Biographical Sketch of Clemens RENTGEN (1881); Chester County, PA Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Sandra Ferguson . *********************************************************************** USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: Printing this file within by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. http://www.usgwarchives.net/ *********************************************************************** from Futhey and Cope's THE HISTORY OF CHESTER COUNTY (1881); Clemens Rentgen and his wife, Catharine, and their children, came to the US from Germany in 1793. The Sheeder family came in the same vessel. The name in Germany was spelled Roentgen, but the spelling was changed after they came to this country. They were familiarly called in early times the Rankys. They were steel-workers in Europe, at Saarbrucken, on the Upper Rhine. They first settled at the Falls of French Creek, but afterwards came farther down the stream and established iron and steel works near Kimberton, where they manufactured and furnished the government with ship iron during the war of 1812. Letters patent were granted them by the government. The ruins of the old slit-mill, as it was then known, can still be seen of French Creek, near Kimberton .* *(1881) Clemens Rentgen was born July, 1754, in Saarbrucken and died in Chester Co 12- 15-1833. His wife, Catharine, was born 4-25-1767 and died 12-3-1845. Their children were William, Christian, Peter, and Catharine. William worked qt Lawrenceville, Harper's Ferry, and Philadelphia; was master-armorer of the US arsenal at Pittsburgh, and was afterwards in charge of the small-arms department at St. Louis, where he died of choler in 1832 and was buried in the US inclosure with military honors. He was twice married and left a large family. One of his sons, Charles D, resides in Chester Co, at or near Spring City. He occasionally writes poems for the papers. Christian Rentgen was born 4-18-1786, and died 9- 19-1866; and Peter was born 10-9-1788, and died 11-7-1873. Clemens REntgen and his wife Catharine, and sons Christian and Peter are all buried at Zion (Lutheran ) churchyard in East Pikeland twp.