Speculation is …the making of money out of the manipulation of prices, instead of supplying of goods and services. Henry Ford
As a young man growing up in Bavaria (Germany) Christian Nafzinger realized that he and his family were different than the other people in their community. They were outsiders and were looked on with suspicion. The laws of the time (1788) made the things they believed in as Amish Mennonites a “threat” to the powers that ruled the area and most of Europe. At 12 years of age, Chritian already knew what it meant to be hated because he was different and on occasion he let his imagination dissolve the weight of “now” for a time and place that were more friendly and free.
He was almost 40 and had long ago forgotten about his dream of freedom from persecution when a rumor, then confirmed reports became known that there was cheap land and no persecution in North America. He strongly advocated for investigating the opportunity on behalf of his brethren. In 1821, Christian Nafzinger set sail for the United States in what would become a long and difficult journey toward his dream of freedom. On arrival in Pennsylvania, the prospects of cheap land he had hoped for were buried in an avalanche of complications. Prices had escalated dramatically and opportunity to settle there was not within financial reach for him or his community.
Many of the newcomers were, however, heading for Canada where a settler could get 50 acres of land if they built a house and cleared the road frontage. They could also lease another 150 acres then purchase it at a fair price after 7 years. When Christian arrived in Upper Canada in 1822, he saw that the land was good for farming and he immediately applied for settlers’ land for 70 Amish families in the “German Block” of present day Wilmot Township. His dream of freedom from persecution seemed like it could become a reality.
He never thought that he would ever leave his farm near Munich, nor had he dreamed of clearing land and building his future in another world. But the prospect of freedom was a very powerful force in his life, and time and opportunity were intersecting in a way which could not be ignored. Some of the settlers arrived in Canada as early as 1824. Christian and his family arrived in 1826. It was a very difficult beginning. Clearing the land was time consuming and hard work but their hope was for prosperity and the eventual ownership of the full tract of 200 acres of land. Like most pioneers (forerunners), they invested everything into building up their farms; however, all around them things began to change.
The prospect of cheap land for settlers was not overlooked by speculators who purchased land but did not settle it. They were wealthy industrialists who planned to make a profit on land by buying it up and then selling it to settlers at increased prices. For some reason, authorities had “forgotten” about the requirement to settle the land. What further exacerbated the situation was that the 150 acres they had leased and were expecting to buy had been given to King’s College (University of Toronto) which was now asking very high prices for the land. Furthermore, they had not received title to their 50 acre homesteads and therefore were unable to participate in meetings which concerned landowners. The situation was critical. Christian and his neighbours had cleared and begun to work the land but now feared that they may never own it. What had happened in Pennsylvania was in part happening here. The injustice which took them out of Bavaria was happening to them in their new world. Was all of this a big mistake? Some settlers thought so and left for Pennsylvania.
Questions, shock, and uncertainty can immobilize a person when they first come face-to-face with the reality of a difficult situation. Eventually, however, Christian settled on a plan. He decided to confront the situation and expose the injustices. They had cleared the land and now were entitled to it at a fair price. With the support of the other settlers in the area, Nafzinger challenged the practice of land speculation in the township in a letter to Peter Robinson, Commissioner of Crown Lands – a bold move.
Instead of backlash, Robinson commissioned surveyor Samuel Street Wilmot to investigate and report on their complaints. Christian and his settler friends were not very popular. They had confronted an injustice and exposed a deficiency in the administration of the land, but what was at stake was their freedom, their hope, and their dream.
Sam Wilmot’s report was not a “white-wash” but a head-on assessment of the problems that the Amish and other new settlers faced. He wrote in his Feb. 11, 1830 report: “ …..a number of lots, the greater part of which are not occupied, the trifling expense of the settlement duty to open the roads and pay the survey fees amounting to about five pounds enable the moneyed men of Waterloo to hold lots much to the injury of poor persons who wish to become actual settlers in Wilmot, an evil the Inhabitants are desirous to be checked, as such proceedings retard the settlement of the Township….and that those persons who appear to have located lots for the mere purpose of speculation should be called upon to settle them immediately and in the case of their failing to do so, that they should be considered forfeited and given to actual settlers…..the settlers of this Township are desirous to purchase the remaining 150 acres of their respective lots for which they had a promise of a lease, and are willing to pay a fair valuation.”
The report was a turning point in the settlement of the township and in the lives of the settlers. Justice prevailed but only because Christian and the other settlers confronted the situation and called upon the authorities to correct the wrong that was being done to them and others.
Although Christian wrote the letter, the support of all the settlers was equally as important to their success. Christian Nafzinger was a forerunner and a leader whose sacrifice, vision, and values helped bring his people into their dream of a life without persecution. Not all the settler’s requests were immediately resolved but by standing for his values and vision Christian made an important contribution to the betterment of his family, the Amish and his community. Christian Nafzinger died in 1836 at the age of 60 and is buried in Wilmot Township.
