My Genealogy Hound

Jacob Bachman, whose fine farm of 160 acres is located in section 4, White Lake township, Oakland County, is a worthy representative of one of the old pioneer families of this section. He was born in 1833 in the State of New York, and is a son of John and Jane (Garner) Bachman, the former of whom was born in New York and the latter in New Jersey.

The Bachman family is of German extraction, the grandfather of our subject having been a native of Germany. John Bachman, known as Capt. John Bachman in his native locality on account of being a captain in the State Militia, came to Michigan in 1836 and located in White Lake township, Oakland County, on the farm that is now the property of our subject. His death occurred in 1847. He was a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church and a man of marked integrity. In politics he was a Whig. He married Jane Garner, whose death occurred in 1864, at the age of 60 years. She also was a devoted member of the Presbyterian Church, a good, Christian woman. The children born to these parents were: Nancy, Sarah and Mary, all deceased; Jacob, of this sketch; Ann, deceased; Susan, wife of John Parkinson, a retired resident of Pontiac; Harriette, wife of Ephraim Howland, of E. Howland & Sons, of Pontiac; Robert, a sergeant of Company B, 1st Reg., Michigan Vol. Inf., in the Civil War, who died at the age of 23 years from a gunshot wound received at Appomattox Court House, and was interred at White Lake; William, a merchant of Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Edmund, a physician of Fenton, Michigan.

Jacob Bachman received his education in the common schools and has devoted his life mainly to farming, having also for 10 years engaged in the sale of buggies. In 1854 he was married to Louisa Bennett, who was born in 1843 in Rose township, Oakland County, and died in 1864, leaving two children, — Eugene, who is located on the home farm, — and Clarence, who is engaged in railroad work at Council Bluffs, Iowa. In 1866, Mr. Bachman was married to Ellen Fairbanks, who was born in Genesee County, Michigan, in 1846, and was a daughter of Lafayette Fairbanks. She died in 1895, having had four children, namely: Lorin, deceased; Almeda, wife of John Travers of Plymouth, Michigan; and Elizabeth and Emma, both deceased. Mrs. Bachman was a consistent and valued member of the Presbyterian Church.

In politics Mr. Bachman is a Republican. He is one of the leading farmers of the section and one of the reliable and public spirited citizens of the township.