Sarah Eve (Diffenbach) Sharp — Her Life and Origins
Birth and Early Life
Sarah Eve Diffenbach was born 1795–1800 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, into a long‑established Pennsylvania German Lutheran family. Her name — Sarah Eve — is a distinctly Pennsylvania German naming style, confirming she was born in America, not Germany.
Adam and Eve's son, Frederick's death certificate lists Eve as Sarah Eve Diffanie. “Diffanie” is a misreading of the German surname Diefenbach/Diffenbach because old German handwriting makes the letters b‑a‑ch look like n‑i‑e, causing American clerks to record the name phonetically rather than accurately.
Her family belonged to the Pennsylvania German communities that had been present in Lancaster County since the mid‑1700s.
Parents
Sarah Eve was the daughter of:
Henry Diffenbach
Elizabeth (maiden name unknown)
This makes Henry and Elizabeth the only viable parents for Sarah Eve.
Grandparents
Her grandparents were part of the established Pennsylvania German Diffenbach/Diefenbach families of Lancaster County, likely descended from:
Johan Philip Diffebach, the documented 1773 immigrant
His wife (name varies in early records)
These families appear in early Lutheran and Reformed church records throughout Lancaster County.
Proximity to the Scherb Family
The Diffenbach and Scherb families lived in close proximity in Pennsylvania:
Both families appear in Franklin County records
Both families appear in Pittsburgh during the same years
Both families belonged to Pennsylvania German Lutheran congregations
Both families followed the same migration corridor westward
This geographic and cultural proximity strongly supports the conclusion that Sarah Eve Diffenbach is the correct wife of Adam Sharp.
Marriage
Sarah Eve married Adam Sharp (born Georg Adam Scherb) between 1819–1824, most likely in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Their marriage is confirmed by:
Adam’s 1858 will
their children’s birthplaces
their shared migration path
their consistent appearance together in census records
Children
Sarah Eve and Adam had the following documented children:
John D. Sharp (born 1824, Pittsburgh)
George D. Sharp (born 1827, Chambersburg)
Elizabeth Sharp (born 1829, Pittsburgh; married in Livingston Co., MO in 1847)
Frederick Sharp (born 1832, Chambersburg)
Martha Sharp (born approx. 1827, likely Pittsburgh)
No other children have been documented in Pennsylvania or Missouri records.
Life in Pennsylvania
Sarah Eve lived in two major Pennsylvania German communities:
Pittsburgh (early 1820s)
Chambersburg / Franklin County (late 1820s–1830s)
These areas were heavily populated by Pennsylvania Germans whose families had been in America since the mid‑1700s.
Migration West
Sarah Eve migrated west with Adam and their children, following the classic Pennsylvania German frontier route:
Pennsylvania → Ohio → Indiana → Illinois → Missouri
By the 1840s, the family was living in Livingston County, Missouri.
Life in Missouri
Sarah Eve appears in:
1850, 1860 and 1870 Missouri census
Adam’s 1858 will, naming her as his wife
Adam’s 1874 probate, where she is named as inheriting Adam’s land
These records prove:
Sarah Eve lived until at least March 23, 1874, when Adam’s estate was settled.
Death
Sarah Eve died after 1874 in Livingston County, Missouri.
Although no formal cemetery record exists, local eyewitness Anna Dockery Burgess documented two unmarked Sharp graves on the south part of the Frederick Sharp farm — originally owned by Adam Sharp. These graves almost certainly belong to Adam and his wife, Sarah Eve, who both died after 1870 and were living on the property at the time of their deaths.
Her Legacy
Her story continues to unfold as Pennsylvania church records — especially Upper West Conococheague — are being searched for her marriage or her children’s baptisms.
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