Jan 23 2012
Pastors & Patriots, The Muhlenberg Family of PA
This is a presentation by Lisa Minardi, Assistant Curator at Winterthur, Delaware. Beginning with the immigration of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg to Pennsylvania in 1742, the Muhlenbergs have figured prominently in American history. A native of Germany, Muhlenberg served as a Lutheran minister in Pennsylvania from 1742 until his death in 1787, earning him the title patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America. He married Anna Maria Weiser, daughter of Conrad Weiser, and they had eleven children. Three of their sons went to to achieve significant renown: Peter as a Revolutonary War general; Frederick as first Speaker of the United States House; and Henry, Jr. as a renowned botanist. More information of the relationship of the Muhlenberg family to Manheim is detailed in the book by George Heiges: “Henry William Stiegel and His Associates” in which he talks about the Stiegel-Muhlenberg friendship. It was Frederick Augustus Muhlenberg who became the pastor of the four small congregations of Warwick, Heidelberg, White Oak, and Manheim.
