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Monday, April 28, 2014

52 Ancestors #17 - John Knox - Was he a Twin? Which birth year is correct?

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Amy Crow has posted a challenge on her blog "No Story Too Small".

John Knox II is my paternal 6th great grandfather.

John Knox II was born in Ireland. His birth year is questionable. The passenger list shows his age as fifty (born 1717) but his headstone shows he died June 27, 1777 at the age of fifty-five which indicates he was born in 1722. He was named after his father John Knox I. His mother is Agnes Johnstone Knox. Both of his parents were born in Scotland.

John married Elizabeth Ann Gaston. They had ten children: Mary, John, Matthew, Elizabeth, Sarah, Joseph, Hugh, Ann, James, and Samuel. I descended through their daughter Mary.  He spent most of his life in Ireland but - a change was coming.

John and his family left Ireland in 1767. Their destination was South Carolina. Several of John's siblings were on the same ship including his brother William. The records show that John and William were both fifty years old which would mean they are twins born in 1717. I can find no death record of his brother William to verify his birth year. As I stated earlier, John's headstone indicates he was born in 1722. In that case, John was only forty-five when he arrived in South Carolina. The only thing I can determine is that John was born in 1717 or 1722 depending on which record is used.

John received a 100 acre memorial grant on July 27, 1768. The land was situated on Fishing Creek in Craven County, South Carolina. The plat was not completed until March 13, 1772.


John made is last will just seventeen days after the plat was completed. He died June 27, 1777. His newly found freedom was cut short.

1) What is John's birth year?
2) Were John and William twins?

Beam me up Cathy - back to top


2 comments:

  1. Cathy - John Knox II is also my 6th great grandfather! Would love to connect. Do you have any information about John Knox Sr (I) and his wife (Agnes?) - I have records that John Knox Sr was also married to a Sarah Craig? This is where I'm stuck! Thanks!

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    1. Amy, How wonderful to meet a cousin! You can use the "contact form" on this page to email me. Would love to discuss family.

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