So much gratitude is owed to the men and women who have gone before us, trailblazers, really, encountering adventures and hardships as they sought new homes. You can find stories of some of those early pioneers in written family histories or through oral histories passed down from one generation to the next, describing their travels through or settling down in Pennsylvania.

In 1907, Aaron Kern Gift from Middleburg, Snyder County compiled the "Genealogical History of the Gift, Kern and Royer Families." In one chapter entitled “Glimpses of Early Pioneer Life,” Gift shares this story on a family visit he made to Illinois in 1878.

Charles Kleckner and Mary Anna, his wife, told Gift they were six weeks on the road during their emigration tour from Snyder County, Pennsylvania, to Stephenson County, Illinois. They settled on government land already owned by Kleckner’s father John.

“Most of the time, during the nights they were compelled to camp out in the open air. The wagons were loaded with goods, so that very few could find room to sleep on the wagons, and that they had to endure many hardships and privations. They brought cattle along from Pennsylvania, which gave them much annoyance.

“Among their heavier teams, they used a strong two horse covered spring-wagon, in which they carried their bread, meat, flour, etc. Whenever the bread was nearly exhausted, and they could spy along the road a bake-oven of the old Dutch kind, one of the men, and two of the women would stop, get privilege to do their baking, then hurry after the caravan again which could not move fast.

Charles T. Kleckner and Mary Anna, his wife, had ten children, three of whom died in infancy, to wit: John Jacob, Mary Elizabeth, and Ellen Jane, the seven others included Dr. David H. Kleckner, the eldest son, who was born in Union now Snyder County on February 17 1840, shortly before they emigrated to Stephenson County Illinois.” (pg.38)

Another reminisce shared by Gift, “Christopher Kline moved to the Valley (Middlecreek Valley, Snyder County) about 1780 and took possession of his Government Homestead. His domestic cattle were left grazing in the woods freely. One of the cows generally carried a bell, the strap of which was buckled around the neck. This was done to find the herd in order to round them up in the evening. It was very common to see two or three deer grazing with the cattle. So tame had they become that they could be approached to within a short distance without disturbing them. Not over a mile from their cabin, a skeleton of an Indian was found along side of a skeleton of a deer. It was supposed the Indian shot the deer and approached too closely and that in his death struggles he inflicted a fatal wound with his sharp claws to the Indian and both died together.” (pg.41)

Another story describes an incident involving a Revolutionary War soldier by the name of Frances Ditto, who lived on a farm in Musser’s Valley, Adams Township, now part of Snyder County. Mr. Ditto had a reputation for being an excellent hunter and farmer.

“Mr. Ditto was in the habit of burying his apples in a hole or pit in the ground and covering them, first with straw, then with earth to keep them from freezing during the winter. About the holidays when the family began to use these, a small hole was dug through the frozen earth, and a plug of hay or straw was inserted to keep the cold out. After the family had used apples for a while he made the discovery that the apples were disappearing too fast. He made a new hole opposite the first one and set one of his strong steel traps over in front of the old hole, closing the new hole tightly and covering it nicely with snow. The next morning when Mr. Ditto came out of his house, he discovered that he had caught his apple thief with his right arm in the hole and his hand fast in the trap and his empty bag beside him. He called Mr. Ditto saying, "come quickly and loosen me, I am almost frozen to death." In Pennsylvania German he said "Kum gaschwind un moch mich lose ich bin by naw zum dod ferfrora." Mr. Ditto replied, "I have not time now I must go to the barn to feed my stock." Upon his return he loosened his apple thief and told him: "We have plenty of apples you could have had for the asking, but I don't want them stolen. I will give you a bushel in your bag as compensation for detaining you so unceremoniously at my apple hole. If you come back again for apples without permission, I will fill you full of buckshot. Mr. Ditto never revealed the name of his apple thief, but it leaked out afterwards that the guilty person was one of his neighbors. Mr. Ditto's residence was close by the north branch of the Middlecreek near its junction with Swift Run.” (pg.60)

In the preface to his book, Aaron K. Gift credited the influence of his grandfather, Jeremiah Gift, with providing data concerning accidents, and incidents in relation to the Gift ancestors; as did Colonel Henry Royer, of Rebersburg, Pennsylvania, in reference to the ancestry of the Royer family.