One of Hardwick’s early settlers was John Vass, who was born (tradition tells us) at sea, during his parent’s immigration voyage from Germany in 1764. Vass started life in Philadelphia but was, as a youth, indentured to a Hardwick citizen. By 1802, the thirty-eight-year-old immigrant farmer’s family consisted of his third wife, Hannah, and many children, some from previous marriages. Vass purchased a large farm of 550 acres with a beautiful, natural lake to its front and built a log cabin for the large family.
The farmstead remained under Vass family ownership for over 150 years, finally passing to dairy farmer, George Ripper, in 1922, then a succession of owners who used the property for various purposes.
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