The saint-adventurers of the Virginia frontier

The original German Baptists were referred to as Dunkers or Dunkards. They are now known as the Church of the Brethren. "After Conrad Beissel and the Eckerlin brothers broke with the mother church, the regular, oldline Dunkers were frequently called the First Day Dunkers while the Ephrata group became known as Seventh Day Dunkers, Seven Dayers (Siebentäger) or Sabbatarians. Many of the Ephrata members and others who joined the splinter groups in Virginia were not of old German Baptist background and had never been affiliated with the regular Dunkers." -- P. 102. Contains a history of the Dunkers from Germany to Ephrata, Pennsylvania, and to the break from that community by members led by the Eckerlin brothers. These brothers, Samuel, Israel and Gabriel, led many to settle in northern Virginia and West Virginia.