The will of Jacob Ludwick, my 4th great grandfather, was entered into probate in Allegheny County, PA, on September 23, 1800, suggesting he died shortly before. Unlike other ancestors of mine, various anecdotes about Jacob exist. However, some have conflicting information, which requires deciphering these tales to determine what may or may not be accurate.
Around 2000, I visited the Allegheny County Register of Wills office to view Jacob’s will. Rather than directing me to the will books, I filled out a form and was delivered the original papers in his probate file. I was excited to find the will, but it was in poor condition. I delicately opened the fragile manuscript which had separated into several pieces. I carefully photocopied them, although the copy quality was not good. Later I pasted the copied sections together to make one document.
In his will, Jacob stated he was sick and weak of body, so his death was not unexpected. It is believed Jacob was born in the early to mid-1750s, making his age at death around 45 years. In The Annals of Wilkinsburg, one story, most likely handed down in the family, mentioned Jacob was born at sea in 1754 during his parents’ journey to America from Holland. This account lists his parents as Jacob Ludwick and Madeline Baker, but no findings corroborate this. Madeline Baker is accepted by many to be the wife of Jacob, whose will mentioned his wife as Madalen. A marriage record would be stronger evidence to confirm this.
Jacob is believed to have served in the Revolutionary War. Several DAR applications for Jacob Ludwick have been submitted by his descendants and approved. These report “Jacob Ludwig (born in Berks County) served as a private in Capt. John Ludwig’s company, guarding prisoners of war.” On these forms, Magdalena Baker was named Jacob’s wife. The applicants identified Michael and Eva Roseanna Ludwick as Jacob’s parents, but I am unaware of any argument that proves this.
A more likely set of parents are Christopher Ludwick and Anna Maria Heffner. Her father mentioned Ann Ludwick as his daughter, along with her four sons, Jacob, Conrad, Michael, and Abraham Ludwick. Although this isn’t concrete proof, it offers more substance that Christopher could be Jacob’s father. Possibly there is some family connection between Michael and Christopher yet to be discovered.
Around 1783, perhaps when the war was winding down, Jacob married Magdalena, also known as Martha. A Jacob Ludwick was found in 1783 tax records for Maryland. In an online search only one Jacob Ludwick appeared in Maryland for the 1790 census, residing in Washington County. One of Jacob’s sons was born in Maryland in 1791, so it is likely this is the correct Jacob. By 1790, Jacob had 1 son and 1 daughter, and the census reports the household contained 2 males over 16, 2 males under 16, and 4 females. With 2 males over 16, another family likely resided with Jacob. At first I thought it might be Conrad, Jacob’s brother mentioned in his will, but in the 1780s Conrad was beginning to move into Westmoreland County, PA.
Sometime in the 1790s Jacob moved his family to Allegheny County, perhaps acquiring land as a reward for his military service during the Revolutionary War. At the time of his death, Jacob resided in Versailles Township and his will indicated he owned real estate. Only one deed in Allegheny County has been found for Jacob buying land and oddly it is for property in neighboring Westmoreland county. After his death, no deeds were recorded to show inheritance of his property.
After Jacob’s death, Madalen continued to live in Versailles Township. Some sources stated she lived with her son John, but Madalen probably lived next to him and retained her own house to be enumerated as a head of household in several censuses, including the 1800 census for Versailles Township that recorded her as Widow Lodwick. She last appeared in the 1830 census, indicating she died during that following decade. In 1851, property owned in Versailles Township by their son John was sold, and this was likely the land his parents once owned.
Although documents for Jacob Ludwick in Allegheny county, such as deeds, are scarce, it is fortunate that he left a will. It has aided in determining some facts about his life. Now many records have been digitized and are available online, including a copy of Jacob’s will in Allegheny County Will Book 1, page 139 on Family Search. With this greater availability, I hope to find additional records in other areas where Jacob lived to gain more details about his life. With any luck, one of these will clear up the lingering inconsistencies found in the accounts of Jacob’s life and establish his parentage and the precise origin of the Ludwick line.
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