Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-07-11
THE RocKeFeLLeRs' STORY
John D. Has Traced the Family Name
Back to 949 A. D. In Franee-A
Gold Rock In its coat.of.
Arms--Curious Facts
nv GEORGE NOX MCCAIN

John d. Rockefeller, at the age Of eighty.
three, celebrated his birthday last week BY
playing n round of golf on his estate.
The matrimonial prospects of Mathilde
Mccormick, his granddaughter, are keeping
society of two continents on it's tiptoes.
William Rockefeller. millionaire brother
of the Standard OIL capitalist. died few
weeks ago.
1t is u far cry, as Years 60, from John D.
and william. and the rest of the present
generation, back to Johann Peter Rocke.
feller. the German miller and farmer, who
founded the family in New Jersey 2O2 years
ago.
Johann Peter, however, was not the first
Of the name in this country, although he
was the ancestor five times removed Of the
great capitalist.
L western world is found in the registry
of West Camp Lutheran Church. at West
Camp, New York.
The yellow pages relate that Anna Mar
garet ROckfallin was communicant there
on August 20. 171O.
Nothing more is known OF this individual
or her family.
Johann Peter Rockefeller landed in this
country at Philadelphia in 1720. He was
accompanied by his two sons, Peter and
John.
He was was born in the Rhine palatinate
He died in Amwell. N. j., on an uncer::
tain date between the writing of his will
on December q, 1763, and the proving of it
August 16. 1866.
The first notice of the Rockefellers in
New Jersey appears In the records of the
First Reformed Dutch Church of Raritan,
near Sommerville.
They show that on June II, 1924, Ann,
daughter Of johann Pieter Rackervelser and
Elizabeth, his wife. was baptized.
These were John d. and the late vii.
liam Rockefeler's forebears.
As THE final development Of pat
"A ronymic the Rockefeller name has run
series of remarkable changes.
For many years Mr.. Rockefeller employed
Aaron X. Lewis, an exceptionally able and
painstaking gencalogst. to trace the family
In Europe.
The trail led to France and Germany.
In this country the history has been care
fully recorded by scores of members Of the
family.
The name is derived from the French
Roquefeuille. 1t means rock and field. as
depicted on the coat of arms of the family.
In France 1t was spelled in variety of
ways-Roquefeuie, Roquefrcil, Rockeval-
Iicr. Roquefeull and Rockefolle.
On the records of the Revolutionary War
a far wider diversity is displayed, as: Rock
enfeller. Roackafclow, Rockcfelow, Rocke-
feller, Rockifelow. Roackaffnlter, Rockfal-
low and Rockfcllow.
In the last half century it has been uni.
formly spelled Rockefeller, though there are
some descendants who spell it Rockefeller,
Rockfellow and RockefellOw.
JOHANN PETER ROCKEFELLER's
- ancestors in the old country, according
10 tl,..s nl~rt
Huguenots driven into Germany by the revo-
cation of the Edict of Nantes
In a statement made In 1912 at meet
ing of the Rockefeller family. Mr.. Lewis
said:
The first Of your family originated in
France. down in the southern part in the
province known as I.anguedoc.
81 have been able to trace the name back
as far as the year 949 in the ancient town
of LOdeve, near which they owned cha, eau.
They were titled people.
The name Rockefeller originated from
the old French name of Roqucfeuilc
They had money (cOins bearing their
name) in circulation.
"Onc of your kindred married into the
family of lie Tell, or lie Theill, and this
marriage no doubt furnished the name he
bore"
Mr.. Lewis referred to the corrupted name
of Diell. which is common among the Rookie.
fellcrs of the last century.
1he hockeieller sencalogist also had
long correspondence with Count Robert dc
Roquefeuille at Rcnnes. France, who spent
fifty years trying to perfect the genealogy
of his family.
A ROMANTIC feature of Mr.. Lewis work
"A was the discovery about fifteen years
ago Of the Eockefcllers Of parish Rhein-
brohl, Germany.
1t came about through an American
newspaper.
In 1906 John ID. Rockefeller erected n
monument to the memory of his ancestor.
Johann Peter Rockefeller, near the site of
his old home in lInnterdon County, New
Jersey.
Newspapers Of this country gave consid.
cradle space to history of the family and
description of the monument.
One of these fell into the hands Of the
pastor OF Protestant church in the valley
of the Rhine Germany
lie at once wrote the pastor of the church
at Rngoes, \. j.. where the monument ia
erected. that his parish register contained
the names Of Catherine Rockefeller. 1853,
and l.orenZ and Peter, children OF John
Rockefeller, miller at IIcrringholler. and
Anna Veronica, his wife,
The pastor = letter was forwarded TO John
D., who passed it along to his brother VIII
liam. who died the other day.
william Rockefeller sent Aaron II. Lewis
over to Germany at once to look up the
records.
The result was rich find in gcnealogy of
the ROckcfelIcrs. -
0NE period Of family history needed clear.
" ing up.
Were the ltockefelcrs among the German
Palatin"s whom Queen Anne hired and sent
over under contract to her American nos
sessions in 1T09-lO?
Mr. Lewis dug around among the old
documents in the Colonial record Office in
London for several weeks "
lie finally unearthed the original pavroll
of tn" Palatincs hired by the Queen hmt
felcr. 1'''Ne'
Neither did he find the name among onv
old documents around those years. '
Whatever conclusions may have ham
reached that the early Rockofellers com" -"
America with these contract bound Pain.
tines based upon the fact that thew sctted
among them in New York. there is nowhern
any record showing that they were of them
TT Is sngularly striking and approurioto