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• To save on printing and postage, I’m now emailing the newsletter to everyone who has an email address. The newsletter can also be seen on the Harper Website.

• We’re looking forward to seeing everyone on May 30th at the Harper Farm for the annual reunion. It is always a lot of fun and this year won’t be any exception! We hope you can join us but, if not, definitely plan on coming next year for Reunion 2000.

• Speaking of Reunion 2000, remember back in 1995, when I first proposed it, some of you got all wild-eyed and said that was too far in the future to even think about! Comments such as, "I can’t make plans that far in the future...I don’t know what I’ll be doing by then" were often heard. Well, here it is just around the corner!

Since our big reunion is only a year and a half away, it’s time to nail down all of the final details. It’s amazing how much advance planning is needed for something like this. Places and people have to be booked way in advance to make sure that everything runs smoothly.

• Now is the time to put your name on the Reunion list and to book your motel rooms. If the motel rooms are all taken by the time you get around to making your reservations, you may find yourself having to stay at a place 30-45 minutes away. Putting your name on the list does not commit you in any way - it just gives us a head count so we know how many to plan for.

• Now, for the exciting news! Tom Bell, a Harper descendant from Auburn, California, went to Germany last summer and researched (and persevered) until he found the genealogy information we've all been waiting for! He located the parents and grandparents of Philip Harper the Pioneer! And, he discovered that the family name was not Herber as we thought, but Herper.

Tom tells me it was just "dumb luck," but I'm not buying it. I met him in August 1997 and, I can tell you, he's the kind of person who creates his own luck and then "stumbles" into it. Thanks, Tom, we all owe you a HUGE debt of gratitude!!!

Tom adds: "One thing probably worth noting is that it appears the family that remained in Barenbach used the Herber spelling. Our family took on Herper. So, the folks that came to America together were Philipp's cousins and not his brothers or sisters."

1. Elisabetha Catharina bp. 08 Dec 1696

2. Maria Margaretha bp. 12 Oct 1698

3. Johann Wilhelm bp. 25 Apr 1701

4. Maria Gertraud bp. 23 Jan 1704 d. 23 Aug 1704

5. Johann Matthes bp. 23 Aug 1705

6. Johann Nickel bp. 6 May 1708 d. 3 May 1714

7. Anton (Hans Adam) bp. 12 Oct 1710

1. Eva Elisabetha Harper b. 3/25/1742 Niederweiler

2. Eva Catharina Harper b. 4/14/1744 Niederweiler

3. Nicholas Harper b. 3/26/1747 Niederweiler

4. Philip Harper, Jr. b. 2/17/1750 Niederweiler

5. Johan Jacob Harper b. 3/20/1752 Berks Co., PA

6. Margaret Harper b. 1753 America

So, now we know that Philip and Anna Elisabetha Harper brought four children with them to America.

We also know that Jacob Harper (who came to America with Philip Harper the Pioneer and later went to Kentucky) is not the brother of Philip after all. Perhaps they were cousins. Only time and research will tell!

• Unfortunately, my computer crashed in March and I lost a lot of Harper newsletter information, in particular, Harper births and deaths for the past year. If you sent me one of these, will you please re-send it and I’ll include it in next year’s newsletter?

• Doug Harper of Biloxi, Mississippi reports in his annual Christmas letter that, "Hurricane George came to Biloxi while I was in Kentucky so I did not have to evacuate. I had a gum tree topped and no house damage. Cousin Isobel Harper tells me that she has pictures of Jacob and Jemima Rose Harper. He died in 1853 and she somewhat later so they are really old and a new find for the family."

• As I mentioned last year, I am compiling documentation on the source of each piece of information we have on all descendants of Philip Harper the Pioneer and Jacob Harper the Pioneer up until 1900. (After that date, sources can be pretty easily found.) If you have anything you would like to contribute, please send it to me. Examples of information that would be useful to future generations are: photocopies of Harper Family Bibles which list birth, marriage and death dates; photographs prior to 1925; family stories; stories of Harpers from old county histories, etc.

• From Reece Harper of Huntsville, Texas: "I was not able to make the Harper reunion this past May and will probably not be able to make it in 1999. That is a pretty busy time of the year for me, but I am definitely planning on making the 2000 reunion. Working on getting my parents to come also. Everything in this part of Texas is about the same as always. We spend as much time as possible with grandchildren. I went home to Elko, Nevada for Labor Day and we had pictures of all of the Harpers together. Seems it was the first time in many, many years that I had been in the same place as my brothers and sister so we took a lot of pictures." Reece is a descendant of Albert Harper (4th child). He and his wife manage a resort called Waterworld. Those of you with Internet access can view his website at: http://www.waterworld.com

• Thanks to the hundreds of people who have contacted me this year to ask questions, share information and give comments, whether by letter, email or in person.
• Our mailing list has grown to just under 500 names this year as we have been joined by many more members of the Harper clan from all across the United States! Donations to The Harper Cemetery Association help to support these activities:

• "The Harper Family Newsletter"
• Posting of research questions in the yearly newsletter and on the Harper Family Website
• Security of the Perpetual Care Fund for future generations

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È Query: "Robert Harper and May Day are my grandparents on my Mom’s side of the family. They settled in Randolph County. Both grandparents can be found in the Federal Census. There is quite a bit of information on the Day side of the family in Pendleton County that can be traced. However, I’m stuck on Robert Harper. He can be found in the Census of 1880, his mother being Margaret "Peggy" Harper. After many hours of fruitless research that’s as far as I get. Does anyone have information about them?" - Ralph Taylor, P.O. Box 232, Deer Harbor, WA 98343, (360)317-1531, <ralson@interisland.net>

È Query: "Did you ever run down the copy of the Skidmore-Harper family history formerly owned by Mrs. Boggs of Franklin - or another copy of the same? I am still interested in putting the whole of it into the computer, and then printing a few copies for libraries." Warren Skidmore, 171 Goodhue Dr., Akron, OH 44313, (330)864-2787, <wskidmore@neo.rr.com> [This is the history written by Dr. Eli Akim Harper in the late 19th century. It was handed down to Lelia Harper Mauzy of Franklin - but did not descend to her grandson, Mike Karickhoff of Buchanan, WV.]

È Query: Where is the diary of Ezekiel "Zeke" Harper which is excerpted in History of Tucker County? Contact: Marsha Fuller

È Query: Does anyone know the whereabouts of the descendants of Rosie Harper and John Painter? How about their Family Bible? Contact: Marsha Fuller

È Query: If anyone has a Family Bible for any Harpers born before 1900, please photocopy the family births, deaths and marriages and send it to me. Thanks!

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• I finally bought a scanner so I may be able to properly copy the Harper photographs that everyone has lent me. Early in the year, I had borrowed a special camera and copy stand to make duplicate photographs of them, but I was not pleased with the results.

• This month is Ramp Time in West Virginia. As soon as I get this newsletter done, I’m headed down there. There’s something so satisfying about hiking out in the woods, digging your own food and taking it straight home to cook. Makes me feel a little like my pioneer ancestors.

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Thanks to the generosity of my uncle, Dale Boyce Fuller of Cumberland, Maryland, we continue to have a Harper Family Website on the Internet at:

http://www.fred.net/mfuller

Anyone wishing me to post a query about Harper ancestors on this website can write to me or email me at: mfuller@fred.net

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• Some of you have asked me how I’m related to the Harpers - after all, my name isn’t Harper. Well, my great-grandmother was Elizabeth Harper Cooper, one of the 20 children of Jacob C. and Susan (McDonald) Harper. So, while my name hasn’t been Harper for 3 generations, my heart certainly has been! When I get close to Harman, I feel like I’m coming home.

• For those of you who have ordered a copy of The Complete Harper Family History ($36.25), the wait will be a little longer. I am absolutely swamped at work and haven’t had much free time to work on the book. I hope to have it finished sometime this year and will mail everyone’s copy as soon as I can. Thanks for your patience!

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In the interest of putting people in touch with each other who are following the same branches of our family, I'll be happy to publish names and addresses for each branch. Let me know if you’re interested in being on the list in next year’s newsletter.

• Working on Jacob Harper the Pioneer (moved to Kentucky):

• Working on Nicholas Harper (son of Philip Harper the Pioneer):

• Working on Philip Harper, Jr. (son of Philip Harper the Pioneer):

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BIRTHS: J J J J

J Dale and Janet Walter announce the birth of a daughter, Sarah Elizabeth, on March 26th. Dale is descended from a daughter of Jacob & Margaret Harper .

SORROWS: ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ John Larry "Bud" Ormand of Jourdanton, Texas passed away on March 6, 1997. He was a grandson of Peter and Sarah Jane (Kisamore) Harper.

CORRECTIONS TO The Harper Family History:

*pgs. 149, 235 - The correct spelling of Susan Harper Wimer’s third child is MAUD (no "e" at the end). This correction was supplied by her children, Jack and Jean.

Index Omissions - Jennifer Lynn Wood, p.183; Kathleen Harper Wade, p. 201,202; Willard Van Wymer, p. 223

Don’t forget to send your new address to the Editor if you move!

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Much of the area is unchanged in the ensuing 2 ½ centuries, a tribute to the love and respect which the people of West Virginia have for their land and their history. It is good to know that somehow, somewhere things have remained the same.

• There are many things to do in this part of the country, so plan to come for a week or so. There are:

• The official travel agency for the Reunion 2000 is a full-service travel agency owned by Julie Fuller.

The Cruise Company, 1262 Vocke Rd.,

LaVale, MD 21502, (800)420-7245

cruise_co@mindspring.com

• If you want to contact the motels directly:

Yokum’s Motel, Cabins and Camping (304)567-2351

Hedrick’s 4-U Restaurant and Motel (304)567-2111

• Please, please, please detach the form below, drop in an envelope and mail it to us now. It does not commit you in any way, but is crucial for the planning committee to know how many to expect. The biggest issue is the tour bus for Saturday. This will be the highlight of the weekend as we go from site to site, seeing the places where our ancestors raised their families and lived and died. We’ll be hearing the history and stories behind these sites and how our Harper ancestors lived back then.

___ Yes, I plan to attend Reunion 2000. I’ll need: ___ motel room ___ camping facilities

___ Sorry, I won’t be able to come to Reunion 2000. ___ I live in the area and won’t need a motel room.

___ I plan to stay: ___ one day, ___ weekend, ___one week

I am interested in purchasing a Reunion 2000: ___ Ballcap ___ T-shirt ___ Sweatshirt