Hi Kat, many thanks for your reply. Unfortunately, after much searching and even hiring a pro genealogist from Ancestry.com, I am no further ahead than I was. A number of years ago when I was compiling my family tree on Ancestry, I made the mistake of adding Simon b.1742 as the father of Jeremiah. That was simply a hunch on my part. Well, it would seem after I did that, many people took that information and started using it for their trees. I can find no proof that Simon b.1742 is the father of Jeremiah. I removed him from that position a number of years ago so as not to proliferate potentially false information. The book written in about 1928 about our line of the Fraser family entitled, A Genealogy of the Coles and Allied Families, by my father's grand aunt, Eva Grace Fraser Briggs, asserts that a Simon was Jeremiah's father, and that Simon's father was a David, and that his father was the Rev. James Fraser of Brea (1639-1699). After much research, I discovered that such a claim was impossible as Rev. James had no sons who survived to manhood. Rev. James DID have a brother, David Fraser of Mayne (or, of Brea; 1646-BEF 1735) who had a son, Simon (1674-1735?). It appears that Simon only had daughters. So apparently we are not descended from Fraser of Brea as is claimed by Mrs. Briggs. She never cited any authoritative sources. I have found that there is even the possibility that the Frasers in Scotch Plains, NJ, changed their name to Frazee. I have corresponded with a researcher with the Historical Society of Scotch Plains and Fanwood who gave me the information about the Fraser-Frazee name situation. There is a Frazee House historical site in Scotch Plains with its resident, Betty Frazee, being a person of historical importance. There is no way to tell if Jeremiah is part of this family. If you check Jeremiah's military records it indicates that the names of his parents are not listed. He enlisted in the Continental Army in Scotch Plains. Our problem is that there are no written sources in NJ from this era to verify any family information about Jeremiah. Nothing. If genealogists list some of these people as Jeremiah's relatives they are doing so without being able to provide any documented sources as proof of their claims. My guess is that Jeremiah was intentionally trying to conceal the names of his parents. I have a hunch that his family may have been banished from Scotland as being Jacobites and shipped to America. He may not have wanted to carry that reputation with him so he avoided mentioning his father's name. This, as I said, is just a guess on my part. If you have any documents that can support your research, please let me know. I really do thank you for contacting me. My life is very hectic right now and I have no time for genealogical research. I hope to get some time soon. Take care and I will be in touch if I find anything. There are so many people trying to find the answer to who is Jeremiah's father. We cannot find out where our family came from in Scotland if we don't know that information. Blessings, Lynn
PS: if you decide to get a free GEDmatch.com membership, which I would encourage you to do, you can see if you and I are related. My GEDmatch ID no. is GH6222630 and my GEDcom number on that website is 6972023
