Paul Rands asks
Paul Rands sucht Informationen zu Ulrich Urner: um 1667 vmtl. in der Schweiz geboren und 1672 nach Elsass emigriert - vmtl. aus religiösen Gründen (Wiedertäufer). Im Elsass wird um 1695 Ulrichs Sohn Martin geboren (Geburtsort nicht genau bekannt) sowie die Brüder Jacob und Johann (ebenfalls in den 1690er Jahren). 1708 emigriert die Familie nach Amerika, wo Martin und Ulrich Urner wichtige Positionen der Wiedertäuferbewegung innehaben.I'm looking for hometown / any information on Ulrich URNER who may have been born in Switzerland about 1667.
According to family legend, he fled Switzerland to Alsace in 1672 (with his parents?) due to religious persecution - he was Anabaptist.
Because of his surname, some say the family must have originated in the Canton of Uri. That may be true but I suspect the family was called Urner because they moved from Uri to another canton and were thus identified as Urner before surnames became fixed. Some traditions say the family fled from Zurich Canton.
Tradition, tradition. I'd rather have hard proof than a Fiddler on the Roof to perpetuate my tradition.
The Familiennamenbuch der Schweiz indicates that the Urner surname existed in Hirzel, ZH before 1800. I haven't seen the entry myself so I don't know if there is a previous origin listing (in parenthesis).
I'm surprised this surname is not more common if it means a person from Uri.
If Ulrich was born about 1667, and he "fled" in 1672, he was only a child. That would mean his parents were Anabaptists and it may mean that little Ulrich was not baptized in Switzerland in which case there will be no birth record. Are there other ways at that time and place that birth information was recorded?
Ulrich's son, Martin supposedly was born in the Alsace (town not known) about 1695. There were brothers Jacob and Johann born in the 1690's also. The family emigrated to North America in 1708. Martin Urner became a famous minister in the American Anabaptist movement. There has been much written about Martin and Ulrich Urner but mostly general stuff based on tradition and speculation which does not allow for further research so I'm looking for better sources.
I can read German so I will be able to follow any suggestions group members may have.
Regards,
Paul Rands
near Portland, OR
Laut Familiennamenbuch (siehe unten) sind Urner seit vor 1800 Bürger von Hirzel ZH. Wenn die Familie Wiedertäufer waren, wird Ulrich vmtl. nicht in den reformierten Taufregistern erscheinen. Welche anderen Quellen könnten hier weiterhelfen?
Paul Rands versteht Deutsch, kann also auf Deutsch gegebenen Hinweisen folgen.