Background

Urban (Abraham) Kirkhoff, from Germany, a weaver by trade and his wife Catherine set foot on the shores of North America in 1740. Landing at the Port of Philadelphia they settled in New Jersey where they raised their family.

Their great-grandson Barney (G.W.) Kirkhoff and his wife, Elizabeth DeNee moved their family inland from New Jersey settling in a small town about 40 miles northwest of Scranton, Pennsylvania. Following the Susquehanna River they put down roots in Auburn Center, Pennsylvania, where they raised their six children.

The third child of Barney and Elizabeth was named Jehile (not our Jehile yet) and was born in 1848. He was an excellent fiddle player much looked-up to by his nephew and name-sake Jehile. Our Jehile’s father, William Kirkhoff, was the youngest son of Barney and Elizabeth.

William Kirkhoff moved about 20 miles north of Auburn Center and settled in the Lawton area where he was a farmer and a beekeeper. William also played a little fiddle but not as well as his older brother Jehile. He married Hannah Oakes, a well read woman and an excellent pianist. William and Hannah had only one child, Jehile Barney Kirkhuff who was born June 26, 1907.