Alfred Rotz (1879-1945) was born the son of John C. Rotz and Lydia E. Sollenberger in Greene Township, Franklin County, PA.  He was the eighth of thirteen children four of which died as infants.

Alfred and his brother Harry (1878-1946) never married.  They both attended the Chambersburg Brethren in Christ Church.  Alfred wrote poetry and the lyrics to songs and his brother sometimes wrote the music.  Four of Alfred’s poems texts were used as hymns in the 1938 Brethren in Christ hymnal: "I Know I Have Salvation" (#209), "I Am Marching On The King’s Highway" (front cover of the 1938 hymnal), "I Will Follow Jesus All The Way" (#196), and "Walking With My Saviour" (#10).

Harry was Sunday School superintendent, trustee, and leader of congregational singing at Chambersburg BIC church.  In the 1938 hymnal he is listed as the tune composer of the above four Alfred Rotz songs and Lead Me To Thee (#4).  The 1935 hymnal lists him as the tune writer for O Lord Help Me To Live (#296).

The source of this information comes from the hymn books themselves and from the unpublished doctoral dissertation of Herbert Royce Saltzman titled A HISTORICAL STUDY OF THE FUNCTION OF MUSIC AMONG THE BRETHREN IN CHRIST available in the Messiah College Library.  This source also mentions that Alfred struggled with several disabilities.

The two brothers lived on a farm next to the church on what we now call Reservoir Hill and operated a woodshop and a stocking factory.  Harry was also a S.S. superintendent and made things in his woodshop such as a lathed wooden vase that he would give out to some for memorizing and writing out a lot of Bible verses.  A nice collection of mounted birds and mammals were donated by the two brothers to Messiah College for the Biology Lab in Old Main.

According to the records in THE ROTZ FAMILY book, of the nine children of John and Lydia who survived to adulthood (pp 200-201), only three married and only Mary, the first born, had surviving issue.  Her second child, John Ambrose Burkhart had two children who hopefully continued the family line.  Not much information is known today on these two brothers but if anyone has any additional information on these two men or the family, your response would be appreciated.  You may send your information by e-mail to this website.