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Readers will recall that Simon Riegel, the weaver, of Clark County, OH. and formerly of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania was born in Hempfield Township in 1806. He came to Clark County, OH. with his parents David and Elizabeth (Schmidt) Riegel in 1832. Not much is known of Simon's early life. Presumably, he learned farming at his father's knee. Simon's Uncle, Martin Riegel, had married Elizabeth Klair in Pennsylvania. Simon's future as a weaver may be found in the History of Lancaster County PA...in a chapter devoted to Hempfield  Wendell Edwards with recently purchased Simon Riegel coverlet found in an antique mall in Ravenna, Ohio. |
Township. On a list of "Freeholders" are Martin, Christian, and David Riegel, also listed are Frederich, John, and David Klair. John Klair is listed as a weaver. Martin Riegel (David Riegel's brother) married Elizabeth Klair. It is conceivable that the Riegels and Klairs were friends and/or neighbors in Hempfield Township. Young Simon was perhaps apprenticed to John Klair to learn the weaver's craft. This is the system whereby young people learned a trade or craft in early America. We may be wrong in the preceding speculation, but one must remember the kind of a world in which our Pennsylvania German forebears lived in in the early 19th Century. It is believed that Simon became a farmer and a weaver. His coverlets were woven on a Jacquard loom. The Jacquard was a device that attached to a regular large weaving loom. In it, the weaver placed paper cards that "automated" or computerized, so to speak the weaving of complex design from prepunched cards. Six coverlets by Simon Riegel were known when a book of coverlets was published. We know of three coverlets that represent additions to those noted: A coverlet owned by Edna Riegel of Kansas City, MO. Simon's son, Henry W. Riegel, founded a farm in Caldwell County, MO. The Kansas City coverlet was passed down through Henry's branch of the Riegel clan; another coverlet was discovered recently when reader Gerry Hasen, of Dayton, OH read of the S. Riegel coverlets on our Riegel/Riggle Web site,
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