John Jacob Mickley (1697–1769) (born Jean Jacques Michelet) was an early settler of Whitehall Township,

Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Lehigh County (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Lechaa Kaundi'') is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 374,557.

Early life and education

Mickley was born Jean Jacques Michelet in 1697 in

Zweibrücken Zweibrücken (; french: Deux-Ponts, ; Palatinate German: ''Zweebrigge'', ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river. Name The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; olde ...

, Germany. He was the eldest son of Louis Michelet (1675–1750) and Susanne Mangeot (1674–1710). His parents were Protestants from

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

, who moved to Zweibrücken to get married. There, his father became pastor of a

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

congregation.

Career

On May 4, 1733, he boarded the ship ''Hope'', sailing from

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...

and arriving in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

on August 28, 1733. His name became anglicized as John Jacob Mickley. He first lived with a relative in

Berks County, Pennsylvania Berks County ( Pennsylvania German: ''Barricks Kaundi'') is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 428,849. The county seat is Reading. The Schuylkill River, a tributary of the Delaware Ri ...

for several years. In 1745, he acquired farmland in

Egypt, Pennsylvania Egypt ( Pennsylvania German: ''Iegypden'') is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Whitehall Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The population of Egypt was 2,588 as of the 2020 census. It located about north of ...

in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania in

Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Lehigh County (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Lechaa Kaundi'') is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 374,557.

, becoming one of the township's first settlers.

Personal life

Mickley married Elizabeth Barbara Burkhalter (1719–1769). They had four sons and three daughters. On October 8, 1763, several settlers, including two of his children, Henry and Barbara, were killed in an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

attack. In 1913, a granite marker was erected by the

Lehigh County Historical Society Lehigh County Historical Society is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1904, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the history of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The Historical So ...

commemorating those killed in the attack. Three of Mickley's sons, John Jacob, John Martin, and John Peter, served in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. His eldest son, John Jacob Mickley (1737–1808), is known for transporting the Liberty Bell, then known as the Pennsylvania State Bell, from

Allentown Allentown may refer to several places in the United States and topics related to them: *Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California *Allentown, Georgia, a town in Wilkinson County *Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Taze ...

in September, 1777, where it was hidden underneath floorboards inside the

High German Evangelical Reformed Church The High German Evangelical Reformed Church, also known as Zion Reformed and Zion United Church of Christ, is an historic Evangelical and Reformed church, which is located at 622 West Hamilton Street in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Vall ...

in Center City Allentown for nine months until June 1778 to avoid the bell's capture by the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

prior to the

British occupation of Philadelphia The Philadelphia campaign (1777–1778) was a British effort in the American Revolutionary War to gain control of Philadelphia, which was then the seat of the Second Continental Congress. British General William Howe, after failing to draw ...

. Today, the

Liberty Bell Museum The Liberty Bell Museum (also the Liberty Bell Shrine Museum) is a non-profit organization and museum located in Zion's United Church of Christ (formerly Zion's Reformed Church) in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern P ...

, located inside this Allentown church, commemorates the Liberty Bell's heroic and successful hiding there by Mickley and others. Mickley's great-grandson Jacob Mickley (1794–1888) was an elder on the building committee of the Whitehall German Reformed Church in

Mickleys, Pennsylvania Mickleys is an unincorporated community that is located in Whitehall Township in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. It is situated on Pennsylvania Route 145, also known as MacArthur Road. It is part of the Lehigh Valley, which has a population of 861,8 ...

Death

Mickley died August 18, 1769, and was buried in the cemetery of the Egypt Church. In 1864, he was reinterred at Mickley's Cemetery, now known as St. John's Union Cemetery.

Legacy

The village of Mickleys is named after his family. On October 12, 1917, the Michelet Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Allentown, Pennsylvania dedicated the Revolutionary and Huguenot Memorial of the Michelet family at Mickley's Cemetery.

Gallery

File:John Jacob Mickley (1697–1769) gravestone, St. John's Union Cemetery, Mickleys, PA - south side.jpg, Memorial gravestone side with his birth name, Jean Jacques Michelet File:October 8, 1763 memorial monument, Egypt, PA.jpg, Memorial monument for his two children, Henry and Barbara

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mickley, John Jacob, 1 1697 births 1769 deaths Military personnel from Pennsylvania People from Lehigh County, Pennsylvania