John Keeney Jr.
Privacy Level: Open (White)

John Keeney Jr. (1772 - 1845)

John Keeney Jr.
Born in Keeney Knob, Greenbrier, Colony of Virginiamap
Ancestors ancestors
Husband of — married 1 Jan 1805 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United Statesmap
Descendants descendants
Died at age 73 in Mound City, Holt, Missouri, United Statesmap
Problems/Questions
Profile last modified | Created 5 Feb 2014
This page has been accessed 1,477 times.

Contents

Biography

Birth and Childhood

Rev. John Keeney, Jr. was born on 24 June 1772 in what is now Jefferson County, Tennessee, but was at that time Virginia. He was the eldest of ten children born to Jonathan John Keeney who was born on 25 December 1750 in Cocke, Greenbrier, Virginia and died 1 January 1805 at Keeney Mountain, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States and to Annie Elizabeth Poets who was born at Keeney Mountain, Jefferson, Tennessee in 1754 and died in 1785 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. They were a Baptist family and he remained a Baptist.

Siblings

  1. Aloysius Ephraim Keeney was born on 14 February 1774 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee. He died on 28 November 1778 (or 1788) in the same place.
  2. Nancy Anna Keeney was born on 31 October 1776. She died on 23 May 1871 in Henry County, Missouri, United States.
  3. Jonathan Anthony Keeney was born on 10 February 1778 in Cocke, Greenbrier, Virginia, United States. He died on 2 September 1850 in Avon, Polk, Iowa, United States.
  4. Joseph David Keeney was born on 19 August 1780 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States.
  5. Thomas Keeney was born in 1780 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. He died on 6 December 1845 in Mound City, Holt, Missouri, United States.
  6. Hiram Ashley Keeney was born on 10 September 1782 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. He died on 30 November 1788 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States.
  7. George Charles Keeney was born on 10 October 1784 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States and died on 29 November 1788 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States.
  8. Ebenezer Jeremiah Keeney was born on 30 August 1786 near Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. He died on 27 November 1788 near Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States.
  9. Peter Francis Michael Keeney was born on 19 February 1789 near Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. He married Nancy Elizabeth Ann Wiley on 19 February 1810 in Jefferson County, Tennessee, United States. Peter died in 1830 at Cook County, Tennessee, United States.
  10. Samuel Thomas Jefferson Keeney was born on 21 February 1792 near Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee, United States. He died on 4 June 1872 near Villiaca, Montgomery, Iowa, United States.

Most of his siblings left Tennessee for a variety of reasons at the same time as he did. Land was suddenly available in the west and Indian troubles at home were severe.

Marriage and Family

He married Mary Ramsey Burkhalter (1783-1872) on 1 January 1805 in Jefferson City, Jefferson, Tennessee when he was 32 and she was 22 years old.

Children of the Keeney-Burkhalter Marriage

All children were born in Fayette County, Indiana, United States with the exceptions of the the last three, twins Elias and Eli and their sister Sarah.
  1. Mary Eleanor Keeney was born on 6 April 1806. She married Alexander Bogart (c. 1784-1873) on 22 December 1822 in Ray County, Missouri. Mary died on 26 February 1874 in Ray County, Missouri, United States.
  2. Thomas Keeney was born in September 1808. He married Psyche Allen (c. 1814-c. 1844) on 22 June 1829 in Ray County, Missouri. Thomas died of tuberculosis on 5 December 1842 Holt, Clay, Missouri, United States. His wife died soon after that and their orphaned children were taken to Oregon with the rest of the family on the Keeney Wagon Train in 1851.
  3. Isley Keeney was born on 15 May 1811. Isley married Elizabeth Keeney (c. 1815- ), his cousin, and had two children before he died. His brothers Jonathan and Elias took them as part of the Keeney Wagon Train to Oregon with the family. He died of tuberculosis on 6 December 1842 in Holt, Clay, Missouri, United States.
  4. Capt. Jonathan Keeney was born on 27 April 1813. He married Mary Catherine Shoemaker (1820-1896) in July 1837 Lafayette, Tippecanoe, Indiana. They had 10 children. Jonathan died when he was traveling to the high desert and fell from his horse on 15 August 1878 Willow Creek, Baker, Oregon, United States. The fall caused his pistol to go off and shoot him in the thigh.
  5. James Mordecai Keeney was born on 20 August 1816. He married 1) Catherine Stewart (1824-1845) on 17 March 1840 in Ray County, Missouri and 2) Nancy Keeney (1809-1862), daughter of his paternal uncle, Thomas Keeney (1780-1846). She was his first cousin. He married 3) Miranda Ruth Michael (1839-1919), widow of John Alexander Pearl (1833-1864) on 10 January 1878 in Linn County, Oregon. He had children with all three of his wives. James died on 27 April 1885 Brownsville, Linn, Oregon, United States.
  6. Daughter Keeney was born and died in 1817 in Fayette County, Indiana, United States.
  7. Abraham Keeney was born on 11 December 1818. He married Elvira A. Chesney (c. 1820- ) in 1839. His children went to Oregon with the rest of the family on the Keeney Wagon Train. Abraham died of tuberculosis before 25 May 1843 in Holt County, Indiana, United States.
  8. Andrew Jackson Keeney, also known as Jackson or Blackjack, was born on 7 October 1819. [1] Jackson married 1) Elizabeth Mulholland (1825-1843) on 18 November 1841 in Henry County, Missouri and 2) Hannah Daniels Walden (1830-1860), widow of John Wesley Cooper (1822-1848), on 3 June 1849 in Atchison County, Missouri and 3) Amanda Jane Morse (1827-1892), widow of Alfred A. Matthews (1823-1860), on 22 December 1861 in Lane County, Oregon. He had children with all three wives. Jackson died on 4 March 1898 Goshen, Lane, Oregon, United States. He arrived in Oregon in 1857.
  9. Rebecca Katherine Keeney was born on 4 July 1821. She married 1) William Landingham (1814-1850) on 24 November 1838 in Ray County, Missouri and 2) Daniel Bennett Putman (1810-1887) in 1851. Rebecca died on 23 September 1895 in Amity, Yamhill, Oregon, United States.
  10. Elias Keeney, twin of Eli, was born on 18 December 1828 in Ray County, Missouri, United States. He married 1) Margaret Jane Hyatt (1835-1859) on 26 November 1850 in Holt County, Missouri and 2) Lucinda Catherine VanWinkle (1840-1887) in 1860 in Linn County, Oregon and 3) Matilda Lee (1839-1907), the widow of Samuel Noffsinger (1822-1870), in 1887. He had children with his first two wives. Elias died on 20 December 1910 in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon, United States. He arrived in Oregon in September 1846.
  11. Eli Keeney, twin of Elias, was born on 18 December 1828 in Ray County, Missouri, United States. He married Elizabeth G. Pierce (1832-1904) on 24 February 1848 in Holt County, Missouri. They had eight children. Eli died on 10 November 1878 in Portland, Multnomah, Oregon, United States. He arrived in Oregon on 10 September 1851 along with Elizabeth. Their small daughter Frances Ann Keeney was the only casualty on the 2000 mile trip. She almost made it, but died in Oregon just before their final destination.
  12. Sarah Elizabeth Keeney was born in 1830 in Ray County, Missouri, United States. She married John Franklin Williams (1822-1896) on 1 December 1844 in Holt County, Missouri. Sarah died on 6 December 1847 in Holt County, Missouri, United States.

The couple first moved to Fayette County, Indiana where they homesteaded until 1825 when he decided to move the family to Ray County, Missouri. By 1810 the family are found on a reconstructed census record in Indiana Territory. The same record shows he had signed a petition in December of 1809 at the same place asking Congress for voting rights. In 1811 he held a land claim in Fayette County, Indiana dated 1 November of that year.

Occupations

John was a very useful man. He was a lay minister of the gospel, blacksmith, locksmith, ferryman, farmer, and an exceptional gunsmith. The rifles he made for each of his sons were carried west with them and they later became collectors' items.

Death and Burial

The family was hit by tuberculosis and John, Jr. and three of his sons died of the disease within months of each other. John wrote his will on 26 November 1845 and mentioned his wife, Mary, Mary and Jane McLaughlin, Rebecca Lanningham (daughter), his two sons Eli and Elias, and Sarah (daughter) who is under age 16. His other sons who were still living at this time had gone west before this time. Other families around them were affected too. The Bogarts and the Allens also had deaths. Their sons Thomas, Isley and Abraham all died and John, Jr. himself died on 6 December 1845 in Holt County, Missouri leaving Mary with a large family of widows and orphans who eventually travelled west to Oregon in 1851 in the huge wagon train called "The Keeney Wagon Train". The party was led by his sons Captain Jonathan and Elias who had returned home to Missouri from their wanderings and packed everyone up to head across the prairie and the Cascades for the Pacific coast.

John died on 6 December 1845 in in Mound City, Holt, Missouri, United States. His burial place is unknown. Find A Grave: Memorial #36726288, Virtual Cemetery.

Sources

  • Keeney, Ralph Ray. Wagon Ruts West. Keeney, R.R., 1983. It is out of print, but the author had granted pieces of it for educational purposes. The entire article is available here.
  • 1810 United States Federal Census, Reconstructed Records 1660-1820, Indiana: Territorial Papers of the US; Volume Number: Vol 7; Page Number: 691. Family Number: 94. [2]
  • 1820 United States Federal Census on 7 August in Jennings, Fayette, Indiana. [3]
  • 1820 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907. 24 April 1820 in Ray County, Missouri. Page 44.
  • 1827 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907.10 July 1827, cash purchase of 82.2 acres.
  • 1829 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907. 2 April 1829, cash purchase of 80 acres in Ray County, Missouri.
  • 1830 United States Federal Census, in Ray County, Missouri. [4]
  • 1831 U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907. 1 June 1831, cash purchase of 82.2 acres in Ray County, Missouri.
  • 1840 United States Federal Census, Fishing River, Ray, Missouri. [5]
  • Will of John Keeney. In County Court house record book of Wills, 1846, pages 7 and 8. Will dated 26 November, 1845 in Holt County, Missouri. Witnesses John W. Kelly and Andrew Jackson. Recorded on 2 February 1846 by John Collins, Clerk of the County Court in Holt County, Missouri.
  • Find A Grave Index, Virtual Cemetery.
  • Waibel, Mona Hyler. The Pioneer Keeney Family [1] [6]
  • Dohnal, Cheri. Columbia River Gorge: Natural Treasures on the Old Oregon Trail". Charleston, SC, Chicago, IL, Portsmouth, NH, San Francicso, CA: Arcadia Publishing, 2003. [7]

Footnotes

  1. 1822 is given on Find A Grave, but Ruts West and the Early Oregonian site give 1819.
  2. 1810: Under Household Remarks it says: Name on petition, 12 December 1809, to Congress by citizens of the territory asking for voting rights for all white males over 21 who paid taxes or fulfilled militia duty.
  3. 1820: Tally only of a household of 4 for John Kenney Sr.. 1 male 10-15; 1 male 45 and over; 1 female 10-15; 1 female 45 and over.
  4. 1830: Tally only of a household with a total of 12 for John Keeney. 2 males under 5; 1 male 5-9; 2 males 10-14; 2 males 15-19; 1 male 50-59; 1 female 5-9; 1 female 10-14; 1 female 20-29; 1 female 40-49.
  5. 1840: Tally only of a household with a total of 9 for John Keeney. 3 males 10-14; 1 male 20-29; 1 male 70-79; 1 female 5-9; 1 female 10-14; 1 female 15-19; 1 female 50-59.
  6. Waibel, MH: Waibel has some photos including one of his son, Captain Jonathan Keeney, grandson James Benton Keeney. Some of the information in this is not correct. She confuses relationships several times.
  7. Dohnal, C.: Page 58 photo of the rifle carried by Captain Jonathan Keeney, which now sits in the Oregon Historical Museum. It was smithed from a Kentucky Long Rifle by his father in about 1830. Page 50 has a photo of Captain Jonathan Keeney.




Is John your ancestor? Please don't go away!
 star icon Login to collaborate or comment, or
 star icon ask our community of genealogists a question.
Sponsored Search by Ancestry.com

DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with John by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA. Y-chromosome DNA test-takers in his direct paternal line on WikiTree: It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with John:

Have you taken a DNA test? If so, login to add it. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA.



Comments: 1

Leave a message for others who see this profile.
There are no comments yet.
Login to post a comment.
PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE the placement of the reference and footnote notations. 1/2 of the census data and other is lost if you do. No rule that I know of that says you have to have no space between "Sources" and References or can't have footnotes. And yes, I have read the "Help" page. Thank you.
posted by Darlene (Scott) Kerr

Rejected matches › John Heaney (1774-)