Elizabeth Rohrer
Elizabeth Rohrer, widow, P. O. Germantown, daughter of Conrad and Elizabeth Schultz, of Baltimore, Md., was born in that city January 25, 1806. She was the sixth child of a family of nine children, and was educated at St. Joseph's Nunnery, at Emmetsburg, and at Rooker's school in Baltimore, where she received a thorough education, accompanied with high accomplishments. She descended from a line of military men, her grandfather being a Colonel in the Revolutionary war, having been promoted from a private for gallantry; and her father, a native of France, participated in the war of 1812, serving as an artilleryman. Much of her early life was passed in Washington City, and during the administration of Monroe and Adams, she was a welcome guest in the families of these illustrious men. During the war of 1812, Mrs. Rohrer witnessed the light arising from the burning of Washington.
She came West in company with her parents in 1825, on a visit, and was present at Middletown when Gov. Clinton, of New York, raised the first shovelful of earth in the digging of the Miami Canal. Our subject was united in marriage to Samuel Rohrer, March 30, 1826, and that year removed to Dayton, Ohio, where he embarked in the mercantile business. To this couple were born six children, four of whom are now living, namely: Columbus, Charles S., Josephine and Ada V. Mrs. Rohrer is a member of the Reformed Church, and her husband was an Elder in the same. She is a close Bible student, and has ever walked in the line of holy men and women, having been a teacher in the Colored Sabbath School of Baltimore, and organized the first Sunday school in Germantown. She was also the first lady member of the American Bible Society in Montgomery County. Her husband was born at Hagerstown, Md., in October, 1786, and in 1817 accompanied Gen. Harper and Dr. Dideer to Europe, where he spent two years in traveling, and then returned to his native State. As was said above, he came to Dayton the same year of his marriage, and the following year moved to Germantown, and there built a brewery and operated a distillery. The father of Mr. Rohrer was a man of means, and in consequence, Samuel received a thorough education and became a man of culture and refinement. He served as Lieutenant under Capt. Bare, in the war of 1812. The couple were widely known for their hospitality, and their home was considered by the elite of the day as the center of refinement and high-bred culture. At their residence have been entertained many distinguished persons, among whom were Gen. Harrison, when a candidate for the Presidency. Mr. Rohrer was a man of many virtues, was successful in business, and highly esteemed by his fellow-citizens. He died July 12, 1856.
From History of Montgomery County, Ohio, W. H. Beers & Co., Chicago, 1882
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