FONGER FAMILY CONNECTIONS

F1. UNKNOWN FONGER¹ the father of this family is unknown. He had at least two sons who settled in Knowlton Township in what was then Sussex County, New Jersey during the late eighteenth century. The area where his sons settled is now in the vicinity of Hainesburg, Knowlton Township, Warren County, New Jersey. There were at least two other Fongers living in Sussex County in the late eighteenth century. The first was William Fonger, who married Polly Hunt on 14 March 1798. She was the daugther of Ralph Hunt, who was known as "Honet Ralph." The second was George Fonger, who married Elizabeth Low on 8 November 1800 in Sussex County (Reuther n.d.).

The surname Fonger has several different spellings. The nineteenth-century historian, James P. Snell (Snell 1881:601), in his history of Warren County gives the surname as Funger. Randy Fonner in his web site Fonner Family History points out that the name Fonger was later changed to Fonner by some families. This was part of the anglicization of German immigrants. Many German families changed their surname spelling after they had been in the American colonies for a generation or so. For instance, the Titman family of Warren and Sussex Counties were actually descendants of Ludwig Dittman. The Fonger/Funger/Fonner connection is a clue for family researchers to keep in mind while searching through records.

Return to Main
Children of Unknown Fonger
References
Surname Index

CHILDREN OF UNKNOWN FONGER:

F2. (i.) PHILIP FONGER, Sr.², was born unknown and died by 6 September 1808 probably in Knowlton Township, Sussex (now Warren) County, New Jersey. There are no Fongers listed in the 1773-1774 or 1774 rateables list for Sussex County. The Fongers either lived in the County before 1774 but did not own land; or they did not settle in the county until after 1774 (Stryker-Rodda 1972). Philip married Unknown. She is not mentioned in his will, which was written on 12 March 1798. She probably died before 1798. The will was written in 1798, but not admitted for probate in the Sussex County Surrogate Court until 6 September 1808. In the will Philip named five children: son Philip Fonger, Jr. and daughters Jane, Sarah, Charity and Elizabeth Fonger. He appointed his brother John Fonger as his executor. Garret Albertson and Jacob Weltz were the witnesses to the will (Sussex County Surrogate Court Records, Wills 1167S). Children of Philip Fonger, Sr.

F3. (ii.) JOHN FONGER², was born unknown and died after 12 March 1798. He is named as the executor of his brother Philip's estate. Philip's will was dated 12 March 1798 and was admitted to probate on 6 September 1808 (Sussex County Surrogate Court Records, Wills 1167S). A John Fonger was a member of the church in Stillwater, Sussex County, New Jersey. He appears on the list of parents whose children were baptized between 1773 and 1800. This church was originally built by 1771 and stood in the bounds of the cemetery currently in Stillwater. At first it was used by both German Lutherns and German Calvinists. By 1816, the Dutch Reformed/German Calvinists constituted the majority of the congregation. They applied to the Presbytery of New Brunswick to come under the care of the Presbyterian church. From that date forward, the church has been a Presbyterian church and is known as Stillwater Presbyterian Church (Snell 1880:381).

Go to Top of Page