Jacob Backer

Oral family history provided by the descendants of Marin Luther Baker indicate that Jacob Backer was born in Pennsylvania in 1738. He probably came to North Carolina sometime between 1760 and 1765 where he married Susannah Sigmon, born in North Carolina in 1735, and reared a large family. He was a blacksmith and probably worked at this trade for a period of time when he first settled here. He eventually became a landowner and farmer. He owned land as early as 1775 and in the Appendix is a copy of the North Carolina State land grant he received in 1787 in what was then Lincoln County and a description of his land boundaries. The land he acquired in this grant is located near Hickory in Catawba County and included what was then referred to as Powder Springs and later bacame part of a recreational area outside Hickory known as White Sulfur Springs.

Jacob came to North Carolina down what was referred to as The Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania to South Carolina. The road begins about Lancaster, Pennsylvania and travels past what was later to become Gettysburg, through the Shenandoah Vaslley, and into North Carolina about where U.S. 220 comes into Greensboro. From there Jacob came westward into Lincoln County to settle with other Germans seeking cheap farming land. The same motivation that brought his father from Germany to Pennsylvania probably brough Jacob from Pennsylvania to North Carolina.

Jacob was a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church and both the old and new churches stand today between Newton and Hickory. The church was called "the Dutch Meeting House' in its early years. Jacob died in 1786 and is buried in the old cemetery along with his eldest son, Philip, who lived to the age of 91. Jacob's grave marker is one fo the oldest in the semetery and is still legible. It reads.......

Sussanah and Jacob reared at least seven children who are mentioned in his will. An account of this will is in the Appendix along with some interesting information about the Backers. After Jacob's death the family continued to live on the "plantation" which was run by Philip who was also a blacksmith. Our direct ancestor, Michael, was 16 when his father died and would not inherit any of the estate until his "coming of age" at 18.

An interesting aspect I found regarding the will of Jacob Backer is that it is contained in a file book at the State Archives that is labeled as containing documents that cannot be sued to substantiate legal claims. Upon questioning I found that these documents cannot be sworn to by the archivists as to legitimacy due to the fact that they were acquired by "unusual means." In June 1946 the State Department of Archives received an unsigned letter from 609 Potter Street in Gainsville, Texas that included Jacob Backer's will along with other papers which were "removed from the courthouse in Lincolnton prior to 1929" and were being returned. Legitimacy of the documents is questionable primarily due to this.