John Michael Easterday (Ostertag)-Hessian Soldier turned American Patriot

I always thought that my ancestors were the group of immigrant that flowed through Ellis Island in search of a better life in America.

What I have found is that the majority of my ancestors have been in America for hundreds of years!

One ancestor in particular came to America, not of his own free will was John Michael Easterday/Ostertag.


He is thought to have been born in Guenzertsreuth, Germany around 1754, as many documents point to a Michael Ostertag being born in that town around that same date but many of the dates don't match up to the American dates.

He was brought to this country to fight for the British in the American Revolution.

Page 4 of Descendants of Michael Easterday of Washington County, Maryland by Dr. Howard G. Lanham Edition 1 for Ostertag/Easterday Family Association International Reunion Included with family history In possession of Anne Smittle

In America, Michael fought against George Washington for Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. Sometime during this siege, Michael decided to leave his position and fight with George Washington. It is not sure if he was captured along with the rest of his regiment and imprisoned in the "Hessian Barracks" in Frederick, Maryland or if he was drawn to the area as this is where most of his comrades were. But we do know he did not leave America. He opted to settle in Frederick County, Maryland and start a family.

He married twice, had eighteen children, became a naturalized citizen, owned and operated a flour mill and bought and sold many tracts of land in the Frederick/Washington Counties located in Maryland. He died in 1837 and is buried in a cemetery in Boonsboro, Maryland.

John Michael Easterday is my 4th Great Grandfather on my Father's side. He had a daughter, Tracy Easterday who married William Henry Topper. They had a child, Letitia Topper who married John Wesley Palmerton. They had a child, Harley Palmerton who married Vida Bell Cabana.