View source for Wenger (Wanger, Winger) family

Wenger, a Swiss Mennonite family name occurring among the Swiss and North American Mennonites, occurs most frequency among members of the [[Mennonite Church (MC)|Mennonite Church (MC)]] branch. The progenitor of a large number of North American Wengers was Christian Wenger, who immigrated to Philadelphia in 1727 and located in [[Lancaster County (Pennsylvania, USA)|Lancaster County]], where he married Eva Grabill. Two of their sons settled in the Shenandoah Valley of [[Virginia (USA)|Virginia]]. From this branch of the family came the well-known evangelist and college president Amos D. Wenger (1867-1935) and Old Order Mennonite bishop John Dan Wenger, son-in-law of Bishop John Geil (1799-1899). In the [[Pennsylvania (USA)|Pennsylvania]] branch of the family, which has been primarily located in the [[LMC: a Fellowship of Anabaptist Churches|Lancaster Conference]], a large number have served as ministers and deacons in the church. Jonas G. Wenger (1840-1922) of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was a superintendent of the Old People's Home at Marshallville, Ohio. Martin D. Wenger (1841-1901) of Lancaster County worked for John F. Funk's [[Mennonite Publishing Company (Elkhart, Indiana, USA)|Mennonite Publishing Company]] in Elkhart, Indiana. [[Wenger, John C. (1910-1995)|John C. Wenger]] taught at [[Goshen Biblical Seminary (Goshen, Indiana, USA)|Goshen College Biblical Seminary]] starting in 1938, and served as deacon, preacher, and bishop in the [[Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference (Mennonite Church USA)|Indiana-Michigan Conference]] (MC). His great-uncle, John S. Wenger (1843-1916) of Weaverland, Lancaster County, suffered from blindness yet was widely known for his mechanical ability and for his devotion to the church; his biography is included in the booklet <em>Overcoming</em> <em>Handicaps. </em>Samuel S. Wenger (b. 1903) was an attorney at Lancaster, Pennsylvania. [[Wenger, Paul A. (1889-1969)|Paul A. Wenger (1889-1969)]] served as a missionary in [[India|India]]. Frank and Harry Wenger were both leaders in the [[Church of God in Christ, Mennonite (CGC)|Church of God in Christ, Mennonite]].
= Bibliography =
Gratz, Delbert. <em>Bernese Anabaptists</em>. Scottdale, PA, 1953.

Wenger, J. G. <em>et al. Descendants of Christian Wenger</em>. Elkhart, IN, 1903.
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[[Category:Family Names]]