Jonathan Knight (bef. 1737 - 1828)

Born before 11 Dec 1737 in Scarborough, Cumberland, Massachusetts Bay

Ancestors

Husband of Mary (Atkins) Knight — married 27 Jan 1760 in Scarborough, Cumberland, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Descendants

Died 10 Feb 1828 after age 90 in Calais, Washington, Maine, United States

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Biography

Capt. Jonathan Knight was baptized at Scarborough, Maine, 11 Dec 1737, the son of Westbrook Knight and Abigail Littlefield Munson, ^{[1] [2]} his parents' marriage, 23 Mar 1735, recorded in Records of the First Congregational Church in Scarborough; ^[1] died at Calais, Maine, reportedly 10 Feb 1828. ^[1]

He married at Scarborough, 24 Jan 1760, ^[1] or 27 Jan 1760, ^[3] Mary Atkins.

From Maine Families in 1790: ^[1]

Only the first of Jonathan Knight's children was baptized in Scarborough. He apparently moved from there shortly after that date and next lived for a few years at Jeremysquam (now Westport), which was the residence of his stepfather, Henry Griffith, when he married Jonathan's mother on 5 Mar 1761.^[4] Jonathan was certainly of Jeremysquam, 15 Oct 1765, when, as oldest son, he is first named in a suit brought by the children and heirs of Westbrook Knight against Nathaniel Milliken, et al., concerning misappropriation of their father's lands in Scarborough (Suffolk Co., Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, case # 139,328, Knight vs. Milliken [FHL film # 929,917]). His first recorded purchase of land there, though, was in Nov 1766, a lot of 100 acres abutting land of his brother, Westbrook, a lot he then sold to his brother, John in 1767 (Lincoln Co deeds 6:268, 268-69). In that same year, though, he and Mary sold another lot of land of 104 acres in Jeremysquam, a sale that Jonathan acknowledged at Lincoln County in Nov 1769 (Lincoln Co deed 7:112-13). The timing of his move to Machias or environs is not firmly established, however. He is not named, as is his stepfather, in the petition for the granting of the township of Machias, which was approved in Apr 1770. His daughter, Mary, born c1770, is said by The Knight Family,^[5] to have been born in Machias. Jonathan is named among those who participated in the capture of the British ship Margaretta in Machias harbor in Jun 1775,^[6][7] He subsequently served in the Revolutionary War, first as a second lieutenant on the Diligent in 1776 (sic)^[8][9] and then as a second lieutenant in Lt. Joel Whitney's co., Col. Benjamin Foster's 6th Lincoln County regiment, in 1777.^[9] Whether Jonathan ever resided in Machias proper has not been established. Deeds indicate he was a pre-1784 settler on a lot of land on the west side of Englishman's River at its mouth on Mason Bay, land which was only formally deeded to him by the proprietors on 13 May 1799 (Washington Co deed 2:320-21). This land is now in Roque Bluffs, which town abuts Machias, of which community Jonathan is said to have been one of the first settlers.^[10] Jonathan and Mary sold this land on 13-16 May 1799, including residual rights to the Machias lands of his late stepfather and a lot abutting his of equal size, which Jonathan evidently bought of Paul Thompson (Washington Co deeds 2:316-20 [four deeds]). It is likely the family removed to Calais at that time, as they are enumerated there in the 1800 USC.^[11]. He was not among the earliest settlers of Calais, though, as suggested in Bangor Historical Magazine Vol. 3, p. 165 and Vol. 4, p. 60. Jonathan's deeds refer to him as a yeoman or gentleman.

He was among the early settlers at Englishman's River (Roque Bluffs) ^{[10] [12]} and Calais, ^{[11] [13] [14]} Maine.

From the Annals of Calais: ^[15]

Primeval Age — 1790 to 1800

There is a tradition that in 1790, Calais had only sixteen white inhabitants; but few as there were, it is impossible at present to ascertain all their names. The colony however was firmly established, and additional settlers came in every year.

Prominent among them was Capt. Jonathan Knight, who came from Machias about 1790. His farm fronted the river at Salmon Falls, and his hospitable home was near the angle of the road in that vicinity. For many years his house was the trysting place for the merry, and a sure refuge for the poor, the weary and the stranger.

It is said, and with some probability, that Capt. Knight fired the first gun in the first naval engagement of the Revolutionary War. Veritable history relates that June 12th, 1775, the brave men of Machias captured in ther harbor, the English armed schooner Margaretta, after a sharp conflict with musketry and by boarding, in which five Englishmen and two Americans were killed and several others wounded. Capt. Knight was one of the boarding party. The tradition relates that Capt. O'Brien, the commander of the Americans, ordered his men not to fire till they could see the enemies' eyes. As they approached the Margaretta, Knight, whose sight or imagination was stronger than his companions', whispered to his leader, "I see their eyes." O'Brien replied, "then fire;" and he did. It was the first gun. The musket, a "Queen's arm," was long kept in the family, and shown as a proud memento.

Mr. Knight was an energetic, popular and prosperous citizen of Calais. He had six children [but note that Maine Families in 1790, 8:291-295, cited above, provides information for 11 children]: Paul, Westbrook, John, George, Henry and Mrs. Lydia Jones. They have all gone from earth; but many of their descendants still reside in town, and rank as good citizens.

From the Alexander-Crawford [Maine] Historical Society newsletter: ^[16]

Jonathan Knight, known as captain, came to Calais from Machias after the 1790 census and was listed in Calais from the 1800 census through the 1820 census. His home was on a bend in the [St. Croix] river overlooking Salmon Falls. His farm was later used as the poor farm. The area is still called Knight's Corner (near the Sandwich Man).

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Joseph Crook Anderson II, CG, FASG, editor, Maine Families in 1790, Volume 8 (Picton Press, Rockport, Maine, June 2003, 652 pages), p. 291. Cit. Date: 13 Apr 2022.
2. ↑ Sargent, William M., Records of the First Congregational Church in Scarborough, Maine (Maine Historical and Genealogical Recorder, Vol. 1:51), Baptisms, sorted in date order. Cit. Date: 13 Apr 2022.
3. ↑ Sargent, William M., Records of the Second Congregational Church in Scarborough, Maine - MARRIAGES. (Maine Historical and Genealogical Recorder, Vol. 4:29), Marriages, sorted in date order. Cit. Date: 13 Apr 2022.
4. ↑ Patterson, William D., Record of Marriages in Pownalborough (now Wiscasset and Dresden), 1760 to1786 (Bangor Historical Magazine, Joseph W. Porter, editor and publisher, Bangor, Maine, 1885-), Vol. 7, p. 81. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
5. ↑ Tibbetts, Charles S., The Knight Family (Typescript, Maine Historical Society, 1941), p. 19
6. ↑ Memorial of the Centennial Anniversary of the Settlement of Machias (C. O. Furbush, Machias, 1863, 179 pages), p. 44. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
7. ↑ Talbot, George F., The First Naval Battle of the Revolution at Machias, Maine, June 11, 1775 (The Bangor Historical Magazine, Joseph W. Porter, editor and publisher, Bangor, Maine, 1885-), Vol. 3, p. 165. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
8. ↑ The year cited here is probably wrong. There were multiple ships in the Gulf of Maine during the Revolutionary War named Diligent. Jonathan Knight more probably served on the HMS Diligent that was captured by the Continental Navy in May 1779, and put into service as the USS Diligent and scuttled later the same year during the disastrous Penobscot Expedition.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} Massachusetts, Office of the Secretary of State, Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War (Wright and Potter Printing Company, State Printers, Boston, 1896-1908, 17 volumes), Vol. 9, p. 349. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Drisko, George Washington, Narrative of the Town of Machias, The Old and the New, The Early and the Late (Press of The Republican, Machias, Maine, 1904, 575 pages), pp. 436-437. Cit. Date: 13 Apr 2022.
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1} "United States Census, 1800," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRS-T49 : accessed 14 April 2022), Jonathan Knight, Township 5, Washington, Maine, United States; citing p. 643, NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 8; FHL microfilm 218,678.
12. ↑ "United States Census, 1790," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YYY-937C?cc=1803959&wc=3XT9-3TT%3A1584070931%2C1584070905%2C1584071510 : 14 May 2015), Maine > Washington > Township east of Machias > image 6 of 11; citing NARA microfilm publication M637, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
13. ↑ "United States Census, 1810," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XH24-HBT : accessed 14 April 2022), Jonathan Knight, Calais, Washington, Maine, United States; citing p. 666, NARA microfilm publication M252 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 12; FHL microfilm 218,683.
14. ↑ "United States Census, 1820," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHG9-J33 : accessed 14 April 2022), Jana Knight, Calais, Washington, Maine, United States; citing p. , NARA microfilm publication , (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll ; FHL microfilm .
15. ↑ Knowlton, The Rev. I. C., Annals of Calais, Maine and St. Stephen, New Brunswick; Including the Village of Milltown, ME., and the Present Town of Milltown, N.B. (J. A. Sears, Printer, Calais, Maine, 1875, 208 pages), pp. 35-36. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
16. ↑ Alexander-Crawford Historical Society, John Dudley, editor, The Knight Family (A-CHS Newsletter, 216 Pokey Rd, Alexander, ME 04694), No. 117 (May 2003), p. 10. Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.

See also:

• Pehoushek, Joseph W., Known Descendants of Jones Dyer, Sr., and Hannah Herrington (Punta Gorda, Florida, October 1999; Typescript, a copy of which is in the genealogical collection of the Calais Free Library, Calais, Maine), Cit. Date: 14 Apr 2022.
• Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 Vol. 53, p. 75
• DAR Lineage Books, Vol. 159, p. 198