Barbara Heck

RUCKLE, BARBARA (Heck) b. Bastian Ruckle as well as Margaret Embury had a daughter called Barbara (Heck) born 1734. In 1760, she got married to Paul Heck and together they raised seven children. Four survived into adulthood.

A biography usually features the person who was an important participant of significant events, or made unique statements or comments that were recorded. Barbara Heck has left no notes or correspondence. Her marriage date, for example, is not supported by any evidence. It is impossible to reconstruct the motives of Barbara Heck's actions through her whole life, based on primary sources. But she is an iconic figure in the early years of North American Methodism historical. This is an example where the purpose of the biography is to dispel the legend or myth and if it is able to be achieved, identify the real person immortalized.

The Methodist historian Abel Stevens wrote in 1866. Barbara Heck, a humble woman from the New World who is credited with the advancement of Methodism throughout all of the United States, has undoubtedly made it to the top of the history of the church in the New World. To comprehend the importance of her name it is crucial to look at the long background of the Movement that she is and will continue to be linked. Barbara Heck, who was not in the least involved in the beginning of Methodism both in the United States and Canada, is a woman whose fame stems from the tendency for a successful organisation or movement to praise its origins to reinforce its belief in the continuity and history.