Peter Webner (b. abt 1780, d. 1846) came with his brother, John, from Austria when they were young men, probably in the very early 1800's. Peter settled in Dauphin County, Pa., but John went west, and we know no more of him.

  Peter married Margretha* Waltz (or Walz), daughter of Boaz, about 1810, and one report has them setting up housekeeping in Lebanon, Pa., where Margretha was raised. Published history reports that the union had 14 children, but the only known list (see Helen Davidson's note) includes eleven.

  David was christened May 28, 1831 at the Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jonestown, Lebanon County, Pa. Margretha died in 1839 and Peter in 1846 (perhaps in Carlisle, Pa.). At that time, the family apparently split up, with David moving into the home of William Reed in Churchtown, Monroe Twp., Cumberland County, Pa. Sisters Catherine and Mary also lived together nearby at the time of the 1850 census.

  David apprenticed to Mr. Reed as a tailor, and united with the Church of God on November 19, 1849. He moved to Mechanicsburg, in Monroe Twp., then to Smithville, Wayne County, Ohio, in 1852 where he worked at tailoring for William Peters and E. H. Gilbert.

  David married Charity Walton, of the Byberry Waltons, in 1854, and moved to Knox County where he opened a ready-made clothing store, probably one of the first in the area. He later returned to Smithville and opened a clothing store there. When the railroad came through about a mile south of Smithville, David established a hack line (short-distance cargo hauling) from Smithville to the Fort Wayne Railroad Station which began the family's long history with railroading.

  David died in 1873 of "neuralgia of the heart" after a long illness. This event forced Charity to take over the hack line and to sustain a family of five children aged 11 months to 17 years as a single parent. When the eldest son, Gilbert, was married in 1881, the hack line was given to him. The other sons also learned telegraphy and were engaged in railroading for at least parts of their careers.

  Charity passed away in 1913, revered throughout the community for manner in which she raised and educated her children (all completed high school) with strong Christian principles for which Webner's are still known.

*The spelling has been seen as Margreta, but Margretha was somewhat common in that era. She eventually accepted the English version: Margaret.

© 2001 Neil E. Webner.   All rights reserved.