Wentz’s Church Cemetery Transcriptions
Skippack Pike, opposite Wentz Church
Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, USA
Cemetery in good condition, active, accessible
The founders of Wentz’s Church arrived in Montgomery County in 1710 and worshipped in homes until neighbors John LeFevre and Jacob Wentz each gave one acre of ground from their adjoining properties, on which to build a permanent church. In 1762, a German Reformed Church was built on this site. In 1851, a larger church was built, which in turn was demolished in 1878 to build the present church, which incorporates the cornerstone of the 1762 church. Although the structure remains intact, a merger in 1934 created Wentz’s Evangelical and Reformed Church, and in 1961 another merger resulted in the formation of Wentz’s United Church of Christ.
The oldest stone appears to pre-date the cemetery (1756) and belongs to Antony Straus. This cemetery contains over 2,200 stones and is still active. It is divided into 5 sections: the oldest rows, behind the church, are numbered. Then, for whatever reason, after row 21 they become letters “A” through “M”. The newest section is immediately to the right of the drive as you enter the property. There are graves within the oval created by the drive, and is a section on the other side of the drive beyond the oval is referred to as the “Annex.” Rows have been identified; position numbers may vary as new additions occur regularly.
Every attempt has been made to correctly identify the information on each stone. The 1990 transcription contains errors that may or may not appear here. If the stone itself was unable to correct these mistakes (based on condition), other church sources have been supplemented and noted as such.
There are many spaces marked “unknown” in the records that are not included in the row count if there is no existing stone. Early rows are not straight. Stones may have been moved to accommodate lawn mowing and family plot railings have been removed. Footstones (usually initials only) are now aligned with headstones and may or may not identify a grave location.
Row and position number may not be exact but estimated to aid in locating
Please check “Notes” column. In cases where there is conflicting data, options are given. Relationships and Maiden Names are included if known from township history. Many stones have been translated from Pennsylvania Dutch/German.
Includes Department of Health Burial or Removal Permit information of (death) burial date, death location and cause if held by the church
Tombstone Transcriptions:
Undated/unidentified transcription
1990 – Hartman, Jefferson, Hornberger, Lebegern, Laudenslager, Biddle, Biddle
2018 – Leslie Lowell-Griffin
2011- Leslie Lowell-Griffin and George Monahan