YorksPast

Following my talk on the Dosch Burial Grounds in Lower Windsor Township, several people asked for more details on several of the families noted in my talk.  This post on the George Dosch Family is the eighth in a series of posts to provide answers those questions.  Other posts in this series include:

• Christian Rathfon Family in Pleasant Garden from 1784 to 1827   NOTE: New information has been added to the Rathfon post.
• Michael Dosch Family from about 1773 in Eastern York County
• Christopher Dosch Family; Father of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
• George Dosch Family Part 1; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
• George Dosch Family Part 2; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
• George Dosch Family Part 3; Uncle of York Co.’s Michael Dosch
• George Dosch Family Part 4; Stepfather of York Co.’s Peter Klein

 

 

My depiction of the 1793 planned Susquehanna River Bridge from Blue Rock, Lancaster County to Pleasant Garden, York County was done for the final post on George Dosch because he was very likely involved in this undertaking.  George Dosch certainly had the motive to be involved; he owned a tavern at the ferry terminus on the Blue Rock side of the river and continued to own 185.5-acres directly adjacent to Pleasant Garden until the time of his death in 1800.  Pleasant Garden is currently the Long Level area of Lower Windsor Township.

Based upon George Dosch’s Estate, presented in this post, he certainly could have provided some financial backing for the bridge.  In future posts, I’ll go into greater detail about the 1793 plan to build a bridge across the Susquehanna River from Blue Rock, Lancaster County to Pleasant Garden, York County.  These are those posts that deal specifically with this planned 1793 bridge:

• The Earliest Susquehanna River Bridge to York County is Authorized in 1793; Part 1
• The Earliest Susquehanna River Bridge to York County is Authorized in 1793; Part 2
• The Earliest Susquehanna River Bridge to York County is Authorized in 1793; Part 3
• The Earliest Susquehanna River Bridge to York County is Authorized in 1793; Part 4, Schedule of Bridge Tolls
• The Earliest Susquehanna River Bridge to York County is Authorized in 1793; Part 5, Increasing Bridge Tolls to Guarantee Profits for Shareholders

The Inventory of George Dosch’s personal estate was valued in ‘Pounds, Shillings and Pence;’ on December 16, 1800 the total value was 4,362 Pounds, 2 shillings and 11 pence.  The English ‘Pounds, Shillings and Pence’ system of money was used in Colonial America because they were English Colonies.  Even after the Revolutionary War, the ‘Pounds, Shillings and Pence’ system of money continued being used for many years until the Dollar monetary system of the United States became established.

In the ‘Pounds, Shillings and Pence’ system there were 240d (that’s pence) in £1 (one Pound); that’s 12 (pence in a shilling) times 20 (shillings in a Pound).  If you needed to add up items valued in Pounds, shillings and pence you needed three columns; as listed in many Colonial tax records and Probate Inventories.

George Dosch’s personal estate did not include any of his real estate; it included personal possessions and 25 bonds owed to him.  The bonds were predominately from loans given out during the 1790s; the principal and interest still owed to George Dosch on these loans totaled 4,212 Pounds, 17 shillings and 1 pence.  George’s most expensive personal item was a clock valued at 15 Pounds.

The National Archives in the United Kingdom has converters to express how much Old Money from past decades is worth today.  In the case of George’s clock, it would have a current value of $778 and the 25 bonds would have a current value of $218,605.  From the interest payments still due recorded in this inventory, it appears that George Dosch would sometimes charge 5% and sometimes charge 6% on the loans he issued.  George Dosch was definitely a wealthy man for the time period.  He gave most of his personal estate and real estate to his grandchildren, step-children and their children.

With all of George Dosch’s activity in loans during the 1790s and his previous interest, or possibly still an active interest in a tavern on the Manor Township side of what would have then been Dritt’s Ferry, George very likely was involved in lobbying for a bridge across the Susquehanna River at this point.

Next Tuesday, I’ll go into greater detail about the 1793 plan to build a bridge across the Susquehanna River from Blue Rock, Lancaster County to Pleasant Garden, York County.

Next Friday I’ll continue this Family History series, concentrating on the earliest generations of the Kline families.

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