practice, and on February 18, 1688, the first protest against slavery was drafted at the Kunders home. It was written by Germantown founder Francis Daniel Pastorius. This marked the beginning of the fight against slavery in America.
Fun Fact #2: English was the predominant language in colonial Pennsylvania. Pastorius and three other signers struggled to write the draft in English since their native language was German.
Kunders's home was demolished, but a historical marker was placed where the original home was located on the corner of Germantown Ave. and Wister St.
Henry Cunreds/Conrad and his Descendants: Joseph Conard, Jr.
Henry Conrad (1688-1758) was born on December 16 five years after his parents arrived in Germantown. He married his first cousin Katherine Streypers, the daughter of his mother's brother, William Streypers, in 1710.
One year after their marriage, Henry purchased 220 acres and 111 perches of land in Whitpain where he built a small stone house for his family. He purchased an additional 3 acres in 1738 and 50 acres in 1748.
Fun Fact # 1: The name of the property, The Cloot, was named due to the ground being low with an "undulating surface."
In his will, he left his entire estate to his two sons who were his executors: Joseph (1728-1786) and Benjamin Conrad.
"I Give Devise and Bequeath unto my two sons Joseph and Benjamin the Messuage Plantation and tract of Land I now Live on situate in Whitpain Township and County afs'd containing about two hundred and Twenty Acres be it more or Less Hereditaments and Appurtenances To hold to them my sd sons Joseph and Benjamin their Heirs and Assigns for Ever as Tenants in Common to be devided Between them in the Most convenient Manner to make two settlements Equal in Valine. I give and Bequeath unto my Two sons Joseph and Benjamin all my Personal Estate Paying my Funeral Expenses Debts and Legacies as is above mentioned."
- Henry Conrad's will, September 2, 1758
The land of at least 120 acres owned by Joseph Conrad was divided into two for his sons: Joseph, Jr. (1780-1840) and John Conrad (1782-1853). Joseph, Jr. lived on the original homestead while John built a new home and farm on his property.
Joseph Jr.'s daughter Sarah Conrad married William Stockdale in 1831, and was granted land from her father after he died in 1840. Ever since then, the Stockdale family lived and owned the family homestead for over 70 years!
A barn also stood on the Conard property, and it was converted into a home in the 20th century.
Bibliography
Conrad, Henry C. Some Scraps of History Regarding Thones Kunders and his Children. Also, a List of the Descendants for Six Generations of his Youngest Son Henry Cunreds of Whitpain, 1683-1891. (Wilmington: Press of W. Costa, 1891): 19-22, 28-29, 32-33, 44.
"Death Under Unusual Conditions." Ambler Gazette. September 14, 1911. Page 1. https://digitalarchives.powerlibrary.org/papd/islandora/object/papd%3Awivp-gazett_7276.
Friends' Intelligencer and Journal 49, no. 968 (1892): 91-92.
"Google Maps Area Calculator Tool." DaftLogic. Accessed January 24, 2023. https://www.daftlogic.com/projects-google-maps-area-calculator-tool.htm.
Hopkins, G.M. Atlas of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Page 031, 1871.
Smith, J. L. Montgomery County 1893, Whitpain and Worcester Townships, Bethel Hill, Fairview, Cedar Hill, Washington Square, Broad Axe Left, 1893.
"Thones Kunders House Site." Historic Germantown. Last modified July 4, 1995. https://www.ushistory.org/germantown/lower/kunders.htm.
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