Michael was named in his father’s will and from the order, it would seem that he was Sebastian’s fourth oldest son. However, I believe Peter was listed out of order and I believe Michael was actually the sixth oldest. Michael pre-deceased his father.

Michael was listed in the 1810 Census in Rockingham County, age 26-45 with eight young children. He is designated S6.

Michael died 30 Nov 1814 so he only was listed in the 1810 Census. After that his wife Sarah was then reported in his place in 1820 through 1850.

Michael wrote his will 15 Nov 1814 and it proved in the January Court 1815. There are references to his widow who he calls Sarah in one place and Sally in another. He did not name any of his children by Sarah but apparently he had two additional children who he called base-born (illegitimate?) and he did name them and provide for them. They were Serena and Betsy Herring. He named his brother Martin his Executor.

Michael and Sarah are buried at Martz Family Cemetery in Rockingham. This cemetery was in complete disarray until Roger Martz and his wife went there in 2020 and spent several days cleaning it up, re-establishing the fencing, and carefully re-placing, photographing and cleaning every tombstone there — and adding all of them to find-a-grave. Every descendant of anyone buried in this cemetery owes Roger a huge thank-you.

The Rockingham Martz tree says Michael died 30 Nov 1841, a simple typo, it was 30 Nov 1814.

Sebastian’s will named four daughters of Michael’s: Mary, Marthy, Clarenda and Rebecca.

Marthy married her cousin Martin P Martz and ended up in Champaign County, IL where two of her brothers also lived. Clarenda (aka Clare Ann or Claire) married first Benjamin Connor and second Thomas Conrad Conner.

Rebecca married Wellington Miller and supposedly moved to Licking County, OH, where two of her cousins also lived for a brief time. There is a Rebecca and Wellington Miller present there in the 1850 Census, he age 32, she 38, but I have no way of assuring myself it is Michael’s daughter of that name.

Finally, Mary, I think, never married and stayed in Rockingham where she died. In the 1850 Census, living with Sarah were Dorilas Mertz age 47 and Mary Martz age 45. In 1860, living with Sarah were Dorilas age 58 and Mary age 56. By 1870, Sarah had died and we still find Mary 66 living with Dorilas 68. Those Censuses did not state relationships, so it might appear that Mary was the wife of Dorilas rather than his sister.

But then, consider, that Sarah’s will did not name all her children but specifically named Dorilas Martz and Mary Martz. And consider that Dorilas’ will left everything to his sister Mary and brother Jackson. I think Dorilas, like his sister Mary, never married.

Michael is really the first Rockingham Martz I ever became aware of. Several of his sons moved to Ohio and I have encountered various biographies of some of them saying they were sons of Michael who died in Rockingham County.

Michael’s father Sebastian died after Michael and his will named all of Michael’s children, including sons: John, Hiram, Darilus, Michael, Benjamin, Napoleon, Erastus and one more (Sarah was pregnant). The last one was Jackson.

The very curious thing is that the Rockingham Martz tree says Jackson and Erasmus were both born 26 Apr 1815, a few months after their father died and a few days after Sebastian wrote his will. But how could Sebastian know Erastus’ name and not Jackson’s?

The solution to that puzzle may be that Erastus’ birth date on his tombstone says 9 Jul 1813 in agreement with the Thomas Looker book. That date is the same exact date given for Rebecca — so maybe Erastus was a twin but not of Jackson.

She is named as the wife of Michael in the Rockingham Martz tree. It says they married 4 Sep 1798 in Tenth Legion, VA and that she was the daughter of Benjamin and Magdalene Hawkins

Michael was listed in the 1810 Census with a very large family and it is said he died 30 Nov 1814 and so we find Sarah in the 1820 Census as the head of a very large family.

Sarah wrote her will 22 Feb 1865. In proved Nov Term 1865. She mentioned son Dorilas, daughter Mary, son Jackson and the heirs of son Hiram. Curiously, that left a lot of her other children totally unmentioned. I think it may be that the ones she mentioned were those that stayed in or near Rockingham while the others had moved away.

All of this perhaps came to a head in this family when Hiram’s son Dorilas died in 1872. His will was contested although it seems it was also resolved quickly with a settlement that seemed to cover the entirety of Michael and Sarah’s family, their children if alive, and the next generation of heirs of any deceased.