The Story of Agnes
Agnes Bennethum was born in the mountains near Myerstown in 1845. Her parents were Peter Bennethum and Sarah Heffelfinger, her grandparents were Peter Bennethum and his wife Kate Moyer, and her great-grandparents were Johannes Andreas Benedum and Marie Barbara Minnich.
When she was a very old woman, Agnes's children insisted on recording the story of her life. And a fascinating life it was!
When she was a young girl her family. along with her father's brother's family, moved to Ohio. She describes the trip in vivid detail. They took two Conestoga wagons crammed full of their possessions. She tells of provisions the wagons had for camping enroute, such as boards on the side that pulled up for sleeping.
In Ohio all the women spoke the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect her mother didn't know it very well. She grew lonely and homesick and took to her bed, telling her husband she was not getting out of bed until he promised to take her back to Pennsylvania, They comprised and went to Illinois where her father's cousin owned the Pennsylvania House hotel.
When Agnes was about 16, President Lincoln came to Freeport. There was a big parade and Agnes was chosen as one of three girls to represent of colors of the flag. She wore a all-white dress and rode a white horse
When she married John Henry in ___ she wore an elegant brown silk wedding dress
Submitted by: SueCunning@aol.com