Clapp Ancestry

Thomas Clapp 1563-1624

Thomas Clapp was born in 1563 at Istha, Hessen, Germany.

He married a woman named Elizabeth about 1588 in Germany 1,2 when he was 25 years old. Elizabeth birthday is recorded as being around 1580. [She would have been only 8 when married?]

Elizabeth died on October 16, 1624 at Istha, Hessen, Germany where she was born and lived her entire life.

Nothing is known about the parents or family of either Thomas or Elizabeth. What we know about the further ancestry of the Clapp line is documented below.

Thomas and Elizabeth had at least two sons:

Geise/Geise/Geisa CLAPP (b. ~1600)
Ludwig CLAPP (b. 1613)


Thomas Clapp died on November 25, 1624 at the age of 61. He too lived his entire live in Istha, Hessen, Germany.

 

Sources:
1. dmadbass@yahoo.com. Information on Rootsweb.
2. Nancy Pope (oregongirl@earthlink.net).
History of the Clapp Lineage:

Lady in Henderson found in Gilford County in NC a book in German, getting it translated traced back to Germany. Family originally from Norway. Osgod Clappa.

CLAPHAM.
Etymology.
This parish in all probability received its appellation from one of its proprietors. Osgod Clappa was the name of the Danish lord, at whose daughter's marriage-feast, in Lambeth, Hardicanute died (fn. 1) . In Doomsday book, however, this place is called Clopeham.

[Source: 'Clapham', The Environs of London: volume 1: County of Surrey (1792), pp. 159-169. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45376 Date accessed: 19 February 2009.]

See also: http://www.houseofnames.com/xq/asp.fc/qx/clapton-family-crest.htm

Other Clapp Links:

Clapp Newsletters 1994 - 1999 - Authored by Dr. Keller
20 volumes on one 144-page 26.5K Acrobat pdf file
 
NOTE:
These newsletters are a wealth of information and worth reading. It is centered on the Brown side of the Clapp line [see above], tied into the White line, and explores the German ancestry common to both. Although not as well-sourced as I would like with pictures of extremely poor resolution (from an archivist point of view), these newsletters lend themselves to sharing what is known about the Clapp line, some good stories, informative maps and pictures.
 
I've cobbled together what may be the whole set and put them into a low-resolution pdf file so I can share them here now. I've reserved space for a lot more Clapp history--I'm waiting for a cousin or two who appreciate the incredible value of well-organized Internet family history, [virtually sharing of originals, direct source linking, etc.] with the time and skill to help me put it all together with as much source documentation as exists.
 
My apologies to the good Dr. Keller for not obtaining his and other's permissions but after receiving no word in over 10 years, I have decided to share this.
 
Care should be used in trying to transcribe intricate genealogy from these newsletters. Better information lies elsewhere. Errors are introduced with transcribing which can be averted by using digital database sharing methods. Contact Ancestor-rescue if you need advice rather than risking the introduction of more typing errors and conflicting un-sourced versions of family histories.

Clapp Family Genealogy Forum

The George Valentine Clapp Web site (Margaret's GGGrandfather) Family Web site

Oct. 6, 1998
Dr. Robert Keller
6175 Blain Place
La Mesa, CA 91942
(619) 667-3796

Dear Family Member,

I have uncovered a lot of new information on our family and have met many interesting people doing research on the Clapp line. An older gentleman in Wilsonville, Oregon told me, after 25 years of research, that he is reasonably certain that our Clapp line originally descended from Osgod Clapa of Denmark. Osgod was the right hand man of the King of Denmark and was the Viking who conquered England around 900 AD. His descendants were famous and wealthy people who helped the English Kings rule England.

Some of these English Clapps bought land, around 1100 AD, in Germany, went there and farmed and rebuilt the castle that was to become known as the Klopp Castle. They were there for about 500 years until the Thirties Year War wiped them out (around the early 1700's). They then came to America, to Penn. in 1728, and soon after that settled in North Carolina (around 1748).

One member of our family, Jan Arteburn of Henderson, Nevada, spent three or more years researching the Clapps of North Carolina and has put together a lineage of how she believes our ancestors were related back then. That lineage can be found on the LDS Family History Centers computers.

Dr. Robert Keller, DC

More might be learned about the Clapp Family (especially the "Brown" line) by contacting:

--this address/phone is several years old so no guarantees implied here--