A monument to John Peter Hoffman and the pioneers of the Lykens Valley was dedicated on 27 November 1924. The monument is located in a farmer’s field in Washington Township, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, at the foot of Short Mountain, on land that was once a burial ground of the early pioneers.
The monument was erected by the Hoffman Family Association.
The following information was adapted from the Berks County Genealogy Roots Web Internet Site in addition to other sources, including Ancestry.com.
John Peter Hoffman (1709-1798)
John Peter Hoffman, born in German, 1709, came to America in 1739 on the ship Robert and Alice. He first worked in Berks County and was a carpenter. During the early Indian troubles on the frontier he served for a time as a soldier.
John Peter Hoffman was one of the earliest settlers in the Wiconisco Valley, now called the Lykens Valley. About 1750 he came to the end of Short Mountain and built a small log house. [Note: The location of this first dwelling is on the present, 2018, farm of Clair Bush, in Washington Township].
John Peter Hoffman was married to Maria Sara Snyder who was born in 1720 and died in 1798. He died in 1798 at the age of 89.
Their children were:
*John Hoffman, born 1746. He married Anna Maria Kauffman. He was a soldier during the Revolution with the ranks of Lieutenant and Captain. He died in 1818
*John Nicholas Hoffman, was born in 1749 in Berks County and he married Margaret Harman, also of Berks County, on 22 April 1772. He was a soldier during the Revolution, in the same regiment as his brother John Hoffman, but at the rank of Private. John Nicholas Hoffman fought in the Battle of Brandywine and the Battle of Germantown. He settled in Dauphin County and deeded the land for the Hoffman Church.
*Anna Catherine Hoffman, wife of Andrew Riegel, of the Upper End. She was born in 1751 and died in 1819.
*John Christian Hoffman, born in 1752. He married a Susanna Deibler.
*Anna Margaretha Hoffman, born in 1753. She married Martin Neubaker. Anna Margaretha died in 1796.
*Anna Elizabeth Hoffman, married Ludwig Sheetz. She was born in 1757 and died in 1823.
*Christina Hoffman, married Christian Seyler. She was born in 1760 and died in 1845.
*Anna Barbara Hoffman, married George Buffington, a soldier during the Revolution. She was born in 1763 and died in 1827.
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Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.
*John Hoffman, born 1746. He married Anna Maria Kauffman. He was a soldier during the Revolution with the ranks of Lieutenant and Captain. He died in 1818. (The death Date is NOT 1818, It is 1831)