John Bösiger was born in Alsace, France. When he was 23 a close friend, John Steiner – both living in the community of Belfort, France – were conscripted into Napoleon’s army in 1815.
Participating in warfare were against their convictions and they decided to run away.
They escaped from the army two times, but captured both times. However, in a third attempt they succeeded and fled to the Swiss border, where they found friends to protect them.
After John came to America with his parents, he married Sarah Mary Berner. Her birth place and parents’ names are not known. John and Sarah had seven children. Marie, Peter and Isaac stayed in the area, married and had children.
Katharina, Daniel, John and Verena moved from the area.
Peter’s son, Jeremiah, was a farmer and also a businessman. He married Anna Diller and they had 10 children and lived on what is today Road 4-D, just north of the Suter cider press.
He served as an officer of the Mennonite Mutual Aid Society and as a director of the Pandora Mutual Telephone Co.
John’s other son, Isaac, also lived in the area and married Elizabeth Eisenbach. One of their children, Seth Basinger, lived on the Allen-Putnam county line, south of his cousin, Jeremiah. Seth married Christine Davis. He was a prominent fruit grower and had his own fruit sprayer and would do custom spraying. He also operated the Morning Star cider press for over 47 years.
His son, Clyde, also helped at the cider press in later years.
John Bösiger Born: Feb. 6, 1792, Alsace Loraine, France Died: March, 1860 Buried: Old Mennonite Cemetery, rural Bluffton
John's father: Bishop Christian Bösiger (1770-1847) John's mother: Elizabeth H. Steiner (1756-1824) Married: 1830c
Spouse: Sarah Mary Berner Born: 1800c Died: February, 1874 Buried: Old Mennonite Cemetery, rural Bluffton
Children: Marie Basinger Born, March 3, 1833, Wayne County, Ohio Died: June 5, 1917 Spouse: Christian Gerber
Peter Basinger Born: May 29, 1838 Died: Dec. 14, 1921 Spouse: Lydia Beeshy
Isaac Basinger Born: April 30, 1843 Died: Feb. 28, 1927 Spouse: Elizabeth Eisenbach