Arey Family Papers Collection

Collection

Identifier: ULS-MS-006

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection documents the activities of various members of the Arey family. Items include a copy of Harriet Arey Davidson’s annotated work The Samuel Rothrock Diaries: 1934-1893, which details the minister’s work and travels as a Lutheran minister. Accompanying the book are publishing and publicity materials. Also included is a collection of letters written to Maria Arey, wife of Rev. Benjamin Arey. The letters discuss life before and during the Civil War, as well as personal experiences spanning 1834-1884. A bound collection of transcriptions of the letters is accompanied by a few original letters and original essays written by Maria Arey’s sister Catherine.

The records are arranged in 1 box. The contents of each folder are arranged topically according to individuals from Arey family. The Samuel Rothrock Dairies: 1934-1893 and bound collection of Maria Arey letters are not in folders.

Dates

Existence: 1840 - 1890
Existence: 1840 - 2000

Creator

Arey (Family)

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Biographical / Historical

This collection contains materials related to several members of the Arey family. Petter Ihrig (later to be known as Peter Erray), a German immigrant that settled in North Carolina, was the father of 8 children including Rev. Benjamin Eugene Arey and Amelia Rosetta Arey (wife of Rev. Samuel Rothrock).

Benjamin Eugene Arey was born May 3, 1810 in Rowan County, North Carolina. He graduated from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 1936. He married Maria Phoebe Raynor (of Philadelphia, born March 31, 1815) on April 19th, 1840. He and his wife returned to North Carolina and settled in Iredell County. Between 1836 and 1855 he ministered at a number of Lutheran churches. In 1855, he requested dismissal from Lutheran clergy to pursue farming.

Amelia Rosetta Arey was born November 18, 1812. She married Rev. Samuel Rothrock on September 14, 1837. Samuel Rothrock was born November 26, 1809 near Salem, North Carolina. He studied to become a minister at the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Rothrock kept notebooks covering 59 years of his daily activities, travels, ministerial acts, and more.

Harriet Arey Davidson is a descendant of the Arey family originally from North Carolina and was instrumental in researching and publishing genealogical and historical research on the family.

Extent

0.5 Linear Feet (1 box )

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Related Materials

Davidson, Harriet Arey. Palatine Progeny: the Arey family of Rowan County, North Carolina and related families, 1749-1983. Davidson, N.C.: Briarpatch Press, 1983.

Benjamin Arey student paper, Society of Inquiry on Missions Collection. Box 3 Folder 35.