Penn, William.—Founder of Pennsylvania, under whose jurisdiction the first Pennsylvania German settlements were effected. His mother was a Dutch woman, Margaret Jasper, of Rotterdam. Dutch was Penn’s native tongue, as well as English. He was a scholar versed in Dutch law, history and religion. He preached in Dutch and won thousands of converts and settlers, inviting them to his Christian Commonwealth. (Dr.William Elliot Griffis.) Oswald Seidensticker (“Bilder aus der Deutsch-Pennsylvanischen Geschichte,” Steiger, New York, p.82) writes:

“For more than a century Germantown remained true to its name, a German town. William Penn in1683 preached there, in Tunes Kunder’s house in the German language, and General Washington in1793 attended German service in the Reformed Church.”