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“A Mennonite connection among the

Pennsylvania Dutch”

The Shontz Ancestors

 

The Name Shontz: There are many variations of the spelling; Shontz is one generally used by this branch of the family.  The immigrant ancestor was Christian Tschantz, but within one generation it was changed to Shantz or Shontz; these spellings were used almost interchangeably.  During World War I, a prominent member of the family decided to further Anglicize the spelling as Shonts.  Other variants have been Chawnz, Chance, Chaunce, Shounce, as well Johns, Jonce, Jonts/Jontz and Shons.  
                               
Family Origns:  The family is said to have sprung from a bourgeois clan organized in Dienz, Alsace, in 1429 by Johann Schantz who held a baker’s franchise.  The clan took the name Die Schantz, “The Bulwark.”  This clan spread into Bavaria and the French provinces.  An early crest used by the clan included (among other elements) a red shield with a silver dove on a green field, said to represent Johann Schantz’ wisdom, precaution and sagacity. 

Branches of the Shontz Family in the U.S.A.:  Three writers have sought to unravel the confusion of early families that settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  The more recent, Thomas Shontz of Monroeville, Pennsylvania, published Shontz Family Roots and Branches in 1997.  He traces the migration of the families to several early Pennsylvania communities including Crawford County where this branch settled in 1800.  Another writer, Victor A. Young, who wrote “Christian Tschantz. Mennonite Immigrant to the Manor of Conestoga,” an article published in the July 1985 issue of Pennsylvania Mennonite Heritage. Christian Tschantz appears to be the immigrant ancestor for our branch of the family.  John H. Grimes, writing in several places, demonstrates how the descendants of an immigrant Lutheran, John Schantz, began a tradition of flour mills in and around Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.  Cf. July 1984 issue of Pennsylvania Mennonite Heritage. Additional research is needed on this Shontz connections, in the United States and Europe.

           
Click here for a list of our Shontz antecedents, and for links to information about individuals.

Click here for the table of Immigrant Ancestors.