Byberry Waltons tells the story of Boaz Walton who moved from the part of Northampton County that later became Carbon County to Westmoreland County, PA and that two of his daughters married men named Martz.

On 14 Jan 1832, Mary Walton, widow of Boaz, and Samuel Walton, Peter Waugaman and wife Rachel, George Amint (?) and wife Elizabeth, Nicholas Martz and wife Amy, William Martz and wife Mary, George Blose and wife Sarah, Daniel Blose and wife Martha — heirs of the late Boaz Walton state they have been satisfied with the settlement of his estate by his administrators, Boaz Walton Jr. and Joseph Walton. [Westmoreland Deed Book 19, page 326.]

William Martz or Marts and Nicholas Martz or Marts are the two most obvious and easiest to document pioneers of their family in Westmoreland County. Their presence on find-a-grave and in Census from 1810 (William) or 1820 (Nicholas) to 1860 make them easy to identify and learn something about. One was born in 1784, the other in 1786 — both somewhere in Pennsylvania.

They married sisters — according to a book on Boaz Walton and his descendants — and this seems to be accepted as absolute truth by descendants of both men so I never had any reason to worry that it was fiction. And then when going through Westmorland deeds, I found this fact confirmed by the releases the heirs of Boaz signed in 1832.

The question is what was their relationship to each other, if any, and to an older George Mertz, born 1761, who I believe moved from Northampton County to Westmoreland County in 1818.

On an 1808 tax list of Penn Township, Northampton County, both George and Nicholas Mertz were named (Nicholas, a single freeman). I believe for sure he was the George Mertz who arrived in 1818. I strongly suspect too, it was the same Nicholas Mertz in Penn Township who is found later in Westmoreland. I also note that Boaz Walton, father-in-law to William and Nicholas, came to Westmoreland County from that same area of Northampton County.

My theory is that Willam and Nicholas were sons of George. The order of things seems to be that Willam and Nicholas were in Westmoreland several years prior to George’s arrival. It is possible both of them came at the same time Boaz did and then their father, George, followed a few years later.

As his oldest son, Nicholas is designated G1a1.

Nicholas was present in Census in Westmoreland County from possibly 1820 through 1860, always in Franklin Township. I can’t find him, though, in 1840. Someone annotated the 1840 Census listing for George Martz, son of Nicholas, with the name Nicholas. There was an older woman in the household, Amy?, but no sign of someone Nicholas’ age.

The 1820 listing actually has been transcribed as “H Martz” but upon examination I think it says “N Martz” and I think it must be Nicholas.

An interesting baptism record at the First Lutheran Church in Greensburg, PA shows an 1810 baptism of Elizabeth Waldin (I think likely Walton) with Nicholas Mertz and Barbara Best as sponsors. I assume they were two single people, perhaps an indication that Nicholas had not yet married.

So Nicholas was, I believe, in East Penn in 1808 and then in Westmoreland by apparently as early as 1810. His wife was born in 1793, their oldest known child born in 1815. The idea they married in 1812 or 1813 or so all seems to fit.

Nicholas and Amy are on find-a-grave.

Over the years of my trying to document this Westmoreland family, my main interest being where had they come from more so than knowing the later generations, I reached out to several people who seemed to be descended from one or another of the Martzes of Westmoreland and encouraged them to do some real research on their family. No one ever did, that I know of.

So, in 2018, I finally did a review of every Westmoreland deed up to about 1885 where a Martz was named as grantor or grantee. And in Deed Book 127, page 162, I found a key document dated 14 Sep 1867 naming all of Nicholas’ heirs, basically they were all signing over what had been Nicholas’ land to his son Josiah.