Dewalt Akeny's First Wife
Was Dewalt Ankeny's first wife Catherine ____________ or Mary Jane Domer?
The following excerpts from the CHRISTIAN ANGENY book makes the argument for Catherine. The reference to "PROMINENT IOWANS" should have been Iowa: Its History and Its Foremost Citizens, by Johnson Brigham. Any further information about Dewalt's first wife would be welcomed.

"A church record in the Jonestown Reformed Church shows the following item; Christian son of Dewalt Annias (as translated) and Catherine, was baptized December 23, 1750, and witnessed by Christian Lang and Anna Maria, daughter of Peter Hedrick. This is an interesting item for several reasons; Peter Hederick, as already mentioned, came from the same District in the Palatinate as did the Ankeny's. Also on the same ship with Nicholas Angne there was one Nickel (Nicholas) Lang, and this man was a member of the Jonestown Church as early as 1742, at which date he had a daughters baptized there. These two men may or may not have been related to Dewalt; possibly one of them was a brother-in-law, but at least they all seem to have settled together. As the name Dewalt was not common, and as the name Annias is not known to have existed, it almost certain the item refers to the subjet of this manuscript, and further evidence of that likelyhood is the fact that Dewalt did have a son, Christian, who was born December 25, 1749, and the christening at that time would be quite likely. Reference to the name Catherine in the above item will be made in a later paragraph. But another item comes from the record of the Host Church, on the Big Swatara near Jonestown. Here we find: that Rebecca was born to Theobold Angne, July 5, 1755, christened August 17, 1755, witnesses being Peter Heitherick and Rebecca Lang, both single. As the sponsors are from the same families, and from the similarity of names (allowing for variation in translation) it seems to be clear that both items refer to Dewalt. From the tax records we know that he lived in that section, and no other references to any name like his is found. So we accept both these references as belonging to this account."

"Tradition has it that Dewalt had married Mary Jane Domer and she was the mother of the older children. This name is found in the account referred to in the account of Joseph Ankeny given in Prominent Iowans, already referred to. Here it is stated that she was a daughter of Thomas Domer, and the first two sons were named for two brothers, Peter and Christian Domer. We know that the Domers lived in Maryland, where Dewalt later lived, but it is not known that they ever lived in Pennsylvania. Also we know that some of the names that were used in the account just referred to, were not entirely correct. So far as the writer (CRS) is concerned, there is a question as to the verity of that tradition. From the above item, it appears that the wife of Dewalt and the mother of Christian was named Catherine. Her family name is not evident, but might possibly be either Lang, or Hederick. It might also be noted that none of the children of Dewalt, were named in the girls Mary Jane, but nearly all of them did have a daughter named Catherine. And Dewalt also had a daughter, (his first) who was named Catherine. Also as we are quite sure the items mentioned above refer to Dewalt; and it must follow that the first wife was named Catherine and not Mary Jane; and probably not Domer. Tradition has it that she died at an early date from injuries she received in the burning of their barn. It seems she tried to save some of the cattle. The exact date is not known."

The Dewalt Who Came to America in 1753
The excerpts below, taken from the "CHRISTIAN ANGENY" book, indicate an uncertainty as to the identity of the "1753 Dewalt". Immigration Data proves that it is not the same Dewalt but there is concern about possible commingling of the data. Another Dewalt who arrived in 1733 is given in the Immigration Data but it could be an error in transcribing the date, 1753, as 1733.

"Hence he believes that the Theobald Angena who came to America, in 1753 was actually Dewald returning from a visit to his former home."
"I the Present writer (LWJ), disagree with this assumption"

Dewalt's Mother
It has been said that Dewalt's mother's maiden name was Dewalt but the Gustav Angne work shows it to be Cantor. The original source for the Dewalt information is not given but it is suspected that it also came from Iowa: Its History and Its Foremost Citizens, by Johnson Brigham. The Neptune's passenger list shows that a Caspar Dewalt did arrive on the ship with Dewalt.

From the CHRISTIAN ANKENY book
"On the same ship was one Caspar Dewalt, said to have been an uncle, ? a brother to his mother."

From the Gustav Angne Manuscript
VC. JOHANN HEINRICH AGNE, Born, 3/2/1698, in Lambsborn, Died+, 12/25/1727, in Lambsborn, a Landowner in Lambsborn, Married, 2/17/-
1723, in Lambsborn, with, CHRISTINE CANTOR, Born, Circa 1696, Died=, 2/17/1734, a Daughter of JOHANNES CANTOR, a Tanner, in SAAREN, Berne, Switzerland, Gentleman, CHRISTINE Married, (2) with, JOHANN JAKOB BACHLEIN, a Son of MAURITIUS BACHLEIN, od Suhr, Switzerland,

Children born in Lambsborn:
1. MARIA ELISABETHA AGNE, Born, 8/8/1723, Married, 7/16/1743, with, JOHANN CHRISTIAN SCHOLLAGE. (Reference: Church Records Lambs- born, Page 196/l.
2. ANNA MAGDALENA AGNE, Born, 11/ /1724, Baptised, 11/12/-1724.
3. JOHANN THEOBALD AGNE, Baptised, 1/16/1727, See Baptismal Records of Lambsborn. 1727.

The homeplace then was under Pfalz, Reference, 675. Kaiserslautern, BENZINORING 6. Ref. NR. 2&3, on 10/25/1746, on Ship "NEPTUNE", THEOBALD AGNE, migrated to America, (See German Section 1931, NR. 3.)