Family Roots
This family has interesting roots. On the Finkbiner Side: German, Swedish, Scotch-Irish and French. In the early 1700s, they all settled in southern Pennsylvania in and around Lancaster County (home of the Amish) and Gettysburg (home of a great Civil War Battle).
On the Blanchard Side: English. In the 1600s, some of them first settled in Virginia and then traveled south to North Carolina and helped to establish the new colony.
On the Finkbiner Side:
A Pennsylvania Stronghold
These ancestors mostly immigrated in the early 1700s when Pennsylvania was a popular place due to it’s religious freedom and abundant land opportunities
Finkbiner Family Roots
Thirteen documented families arrived in America from four countries in the 1700s. They lived in the area for generations until 1894 when the Finkbiner family moved to Colorado Springs.
To view a larger map use the brackets in the upper right corner
Finkbiner Family Roots began in four countries: (click on names for bio links)
French/German from Strasbourg, Alsace, France
Hamilton Side (Robertson’s Mom)
Palantine Region in SW Germany
Finkbiner Side (Robertson’s Dad)
Scotch-Irish, from Scotland via Northern Ireland
Hamilton Side (Robertson’s Mom)
- Thomas Craighead from Derry, N. Ireland in 1714
- Thomas Bayly from N. Ireland in 1722
- Adam Boyd from Bellameny, N. Ireland in about 1723
- James McCurdy from N. Ireland about 1728
- John McQueen from N. Ireland in about 1731
- William Creighton from Fermanah, N. Ireland in about 1735
- John Hamilton from N. Ireland, about 1740
- William Sheakley from Ulster, N. Ireland in about 1750
Jonkoping or Ramsberg Sweden
Finkbiner Side (Robertson’s Dad)
The Finkbiner Family Roots are solid in Pennsylvania for over 150 years until...
The Finkbiners came west, probably on the train. They left Pennsylvania for “Mom’s” health and arrived in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1894. And parts of the family are still in Colorado, 125 years later.
On the Blanchard Side:
A North Carolina Stronghold
These English ancestors mostly immigrated in the 1600s. They came to Virginia as early as 1634 and then moved south. North Carolina was chartered as a colony in 1663.
Blanchard Family Roots
Eleven families arrived in America from England in the 1600s They lived in the area for generations until 1832 when a migration west began.
To view a larger map use the brackets in the upper right corner
Blanchard Family Roots are English: (hover for bio link)
Vernatti Side (Gertrude’s Mom)
- William Bartlett born 1677 in NC from England
- William Wilson from Spalding, England about 1710
- Deborah Trumbull born 1730 in NC
- Deborah Astine born 1648 in Virginia
Blanchard Side (Gertrude’s Dad)
- Thomas Walton born in Virginia in 1660
- Mary Benbury born in North Carolina in 1745
- Benjamin Blanchard born in NC in 1762
- Rosanna Billups born in VA in 1773
The Blanchard Family Roots are solid in North Carolina for over 200 years until...
The Barclifts/Waltons left North Carolina for Illinois in 1832, and Timothy Blanchard left for Illinois in 1855-ish. Timothy married Belle Vernatti (Barclift family) and they moved to Boulder, Colorado to try mining in 1880. He also did some ranching on their land on Boulder Creek. And parts of the family are still in Colorado, 138 years later.
Both families migrate to Colorado in the late 1800s
Blanchard
Gertrude Blanchard was born in Boulder, Colorado in 1882.
Finkbiner
Robertson Finkbiner, age 15, moved to Colorado Springs in 1894.
Both were “first generation” Coloradoans, and they married in 1908.
Their three boys were born in Colorado and the subsequent generations have strong ties to the Colorado and Wyoming Area.