I've hit a bit of a dead end for now on tracing back the first Laufer in our family. What I know so far is
Michael Laufer was Edward H Laufer's father
Edward Had a brother who predeceased him (the bio below is from 1896)
He was married to Rose Laufer
The complication for her, is her birthday was listed as 1820, but she was listed in her 80s when she died in 1881. Probably an issue in linkage.
They owned land in Fosters Meadow Long Island
Both Michael and Rosetta left wills
When he arrived
Michael came to America in 1852 from a town called "Stosestedt"
There is no place that pops up with a search for that name. My working theory is the correct name is "Tostedt", part of the "Harburg" district. This town is near to Bermen (port of departure), and Lower Saxony itself is a large farming area.
Why come to America in 1852?
Leaving the aftermath of the revolutions of 1848 seems to be the most likely reason my family came to America. 1852 itself was the year the London Protocol was signed, ending the First Schleswig War.
A full list of maps from the period can be found in this excellent story map. Of note, is this migration map by Charles Joseph Minard. There was a mass migration of Germans during the time period.
A religious reason to leave?
Michael's son (Edward) was a noted member of the Dutch Reformed Church (Calvinist) . A brief review of German history from the time period, shows that Prussia conducted a forced union of Churches.
Potential Break throughs
I think the four most likely breakthroughs will be
Finding Edward's brother name
Finding Michael, Rose, Edward in the Reformed Church records
Notably, Calvin Laufer was a famous hymnist on Long Island in the Reformed Church. He was listed as the pastor at Steinway Reformed Church from 1900-1905. I have not been able to link Calvin with Edward's family yet; they may have a common ancestor.
Finding a different surname/progenitor of Michael, starting in Germany
Finding a link in the Dutch Church records