Shafer in Wabash County, Indiana

My known Shafer connections start with Henry Shaffer, married to Susan Rummel. Their son, John Shafer was my great grandfather.

I have a letter from John Shafer's niece, Eliza Hoover Wantz, which states that the family name was originally spelled Schaeffer and that the first Schaeffer in our line came here during the American revolution as one of the "Hessian" troops hired to fight on the British side. This soldier liked the country so much that after he was returned to the Germanies, he brought his family back to the United States (Pennsylvania?).

This first American Schaeffer was also said to have been an accomplished horseman, who once rode a horse up a flight of stairs.

A brother of Henry Shafer, a Jacob Shafer, also lived in Indiana; I believe that Jacob Shafer or his sons lived in Fulton County, Indiana.

I know something about John Shafer's descendants, which include my grandmother, Emma Catherine Shafer Strickler; I would like to know more about his ancestors and any of the collateral lines.

Sue