Jonathan Geer (1580 - 1635)

Born 1580 in Kenn, Exeter, Devon, England

Ancestors

Died 1635 at about age 55 in Heavitree, Devon, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Cathleen Bachman [send private message]

Biography

In 1914, Walter Geer stated that the immediate English ancestor of the New England immigrants George Geer and Thomas Geer was a Jonathan Geere of Heavitree, Devon.^[1] In 1923, he went further and made Jonathan a son of George Geere of Kenn, Devon.^[2] At the time, Walter Geere said he had no actual evidence in the way of baptisms or wills to connect the immigrants to Jonathan Geere. George Geere does appear in the Visitations of Devon, however, he is given no children.^[3][4][5]

In fact, since the publishing of The Geere Genealogy no evidence of any kind has been found to suggest that Jonathan Geere even existed. There are no baptism records, no probate records, no court records, no land records, etc. which record the name Jonathan Geere in Heavitree. And certainly no evidence that a Jonathan Geere had sons George and Thomas.

Whether intentional or unintentional, this would appear to be a case of genealogical fraud. It is an attempt to connect New England immigrants of unknown origins to an armigerous family in England which appears in the Visitations. The name George is pervasive in the Geere family of Devon, and so it is still very possible that the immigrants do belong to this family. However, the exact connection remains unknown and certainly unproven.

Birth

Born: About 1580.

The date is not based on any record. It is a guess based on the belief that his supposed father was born about 1552, and that his supposed son was born in 1621.

Death

Died: Before 1635.

The date is not based on any record. It is following the family legend which says his supposed sons George and Thomas Geer were orphans when they immigrated to New England in 1635.

Note

Note: Jonathan supposedly left two sons, George and Thomas, under the guardianship of an uncle, so presumably died after his wife. The uncle appears to have wanted them out of the way in order to gain their inheritances, so shipped them to America. Thomas finally settled at Enfield in 1682 and George was one of the first settlers at New London about 1651.

Sources

Footnotes and citations:

1. ↑ Geer. Genealogy of the Geer Family. (1914): pages 7-8.
2. ↑ Geer. The Geer Genealogy. (1923): pages 6-8.
3. ↑ Colby. Visitation of Devon in 1620. (1872): page 126.
4. ↑ Vivian. Visitations of Devon, of 1531, 1564 and 1620. (1895): page 395.
5. ↑ Westcote. A View of Devonshire. (1845): page 565.

Source list:

• Colby, Frederic Thomas ed. Visitation of the County of Devon in the Year 1620. (London: Harleian Society Visitation Series vol 6, 1872): page 126. Archive.org link.

• Geer, Walter. Genealogy of the Geer Family in America from 1635 to 1914. (New York, 1914): pages 7-8.
  Archive.org link.

• Geer, Walter. The Geer Genealogy: A Historical Record of George and Thomas Geer and their Descendants in the United States from 1623 to 1923. (New York, 1923): pages 6-8.
  Archive.org link.

• Vivian, John Lambrick. Visitations of the County of Devon, Comprising the Heralds Visitations of 1531, 1564 and 1620. (London, 1895): page 395. Google Books link.

• Westcote, Thomas; George Oliver and Pitman Jones eds. A View of Devonshire in MDCXXX: With a Pedigree of Most of Its Gentry. (Exeter, 1845): page 565. Google Books link.