Bio: John BENDER, Lancaster County, PA

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clginvb@hone.com


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BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LANCASTER COUNTY, VOL. III, Pages 975 & 976

JOHN BENDER, one of the prominent citizens and substantial retired farmers of Lancaster
County, owns a fine estate in Upper Leacock Township, but since 1891 has retired from 
active operation of it. He was born in this old home October 23, 1861, son of John W. 
and Anna (Buckwalter) Bender.

John W. Bender was born in Upper Leacock Township, January 22, 1833, and died on his 
late farm November 30, 1877, and was buried in Heller’s Reformed Churchyard, which 
sacred ground adjoins the old home farm. He was the son of Kinzer D. Bender, and a 
brother of Franklin of this township., William K. Bender , of Strasburg, Pa., and Mrs. 
Jacob Burkholder, of Talmage, Pa. John W. Bender remained with his parents, who were 
well-known and most highly esteemed residents of the town ship, until his marriage, and 
then moved to the farm now in the possession of his family. For eight years he was a 
school director and was identified with all-important educational advancement in his 
neighborhood. In politics he was ever a stanch Republican, and he was one of the 
leading members of the Methodist Church. On November 16, 1856, John W. Bender was 
married, in Lancaster, to Miss Anna W. Buckwalter, and the children born to this union 
were: John, of this sketch; and Aaron, who after studying in the common schools in 1885 
entered Pennington Seminary (NJ) to fit himself for the ministry, but he died in 1886, 
aged twenty-three years.

Mrs. Anna W. (Buckwalter) Bender was born in East Lampeter Township. She was a daughter 
of Abraham and Anna (Witner) Buckwalter, natives of East Lampeter Township. Mr. 
Buckwalter was a well-known farmer who died in 1840 at the age of forty-eight, his 
widow surviving until 1886, dying at the age of ninety-one. Their burial was in the 
Mellinger Mennonite Cemetery. They had been worthy and consistent members of the 
Mennonite Church. Their children were: Esther, deceased, who married Joseph Wenger; 
Benjamin, deceased, who married Susanna Johns; Elizabeth, deceased, who married David 
Groff; Lydia, who is the widow of Jacob Leman, of Leacock Township; Barbara, who is the 
widow of Abraham Rohrer, of Manheim Township; Abraham, who is a retired farmer of Upper 
Leacock Township; Levi, deceased; and Anna, who is the mother of John Bender, of this 
sketch.

John Bender was born and reared on the home farm where he has spent all his active 
life. His education was acquired with the public affairs of his township, having for 
the past two years been township auditor. Since 1891 he has not engaged actively in 
operating the farm. The family is one much respected in this neighborhood and Mr. 
Bender is regarded as one of the thoroughly reliable representative citizens of Upper 
Leacock. The family has always been members of the Methodist Church, the father being 
one of the founders of the church of that denomination at Leola, where John Bender, our 
subject, was superintendent of the Sunday school for eleven years. He takes a deep 
interest in music, and has charge of the church choir at Leola. Mr. Bender has at times 
been urged to take town office but declined.