Christian Ley (February 20, 1762 – October 13, 1831) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

politician who served as a member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

, serving in the 24th Pennsylvania General Assembly from 1799 to 1802. He subsequently filled the vacant

Pennsylvania Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mi ...

seat of John Kean, holding that position from 1805 to 1806. Ley also achieved prominence with his business dealings, and was the man for whom

Nutting Hall Nutting Hall is a historic home located at 205 South Tulpehocken Street in the Borough of Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Pine Grove, in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. Erected between 1823 and 1825 for Christian Lay who had, as a ...

was built. A historic home located at 205 South Tulpehocken Street in the Borough of Pine Grove, in

Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania Schuylkill County (, ; Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: Schulkill Kaundi) is a County (United States), county in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the ...

, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 23, 1980. ''Note:'' This includes

Formative years

Born on February 20, 1762, on his family's homestead in

Lebanon County, Pennsylvania Lebanon County ( ; ) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 143,257. Its county seat is the city of Lebanon. It lies 72 miles northwest of Philadelphia, which is the nearest m ...

, near what is, today, the community of Myerstown, Christian Ley was a son of Michael Ley, an officer in the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

, and Eva Magdalena Ley. Raised with his siblings on land which had been granted to his grandfather, Christopher Ley, by the sons of

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

, Christian Ley grew up in an eight-room, two-story, Georgian-style mansion which had been built by his father on a portion of that Ley family land. Michael Ley's homestead would later come to be known as the Tulpehocken Manor Plantation; it was visited by U.S. President

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

three times between 1777 and 1794 during the teenage years of Christian Ley. Trained in agricultural pursuits as a youth, Christian Ley subsequently became a miller during his early adult years. By 1798, he had become so successful as a farmer and miller that his financial holdings were calculated by tax assessors to be the area's highest — totaling $18,182.

Public service and political career

As a member of one of Lebanon County's prominent families and the son of a former officer with the

during the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, Christian Ley also chose a path of public service, becoming a driving force behind the planning and development of the western Tulpehocken Lutheran Church and a captain in Pennsylvania's state militia. According to Pennsylvania historian

William Henry Egle William Henry Egle (1830–1901) was a physician, author and historian who served as the State Librarian of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 1887 to 1889. A practicing physician at the dawn of the American Civil War, he was initially commis ...

, Ley was commission captain of the Sixth Company of the Dauphin County Militia's Fourth Battalion, serving under Lieutenant-Colonel James Woods and Major George Bowman. The unit had been one of a number formed in 1792 response to orders from the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

to form a provisional army to address the "encroachments of the European powers upon American rights." After running unsuccessfully for Pennsylvania's General Assembly (the Pennsylvania House of Representatives) in 1797, in a race in which he placed fifth out of eight candidates, garnering just 155 votes compared to the 306 earned by that year's winner, David Krause, Ley succeeded in being elected to that body before the decade was over. From 1799 to 1802, he represented Lebanon and Dauphin counties in the General Assembly, and was then appointed to fill the Pennsylvania Senate seat which had been vacated by John Kean, serving in that capacity between 1805 and 1806.

Planning and construction of Nutting Hall

Following the completion of his service with the Pennsylvania Senate, Christian Ley relocated to the Borough of Pine Grove in Schuylkill County, where he became one of that county's prominent businessmen due to his buying, selling and rental of land. It was also during this period that Ley chose to build a new residence for his wife, Anna Catherine Koppenhoffer (1769-1822), and their three children, Christian Jr., John and Catherine. He selected Peter Filbert to perform the work, which was completed between 1823 and 1825. Ley resided there with his family for the remainder of his life.

Death and interment

Preceded in death by his wife, Christian Ley died on October 13, 1831, and was interred at the Union Cemetery in Myerstown, Pennsylvania."Christian Ley" (brief biographical sketch), Pennsylvania Senate.

References

External links

* Clarke, William P.
Official History of the Militia and the National Guard of the State of Pennsylvania from the Earliest Period of Record to the Present Time
', pp. 147-148. Pennsylvania: Charles J. Hendler, Publisher, 1909 (retrieved online from the U.S. Library of Congress, July 10, 2021).
Christian Ley
(memorial with photos). Salt Lake City, Utah: Find A Grave, August 19, 2006.
Tulpehocken Manor Plantation
(official website), Myerstown, Pennsylvania, retrieved online August 26, 2019. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ley, Christian 1762 births 1831 deaths 18th-century American politicians Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania state senators 19th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly