Jacob Sommer (14 February 1758 – February 1827) was an officer in the American Revolution, a Pennsylvania State Senator, and an Associate Judge who lived in
Moreland Township, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
Moreland Township was a township that was located in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States.
History
In 1682, William Penn sold nearly 10,000 acres of land to Nicholas More.Buck, William J., Bean, Theodore Weber, ed; /archive.org/det ...
. The neighborhood of
Somerton Somerton may refer to:
Places Australia
* Somerton, New South Wales
* Somerton Park, South Australia, a seaside Adelaide suburb
** Somerton Man, unsolved case of an unidentified man found dead in 1948 on the Somerton Park beach
*Somerton, Victoria
...
in northeast Philadelphia was named for him.
Early life
Born in Philadelphia, Jacob Sommer was the son of Johannes (John) and Anna Eva Sommer. The Sommer family emigrated from
Freistett, Baden, Germany, arriving in Philadelphia in 1752. John Sommer, Jacob's father, purchased property in the Manor of Moreland in 1761 where he was later recorded as a town supervisor in 1773 and a tax collector in 1775.
Prisoner of war
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 ...
, toward the end of the
Philadelphia campaign
The Philadelphia campaign (1777–1778) was a British military campaign during the American Revolutionary War designed to gain control of Philadelphia, the Revolutionary-era capital where the Second Continental Congress convened, formed the ...
, the
Battle of Crooked Billet
The Battle of Crooked Billet was a battle in the Philadelphia campaign of the American Revolutionary War fought on May 1, 1778 near the Crooked Billet Tavern (present-day Hatboro, Pennsylvania). In the skirmish action, British forces under the ...
occurred in
Hatboro, Pennsylvania, about six miles distant from a village in
Moreland called Smithfield. The battle occurred on May 1, 1778, the same date that Ensign Jacob Sommers of the Pennsylvania militia was taken prisoner at his home.
[ /fold3.com Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War accessed 5 September 2015; citing NARA microfilm publication M881, roll 0840.] Ensign Jacob Sommer was held prisoner on Long Island for four years until his release in 1782.
Political career
The political career of Jacob Sommer of Moreland included running for the following elected offices, all for representation in Philadelphia County:
Jacob Sommer was commissioned as an associate judge for the District Court of Philadelphia from 1811 to 1821. He continued to be known as a judge in subsequent years because in 1824, Judge Jacob Sommer was a member of the correspondence committee to elect
Andrew Jackson
Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...
for U.S. President.
Personal life
The marital life of Jacob Sommer is unknown. He died in February, 1827 at the age of 69, and was buried at the cemetery of St. Michael's and Zion German Lutheran Church in Philadelphia. His will mentioned only one child, Dr. John Sommer of Philadelphia.
[Philadelphia County (Pennsylvania), Register of Wills, ''Wills, 1682-1916'', vol 9, will 22; citing FHL microfilm 21,735.]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sommer, Jacob
1758 births
1827 deaths
Pennsylvania state senators
Pennsylvania militiamen in the American Revolution