Johann Samuel Schwerdtfeger (1734–1803) was a clergyman who served German Lutheran congregations in Colonial

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, and became

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada () was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the Province of Queb ...

's first

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Minister.

Early life and career

Schwerdtfeger was born in

Burgbernheim Burgbernheim ( East Franconian: ''Bärna'') is a town in the Neustadt (Aisch)-Bad Windsheim district, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated southwest of Bad Windsheim, and northeast of Rothenburg ob der Tauber Rothenburg ob der Tauber () is a ...

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

in 1734 to Gunther Johann and Juliana Maria (Koch) Schwerdtfeger. The elder Schwerdtfeger was a pharmacist who catered to travelers visiting the popular Wildbad spa. Schwerdtfeger attended the Latin School at

Neustadt an der Aisch Neustadt an der Aisch (, ; officially: ''Neustadt a.d. Aisch'') is a small town of around 13,000 inhabitants in the northern part of Bavaria (Germany), within the Franconian administrative region Middle Franconia. It is the district town of t ...

before entering the

Erlangen University Erlangen (; , ) is a Middle Franconian city in Bavaria, Germany. It is the seat of the administrative district Erlangen-Höchstadt (former administrative district Erlangen), and with 119,810 inhabitants (as of 30 September 2024), it is the smalle ...

to study theology. Around 1752, he traveled to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and then to

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

as a

redemptioner Redemptioners were European immigrants, generally in the 18th or early 19th century, who gained passage to the American Colonies (most often Pennsylvania) by selling themselves into indentured servitude, to pay back the shipping company which ...

where his bond was paid by the Lutheran Church of

York, Pennsylvania York is a city in York County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. Located in South Central Pennsylvania, the city's population was 44,800 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in ...

in exchange for his service as pastor. At York, he was informally ordained by local clergy but faced controversy when he criticized

pietist Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christianity, Christian life. Although the movement is ali ...

factions within the congregation. In 1758, he accepted a position as pastor at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of New Holland where he supervised construction of a new church and parsonage. In 1762, Schwerdtfeger joined the

Pennsylvania Ministerium The Pennsylvania Ministerium was the first Lutheran church body in North America. With the encouragement of Henry Melchior Muhlenberg (1711–1787), the Ministerium was founded at a Church Conference of Lutheran clergy on August 26, 1748. The ...

, where he was formally ordained by Rev.

Henry Muhlenberg Henry Melchior Muhlenberg (born Heinrich Melchior Mühlenberg; September 6, 1711 – October 7, 1787), was a Holy Roman Empire, German-born Lutheran clergyman and missionary. Born in Einbeck, Muhlenberg immigrated to the Province of Pennsylv ...

. It was during his time in Pennsylvania that Schwerdtfeger met his future wife Anna Dorothea Schwab with whom he would have five children. From 1763 to 1768, Schwerdtfeger served the Lutheran congregation of

Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in, and the county seat of, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. Frederick's population was 78,171 people as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Maryland, second-largest ...

after which time he served as an itinerant pastor for congregations in southeastern Pennsylvania and central New York before settling in Brunswick in about 1770. Schwerdtfeger remained in New York for the duration of 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 ...

but his

loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

sympathies led him to accept a position in 1791 with the community of

United Empire Loyalists United Empire Loyalist (UEL; or simply Loyalist) is an honorific title which was first given by Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester, the 1st Lord Dorchester, the governor of Province of Quebec (1763–1791), Quebec and Governor General, governor ...

in Williamsburg, Ontario where he would spend the remainder of his life. As the first Lutheran minister in

, Schwerdtfeger served two churches: the German Evangelical Church in Williamsburg, Ontario, and a church in nearby Matilda. The site of Williamsburg's German Church was inundated by the

St. Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence Seaway () is a system of rivers, locks, canals and channels in Eastern Canada and Northern United States that permits oceangoing vessels to travel from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes of North America, as far inland ...

but Schwerdtfeger is commemorated by a nearby historical plaque in the Township of South Dundas.

References

External links

Ontario Heritage Trust plaque1972 program for unveiling of commemorative plaque
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwerdtfeger, Johann Samuel Religion in Ontario 18th-century Lutherans 1734 births 1803 deaths