“I found the ship!”
You never know where a breakthrough like this will come from. In April 2001 I posted to a GenForum board on Genealogy.com about a trip I was planning to the town that our RUPP ancestor came from in the Alsace region of France. A researcher for the WELTY family discovered that his ancestor and mine appeared on several documents together. He sent the following message: http://genforum.genealogy.com/france/alsacelorraine/messages/456.html
Previous researchers [including Theron Rupe, Louise Roop Anderson Akers and Everette L. McGrew], had done much research on the Rupp/Rupe/Roop(e)/Roup(e)/Ruppe family line before and after their arrival in America in 1752 but the ship had not been known.
This simple act of kindness gave proof that my Johann Jacob RUPP and his family arrived in Philadelphia on October 20, 1752 on the ship “Duke of Wirtenburg” that sailed from Rotterdam and Cowes under Captain Daniel Montpelier. Also on the ship were Hans George Gottle, Christian Stahl and Christoff Fridrich Biller whose names were found in later years in connection with Jacob Rupp.
This exciting news, received on September 11th, 2001, was overshadowed by what followed several hours later but it taught me a lesson about sharing and helping others.
