The Descendants of Johann Peter Gehris
This file submitted by: Dennis Gehris.
The history of the Gehris family in Berks County, Pennsylvania can be traced to the immigration of Johann Peter Gehris and his family to Pennsylvania from Germany aboard the Ship Robert & Alice arriving in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 24, 1742. They immigrated from the village of Horschbach in Kusel Kreis in the Pfalz region of Germany. Johann Peter Gehris was the son of Hans Jacob Gehres from Horschbach and the grandson of Martin Gehres from the village of Breitenheim near the medieval city of Meisenheim in the Pfalz. Gehres family members still live in this area of Germany and can trace their ancestry to Martin Gehres.
One of Johann Peter's sons was Simon Peter Gehris, born November 16, 1727 in Horschbach, Germany and settled in Hereford Township, Berks County. He and his wife Maria Elizabeth Gehris had at least eight children: Maria Magdelene, Maria Margaret, Johann George, Jacob, Johann Jacob, Anna, Peter, and George. Jacob Gehris and Peter Gehris settled in District Township, Berks County. Jacob Gehris and his sons built the present day Huff's Union Church in Hereford Township, Berks County. Many of the current Gehris family members living in Berks and surrounding counties are descended from Jacob and Peter Gehris.
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