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De Janes, De Jeanne, Genealogy Fraud

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Renee Newman
Farmington, AR
jeanesrecords(at)yahoo.com

FRAUDULENT ANCESTORS AND GENEALOGIES OF WILLIAM JAYNE OF LONG ISLAND, NY AND WILLIAM JANES OF NEW HAVEN, CT. APPARENTLY FAKED BY JOHN PITTS JAYNE, GENEALOGIST OF NEW YORK CITY.

This only concerns the Genealogies of these two families in England from a supposed Guido de Janes or de Jeanne and connected to Henry and William de Jeanne, Jeanes, Janes.

Contents

THE FAKE GENEALOGY AS REPORTED BY JOHN P JAYNE, THEN CHANGED OVER TIME BY MEMBERS OF THE JAYNE FAMILY

Without relating the whole of the story as told by Frederick Janes and Beniaih Jayne, the story goes something like this:

  • Guido de Janes or de Jeanne (last name dependent on which family was doing the telling) entered England with Henry II about the year 1154. For his bravery as a general and the success of his grandsons in the Crusades, Guido was awarded the manor of Kirtling in Cambridge, England, and in 1868 (when Frederick Janes wrote his book) "by rare fortune" this estate was said to still be held by the Janes family. Geoffry, the grandson of Guido made three pilgrimages to the Holy Land. He then married Eleanor, heiress of Sir Richard Penruddock, and received lands in Botalock, Cornwall, where he erected a chantry. From this family (though never stated how) "sprung" William Janes born about 1610 and Henry de Janes born in 1611, who attended Oxford. Henry was "thought" to be a brother of William Janes of New Haven, CT, and thus he became the ancestor of the William Jayne of New York.
  • The Jayne family story picks up here. In their story, Henry de Jeanne has been aged a little - in most recountings, he graduated from Oxford in 1611, instead of being born in 1611. He had a son William born in 1618 and christened 15 days later. Here again, it depends on whose adaptation one reads, but Henry and William were Cromwell supporters, with William being Cromwell's personal secretary and a chaplain during the English Civil War. After the restoration one of them - or possibly both - went into hiding in Wales for a number of years. Then one of them - or possibly both - changed their name from de Jeanne to Jayne and moved to New York. They were the first people to use the spelling Jayne.
  • Newer adaptations have Roger de Jeanne as Henry's father and now many have - for some reason - changed the whole timeline and Guido is now said to have been born about 1500 in France. Also, the exact same people claim they were French Huguenots who had to flee France. They were awarded a coat of arms in England "on account of the prominence they attained in France". The ever-evolving story should be enough to dispel this myth but it has not been.

Origins

The story was apparently made up by John P Jayne, likely to show his clients how he had researched his own family. The first book containing this genealogy was published in 1868 by Rev Frederick Janes. Since that time countless books and several publications have picked up this fraudulent genealogy. There is proof that it was made up, for whatever reason, with the full knowledge of its falsehood. Identities were taken from published, historical sources, and changed to fit a narrative.

Nonexistent persons named in the published genealogies

  • Guido de Janes – Jeanne – Jeannes
  • Geoffery de Janes – Jeanne
  • Eleanor de Janes - Jeanne
  • Sir Richard Penruddock
  • Guy or Guido de Janes - Jeanne
  • William de Janes – Jeanne
  • Henry de Janes – Jeanne

Rev Frederick Janes published his book - The Janes family: a genealogy and brief history of the Descendants of William Janes, the emigrant ancestor of 1637, with an extended notice of Bishop Edmund S. Janes, D.D. And other biographical sketches, in 1868[1]. Frederick Janes may have been the only innocent person who helped perpetrate this lie.

Frederick Janes (descendant of William Janes of New Haven, CT) devoted only a few pages of his book to Guido de Janes and the English myth[2]. Beniaih Jayne wrote multiple letters to distant cousins and more was added to the story by then. Beniaih never published a book but he wrote many letters to cousins, detailing this same genealogy and adding to it. His writings focused mainly on Henry de Jeanne and William de Jeanne[3]. Many of those letters exist today. Beniaih Jayne was challenged on the information as early as 1900 by Ebenezer C Jayne and those letters have been shared online for many years[4]. For at least 20 years, several descendants and researchers, have pointed out that there is no proof at all of any of the claims made about the family in England. Much time has been devoted to research and many people have hired genealogists to find the proof – there is none - but still the false genealogy persists.

I have pointed out for over 12 years that names of people and places from the 1620 pedigree and coat of arms of the Jane family of Cornwall, England were copied and used for this genealogy. Also, there was a Henry Jeanes, whose accomplishments were used for Henry de Janes, Jeanne, Jeanes.

So much focus has been on Beniaih and Frederick that the main perpetrator may have been overlooked. The two letters Beniaih Jayne wrote to Ebenezer C Jayne in February of 1900 shed light on this matter and name the person responsible for this hoax. As far back as 1900, Ebeneezer Jayne had been trying to find some proof of this genealogy, even contacting the Bishop of Chester about it. It is necessary to include the whole text of those letters.

Letter dated Feb 23, 1900, to Ebenezer C Jayne

  • Yours enclosing extract & c. The confirmation of the manor of Kirkling upon Guido DeJeanne is a matter of history. I fear that your friend was not looking for the right thing at the right time. Personally I do not claim to have traced our ancestor descent from the Norman who accompanied Henry II to England. The late John Pitts Jayne who spent much time in his investigation claimed most positively to have done so and I went over his papers and books with him and became convinced that he had established his claim. One thing is certain our ancestor who settled on Long Island changed his name from De Jeanne to Jayne to hide his identity and escape ecclesiastical persecution. My grandfather was the authority of this and I have verified this much. He came to America from Llewellen in Monmouthshire where he resided for some time before his migration. I have had correspondence with two of his descendants through one of the sons who remained in England when he came to America. They traced back to him and give convincing proof that they trace back to our ancestor. There are many of the name in that vicinity. Monmouthshire is directly across the Bristol Channel from Bristol. I am indeed very sorry that I did not have the opportunity to complete my investigations when I was in full touch with the subject but circumstances that unspiritual god decreed it otherwise. The general thread of the story remains fixed in my memory.

Letter to Ebeneezer C Jayne dated Feb 26, 1900

  • “I am in receipt of your valued letter of Feb 24 giving the result of your inquiry of the Bishop of Chester. I wrote you last week and I assume you had not received my letter before writing. John Pitts Jayne was born in Rhode Island. He traced his descent from James Jayne a son of William of Setauket, L.I. He and his family had spelled the name Janes. He changed the spelling of his name to Jayne after looking up the history of family. He was a quaint character possessed of much knowledge in many ways. He had an office on Murray Street and his library contained many old English records. He had been a sea captain in his younger days and had traveled extensively both by sea and land. He was intensely interested in the family history and spent much time in gathering data. He had a large number of certified records. The record of the De Jeanne family in book published by the Rev. Fredk. Janes was obtained [this starts the bottom line on the page and several words are cut off the online image]from his ____ John Pitts J__ ___ ____ __ [then first line of page 2]- late Charles A Dana Editor of the NY Sun and that paper made frequent friendly allusions to him. He died during my absence in Colorado and on my return I tried to trace the disposit of his papers but failed. I have among my papers some where a sketch of his life in his own handwriting. He was a practicing lawyer but was more of antiquarian than lawyer as his work was principally in looking up old and disputed titles and claims. He was fairly successful. He was an old man when I first knew him. He had among other things the names of every Jayne shown in the census of Long Island from the full enumeration.

Who was John Pitts Jayne?

Brother of Joseph S Jayne and said by Beniaih to be descended from James, son of William Jayne I. According to his obituary, he was born in Massachusetts about 1815. He was for some time a captain of a whaling ship. Sometime prior to 1867 he began a genealogy practice that included searching for heirs of English estates[5] .

John P Jayne advertisement
He was called a lawyer "of sorts". He spent some time in England researching heirship cases in Chancery. He returned from one trip in 1869[6]. His office was at No. 7 Murray Street in and he lived at 152 Spring Street, NYC, from at least 1869 until 1884 or 85. He moved back to Rehoboth Mass about a year before he died in August 1887[7].

John P Jayne published three Volumes of Jayne's Index Register, Advertisements for Heirs-at-Law, Next-of-Kin, Chancery Heirs, Legatees and Persons Wanted, many late cases in England[8]. In the 1872 volume on page 40, he states:

  • Claims investigated at this office on reasonable terms.
  • Claims prosecuted in Chancery, and all other Courts in Great Britain, on the most favorable terms.
  • A copy of any Heir-at-Law advertisement, sent to persons on receipt of a fee of $2.00.
  • Particulars of Chancery Cases, $1.00. Other fees sent on application.
  • Letters requiring answers send postage stamp. No fee for searching Index Registers for names. Searches made of the Records in London on reasonable terms. Copies of Wills obtained.
  • Genealogies, Pedigrees, and Family Coats of Arms traced and furnished, all from the Records of the Heralds College, London to be had at my office. January, 1871.

He ran ads in newspapers in the U.S.A., Canada, and Scotland, advertisements for heirs of various estates[9].

On March 29, 1876, The Intelligencer Journal, Lancaster, Pennsylvania published a long article (advertisement) about John P Jayne[10] – selected excerpts from the article:

  • “who is by profession a genealogist and collector of information concerning unclaimed moneys and estates.”
  • “John Pitts Jayne is the old gentleman's name. He is somewhat of an attorney but the practice of the law is not his reliance in the struggle for bread. One of his little rooms is crammed to the ceiling with odd books. The “Gentleman's Magazine” is there”
  • “the genealogy and family insignia of John Pitts Jayne, Gent., likewise hang there, and the genuineness of the record and of the coat of arms, which is a bird with a fish in its beak, is demonstrated most ingeniously and conclusively by the old gentleman.
  • “There are all kinds of works on peerage, heraldy, and genealogy”
  • “A Genius In Genealogy”
  • “Pedigrees Of American Families”
  • “not the least interesting of Mr. Jayne's researches are those of a genealogical and heraldic character. He says that the old families of New York have frequently employed him in tracing out the history of their ancestral branches, and providing beyond question that they are connected by blood with foreign nobilities and are entitled to coats of arms, mottoes, and even handles to their names. He was only very recently retained to trace the pedigree of the Carharts of New Jersey and New York, some of them of clothing fame. He devoted a year and a half to this quest, and trace the family back to Cornwall and Devon, England where he found it flourishing under the name Carhurta. The first of the family in America, he says, was Thomas Carhart, who married here in 1691, and was then styled gentleman.”

Given the timing, and even though he was not credited in the book, it would appear that he had performed research for Mary E. (Carhart) Dusenbury's book: A Genealogical Record Of The Descendants Of Thomas Carhart, Of Cornwall, England which she published in 1880[11].

From the above article “coat of arms, which is a bird with a fish in its beak” - that is the crest of the Jane (not Jeanes, not de Jeanes, not Jayne) family of England, “a swan with wings indorsed, devouring a trout all proper”[12]. John P Jayne apparently really claimed the crest as his own, as Bolton's American Armor shows “Jayne - Az an eagle dipl Crest: A Swan with wings endorsed devouring a trout all ppr Motto: Honore et justitia. Bookplate John P Jayne, NY City”y[13].

For some reason, in 1884, the above-mentioned library of John P Jayne was auctioned off “an extensive collection of heraldic and genealogical works made by Mr. Jayne”[14]. However, another auction took place on February 7th and 8th, 1887 of the “Library of the late John P. Jayne, Esq”[15]. This consisted of, in part, “Genealogical and Historical Works”.

I have obtained a copy of the catalog of his collection that was auctioned off in 1887. It included, in part, the following books or publications:

  • #82 Catalogue of the Heralds' Visitations in the British Museum. 8V, uncut Lond. 1825
  • #103 Coleman, J. General Index to Printed Pedigrees. 8Vo Lond. 1866
  • #121-126 Several volumes of Debrett's Peerage of the United Kingdom from 1814-1866
  • #226 Fairbairn's Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland. Revised by Laurence Butters. 144 plates, 2 vols, 8vo Edinburgh
  • #286 Harleian Society. Publications of. Vols. 9 and 11, 1874 and '76. 2 vols, 8 vo containing The Visitation of the County of Cornwall in 1620, and Visitation of the County of Somerset in 1623.
  • #312 Howard, J.J. Miscellanea Genealogica et heraldic. With illustrations. Vols. 1 and 2 in cloth, Vols 3 and 4 in Nos. 4 vols, 8vo. London 1868-84
  • #330 Jayne – Coat of Arms of the Jayne Family. Jeanes or Jane. Normandy, France, 1453. A bundle of sheets, 8vo
  • #361 Lodge, Ed. The peerage of the British Empire as at Present Existing. 24th edition. 8Vo, half russia. 1855
  • #429 New Peerage; or, Ancient and Present State of the Nobility of England, Scotland and Ireland. Illustrated. 3 vols, 8vo calf (rubbed. 1785
  • #478 Pedigree of Jennes, Howe, Hammer, Lygon, and other Families. Sheet, foled. Lond. 1869
  • #492 Plance, J.R. The Pursuivant of Arms; or, Heraldry founded upon Facts. New edition. Illuminated frontis piece and woodcuts. 8vo. #493 __ do, do 12 mo Lond. n.d.
  • #517 Redding, C. An Illustrated Itinerary of the County of Cornwall. Illustrated. Royal 8vo, half roan. Lond. 1842.
  • #568 Townsend, Fr. Calendar of Knights, Lists of Knights Bachelors, Knights of the Garter, & c., & c. 12 mon, boards. Lond. 1828
  • #608 Walford, Ed. The County Families of the United Kingdom; or, royal Maural of the Titled and Untitled Aristocracy. Royal 8vo Lond. 1860
  • #626 Whitlocke. Memorials of the English Affairs, from beginning of the Reign of King Charles I. To the Restauration. Folio, old calf. 1682
  • #633 Wright, Thomas. The Roll of Arms of Princes, Barons, and Knights who attended King Edward I. To the Siege of Caelaverock, in 1300. Edited from the M.S. In British Museum. With coat-armours in gold and colors. 4To London 1814

Also included in the catalog were:

  • #246 Genealogy – A collection of Reports to Family Associations and Genealogies – Brown, Booth, Lawrence, Carpenter, Follansbee, Gibbs, Gibson, Houghton, Harrison, Ingraham, Jennings, Livermore, Lucas, Willson, & c. 16 in all. Svo. Half morocco.
  • #247 Genealogy – Another Collection. - Allen, Messinger, Collins, Fowkes, Carpenter, Houghton, Dod, Penn, Otis, Bowles, Frankin, Wells, Hays, & c. 18 in all. 8vo. Half morocco.
  • #248 Genealogy – History and memorial Report of Rights between the Heirs of Theobald Metzger and the Fiscus of the Netherland; Report to the Carpenter Association; Adie vs Taylor, Auditor, et als., in Richmond; Report to the Follansbee Association; & c. 7 pieces. 8Vo, half

This information on John P Jayne establishes that his self-professed occupation was genealogical research and that he had an extensive collection of genealogical books – specifically records from the Heralds office in England.

These so-called Heir Searchers or agents were scamming families all over the country[16]. Every story was similar. There was a fortune in England just waiting on American heirs to claim it. They ran ads in newspapers, then the letters poured in from prospective heirs, who wanted their share. They encouraged them to form “Associations”. Each family member paid a fee and in turn, the agent charged them a large fee to go to England or hire a firm in England to search for the records of the estate – which seems to always involve a will that they knew existed but wasn't filed and just couldn't be found. Many suspect documents were “found” in unusual places – old trunks, attics, etc. – then lost again. Columbus Smith was one of the most famous or infamous among these “agents”[17][18] and the very person who just happened to be in John P. Jaynes office in January of 1884 when a reporter for the Sun went to John's office to talk about the Ingraham heirs[19]. The Ingraham were heirs to an estate in England valued at over $100,000,000 in 1866 – they said. It seems they had revived this old case and once again were looking for new “heirs” to suck in.

Beniaih Jayne claimed that the marriage document found in an old church in New Haven, CT for William Jayne and Anna Biggs___ was found by John P. Jayne[20]. And no one else has ever been able to find a record of this marriage. This claim of finding such a document never made sense. William and Anna both lived in Long Island, NY. Why would they possibly be getting married in New Haven, CT? And to what benefit was it to create such a story? Was it to try to establish a connection between William Jayne of NY and William Janes of New Haven, CT? Highly Likely.

In his book Frederick Janes stated

  • “The generations between Geoffry de Janes and William the emigrant are not yet transmitted to the compiler.[21]”. It would seem he was still waiting on more information and it was information that was apparently never given, as Beniaih, didn't seem to know much more over 30 years later.

Some names and locations of the Janes family in England given to Frederick and Beniaih were taken straight from a pedigree of the Jane “Janes” family of Cornwall England. This pedigree was dated 1620 but not in the original Visitation book – but was in the Heralds Office.

The Jane(s) Family of Cornwall

It is first worth stating that YDNA proves that the Jane family of Cornwall had no connection to the Jayne family of New York or the Janes family of Connecticut. See below for more information on our YDNA project results.

College of Arms - Research on the Janes Coat of Arms - March 2022[22]

  • "In summary, the earliest record of the Jane(s) family’s Arms, Argent a Lion rampant Azure between three Escallops Gules, that I have found is from our office copy of the 1620 Visitation of Cornwall. It does not appear that the Arms were ever granted to a particular individual, but instead confirmed to the family by the heralds."

The 1620 Visitation of Cornwall[23]

  • Owen Janes “of St Winnow, in Con. Cornubie, came a younger brother of the ancient family of Janes in the Co. of Worcester into Cornwall”. Arms - Arg. A lion rampant Az, between three escalops Gu.

Only the following three names from that pedigree are included here, as they are the ones that information was taken from.

1 - Thomas Janes (son of John, who was son of Owen) of Botalack in Con. Cornub. Fil et herres, obit- eldest son, deceased, of Botalack, Cornwall.

Botalock from Fredericks book - “Geoffry, after his return to England, made with his son Guy or Guido three pilgrimages to the Holy Land. Hence the escallop shells in the coat of arms which commemorate those events. Before his death, he aquired through his daughter Eleanor, the heir of Sir Richard Penruddock, the land of Botalock in Cornwall”.

There is a Botalack in the parish of St Just in Penwith but the Jane family had for at least a hundred years lived in Boconnoc, so most likely were at Botalack Farm[24]in Boconnoc, Cornwall[25].

  • Botallic – Boconnoc 2 farms
  • Botallick Village and Lower Botallick - Boconnoc
  • Bocconoc 1525 – Henry Jane goods worth 2.0.0, Thomas Jane wages 1.0.018[26]
  • 1616-Liskeard Manor William Jane mentioned as formerly holding 1/2 acre in Bockynnowe[27]

2 - Eleanor Jane - youngest daughter of Thomas Jane, living and unmarried in 1620. Her name may have been used as Eleanor, who was to have married Sir Richard Penruddock (who did not exist).

3 - William Jane (son of Thomas) et heres frutria nune de London et Castlelge in Co. Cantab. - of London and Kirtling Cambridgeshire

Kirtling, Cambridge

William Jane of Cornwall

Frederick Janes book - "and the valorous entering of Guido de Janes into England with the Norman Baron, afterward Henry II of the English throne, and his having allotted him the manor of Kirtland as a reward of bravery and military prowness as a general and the success of his grandson in the Crusades, for the recovery of the Holy Land from the infidels, will be briefly narrated." ................[Henry II] "conferred upon Guido de Janes the manor of Kirtland or Kirtling in the county of Cambridgeshire, for his valor as a general in his service and as an acknowledgment" 

Beniaih Jayne - “The confirming of the manor of Kirkling upon Guido DeJeanne is a matter of history. I fear that your friend was not looking for the right thing at the right time.”

Castledge is Kirtling[28], and Cantab is Cambridge[29]

  • "Kirtling and the hamlet of Upend occupy 1,265 ha. (3,126 a.) on the Suffolk border 8 km. (5 miles) south-east of Newmarket. (fn. 83) By the 16th century at latest, the parish name had developed a variant pronunciation and spelling, Catlidge, which lasted into the 19th century."

Kirling was never in the possession of a Jeanne or Jane family – ever[30]. Kirting was in the possession of the North family from about 1530-1900. William Jane mentioned above was called Esquire and Gentleman. He was the Steward for Lord North at his various estates, as was his son[31]) and lived in Kirtling but not in Kirtling Hall and not on land that was a part of Kirtling Manor. He was on records with the North's.[32][33][34]. He didn't possess the manor of Kirtling and he was the son of Thomas Jane of Cornwall.

Henry Janes – Henry de Jeanne

Frederick Janes book –

  • “Henry Janes, born 1611, graduated at Oxon hall, and was greatly esteemed for his many good qualities of mind and heart, as an ornament to the church for which he ministered till called to his account. We suppose him an elder brother of William our ancestor.”

Edward H Jayne Book[35] -

  • “Mr. B. G. Jayne of Lone Tree, Iowa, formerly of New York City, has made a careful study of this family's history. In the year 1850, he visited England and different parts of Long Island. He took a copy of all of the old family records that could be obtained, in England and Long Island, for documents pertaining to the Jayne family from the time of William Jayne, who was born in Bristol, England on January 25, 1618, and died in Setauket, Long Island, in 1714, age ninety-six years”.. “he states the from Jayne is not in the English books of Visitation, before the Revolution, and ascribes the change of name to William, son of Henry de Jeanne, in an effort to escape ecclesiastical persecution, owing to his activities as a dissenter and a sympathizer with Oliver Cromwell in whose Army he was chaplain and also a private secretary to Cromwell. This ancestry is not traced beyond Henry de Jeanne. The latter was a graduate of Oxford University and a lecturer there on Theology and Divinity. While there, a son was born, January 25, 1618, who was christened, fifteen days later, William de Jeanne. Henry de Jeanne lived at Llewellyn, Monmouthshire, England, for ten or twelve years after the Restoration, but, owing to religious persecution changed his name to Jayne and fled to America about the year 1670”.

Wikitree Henry De Jeanne Biography

  • Henry de Jeanne, father of the first William Jayne, traced his ancestry back to Guido de Jeanne, a famous general in the service of the French Confederation who was detailed to escort Henry the Second (1135-1169) to England and place him on the throne (1184-1180). He was knighted by Henry, and given the Manor of Kirkling in Cambridgeshire. The above Henry de Jeanne was a graduate of Oxford University and a lecturer there on Theology and Divinity. While there, a son was born, January 25, 1618, named William.”

The Real Henry Jeanes

  • Although his date of birth was changed in the Jayne genealogy to fit in a birth for William Jayne in 1618 – it is obvious they took the information of the same person. His name was Henry Jeanes. Frederick Janes was right about one thing. Henry Jeanes was born in 1611. They were all correct about Oxford. He was a dissenter. But, he conformed[36] and he died in Somerset, England and is buried in Wells Cathedral[37]. He never fled or moved from England and his whereabouts are known throughout his whole life. He was a prolific writer[38].

Oxford National Dictionary of National Biography

  •  Jeanes, Henry[39], (1611-1662) Puritan divine, son of Christopher Jeanes of Kingston in Somerset, was born at Allansay in the county in 1611. He became in 1626 [at age 15] a commoner of New In Hall, Oxford, where, as Wood says, 'pecking and hewing continually at logic and physics' he became 'most noted and ready disputant'. He graduated B.A. 3 June 1630, and proceeded M.A. 14 May 1633; he was incorporated at Cambridge in 1632, and later removed to Hart Hall, Oxford. On 5 Aug. 1635, he was presented by Sir John Windham to the rectory of Beer Cromcombe and Capland in Somerset, and he obtained soon afterward the vicarage of Kingston. During the early part of the civil war, he and his family took refuge at Chichester, where they were kindly received by the citizens (dedication to one section of A Second Part of the Mixture of Scholastical Divinity), but later he received the rectory of Chedzoy, near Bridgwater. Here he instructed private pupils, among them being George Bull[q.v.], afterward bishop of St. Davids. Jeanes died at Wells in August 1662 and was buried in the cathedral. He was, according to Wood, 'a scholastically man, a contemner of the world, generous, free hearted, jolly, witty, and facetious'.

William Jayne

WILLAM DE JEANNE

  • Beniaih Jayne letter to David Jayne August 31, 1883, [40] “The first man to write his name “Jayne” was William Jayne, who was born at Bristol, England, Jan 25, 1618. His name was “de Jeanne” pronouced Dejan. He was a student in Oxford University and was expelled in 1640 as a dissenter. He became a presbyterian preacher and a follower of Cromwell. In 1660 when Charles the second was restored to the throne the persecution of the followers of Cromwell became ___ and severe, and William de Jeanne fled to Monmothshire on the border of Wales and took the name of Jayne to escape eclasiastic persecution.”

There was a large number of families in Gloucester who had the surname Jane and Jayne at this time. One was this William Jayne of Bristol, who happened to have sons named Roger and William.

There is no record at Oxford for a William de Jeanne, Jeanes, Janes – at the time of this story. There is also no record of one in connection with Cromwell. There was later a William Jane of some consequence in the church, he was the son of Joseph Jane of Liskeard, Cornwall[41]. There is also the fact that it was accepted then and now that Jean, Jane, and Jayne could be the same name and was used interchangeably. Changing the spelling of a name didn't hide you from the King of England. There was also almost no instance of "de" before a name in England in the 1600s, and certainly not by a family who had been there for hundreds of years.

Conclusion

John P Jayne advertised “Genealogies, Pedigrees, and Family Coats of Arms traced and furnished, all from the Records of the Heralds College, London to be had at my office”. Beniaih G Jayne said John P Jayne furnished the Jayne - Janes genealogy to both himself and Frederick Jane. While people have since taken liberties with adding to it and changing things to make the timeline work – according to Beniaih G Jayne, John P Jayne was the fraud. Perhaps like the book The Great Metropolis[42] describes what was going on in New York City in 1869 (well worth reading) - from chapter LXX, Heraldry on the Hudson:

  • "It is supported by the class of absurd people who are aspiring to a recognized position, who have more money than ancestors, and wish to exchange a little of the former for a good deal of the latter. The capital invested in the office is trifling. It requires only two or three men to look serious over a farce; a collection of old volumes full of shields, devices, and mottoes; a lot of genealogical trees hung up on the walls in antique-looking frames, and an uncertain number of histories and chronicles, including Froissart, Burke's Peerage, and kindred works."

According to the inventory of John P Jayne's library he had all that it took to convince people that he could trace their lineage to royalty or something close to it. One can only imagine what forged documents he showed Beniaih Jayne. Were they included in his inventory as- #330 Jayne – Coat of Arms of the Jayne Family. Jeanes or Jane. Normandy, France, 1453. A bundle of sheets?

The New England Historical and Genealogical Register reviewed Frederick Janes book in 1869[43]:

  • the compiler gives an account of “Guido de Janes”, who went from France to England in 1154, and received from his sovereign “the manor of Kirtland or Kirtling,” and this property remains still in the family name, and “from this family”, he adds, “came William Janes, in 1637 -” the generations between Geoffry de Janes” (the grandson of Guido de Janes) “and William, the emigrant, are not yet transmitted to the compiler. We know little of their history.” The connection of the American with the English family of Janes appears from the foregoing statement to be an assumption without any adequate foundation. A knowledge of the origin of English surnames should lead any one to hesitate before claiming that he is descended from any ancient English family, until he can trace the line back, “link by link,” through all the generations. The author does not appear to have any knowledge of the ancestors of William Janes, not even the name of his father. There may have been several families in England bearing the name of Janes, but of distinct origin. The tracing families fancy has no part to play; the labor of the genealogist begins, continues and ends in facts. The fact must be supported by competent evidence. The evidence may not be such as would be necessary to establish a legal claim to the property, but it should be such as will convince the majority of intelligent unbiased persons who have had experience in such investigations.

Someone performed research for or gave research to, Frederick Janes. Beniaih Jayne named John P Jayne as that person. John P Jayne had the means and motive to create such a tale. The English ancestry information provided to Frederick Janes was fraudulent and in part taken straight from the 1620 pedigree of the Janes family of Liskeard, Cornwall. Beniaih Jayne, and others since, have changed, added to, and taken away from the original tale, to make it fit their family.

Jean, Janes, Jayne YDNA

I have been an administrator (with Melinda Mathis) of the Jean (Jane, Jayne, Janes, Gean) YDNA project since 2006. First at Relative Genetics, then Ancestry, and now FTDNA. During that time 3 descendants of William Jayne have tested, as have 3 descendants of William Janes of New Haven, CT. The two families are of two distinct lines and are not related within the genealogical time frame on their direct paternal line. Also worth noting is there are at least 2 other distinct lines in the USA. The Prince George County, Maryland (and Loudon, VA, and Randolph, AR) are also of a separate line. Descendants of John Jane of Charles City County, VA, now bearing the surnames Jane, Jean, Jaynes, Gean - over 20 men have tested from this line. The Charles City County, VA line match 3 known descendants of the Cornwall, England, Jane family. The Charles City County Jane/Jean descendants are the only line to match the Cornwall Jane family.

A few books and publications known to contain this information

There are too many to mention or find as this has been incorporated into so many county and town histories, as well as biographical sketches of individuals. This is not to say anything about the information in their books except that they contain parts or all of the Fraudulent genealogy provided by John P Jayne.

  • Frederick Janes. Published 1868 and reprinted 2001. The Janes family: a genealogy and brief history of the descendants of William Janes, the emigrant ancestor of 1637, with an extended notice of Bishop Edmund S. Janes, D.D. And other biographical sketches. Published 1868. https://archive.org/details/janesfamilygenea00janeuoft
  • Reba Neighbors Collins, published 1975 (and later volumes). History of the Janes-Peek Family, from Grandma's Little Trunk
  • Jayne Family, Springfield, Illinois

For further Information on the so-called Heir Searchers also see


For Information on Columbus Smith see Francois Wells, 2013. Harvard Press. Family Trees

For further information on John P Jayne and the "heir" cases he was involved in, in some way, see the 25 clippings I have about him on Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/clippings/?user=368780%3Adrnewman6



Sources

  1. ↑ Frederick Janes. The Janes family: a genealogy and a brief history of the Descendants of William Janes, the emigrant ancestor of 1637, with an extended notice of Bishop Edmund S. Janes, D.D. And other biographical sketches. Published 1868. https://archive.org/details/janesfamilygenea00janeuoft
  2. ↑ Ibid pages 27 - 30
  3. ↑ Letters of Beniaih Jayne image 43-47 http://www.pieroth.org/scwhite/kennedy/Beniah_Gustin_Jayne_Letters/index.htm?45_M_
  4. ↑ Ibid; letters to Ebenezer C Jayne images 43-47
  5. ↑ As Beniaih Jayne said he provided information based on his “research” to Frederick Jayne prior to the book being published in 1868. The first article found about him to date was – an heir search advertisement by John P Jayne Attorney, No. 152 Spring Street, NY; page 1 New York Herald, New York, New York August 28, 1869. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96335961/john-p-jayne-1869/
  6. ↑ 95.000 Pounds Sterling – for Wood and Carpenter, next of kin, John P Jayne advertisement. New York Herald, New York, New York, August 28, 1869 page 1. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96335961/john-p-jayne-1869/#
  7. ↑ Obituary of John P Jayne, page 2; Fall River Daily Evening News, Fall River, Massachusetts August 20, 1886 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96365744/john-p-jayne-obit-1886/
  8. ↑ Jayne's Index Register, Advertisements for Heirs-at-Law, Next-of-Kin, Chancery Heirs, Legatees and Persons Wanted, many late cases in England, page 40. https://archive.org/details/jaynesindexregis00jayn/page/6/mode/2up?view=theater
  9. ↑ Numerous newspaper advertisements and articles across the USA, plus a few in Canada and Scotland, on Newspapers.com, search John P Jayne 1855-1888
  10. ↑ Fortunes for the Heirs; page 1, Intelligencer Journal, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, March 29, 1876
  11. ↑ Mary E (Carhart) Dusenbury, A Genealogical Record Of The Descendants Of Thomas Carhart, Of Cornwall, England; published by A.S. Barnes & Company, New York, Chicago, and New Orleans, 1880. https://archive.org/details/genealogicalreco00duse/mode/2up?view=theater
  12. ↑ British Crests Containing the Crests and Mottos of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland; Together with those of the Principal Cities; and a Glossary of Heraldic Terms, Vol 1. page 160, Jane. https://www.google.com/books/edition/British_Crests/nsITAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=jane
  13. ↑ Jina Bolton,Charles Knowles Bolton, Bolton's American Armory (5th? Edition) 2009, page 91; Jayne. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Bolton_s_American_Armory/YH5LJSlAsoUC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22john+p+jayne%22&pg=PA91&printsec=frontcover
  14. ↑ Brieflets: the sale by auction, John P Jayne of NYC, page 8. Boston Evening Transcript, Boston Massachusetts, January 3, 1884. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96366670/john-p-jayne-library/
  15. ↑ Catalog of the Library of the Late John P Jayne, Esq., Of This City. Bangs & Co. https://search.library.yale.edu/catalog/1720103?counter=1
  16. ↑ http://www.wallacestate.edu/Content/Uploads/wallacestate.edu/files/Genealogy/FORTUNES.pdf
  17. ↑ Francois Wells, 2013. Harvard Press. Family tree https://www.google.com/books/edition/Family_Trees/iiHf2p-X-9cC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22columbus+smith%22+heir+agent&pg=PA106&printsec=frontcover
  18. ↑ For Columbus Smith also see various published books titled Report of the [insert family name] Association such as Follensbee; Carpenter; Houghton; Gibbs; Ingraham; Edwards; Towneley;Wood; Jennings; Brown; Gibson and many others. The Follensbbe Association - https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/viewer/555912/offset=362324#page=1&viewer=picture&o=&n=0&q= Ingraham - https://archive.org/details/informationrespe00glad
  19. ↑ The original article from the Sun has not been located but this is a copy that ran in The Daily Commonwealth. Hunting For A Lost Will; The Daily Commonweath, Topeka Kansas. January 30, 1884 page 6. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97127763/john-p-jayne-columbus-smith-the-daily
  20. ↑ "This 10 Jun 1675 marriage record was found in an old book in an old Church downtown, New Haven, Conn. first, by JOHN P. JAYNE and later copied by BENIAH G. JAYNE, recorded along with other marriages from January 1, 1670, to 1697. It was a "Book Of Accounts for Fees", and the only heading was on the first page FEES PAID FOR MARRIAGES "https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~prsjr/genealogy/0jayne/jayne/jayne100.htm
  21. ↑ Frederick Janes: A Janes Family page 28
  22. ↑ Janes Coat of Arms Research Report prepared for Angelia Renee Newman by Dr Dominic C. D. Ingram Portcullis Pursuivant of Arms; March 25, 2022. College of Arms Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4BT
  23. ↑ The Visitations of Cornwall Comprising the Heralds' Visations of 1530, 1573 & 1620 by College of Arms (Great Britain) 1887. Janes Pedigree page 241 and page 587 https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Visitations_of_Cornwall/t0U7AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%22thomas%20jane%22
  24. ↑ An Index to the Historical Place Names of Cornwall Vol 1-A-K. By Chris Bonds, published 2007 page 131 Botallic. https://www.google.com/books/edition/An_Index_to_the_Historical_Place_Names_o/fxGkBAAAQBAJ? hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=botallic%20
  25. ↑ Bonnanoc, Cornwall. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boconnoc
  26. ↑ Cornwall Subsidies in the Reign of Henry VIII, 1524 and 1543, and the Benevolence of 1543, ed. T.L. Stoate (Bristol, 1985).
  27. ↑ Liskeard Manor; William Jane. Cornwall Manorial Rentals and Surveys https://kresenkernow.org/our-collections/manorial-documents/
  28. ↑ A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely; Vol 10, Cheveley, Flendish, Staine and Staploe Hundreds, Victoria County, History, London 2002. Kirtling: pages 57-63. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/cambs/vol10/pp57-63
  29. ↑ Cantab. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantab
  30. ↑ A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely; Vol 10, pages 63-69. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/cambs/vol10/pp63-69
  31. ↑ https://archives.lib.ku.edu/repositories/3/archival_objects/504037
  32. ↑ March 1648: An Ordinance for Raising Moneys to be imployed for the maintenance of the Forces under the Command of Sir Thomas Fairfax Knight; Cambridgeshire, William Janes. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/no-series/acts-ordinances�interregnum/pp1107-1
  33. ↑ Calendar of Treasury Books... Preserved in the Public Record Office Vol 7, Issue 2 by Great Britain. Public Record Office, William Arthur Shaw, 1904; Page 1147, Robert North and William Janes. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Calendar_of_Treasury_Books_Preserved_in/EoBnAAAAMAAJhl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%22william+janes%22+%22robert+north%22&dq=%22william+janes%22+%22robert+north%22&printsec=frontcover
  34. ↑ Mortgages by Danl. Deligne & Erasmus Deligne ewqres. Unless Parcle no 44, Oct 10, 1678. Eraumus de Ligne of Harlaxton, Harlaxton, esq, to Thomas Charnock of London, esq, and William Janes of London, gent.https://www.lincstothepast.com/Records/RecordDisplaySearchResults.aspx?oid=648170&mode=c
  35. ↑ Edward H Jayne, 1926 Ancestry of the Jayne family of Long Island, page 2. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/13232
  36. ↑ Letter written by John Owen to John Thorton. “Mr. Jeanes is reported to have conformed and presently to dye, sadly, and desperately” The Correspondence of John Owen (1616-1683) With an account of his life and work, Edited by Peter Toon forward by Rev. Dr. Geoffrey F. Nuttall, M.A., James Clark & Com. 1970
  37. ↑ Cambridge University Alumni, Jeanes, Henry. https://venn.lib.cam.ac.uk/cgibin/search2018.plsur=&suro=w&fir=&firo=c&cit=&cito=c&c=all&z=all&tex=JNS632H&sye=&eye=&col=all&maxcount=50
  38. ↑ Henry Jeanes books online. https://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/book/lookupnamekey=Jeanes%2C%20Henry%2C%201611%2D1662&c=x
  39. ↑ J. William Black, published online 2004. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography; Jeanes, Henry. https://doi.org/10.1093/ref:odnb/14677
  40. ↑ Letters of Beniaih Jayne image 33 and 35. http://www.pieroth.org/scwhite/kennedy/Beniah_Gustin_Jayne_Letters/index.htm?45_M_
  41. ↑ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Jane
  42. ↑ Junius H. Browne The Great Metropolis, A Mirror of New York (1869) Chapter LXX; Heraldry on the Hudson, page 596-1602,https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Great_Metropolis_A_Mirror_of_New_Yor/G0otGdym-Z4C?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=heraldy
  43. ↑ The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol 23, 1869 page 107, A Janes Family




Images: 3
John P Jayne advertisement
John P Jayne advertisement
Janes Pedigree 1620 Heralds Visitation
Janes Pedigree 1620 Heralds Visitation
John P Jayne advertisement
John P Jayne advertisement
Collaboration


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Categories: John P Jayne Genealogical Fraud