Robert was the son of Henry Shuler (b. 1761 in Montgomery Co., PA), a Revolutionary War Veteran, and Elizabeth Shuler of Washington Twp., Northumberland Co. (then Lycoming Co.), PA. He married Elizabeth Rentz (d/o John Phillip Rentz & Elizabeth Knorr) on 2 Jul 1816.
In 1824, he had a surviving brother, Samuel Schuler (1786-1862), and sister, Margaret Elizabeth Chapman (1787-1855), w/o George Chapman Jr. From cemetery and census records, he could have had two more siblings: Henry Shuler (1796-1919), and
Elizabeth Shuler (b. 1795-1800), still single and living with Gabriel H. Shuler in 1860, who could only have been children of Henry and Elizabeth.
Besides these siblings, early federal censuses also show that Henry and Elizabeth could have had as many as three more children; a girl and two boys, born between 1785 and 1790 and died before 1824.
"Robert brought his family to Wabash County, Indiana from Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in September 1837, being ‘inspired by the news of the great western country' as Weesner's 1914 History of Wabash County states. At the time, the Wabash and Erie Canal had not been completed, so the only means of reaching Wabash County from the East was by the muddy, treacherous overland roads. 'Two families came together from the East -- Robert Schuler and Albert Pauling. Mr. Schuler then had eleven children. He came with two old-fashioned Pennsylvania wagons, one with three horses and one with two. At night, they would strike a tent; the boys, six in number, would sleep in the wagons, and the father and mother and the girls, seven in all, would lodge in the tent, and this journey over mountain and river and plain took five long weeks!' The Schuler family, while on this journey, were described to be a 'lively, wide-awake company'.
"Robert Schuler entered 160 acres near the Eel River in Wabash County, Indiana and later bought 60 acres more. 'The equipment of that early home was extremely primitive. A large walnut door, two windows, covered with greased paper, a puncheon floor, an open fire place, with a mortar and stick chimney, were the more familiar and conspicuous features of the residence' In 1840, Robert built a new home on the river, considerably more comfortable than the first, but still with an outer structure of hewn logs.
"Robert opened the first blacksmith shop in Pleasant Township in 1838. The first school in Pleasant Township was held in Robert Schuler's cabin in 1839, and the first religious meeting in the area was held there around the same time by the Rev. Asa Johnson, the Presbyterian pastor at Peru, Indiana. Robert built the Shiloh Chapel on his property for use by the First Presbyterian Church of Pleasant Township (officially established October 25, 1840), and was the Church's first ruling elder. Robert built the first brick kiln in Pleasant Township around 1842.
"A Wabash County pioneer recalled that 'Schuler and Alex. Duncan and old Thomas Fogerty were famous hunters. They used to fire-hunt on the Eel River at night. They brought three deer of a morning to John Miller's cabin that they had killed the night before. Wolves were still plenty and there were some, though not very many, bears in the region in 1840 and for some time afterward. (Recollection of Harmon T. Miller, printed in History of Wabash County, Indiana, 1884) The following is a description of 'fire-hunting' as it was practiced in Wabash County in those days: 'Paddle up the river so as to float down in the dark; start your canoe slowly down, with an elevated light in front and a blind behind it. One man must be at the stern to steer, and one behind the light to shoot. The deer, in crossing the stream, will be dazzled by the glare of the light, and perhaps turn and gaze at it. Meanwhile, the canoe, floating down the current, will come so near the unsuspecting creature that the watchful gunner can take a shot and the deer will fall dead in the water. Often the boatsmen would tie a stone by some bark to the neck of the deer, sink the dead body in the stream, and get it the next day and take it home."
Robert Schuler was a Democrat, with anti-slavery leanings. He died, at the age of 56, of injuries suffered (including complications from "black erysipelas") when a horse ran away with the buggy he was driving while he was visiting family back in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. He "was an enterprising and intelligent citizen, active in every good work and highly esteemed by all who knew him."
Elizabeth was also injured in the buggy accident, but she recovered from her injuries. She died on Jun. 10, 1867 in Faribault County, Minnesota while living with their son, Samuel.
Robert is buried in the Rentz family plot here.
Researcher: Ronald W. Schuler
In 1824, he had a surviving brother, Samuel Schuler (1786-1862), and sister, Margaret Elizabeth Chapman (1787-1855), w/o George Chapman Jr. From cemetery and census records, he could have had two more siblings: Henry Shuler (1796-1919), and
Elizabeth Shuler (b. 1795-1800), still single and living with Gabriel H. Shuler in 1860, who could only have been children of Henry and Elizabeth.
Besides these siblings, early federal censuses also show that Henry and Elizabeth could have had as many as three more children; a girl and two boys, born between 1785 and 1790 and died before 1824.
"Robert brought his family to Wabash County, Indiana from Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in September 1837, being ‘inspired by the news of the great western country' as Weesner's 1914 History of Wabash County states. At the time, the Wabash and Erie Canal had not been completed, so the only means of reaching Wabash County from the East was by the muddy, treacherous overland roads. 'Two families came together from the East -- Robert Schuler and Albert Pauling. Mr. Schuler then had eleven children. He came with two old-fashioned Pennsylvania wagons, one with three horses and one with two. At night, they would strike a tent; the boys, six in number, would sleep in the wagons, and the father and mother and the girls, seven in all, would lodge in the tent, and this journey over mountain and river and plain took five long weeks!' The Schuler family, while on this journey, were described to be a 'lively, wide-awake company'.
"Robert Schuler entered 160 acres near the Eel River in Wabash County, Indiana and later bought 60 acres more. 'The equipment of that early home was extremely primitive. A large walnut door, two windows, covered with greased paper, a puncheon floor, an open fire place, with a mortar and stick chimney, were the more familiar and conspicuous features of the residence' In 1840, Robert built a new home on the river, considerably more comfortable than the first, but still with an outer structure of hewn logs.
"Robert opened the first blacksmith shop in Pleasant Township in 1838. The first school in Pleasant Township was held in Robert Schuler's cabin in 1839, and the first religious meeting in the area was held there around the same time by the Rev. Asa Johnson, the Presbyterian pastor at Peru, Indiana. Robert built the Shiloh Chapel on his property for use by the First Presbyterian Church of Pleasant Township (officially established October 25, 1840), and was the Church's first ruling elder. Robert built the first brick kiln in Pleasant Township around 1842.
"A Wabash County pioneer recalled that 'Schuler and Alex. Duncan and old Thomas Fogerty were famous hunters. They used to fire-hunt on the Eel River at night. They brought three deer of a morning to John Miller's cabin that they had killed the night before. Wolves were still plenty and there were some, though not very many, bears in the region in 1840 and for some time afterward. (Recollection of Harmon T. Miller, printed in History of Wabash County, Indiana, 1884) The following is a description of 'fire-hunting' as it was practiced in Wabash County in those days: 'Paddle up the river so as to float down in the dark; start your canoe slowly down, with an elevated light in front and a blind behind it. One man must be at the stern to steer, and one behind the light to shoot. The deer, in crossing the stream, will be dazzled by the glare of the light, and perhaps turn and gaze at it. Meanwhile, the canoe, floating down the current, will come so near the unsuspecting creature that the watchful gunner can take a shot and the deer will fall dead in the water. Often the boatsmen would tie a stone by some bark to the neck of the deer, sink the dead body in the stream, and get it the next day and take it home."
Robert Schuler was a Democrat, with anti-slavery leanings. He died, at the age of 56, of injuries suffered (including complications from "black erysipelas") when a horse ran away with the buggy he was driving while he was visiting family back in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. He "was an enterprising and intelligent citizen, active in every good work and highly esteemed by all who knew him."
Elizabeth was also injured in the buggy accident, but she recovered from her injuries. She died on Jun. 10, 1867 in Faribault County, Minnesota while living with their son, Samuel.
Robert is buried in the Rentz family plot here.
Researcher: Ronald W. Schuler
Robert was the son of Henry Shuler (b. 1761 in Montgomery Co., PA), a Revolutionary War Veteran, and Elizabeth Shuler of Washington Twp., Northumberland Co. (then Lycoming Co.), PA. He married Elizabeth Rentz (d/o John Phillip Rentz & Elizabeth Knorr) on 2 Jul 1816.
In 1824, he had a surviving brother, Samuel Schuler (1786-1862), and sister, Margaret Elizabeth Chapman (1787-1855), w/o George Chapman Jr. From cemetery and census records, he could have had two more siblings: Henry Shuler (1796-1919), and
Elizabeth Shuler (b. 1795-1800), still single and living with Gabriel H. Shuler in 1860, who could only have been children of Henry and Elizabeth.
Besides these siblings, early federal censuses also show that Henry and Elizabeth could have had as many as three more children; a girl and two boys, born between 1785 and 1790 and died before 1824.
"Robert brought his family to Wabash County, Indiana from Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in September 1837, being ‘inspired by the news of the great western country' as Weesner's 1914 History of Wabash County states. At the time, the Wabash and Erie Canal had not been completed, so the only means of reaching Wabash County from the East was by the muddy, treacherous overland roads. 'Two families came together from the East -- Robert Schuler and Albert Pauling. Mr. Schuler then had eleven children. He came with two old-fashioned Pennsylvania wagons, one with three horses and one with two. At night, they would strike a tent; the boys, six in number, would sleep in the wagons, and the father and mother and the girls, seven in all, would lodge in the tent, and this journey over mountain and river and plain took five long weeks!' The Schuler family, while on this journey, were described to be a 'lively, wide-awake company'.
"Robert Schuler entered 160 acres near the Eel River in Wabash County, Indiana and later bought 60 acres more. 'The equipment of that early home was extremely primitive. A large walnut door, two windows, covered with greased paper, a puncheon floor, an open fire place, with a mortar and stick chimney, were the more familiar and conspicuous features of the residence' In 1840, Robert built a new home on the river, considerably more comfortable than the first, but still with an outer structure of hewn logs.
"Robert opened the first blacksmith shop in Pleasant Township in 1838. The first school in Pleasant Township was held in Robert Schuler's cabin in 1839, and the first religious meeting in the area was held there around the same time by the Rev. Asa Johnson, the Presbyterian pastor at Peru, Indiana. Robert built the Shiloh Chapel on his property for use by the First Presbyterian Church of Pleasant Township (officially established October 25, 1840), and was the Church's first ruling elder. Robert built the first brick kiln in Pleasant Township around 1842.
"A Wabash County pioneer recalled that 'Schuler and Alex. Duncan and old Thomas Fogerty were famous hunters. They used to fire-hunt on the Eel River at night. They brought three deer of a morning to John Miller's cabin that they had killed the night before. Wolves were still plenty and there were some, though not very many, bears in the region in 1840 and for some time afterward. (Recollection of Harmon T. Miller, printed in History of Wabash County, Indiana, 1884) The following is a description of 'fire-hunting' as it was practiced in Wabash County in those days: 'Paddle up the river so as to float down in the dark; start your canoe slowly down, with an elevated light in front and a blind behind it. One man must be at the stern to steer, and one behind the light to shoot. The deer, in crossing the stream, will be dazzled by the glare of the light, and perhaps turn and gaze at it. Meanwhile, the canoe, floating down the current, will come so near the unsuspecting creature that the watchful gunner can take a shot and the deer will fall dead in the water. Often the boatsmen would tie a stone by some bark to the neck of the deer, sink the dead body in the stream, and get it the next day and take it home."
Robert Schuler was a Democrat, with anti-slavery leanings. He died, at the age of 56, of injuries suffered (including complications from "black erysipelas") when a horse ran away with the buggy he was driving while he was visiting family back in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. He "was an enterprising and intelligent citizen, active in every good work and highly esteemed by all who knew him."
Elizabeth was also injured in the buggy accident, but she recovered from her injuries. She died on Jun. 10, 1867 in Faribault County, Minnesota while living with their son, Samuel.
Robert is buried in the Rentz family plot here.
Researcher: Ronald W. Schuler
In 1824, he had a surviving brother, Samuel Schuler (1786-1862), and sister, Margaret Elizabeth Chapman (1787-1855), w/o George Chapman Jr. From cemetery and census records, he could have had two more siblings: Henry Shuler (1796-1919), and
Elizabeth Shuler (b. 1795-1800), still single and living with Gabriel H. Shuler in 1860, who could only have been children of Henry and Elizabeth.
Besides these siblings, early federal censuses also show that Henry and Elizabeth could have had as many as three more children; a girl and two boys, born between 1785 and 1790 and died before 1824.
"Robert brought his family to Wabash County, Indiana from Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in September 1837, being ‘inspired by the news of the great western country' as Weesner's 1914 History of Wabash County states. At the time, the Wabash and Erie Canal had not been completed, so the only means of reaching Wabash County from the East was by the muddy, treacherous overland roads. 'Two families came together from the East -- Robert Schuler and Albert Pauling. Mr. Schuler then had eleven children. He came with two old-fashioned Pennsylvania wagons, one with three horses and one with two. At night, they would strike a tent; the boys, six in number, would sleep in the wagons, and the father and mother and the girls, seven in all, would lodge in the tent, and this journey over mountain and river and plain took five long weeks!' The Schuler family, while on this journey, were described to be a 'lively, wide-awake company'.
"Robert Schuler entered 160 acres near the Eel River in Wabash County, Indiana and later bought 60 acres more. 'The equipment of that early home was extremely primitive. A large walnut door, two windows, covered with greased paper, a puncheon floor, an open fire place, with a mortar and stick chimney, were the more familiar and conspicuous features of the residence' In 1840, Robert built a new home on the river, considerably more comfortable than the first, but still with an outer structure of hewn logs.
"Robert opened the first blacksmith shop in Pleasant Township in 1838. The first school in Pleasant Township was held in Robert Schuler's cabin in 1839, and the first religious meeting in the area was held there around the same time by the Rev. Asa Johnson, the Presbyterian pastor at Peru, Indiana. Robert built the Shiloh Chapel on his property for use by the First Presbyterian Church of Pleasant Township (officially established October 25, 1840), and was the Church's first ruling elder. Robert built the first brick kiln in Pleasant Township around 1842.
"A Wabash County pioneer recalled that 'Schuler and Alex. Duncan and old Thomas Fogerty were famous hunters. They used to fire-hunt on the Eel River at night. They brought three deer of a morning to John Miller's cabin that they had killed the night before. Wolves were still plenty and there were some, though not very many, bears in the region in 1840 and for some time afterward. (Recollection of Harmon T. Miller, printed in History of Wabash County, Indiana, 1884) The following is a description of 'fire-hunting' as it was practiced in Wabash County in those days: 'Paddle up the river so as to float down in the dark; start your canoe slowly down, with an elevated light in front and a blind behind it. One man must be at the stern to steer, and one behind the light to shoot. The deer, in crossing the stream, will be dazzled by the glare of the light, and perhaps turn and gaze at it. Meanwhile, the canoe, floating down the current, will come so near the unsuspecting creature that the watchful gunner can take a shot and the deer will fall dead in the water. Often the boatsmen would tie a stone by some bark to the neck of the deer, sink the dead body in the stream, and get it the next day and take it home."
Robert Schuler was a Democrat, with anti-slavery leanings. He died, at the age of 56, of injuries suffered (including complications from "black erysipelas") when a horse ran away with the buggy he was driving while he was visiting family back in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. He "was an enterprising and intelligent citizen, active in every good work and highly esteemed by all who knew him."
Elizabeth was also injured in the buggy accident, but she recovered from her injuries. She died on Jun. 10, 1867 in Faribault County, Minnesota while living with their son, Samuel.
Robert is buried in the Rentz family plot here.
Researcher: Ronald W. Schuler
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