The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
State of Service: PA
Qualifying Service: Private
Birth: Death: 1831 / Rockingham / VA
Qualifying Service Description:
Capt Peter Grubb, Warwick Township, Lancaster County, PA Militia 1775
John Royer was born 7 December 1743 in Warwick Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He died after 18 April 1831 and before 1 June 1831 in Rockingham County, Virginia. John was the son of Samuel Royer and his wife, Eve, of Warwick Township in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
John Royer married Maria Elisabetha Neu on 20 October 1767. The wedding was officiated by Reverend Casper Stoever. Maria was born on 12 June 1743. There are four different publications that list the wedding date and location.
John Royer was a private serving under the command of a Captain Peter Grubb in the Warwick Township Association in the year 1775. No other record for John Royer of Warwick Township has been found related to his service in the American Revolution.
There is a record for a John Royer in the Revolutionary War Battalions & Militia Index Cards 1775-1783. However, there is nothing on this card to indicate this John Royer was in Warwick Township, Lancaster County. The index also has a card for a Capt. Samuel Royer, a brother of John Royer.
John Royer acquired land from a John Craig Senior on 27 May 1790 in Rockingham County, Virginia. The deed was "made the 27th day of May in the year 1790 by and between John Royer of the County of Rockingham and state of Virginia of the one part and John Craig Senr of the same county and state as aforesaid." The deed was for several tracts of land. This statement implies that John Royer already was living in Rockingham County at the time of his purchase.
The earliest appearance of the Royer (Reyer) name in the Peaked Mountain Church records, Rockingham County, Virginia, is on April 22, 1792, when the names of Elizabeth Reyer (Royers) and Elizabeth Reyer, Jr. are listed. Also, on the same date, John Reyer is listed as one of the Elders. It probably would take a year or two for a man to become an Elder in a church, unless perhaps he already was known to members of the church.
The first appearance of Mary Elizabeth Reyer, the wife of John Royer, in the church records was on the Register of the catechisms, first admitted to the Lord's Supper on October 19, 1794. Also listed on October 19, 1794 are: John Reyer, Peter Reyer, Catherine Reyer, and Elizabeth Reyer. A Nicholas Neu, perhaps a brother of Maria Elisabetha Neu, also appears on that listing.
The children of John Royer and his first wife, Maria Elisabetha Neu and his second wife, Barbara Boyer, are clearly identified in an 1841 Rockingham County Chancery Court case:
Children of John Royer and his first wife, Maria Elisabetha Neu:
1. Peter Royer – orator of court case – plaintiff
2. Philip Royer
3. Christian Royer – state of Ohio
4. Elizabeth – married Daniel Nunemaker – state of Ohio
5. Catherine – unmarried and residing in Rockingham Co., VA
Second wife: Barbary Boyer, widow of John Boyer
1. Henry Royer – state of Ohio
Maria Elisabeth Neu Reyer is buried at the Peaked Mountain Church Cemetery in McGaheysville, Rockingham Co., Virginia. Most Ancestry.com public family trees list her year of death as 1801. However, her tombstone does not indicate a date of death. According to the website, her tombstone reads "Maria Elisabeth Reyer" and her date of birth is given as "12 Jun 1743". No date of death is given. In a column listed as "Headstone Notes" there is a listing that reads "wife of John Reiers." Then, in a "Remarks" column, there is found the notation, "Illegible marker 2003-Inscriptions in German-recorded by John W. Wayland in 1930s."
The following court case is necessary to identify John Royer and his children and his marriages: See University of Virginia, Chancery Records Index, Rockingham County, John Royer's administrator versus Peter Boyers et. al., Index Number 1842-002, Original Case Number 007. Also listed as 1842-02-CSC, Chancery Causes John Royer's Adm. vs Peter Boyer etc. The Court Case took place in 1841. Record consists of 44 pages. Website at 22 July 2017: http://www.lva.virginia.gov/chancery/.
Service Details: John Royer was a private serving under the command of a Captain Peter Grubb in the Warwick Township Association in the year 1775.
Service Source: Published Pennsylvania Archives, Series 5, Volume 7, pages 8 and 9.
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