Pierre Louis Bonzon
From the "D. B. Brown Family History":
The Village of Pompaples lies in the westernmost part of Switzerland, in the Canton of Vaud. Pompaples is situated about 30 miles northeast of the French border. The people living in Pompaples and the other villages of this hilly region are French speaking and predominantly Protestant.
The BONZON family settled in Pompaples sometime before 1586; some branches of the family moved to the village of Romaintier in 1646, and others went to Vevey in 1675. Most of the BONZON family of the 17th century were probably peasants, but one member of the family, Pierre Bonzon, was "Lord of Essert and Dizy" in the latter part of the century. His daughter, Anne, was granted a coat of arms which consisted of a "lion's mouth" and golden fluer-de-lis, tipped by two green clovers rising from a three fold mount.
In the 18th century, Swiss mercenaries were employed by various governments all over Europe. In 1787, for example, there were 12 Swiss regiments in France, 6 in Holland, 4 in Naples, and 2 in Sardinia. In addition, The Kings in Versailles, Turin and Naples, as well as the Pope and several Papal Legates were all guarded by Swiss troops. All in all, there were some 38,000 Swiss troops in foreign service in 1787.
In July of 1793, Pierre Simeon Bonzon died in Pompaples. Eight months later, in March 1794, his son, the 27 year old Pierre Louis Bonzon, enlisted in the army. He joined a regiment commanded by Major-General De Gumeons, and was assigned to a company commanded by Samuel Louis De Watteville, a member of one of the most influential families of the 18th century in Vaud, and in the city of Berne....
...Three months {after Pierre's discharge in April 1796} Pierre's mother, Danielle, died at Orba and was buried at Pompaples. In 1797, Pierre became engaged to Marguerite Magnenat, and on Nov. 30th of that year, the two were married at La Sarraz.
This was a time of turmoil in Switzerland. War raged in the country during the years 1798 an 1799, with France, Russia, England a Austria all involved in the conflict. When a large French army advanced into the area in 1798, the province accepted French protection and declared itself independent. Soon however, France took over control and, declaring the dissolution of the confederacy, set up what was to be called the Helvetian Republic. French troops withdrew in 1802, and the Republic began to break up. The Helvetian government, along with those troops still loyal to it, retreated to Vaud, and the area was on the verge of civil war. Napoleon Bonaparte arrived with his army on October 21, 1803, at which point all of the Swiss laid down their arms and asked him to mediate between the parties.
Pierre and Marguerite may have gone abroad for awhile during this period as there is an indication that their first child, Jean Gabriel Bonzon, was born in Vendome, France, in 1798. We do know that the Bonzons left Switzerland during the civil conflict of 1803. A copy of Pierre's passport still exists....
In March 1803, only 7 months before Napoleon arrived with the French army, Pierre, Marguerite, and their three children left Pompaples for America. Pierre's passport describes him as being a little over 5'3", with black hair and a black beard; he had and oval face with a round chin and a large nose.
On March 4, the family went to Lausanne, and by the 8th, they had reached Berne. They traveled through Geneva and Lyon and arrived at Bordeaux, France on May 6. At Bordeaux, Pierre sought passage on the ship 'MONROE' and the family sailed to Baltimore. There is an indication (in notes attached to the passport) that Pierre was instructed by his government to go to New York to consult with a Mr. "Rossiter?" {sic} and a Mr. "Roulet de Vevey?" {sic}, possibly with regard to the family's eventual settlement in Ky.
Upon reaching America, the 'MONROE' evidently landed in Philadelphia instead of Baltimore, and Pierre Louis Bonzon and his family went, not to Ky., but to western Pa. They settled first at Bessemer Furnace in Butler County. Peter Louis {sic} Bonzon, the first of Pierre and Marguerite's children to be born in America, was born in Butler County in 1804.
Five years (and three children) later, the family moved to Beaver County. For $750.00, Pierre Louis bought a 300 acre tract of land called "Camden". The land was on Brush Creek in the Township of New Sewickley in Beaver County. Bonzon obtained the land from a man named Henry Pratt of Philadelphia; Pratt had purchased several thousand acres of land in the area in 1785. Pierre Louis Bonzon built a farm on his New Sewickley property, and the last of his children were born there. His youngest, George, was born on January 15, 1815.
Pierre Louis Bonzon died in 1817.... His widow, Marguerite, sold some of the land after Pierre's death. In January of 1818, for example, she sold sixty acres on the south side of the tract to John Rap for $300.00. However, she continued to live on the New Sewickley farm with her nine children; she died there many years later in 1845 at the age of 70."
From Mary May:
"Pierre and Marguerite crossed on the "USS MONROE", departing from Bordeaux, France, 1803. Emigrated through NYC, then went on to Baltimore, intending to settle in Kentucky. Due to illness, they missed the boat going down the Ohio river. Was probably Sophia who was sick. Bought land in the Brush Creek area near Unionville, Pa. for $1 an acre. Pierre was killed when a tree fell on him, he may be buried on that farm."
From Ralph Edward Bischak (1994):
Pierre Louis Bonzon was born 4/24/1767, in Pompaples, Switzerland. He was a soldier in the Swiss Guard under Major Samuel Louis De Watteville. His Company served in Holland where Pierre was discharged on 4/30/1796, in the town of Bergen Op Zoom. He was married in 1797 to Marguerite Magnenat, daughter of Jaque and Marie Magnenat. Pierre left Pompaples in 1803 with his wife, son, and two daughters in search of a new life in America. He set sail from Bordeaux, France on the ship 'LE MUNROE' bound for Baltimore, Md. After sixty days at sea, the family arrived in Baltimore. From Baltimore, they traveled to Western Pa., (there is a story that Pierre had originally intended to settle in Ky. but, due to illness in the family, they missed the bout down the Ohio river to Ky.) Pierre then decided to settle in western Pa.
Further evidence of his intent to settle in Ky. is found in a letter of introduction found among Pierre's personal papers. This letter was written by Samuel Bonzon of Switzerland and addressed to his sons who were already living in Ky. In the letter, Samuel asks his sons to help Pierre and his family in any way they could upon his arrival. Pierre's personal papers {include} passport, military discharge, ship boarding pass and various letters of recommendation....
Pierre first settled near the Bassenheim Iron Furnace, Zelienople, Pa., where he was employed for a time, but farming was in his blood and as soon as he could arrange it, he purchased a farm on Brush Creek near present day Unionville, Beaver County, Pa. He built a comfortable log house and had been living there for some years when he was killed by a falling tree while cutting firewood on Dec. 15, 1817. His grave has never been found. His grave has never been found. It is assumed that he was buried somewhere on his farm."
From David White:
The Bassenheim Iron Furnace / Bessemer Furnace mentioned above is probably more correctly the Bassenheim Iron Works. It is a Pennsylvania Historic site. It was the site of an early Bessemer process blast furnace (for making steel), and was in operation from 1814 to about 1824. It is located very close to the edge of Zelienople's western boundary near Fombell, Pa. It is the object of a restoration project by the Zelienople Historic Society.
Fombell is about 1.5 miles almost due west of Zelienople. Another quarter mile northwest is Goehring. Unionville lies about 3 miles southeast of Zelienople, almost underneath the intersection of US Interstate 76 (the Pennsylvania Turnpike) and Pa. State Route 68.
From 'Biographical Sketches of Beaver County':
"Pierre Louis Bonzon, born in Paris, France, a soldier in the French Revolution who purchased Tract # 61 in New Sewickley Township in 1804."
From Allen Schweinsberg, 2001:
Birth, christening and marriage dates ("Pierre Loys Bonzon") from LDS film for La Sarraz. Death year suggested by Beaver County deed T478, however an 1816 deed, E440, refers to land adjacent to the "heirs" of Pierre Louis Bonzon. Marriage record appears in parish records for both La Sarraz and Vaulion. (The date 15 Dec., 1817,) appears in Beaver County Deed T478 and it apparently refers to when the widow Margaret sought permission to sell some land to pay estate debts. There is a November, 1817 document in Orphan Court Records that is similar, and 1816 Deed E440 refer to land adjacent to "heirs" of Pierre Louis Bonzon. So, the actual death date may have been in 1816, or even earlier.
