Tschantz Graveyard: The final resting place for several of Lancaster’s first settlers and one of the County’s oldest cemeteries

The First Mennonite Settlement in Lancaster County

In 1710, the first large-scale European settlement in what would become Lancaster County (established in 1729) took root in the fertile land between the Conestoga River and Pequea Creek. This area—covering parts of modern-day Pequea, West Lampeter, and Strasburg Townships—was then known simply as Conestoga. Here, the first Conestoga wagons rumbled along the old Conestoga Road, and the first Pennsylvania long rifles were crafted.

Swiss-German Mennonites, seeking religious freedom after years of persecution in Europe, arrived as peacemakers. They acquired 10,000 acres from William Penn on the western edge of Chester County (before Lancaster became its own county) and learned from their Native American neighbors how to thrive in the rich Pennsylvania wilderness. More land purchases soon followed, expanding the settlement.

Tschantz Cemetery

One enduring landmark from this early settlement is Tschantz Cemetery—among the oldest in Lancaster County. Tradition holds that it contains the graves of three of the original 1710 pioneers: Martin Meylin, Jacob Miller, and Wendel Bauman (Bowman).

Martin Meylin

Perhaps the most famous of the three, Martin Meylin is credited with creating the Pennsylvania Long Rifle (often mistakenly called the Kentucky Long Rifle). Around 1719, Meylin—or possibly his only son—built a gunshop. By sometime before 1745, they produced the first known American-made rifle: a strong, lightweight weapon prized for its accuracy, range, and quick loading.

The rifle’s design likely drew from Meylin’s knowledge of the Swiss Jaeger rifle, combined with local innovations. Using waterpower and his mechanical skill, Meylin set in motion a uniquely American firearm tradition.

No authenticated Meylin rifle has yet been found. Two examples once attributed to him proved false—one was actually a European musket, and the other was dated 1705, five years before Meylin’s arrival. The search continues.

Meylin’s family is also remembered here with stones for his wife, Barbara, and his son, Martin Jr.

The plaque on Meylin’s Gunshop reads:

Martin Meylin, 1670-1749, gunsmith of Switzerland settled here in the Pequea Valley in 1710 and made in this gun shop the earliest known Pennsylvania or so called Kentucky Rifle. He was the first of a group of Lancaster County rifle makers who prior to 1745 originated and gave to America that historic and colorful firearm.

The Martin Meylin Gunshop still stands today in Willow Street on the aptly named Long Rifle Road. Click here for the GPS coordinates.

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There are two other tombstones connected directly to Meylin. There’s a stone for his wife and son, Barbara Meylin and Martin Meylin, Jr.

Jacob Miller

Of the three pioneers, only Jacob Miller’s gravestone remains legible. It is also the oldest surviving tombstone in the cemetery. Though Miller died on April 20, 1739, the stone—engraved in German and later translated—was not set until 1742:

1742. Here lies buried the old Jacob Miller. Born in Germany. He died Apri 20, 1739. When he died, his age was 76 years, 1 month and 3 weeks.

Historians believe a local epidemic between 1739 and 1742 prompted the stonecutter to produce four markers at once, explaining the later date.

Miller passed 600 of his 1,008 acres to his sons—Samuel, Martin, and Jacob Jr.—and two grandchildren. Samuel inherited the land where the cemetery sits. After Samuel’s death, his widow married Bishop Hans Tschantz, who formally set aside the land for the graveyard in 1740, giving it his name.

Wendell Bowman

Wendel Bauman (Bowman), who died in 1735, is also believed to be buried here, though his gravestone has been lost to time. In 1712, Bauman built a substantial two-story log house in the center of his 530-acre tract—chinked, plastered, and whitewashed, with a stone-arched cellar beneath the east end. Sadly, the home was demolished in 1874. Had it survived, it would be the oldest known structure in Lancaster County.

A drawing by an unknown artist depicts the house as it may have appeared, located on the north side of East Penn Grant Road near a hand-dug well.

Oldest Cemetery in Lancaster County

While Tschantz Cemetery has the potential to be the oldest European cemetery in Lancaster County, being on land laid out in 1710 by Swiss pioneers, there are no tombstones that old there. Older, dated headstones exist at the Old Chestnut Level Presbyterian Church Graveyard in Drumore Township.

The earliest legible grave probably belongs to Elizabeth King, who died on February 21, 1732, at the age of 23. Several stones at Chestnut Level are made of black slate, which preserves engravings better than sandstone or limestone.

Chestnut Level contains 14 of the 20 oldest tombstones in Lancaster County. Tschantz has four. Click here to read more about Chestnut Level and finding Lancaster’s oldest tombstone.

Visiting Tschantz Cemetery

Tschantz Cemetery is open to the public about a mile outside of Lampeter at 2100 Pequea Lane, Lancaster, PA 17602. Click here for directions.

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Now you can own a beautiful reproduction map of West Lampeter Township from 1864 through 1899, home of Tschantz Graveyard.

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Resources

• Pequea Settlement 1710 Self-Guided Tour
• Where is the oldest cemetery?
• Martin Meylin, Gunsmith
• Wendel Santmann Bauman
• Bauman/Bowman Connections
• Old Cemetery