Exerpts
from Pages 6, 13, 14, 15, 18
Beginning of the Journey
Emigration
Christian Meckel and family needed to travel to Rotterdam in the Netherlands. To get there,
they would have taken a riverboat down the long Rhine River from the town of Bingen. Along this river route they
would have been detained at each of over twenty customhouses, sometimes for extended periods of time.
Ten of these customhouses alone were on the stretch between Mainz and Koblenz - about sixty miles.
Each delay would cost the travelers additional money for provisions and accommodations—
and taxes for the customhouse.
Second Wife of Christian Sr.
Sometime between 1749 and 1754, the wife of Christian Meckel died. Her actual name has not yet been located.
In 1754 the record shows that he married Christina Apollonia Meder.
Christina and Christian had one child, Henry, who did not survive to adulthood.
Death of Christian Meckel, Sr. 1764
In 1762, the patriarch of the family, Christian Meckel, made his Last Will and Testament, just a few days after
his youngest son, Henry, had died. Written in his native German language and script by someone else,
it was later translated into English for the British courts. His will can give us some insight into life and
living in the 18th century. (Ed.- forgive the spellings, the translator did not spell correctly, but
I just could not edit the spelling and language of yesteryear.)
The MECKEL Surname Origin
The surname Meckel is a very old Germanic name and has a complex derivation. As we know,
many surnames came from town or locale names, from occupations or from an individual's skills.
But also, the Germanic people were known as a warlike people, a reputation surely acquired from
defending their territories since long before the battle of Teutoburger Forest in 9 AD.
Therefore, many of their surnames often referred to war, weapons, victories, armies, etc.
From two ancient German words - "Macht"� meaning "power"� and "Hilti"� meaning "battle"� -
when combined and through infinitely complicated sound shifts in the German language, evolved into
"Mechtild"� which later became "Meckel"�. (The female name "Matilda" also is derived from these two German words.)
All this probably happened before the 13th century according to George F. Jones in his book "German-American Names"�.
So, "Meckel"� could mean "Powerbattle"� or "Battlepower"� or "Mighty battler"� or something of that nature.
Christian Meckel, Junior, and Family
Christian Meckel Sr. had four children born in the Palatinate and one born in America. His oldest child was Christian Jr. who
had to stay behind when his parents and other children emigrated, but eventually he came to America arriving at Philadelphia on
September 30,1754 on the ship Edinburg. This was the same year that the British officer, Colonel George Washington,
surrendered Fort Necessity to the French in Southwestern Pennsylvania. By 1783 Christian Jr. and his wife, [Anna-Maria] Catharina
had eleven children. (Ed.- he didn’t use the "Jr." name but this writer added it to differentiate him from his father and other namesakes).
They owned 70 - 80 acres, 2 horses, 4 cattle, a gristmill, a sawmill and an oil mill. Research in the tax records of
Shrewsbury Township in York County shows that his name was spelled many different ways - Michley, Mickly, Mackley,
Meckley and Makly- and on property transactions has also been spelled as Meckle.
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