Lots of families seem to gather in the summer months for family reunions.
The Benner family is no exception.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the family reunion for the descendants of Reuben and Elizabeth Benner, who were Franconia Township residents during the mid to late 19th century.
The reunion will be held June 21 at Plains Mennonite Church on Orvilla Road, Hatfield, by reservation.
The photo we see today is of that first family reunion and features the family of Edwin and Elizabeth Benner, with Edwin being the first child of Reuben and Eliza. They gathered on the farm of Webster Benner on Mininger Road, Franconia.
But first a little bit about the Benner family, according to information provided by descendant Dot Benner.

Reuben, who died in an accident at the Whites Road Quarry in 1887, was a descendant of Sebastian Benner, who came to the United States from Germany on the Ship St. Andrew in 1738. Sebastian’s son, Johannes, was a farmer, weaver and miller who fought during the American Revolution as a private in the Philadelphia Company of Pennsylvania Military, Dot Benner said.
Another ancestor who was an early settler of the surrounding area was John Benner Sr., who built the first house in Morwood in 1846, Dot said.
Reuben and Eliza had two children born 19 years apart. They were Edwin and Julianna. Each married and provided Reuben and Eliza with a total of 75 great-grandchildren.
Dot said Edwin became a carpenter and, in 1898, he participated in the meeting held to establish Hatfield Borough. He was elected to the first council and appointed to the finance committee.
Julianna’s husband, Frederick N. Hollenbach, was a painter and wallpaper hanger.
Many of the early settlers are buried in local cemeteries, Dot said, including Franconia Mennonite, Towamencin Mennonite and a cemetery on Market Street in Perkasie.
The first family reunion, where this photo was taken on Aug. 27, 1933, was held on the recently purchased farmstead that Webster Benner, one of Edwin and Elizabeth’s 12 children, had recently purchased.
The North Penn Reporter published an account of the event and listed all 94 attendees.
The oldest person in attendance was Malinda Steer of Kulpsville, 82, and the youngest was Doris Wolfe of Perkasie, 5 months old.
The group photo is of only Edwin’s family; Julianna’s family does not know of any existing photo from the occasion.
Dot noted that many of those who attended the 1933 reunion also will attend this year’s 75th reunion.
Talk about getting your family together!