NATURALIZATIONS FROM THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS

Lyons, New York

This list, abstracted from the twenty surviving Wayne County naturalization records from the 1830s, was prepared from the original record book by Leola Crane Sutton. An obvious pattern of emigration is that of the men who emigrated from Co. Salsz, Neider Rhine Dept., Kingdom of France. Salsz is in what is now Alsace-Loraine. Did political unrest, contested land, war, economic woes, or religious persecution in this one place in the late 1820s or early 1830s draw them to emigrate? Did a pre-established community of emigrants, or one or two former residents of Salsz, encourage their relatives and neighbors to emigrate to the southern end of Wayne County? Perhaps a bit of all of this caused them to emigrate. At the bottom of this page is one family's story. *

"The Court Deputy Clerk was Daniel Chapman and other clerks mentioned were John Barber, Jr., Rob Holley (Halley), and C. Porter. Persons seeking naturalization had to first sign Declarations of Intent. After a period of five years of residence, they could apply for Naturalization. The book from which these records were abstracted can be viewed at the Lyons Historian's Office, 9 Pearl St., Lyons, NY."

ADAMS William

Palmyra - Declaration of Intent - 30 Sep. 1830 - age 43
Born Edon, Co. Tyrone, Ireland
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: George Brown
Naturalized 28 Sep. 1837

BALTZEL Lewis

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 23 May 1832 - age 30
Born Salsz, Co. Salsz, Kingdom France
Migrated from Havre, France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

BOEHMLER Henry

Lyons - Declaration of Intent - 26 Sep. 1833 - age 30
Born Hatten, Co. Salsz, Neider Rhine Dept., France
Migrated from Havre, France
Occupation: Shoemaker
Witness: Philip Dorsheimer
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

BRITTEN Richard

Williamson - Declaration of Intent - 28 Jan. 1832 - age 33
Born Bilton, Co. York, England
Migrated from Hull Co.
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Perez Fitch
Naturalized 26 Sep. 1837

DESMAN (DESMOND) Williams

Rose - Declaration of Intent - 25 Sep. 1833 - age 24
Born Wilworth, Co. Cork, Ireland
Migrated from Cree, Ireland
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized 28 Sep. 1836

ECCLES Thomas

Williamson - Declaration of Intent - 26 Jan. 1831 - age 34
Born Dighton, Co. Yorkshire, England
Migrated from Hull, Co. York, England
Occupation: Farmer
Two children - Mary age 4 & John age 2
Witness: George D. Phelps
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

ERHARDT Philip

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 30
Born Harmersweiler, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: D. Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

EYER John

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 38
Born Hatten, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: D. Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

FAULITICH John George

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830- age 48
Born Hatten, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: D. Chapman
Naturalized 29 Sep. 1836

FAULITICH Michael

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 26 Sep. 1833 - age 36
Born Hatten, Co. Salsz, Neider Rhine Dept., Kingdom of France
Migrated from Havre, France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Philip Dorsheimer
Naturalized 29 Sep. 1836

GANZ Balzer

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 5 Oct. 1830 - age 57
Born Darmsted, Germany
Migrated from Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: D. Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

GANZ Philip

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 28
Born Ritchweiler(?), Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

HEYD (HEID, HEIT) Michael

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 36
Born Town of Hatten, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized: 27 Sep. 1836

JONES Henry

Lyons - Declaration of Intent - 26 Sep. 1833 - age 25
Born Welchpool, Co. Montgomery, Wales
Migrated from England
Occupation: Scrivener
Witness: Charles D. Lawton
Naturalized 28 Sep. 1836

KIPLING Robert

Sodus - age 34 - Farmer - Citizenship application 24
January 1832
Born B__Castle, County of Durham, England
Embarked Portsmouth, England
Naturalized 28 September 1838
John Cuyler and C. Foster - Clerks

MINTZER Michael

Arcadia - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 31
Born Town Salsz, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Marar(?)
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized: 27 Sep. 1836

STELL Michael

Lyons - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 35
Born Harmerweiler, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: D. Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

STROHM Michael

Galen - Declaration of Intent - 28 Sep. 1830 - age 33
Born Town of Hatten, Co. Salsz, Kingdom of France
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: Daniel Chapman
Naturalized 27 Sep. 1836

WAKE Anthony

Williamson - Declaration of Intent - 28 Jan. 1832 - age 50
Born Co. Yorkshire, England
Migrated from Liverpool, England
Occupation: Farmer Children: Hannah age 16, Martha age 15, Mary age 13, Robert age 12, Jane age 9, George age 6
Witness: Perez Fitch
Naturalized 26 Sep. 1837

WAKE John

Williamson - Declaration of Intent - 28 Jan. 1832 - age 56
Born Dunnington, Co. York, England
Occupation: Farmer
Witness Perez Fitch
Naturalized 26 Sep. 1837

WALKER William

Williamson - Declaration of Intent - 26 Sep. 1833 - age 30
Born Town Hayden, Co. Lerrone, Ireland
Migrated from Londonderry, Ireland
Occupation: Farmer
Witness: George Brown
Naturalized 28 Sep. 1837

A scrivener was a person who wrote or copied for a living, a scribe or copyist. If you view the old deed books at the Wayne County Courthouse you'll see that actual deeds were copied into large books by a scrivener. A well-known account of this occupation is Herman Melville's short novel "Bartleby the Scrivener."

Follow-up on some of these men:

The men of Salsz did well in their new home, acquiring sizeable properties and establishing roots. According to the1867 Gazetteer of Wayne County, they or their relatives were still residing in the area some thirty years later. Persons of the surnames of most men from Ireland are not found.

Relatives of Lewis Baltzel were still living in Lyons.
Relatives of Henry Boehmler were undertakers in Lyons.
There were other Desmonds from Ireland residing in Galen just to the east of Lyons.
Relatives of John Eyer were farming in Lyons.
Philip Ganz owned a grist mill in Lyons.
Michael Heit was listed as a farmer in Lyons, with a Galen p.o. address.
Relatives of Michael Stell were farming in Lyons.
Michael Strohm was farming in Lyons.
Anthony Wake's son Robert was still living in Williamson, as were other Wakes.

* Notes about the emigration from Leola Crane Sutton:

The Town of Hatten is in the Alsace region of France.(48N54*7E59) It is 15 miles West of Rastatt, Germany, and 6 miles from the Autobahn exit at Seltz.

From family letters and stories passed down by my Gr-Grampa Philip Heit, and Grampa William Heit, and an article dated 13 Nov. 1958 in the Lyons Republican written by Lloyd Espenschied, I've pieced together the following:

"In the year 1830, several families: Heit(Heyd)(Heidt)(Heid), Miller, and Eyer from Hatten, France travelled by caravan across France to the port of LeHavre, and sailed to NY.

They were seven weeks on the water, and encountered a severe storm. Ships of that period had no power, so they were at the complete mercy of the weather. Each family had to bring everything needed for the trip. The Heits had all their belongings in a wood trunk measuring 6 feet X 28". They had four small children, the youngest only 2 years old.

Alsace residents were of German extraction, and their country had just been annexed by the French. Governmental restrictions to conform were excessive, and the virgin land, peace, and freedom on the American continent would have been very appealing.

The group arrived at the Port of NY, travelled up the Hudson River and the Erie Canal, which had just been opened in 1825. A former Lieutenant Governor of Germany, Philip Dorsheimer, (his name appears in the naturalization lists) lived in Lyons, and this may have influenced their choice of where to settle. He could aid them in obtaining property and help with the language problem. Also, word of mouth of the excellent farm land around Lyons would have likely spread back to the homeland.

Michael Heit was a weaver in France, but became a farmer in America, and all of his descendants chose that occupation also. Michael had $400 to his name after all of the travel expenses were paid, and he eventually purchased land with a small log cabin in the southwest corner of the Town of Galen near the Creager Bridge area. Four children migrated with Michael and his wife Dorothy, and four more were born in this country. The names of Eyer, Miller, Strohm(Strom) all appear in my family tree. The Heits belonged to the Broad Street Lutheran Church in Lyons, and I have been able to obtain copies of confirmation records for three of the four children of Michael and Dorothy Heit that were born inthis country."

Prepared and submitted by Leola Crane Sutton

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