WHEN THE TROUBLE BEGAN. My ancestor James Cunningham of Lunenburg County VA made out his Last Will in 1762. He could not write, so his name was written for him and he "made his mark" ( an X ) on the page. Some researcher about 1980 saw that and thought he had the middle name MARK. NOT SO. I have fought this mistake for 40 years. Now it's on Ancestry and has a life of its own. English law at the time did not allow non-royals to have middle names, with few exceptions.
James Cunningham died in the fall of 1762, leaving wife Jane Scott Cunningham, and three sons, William, James, and John. James the son died before reaching adulthood, so his two brothers inherited his part. John joined the Virginia line and was made a Lieutenant during the Revolutionary War. He lived in Lunenburg and Charlotte Counties in Virginia before moving to Wilkes County, North Carolina. His final move was to the area of Coffee and Warren Counties in Tennessee. He died in 1842 and is buried in the family cemetery in Viola, Tennessee. He was married first to Mary Hill Pettipool and 2nd to Keziah Chandler, daughter of William and Delitha ( Cox ) Chandler.
There is a complicated law suit over the estate of Lt. John Cunningham ( 1748-1842 ) in Bedford County, Tennessee. His son in law convinced him to change his Last Will, leaving his estate only to the living children. The Last Will was overturned due to undue influence and all inherited.
NOW BACK TO JAMES CUNNINGHAM WHO DIED IN 1762:
As there are two inventories of his estate, which is not the usual practice ( I've never seen it before), we think his wife Jane Scott Cunningham ( as well as son James ) died soon after James Cunningham.
NOW BACK TO LT. JOHN CUNNINGHAM ( 1748-1842):
WE think William and James are the children of the first wife, Mary Hill Pettipool. The other heirs ( Langston, Benjamin, Rachel Sheppard, Joseph, etc) are from the second wife Keziah Chandler.
DNA has shown JOHN CUNNINGHAM of ROCK ISLAND lived NEAR Lt. John CUNNINGHAM, but is NOT a DNA match to any of his descendants. This was of great debate until DNA showed that John of Rock Island's descendants do not match the DNA of Lt. John Cunningham of Viola's descendants. John of Rock Island has a different ancestry.
Also, in Mr. Bell's book of Lunenburg County, James Cunningham and family of the Meherrin River ( James and three sons James, John, and William, the sons of Jane Scott) ARE NOT related to the CUB CREEK Cunninghams.
There are several James Cunninghams in the Lunenburg/Mecklenburg area in the 1700's , so be cautious about your research.
Lt. John Cunningham actually has TWO YEARS of birth !! 1747 and 1748. The CALENDAR changed soon after his birth in the 1750's, and the NEW YEAR was moved from MARCH 1st to JANUARY 1st. Since John was born in FEBRUARY, he was born in 1747 by the OC ( old calendar) and in 1748 NC ( new calendar). People at the time would choose which they preferred !
NOW BACK TO JAMES CUNNINGHAM: The French and Indian War did not end until 1763. We have not researched AT ALL if James Cunningham who died in 1762 was a part of that war, served in the war, was wounded and came home and died because of the war, or anything about it. It is possible, but nothing has been researched on this topic. He may have had nothing to do with the war.
The depth of your genealogical research never ceases to amaze me. So much history of our ancestors has been muddied by the use...and use...and reuse...of the same names. I know it has often confused research of our family. I always learn something from you. I did not know that bit about English law and middle names. Interesting. I did, however, learn early on in my historical foraging about the calendar change and the impact on birthdates...and other dates. It all rather makes for a big treasure hunt, no? ~Robin~
ReplyDeleteI have learned the exception that creeped in, in the 1700's: If grandma was named, for example, Martha Vicars, then the granddaughter might be named Martha Vicars Coleman. Grandpa John Quincy's grand daughter Abigail Adams named her son for him: John Quincy Adams. I am now using such clues for one of my Virginia lines. James Blanks Daws. He is always in the Lunenburg County records with all three names. I believe his mother's people are the Blanks. I found an uncle, Ingram Blanks, and that has led me to think unknown grandma Blanks was an Ingram ! I love it when these old families name children the last names of grandmothers and grandfathers. My first cousin's son just named his daughter the last name of her mother's grandfather. Old Southern families still do this. If I had an ancestor named Cranky Crow, I would say the father was a Crow and the grandmother's maiden name was Cranky !!!
DeleteLOL... too funny...but, yes...I have seen that "trend" as well although, as you noted, it is not quite so common in these parts. And I like the naming of children using family last names as well. My nephew named his son using his father's last name. Now, that said, I probably wouldn't be so enamored if the familial name was Polish.... ;-)
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