In just about every family, there is someone who puts together the family genealogy, the family tree. In my family, that’s my sister, Trisha.

When we were kids, we had a very short family history that was compiled by Loretta O’Mara, who lived near Wyalusing, Bradford County. It was just a few pages long, and while we are not directly related to the O’Maras, we do fit into that history.

That must have caught Trisha’s attention, because now she is very much into genealogy. She attends workshops, subscribes to several publications and services, and has put together a very impressive history of our family.

One ancestor she discovered was our fifth great grandfather on my mom’s side. His name is Leonhardt Hontz.

The spelling of his last name, Hontz, was found in the Pennsylvania Archives for the Revolutionary War. It was also spelled Hanz or Hantz in different areas. In his will, which was signed on the back by his children, they all spelled their surname as “Hans.”

Leonhardt was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. He enlisted in the Northampton County Militia on Jan. 17, 1776. He was among the first enlistees to leave Pennsylvania to assist the colonists in their bid for freedom. He served in the 2nd Pennsylvania Battalion under the command of Capt. Thomas Craig and Col. Arthur St. Clair.

He served 14 months, traveling up and down the East Coast from his home in Lynn Township, to Easton, then to Albany, New York, then to Philadelphia, then to Fort George, New York, then to Ticonderoga, New York, near Lake Champlain, then to Trois-Rivières (Three Rivers) in Quebec, where he took part in a battle (The Battle of Three Rivers).

Soon after that battle, Leonhardt was discharged and returned home. However, he was drafted and went to Spring House, then to Philadelphia near Montgomery County. While on the way to Philadelphia, they were attacked by a group of British soldiers. Leonhardt received a saber cut on his head, the scar of which remained on him the rest of his life. He served two more months before being discharged.

In late 1796 or early 1797, Leonhardt and his brother, Christian, also a Revolutionary War veteran, settled in what is now the Mahoning Valley, Carbon County. He was a Lutheran and was one of the founding members of Ben Salem Church when it was organized.

It was reported, in an old newspaper article, that Leonhardt died at the home of his son Leonard Hontz, some time in 1837, leaving no widow but six adult children.

His grave is unmarked. He is said to be buried in Ben Salem’s old cemetery. Though also unmarked, a plot of seven or eight Revolutionary War veterans is said to be in that cemetery, and Leonardt Hontz may be among them.