The Hochstetler Incident

"One of the most popular and well-worn stories in Amish family history is that of the Native American attack on the family of Jacob Hoschstetler (1704-1775). The Hochstetlers lived in the Northkill Amish settlement in Berks County, Pennsylvania. Frontier settlements like Northkill suffered a number of such incidents from 1755-58.

"Folk tradition holds that during the night of September 19, 1757, Jacob Hochtetler, Jr., opened the famly's cabin door to see why the farm dog was barking so intently. Thereupon, he was shot in the leg by a group of Indians stalking the house. The wounded boy and his two brothers, Christian and Joseph, all reached for their hunting guns in order to defend the family against the Natives. But heir father Jacob would not allow them to shoot, and made the boys put the weapons away. As a devout Amishman, his commitment to nonretaliation and Jesus' teaching to "turn the other cheek" would not permit him [to] see his sons resort to violence.

"The Hochstetlers instead hid in the cellar below the house, but the attackers then set fire to the cabin itself. Trying to escape through a cellar window opening, the family was caught. The Indians killed Jacob Jr., his mother and sister. Jacob Sr., Joseph (c. 1744-1812, and Christian (c. 1746-1814) were taken captive. Separated from his sons, Jacob was taken into French-controlled western Pennsylvania. The Native American group which had taken the Hochstetlers was apparently working closely with the French. The attack was more likely provoked by regional politics and war than by anything the Hochstetlers themselves had done, despite a family legend that Mrs. Hochstetler had earlier angered natives by turning away a number of their hungry.

"The following spring, Jacob Hochtstetler's captors gave him the privilege of hunting in the woods by himself. Hochstetler fled. After fifteen days he made his way by canoe and raft to Shamokin, Pennsylvania, and eventially back to an Amish community. Four years later, his two sons were still captives and he had issued an appeal to the province's lieutenant governor asking for help in finding them. Several years later, both sons were freed and re-united with their father.

"Family tradition carried the Hochstetler story throught the generations in a rather embellished form. But the general outline of the events, deaths, captivity and escape match what surviving documents from the time report" (Steve Nolt, A History of the Amish, pp. 66-67).

 

 

 

Photo of mural by John L. Hostetler. Used by permission of Daniel E. Hochstetler

 

Here is another telling of this story with editorial comments by Daniel E. Hochstetler.
For more on the Hochstetler family see the Jacob Hochstetler Family Association web site.

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