JOHANN DANIEL SCHWENK,
progenitor of Schwenks in Eastern Pennsylvania
I'm still trying to verify Johann Daniel Schwenk, Magistrate and Church Censor, as the father of Peter and Hans Michael, per "The Perkiomen Region," Vol I, Numbers 1-6, published by The Historical & Natural Science Society of the Perkiomen Region, Pennsburg, PA. The same source lists Wisselbach as the home of this family, but a letter from the Land Archives Office in Koblenz states firmly that there was no such town or village in the 18th or any other century. However, a letter from the Protestant Church archives in Germany, suggested that the name of the village I'm looking for is probably Wieselbach. It was in Rheinland-Pfalz, near Baumholder in the parish of Kirchenbollenbach, and many Schwenks lived there in the 18th century. The village was abandoned in 1935 when a large military base was under construction nearby. There's also a record on file with the LDS indicating that Hans Daniel, his wife, Elizabeth Catherine, and son Peter, b. 27 Sep 1690, were from Nisselbach, Oberb, Bayern, Germany, though I cannot find a Nisselbach nor an Oberg.
FHL Film #1312363, Bucks Co, PA, provides the following: Peter Schwenk, born Sept. 27, 1690; Father: Hans Daniel Schwen{c}k, "Gerichtsmann" and "Kirchen-Censor" at Wisselbach, died 1700; Mother Elisabetha Catharina, died March 7, 1721.
Many sources list Johann Daniel's sons as Hans Michael, Peter and Jacob. However it has been proven that Jacob was not his son, but was a son of Rudolf Schwenk of Switzerland. No relation as far as I know. See Jacob Schwenk
Note on the name, Schwenk: Early spellings included an extra 'c', making it Schwenck; later generations dropped the extra 'c'. Still later, some members of the family changed the spelling to Swenk, while others kept it as Schwenk. Swink, Swank, etc. are also derivations of Schwenck. Schwenk is a name of German origin--dweller at the sign of the swan (pet form of schwan).