Heinrich Ernst Wedekind (1753-08-25 – after 1836), the surname spelled sometimes Wedekin or Wedeking, Anglicized as Henry Vadakin, was my 5th-great-grandfather and a German soldier born in Kirchbrak, Brunswick-Lüneburg who was part of a contingent of so-called “Hessian” soldiers sent to help put down the American Revolution. He was captured at the Battle of Saratoga and was a prisoner of war in what became known as the Convention Army. He fled custody in Enfield, Connecticut while being transported, and married local girl Tabitha (1763-10-22 – bef 1830), daughter of Ebenezer Prior. He later moved to Chester, Massachusetts and then Jericho, Vermont. Henry and Tabitha had at least six children, including my ancestor Philip Vadakin.
King George III had personal and familial ties with rulers of many German states, and during the Revolutionary War was able to induce and pay several to send their armies to assist in putting down the American rebellion. These soldiers were colloquially known as Hessians since the majority came from Hesse, although many did not, including Henry.
Henry’s unit was commanded by Friedrich Adolf Riedesel. Although the unit enjoyed some success, the British suffered a major defeat at the Battle of Saratoga, and the army surrendered and was taken prisoner on 1777-10-17.
The prisoners were known as the Convention Army, due to a “convention” that they would be repatriated to Europe. These negotiations failed, however, and instead it was decided to transport them from Saratoga, NY to Charlottesville, VA. In those days, prisoners were expected to pay for their own expenses, and thus often took work as day laborers. During the march, many escaped custody, generally due to getting involved with local farm girls; this was considered desertion, but was of little concern to the Americans as they did not return to the fight.
The army arrived in Enfield, CT on 1778-11-18, and moved to Suffield, CT the next day. Presumably Henry left his unit to find work while the army was in Enfield and did not return, and there settled down with Tabitha.
Henry and Tabitha married 1781-01-15 in Enfield, CT and had at least these children, born in Hampden, Massachusetts, except for the oldest, Frederick, born in Enfield, and the youngest, Ephraim, born in Middlefield:
He probably had a daughter born 1788 and another in the 1790s, and may have had two children who died young born between James and Ephraim, possibly one being the latter daughter.
Henry is listed in a few early census records, which provide counts of age brackets:
| Year | Place | Counts | Inferred births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1790ref | Chester, MA | 3 ♂ <16, 1 ♂ 16+, 2 ♀ | –1774 ♂ –1790 ♀♀ 1774–1790 ♂♂♂ |
| 1800ref | Middlefield, MA | 2 ♂ <10, 1 ♂ 10–15, 1 ♂ 45+, 1 ♀ <10, 1 ♀ 10–15, 1 ♀ 26–44 | –1755 ♂ 1755–1774 ♀ 1784–1790 ♂♀ 1790–1800 ♂♂♀ |
| 1830ref | Jericho, VT | 1 ♂ 70s | 1750–1760 ♂ |
The records confirm Henry was born between 1750 and 1755. A female in 1790 and the eldest female in 1800 are presumably Tabitha. The two oldest sons seem to be not in the household by 1800.
That leaves a girl unaccounted for, born from 1784–1790. Based on the distribution, she was probably born in 1788. There was also apparently a daughter born in the 1790s.
The last record I have found of Henry is a property sale in Jericho in 1836, which he personally filed with the town clerk on 1836-02-19 at 4pm.ref
His service record says he came from Kirchbrak, then part of the Duchy of Brunswick and Lüneburg. I searched the records of this town, and found a persuasive match: a Heinrich Ernst Wedekind born in 1753. This tallies with his reported ages, no one else of the right name matches, and there is no further record of this Heinrich in Kirchbrak.
Heinrich was the son of Cordt Harmen Wedeking (1689–1758) by his third wife Catherina Maria Schaper (1716–1772).
With Kirchbrak records, I was able to trace him back to great-great-grandparents. Some ancestors were traced to other places, namely the small villages Esperde and Tuchtfeld.
I have one particularly convincing match to a descendant of Henry through his son John. This segment of chromosome 20 thus almost certainly comes from either Henry or Tabitha.
There are other matches but I have not checked them as thoroughly and they may be less definitive.
I have not found any Y chromosome testees named Vadakin.