Maria Magdalena Bicher ²

   Another name for Maria was Maria Magdalena Bücher.

   FamilySearch ID: K8JY-3VT.

  Noted events in her life were:

1. Census in 1790 in Lebanon, Dauphin, PA. ⁴ In the 1790 census Jacob Beacherd is listed in Lebanon township, Lancaster County, with this household:
Males under 16 (born 1775-1790) = 2 (sons Jacob and William)
Males 16 and over (born <=1774) = 1 (father Jacob)
Females = 2 (daughter Magdalena and mother Catherine).

2. Census in 1810 in Lebanon Twp., Dauphin Co, , PA. ⁵ Jacob Beker is listed in Lebanon Township in Dauphin County with this household:
Males (born)
16-25 (1785-1794) = 1 (either son Jacob or William)
45 & over (<=1765) = 1 (father Jacob)
Females (born)
Under 10 (1801-1810) =
10-15 (1795-1800) = 1 (daughter Magdalena)
45 & over (<=1765) = 1 (mother Catherine).

3. Cause of Death: consumption, 8 Aug 1812, Lebanon, Lebanon, PA. ² Her burial record at Salem Lutheran Church reads: "Sept. 26, 1812 Nickolas nee Bicher Mar. Magd. Bicher, born January 27, 1780. Confirmed. Married Henr. Nickolas April 5, 1801. Had 2 children. Both dead. She died of consumption. Aged 32 years, 8 months and 31 days.

4. Fact: From the Salem Lutheran Church burial record book: "Mar. Magd. Bicher, born January 27, 1780. Confirmed. Married Henr. Nickolas April 5, 1801. Had 2 children. Both died. She died of consumption.", 8 Aug 1812, Lebanon, Lebanon, PA.

5. Tombstone: Tombstone read: Maria Magdalena Bicher Jan 27, 1780 Aug 8, 1812., 8 Aug 1812, Lebanon, Lebanon, PA. ²

6. She has conflicting burial information of Graves moved to Mount Lebanon Cemtery, Nov 1898 and Lebanon, Lebanon, PA. The old Salem Lutheran Church yard cemetery was just behind the Salem Lutheran Church on the corner of 8th and Willow Streets and set apart for burial purposes in 1765.

Unfortunately, when the cemetery land was needed by the church for new Memorial Chapel and parking lot, the old cemetery graves were reinterred in September-November 1898 to Mount Lebanon Cemetery in a single vault with no indentification. The church notes for the graves show some of the tombstone inscriptions were unreadable. Luckily, the tombstone inscription was described years earlier in Egle's History of Lebanon County published in 1883. The tombstones read according to Egle:

Jacob Bicker b. Dec 1, 1758 d. Feb 23, 1842
Johan Jacob Bicker b. Dec 18, 1782 d. 1812
Maria Catharina Bicker Sep 25, 1747 Dec 8, 1830

In addition the church records show this tombstone existed:
Maria Magdalena Bicher Jan 27, 1780 Aug 8, 1812.

Note that Egle listed the names as Bicker whereas the church records record them as Bicher, which is consistent with the church christening records. Obviously the worn "h" on old tombstones looked like "k" to Egle.

Another list of burials is in Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church; Lebanon, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania; burial records, 1773-1876 by Frederick Weiser, published in 1969.

Maria married Henry Nickolas on 5 Apr 1801 in Lebanon: Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church, Lebanon, PA.^{1 2}

  Marriage Notes:

Witnesses were Jacob Bucher and Henry Siech. ¹