In Search of the Real David Maple Jr

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]
Surname/tag: Maple

When I purchased a copy of Genealogical History of the Maple/Mapel Family in America from the author, Telford Grant Maple, in 2001, I was disappointed to find my great-great-great grandfather, Jasper Newton Maple, placed in a genealogical fragment, unconnected to the main Maple family Tree:

DESCENDANTS OF WILLIAM AND EMELINE MAPLE

Pieced together from JJM Collection of War Records. Further documen­ta­tion needed to verify accuracy.

S.-WILLIAM MAPLE b. ca. 1800-06?; d. 1846-7 in Mex. War, tradition. m. Emeline _____. Hatter by occupation. Res. Carroll Co., OH in 1827.

SECOND GENERATION:

Children of William and Emeline (_____) Maple:

S1. David B. Maple b. 1825?, d. Jan. 26, 1888, Adams Co., IL. m. Phoebe F. Denman, Feb. 14, 1865, Canton, MO by Rev. J. A. Barrett. Enl. Civil War, Rising Sun, Ohio Co., IN.

S2. Henry Maple, m. Nancy Denman, sister of Phoebe F.

S3. Joseph Maple

S4. Francis Marion Maple b.  ; d. Aug. 20, 1913, Govt. Hospital, Washington, DC. Served in Civil War. Enl. July 19, 1862, Greens­burg, Decatur Co., IN. Mustered in Aug. 19, 1862, Indianapolis, Marion Co., IN, Co. A, 68th IN Vol. Inf. Transferred to Co. C, 2nd Bat., 18th U.S. Inf., Nov. 20, 1862. Mustered Jan. 4, 1865, Co. F, 35th IN Vol. Inf.; mustered out Sept. 30, 1865, substitute. Also Cos. A and D, 18th U.S. Inf. Cert. 303144. Unm.

S5. Benjamin Franklin Maple b. May 27, 1827, Zenia, Carroll Co., OH; d. July 17, 1910; bur. near Mountain Home, Baxter Co., AR. m1. Angelina Carter, Oct. 8, 1857, Hancock Co., IL; b. 1836? IL; d. Jan. 3, 1897 (1901?) Douglas Co., MO. m2. Mrs. Lucy Ann Gloer, Sept. 2, 1897, Independence Twp., Baxter Co., AR, wid. of W. A. Gloer, by Elder J. A. Taylor; b. May 25, 1862, Ky. Mex. War. Pvt. Co. H, 4th OH Vol. Inf. Enl. May 15, 1847, Cincinnati, Hamilton Co., OH. Discharged June 20, 1848, Cincinnati, OH. 6 ft., blue or grey eyes, dark hair, dark complex., 167 lbs. Res. OH, IN, IL, MO, and AR; 1847-1855, Warsaw, Hancock Co., Ill; 1855-1895, Warren, St. Charles and Randolph Counties, MO; 1895-1897, Mountain Home, Baxter Co., AR. See Roster of Ohio Troops, 1846-1866, Vol. XII, p. 471. Wheel­wright and farmer.

S6. John Maple

S7. Jasper N. Maple b. ?, d. Sept. 12, 1899. m1. Lydia Warren, June 23, 1853; d. Feb. 8, 1875, Decatur Co., IN; m2. Rebecca (Hunter?) Fletcher, Dec. 5, 1875, wid. of Jacob Fletcher; d. Jan. 18, 1916, Greens­burg, Decatur Co., IN. Civil War: Co. A, 68th IN Inf. Enl. Aug. 6, 1862, dischg. June 20, 1865.

THIRD GENERATION

Children of Jasper N. Maple

S71. David J. Maple m. Susie _____ .

S72. John Joseph Maple m. Belle _____ .

S73. George Maple m. Rebecca _____ ; b. 1864

S74. Lewis E. Maple m. Laura _____ .

S75. James H. Maple m. Nancy A. _____ .

S76. Emmet M. Maple m. Julia _____ .

The children listed for William and Emeline Maple are an odd assemblage of people. S1 (actually Daniel B. Maple, born about 1842), S2 (Henry), S3 (Joseph), and S4 (Jasper) were, in reality, sons of David Maple III. S4 (Francis), S5 (Benjamin), and S6 (John) may have been sons of a William Maple, of whom little is known. In 2003, I asked T. Grant Maple how he came up with this family for William and Emeline, to which he replied that "it has been so long since I clobbered the William and Emmeline Maple thing together, I do not recall the reasoning."

Fortunately, T. Grant continued to update his book, originally published in 1993, and he distributed updated versions on CDs. Along with my copy of the printed book, Grant sent me a copy of a 2001 revision on CD. In this revision Grant had my ancestry much closer to the mark, with my 3rd great grandfather Jasper Newton Maple being a son of David Maple III, who was a grandson of David Maple Sr.

Children of David Maple Jr.:

1211. David Maple III b. 1799 or 1800, Fayette Co., PA; d. aft. 1860, prob. Decatur Co., IN. m. Hannah Mahan, Sept. 28, 1826, Jefferson Co., OH; b. 1812, PA. Got the old home farm in Carroll Co., OH.

Res. successively OH (1826-1840), IN (1842-1844), and KY (1848- ). Returned to Salt Creek Twp., Decatur Co., IN after 1851.

1850 Census, District No. 1, Boone Co., KY: David Maple 50 b. PA, Hannah 38 b. PA, Jasper 18 b. OH, Sarah 16 b. OH, Joseph 12 b. OH, Rebecca A. 10 b.OH, Danl B. 8; b. IN, Margaret 5 b. IN, Henry 2 b. KY, James 1 b. KY, Thos. 20 b. OH, Matilda 19 b. OH; also James Moore 19 b. OH, Elizabeth Mitchell 18 b. IN, in same household. 1860 Census, Salt Creek Twp., Decatur Co., IN: David Maple 59 laborer b. OA, Daniel B. 17 b. IN, Margaret E. 16 b. IN, James K. 11 b. IN.

Nov. 1838, Deed from Gad Waggner of Decatur Co., IN, to David Maple, Jr. of Carroll Co., OH.

1851. Deed of 40 acres from Isaiah Maple and wife Nancy, of Decatur Co., IN, to David Maple, of Boone Co., KY

1212. dau. Maple b. ca. 1796 Fayette Co. PA.

1213. John Maple b. ca. 1804 Fayette Co., PA. Lived in Brush Creek Hills, Jefferson Co., OH. m. Mary _____, ca. 1830. 1850 Census, Brush Creek Twp., Jefferson Co., OH: John Maple, age 40, Mary age 40?, Mary A. age 19, Margaret age 17, Rezin age 15, Henry age 12, Elizabeth age 11, Jacob age 9, John age 1; all b. OH; living in ____ Marshall household.

1214. William Maple b. ca. 1806 Fayette Co., PA or Jefferson Co., OH.

1215. Sarah Maple b. Dec. 1, 1816 (g.s. calc.), Jefferson Co., OH; d. 8-27-1892, age 75 yrs 8 mos 26 ds; bur. Russell Cem., Brush Creek Twp., Jefferson Co., OH. m. Joseph Russell, Mar. 3, 1836, Jefferson Co., OH; b. Feb. 14, 1808 (g.s. Calc.); d. 5-27-1880, aged 72 yrs 3 mos 13 ds; bur. Russell Cem., Brush Creek Twp., Jefferson Co., OH.

1216. Henry Brown Maple b. ca. 1822, Jefferson Co., OH; d. 1875 Adams Co., IN. m. 14831. Mary Margaret Maple, dau. of 1483. William Rich Maple and 1224. Nancy (Maple) Maple of Jefferson Co., OH. Census 1850 IN, Adams Co., Root Twp.: H. B. Maple 28 b. OH.

1217. Jacob Maple b. ca. 1820 Jefferson Co., OH; d. Jan. 9, 1897; bur. Lobb's Cem. near Floreffe, PA. m. Catherine Brown b. Sept. 6, 1807; d. Oct. 10, 1883. Lived near McKeesport, Allegheny Co., PA. 1850 Census, Union Twp., Washington Co., PA: Jacob Maple age 30, Catharine age 40, Hannah age 11, Jesse age 9, Martha age 7, Benjamin age 5, Mary P. age 3, Rebecca age 9/12; all b. OH.

1218. dau. Maple' b. ca. 1822 Jefferson Co., OH.

Children of David and Hannah (Mahan) Maple:

12111. Thomas Maple b. 1830, OH; d. Oct. 6, 1892, New Point, Salt Creek Twp., Decatur Co., IN. m. Matilda Wilden, July 17, 1850, Coshocton Co., OH; b. Oct. 7, 1832, OH; d. Dec. 18, 1917. (His d. certif. says b. IN, fa. David Maple b. MO, mo. Brown b. MO). Civil War: Enl. Feb. 22, 1864, Co. I, 123 IN Inf, dischg. Sept. 13, 1865. Wid., Matilda, certif. 382239 IN. 1860 Census, Salt Creek Twp., Decatur Co., IN: Thomas Maple 30 laborer b. OH, Matilda 28 b. OH, Charlotte 8 b. KY, Mary J. 6 b. IN, Thomas 4 b. IA, Nancy? 14 b. KY. 1870 Census, Decatur Co., IN: Thomas Maple 40 teamster b. OH, Mtilda 38 b. OH, Charlette 20 b. KY, Mary E. 17 b. IN, Thomas J. 14 b. IA, Martha J. 11 b. IN, Josephine 9 b. IN, Wm N. 4 b. IN, Emily E. 1 b. IN.

12112. Jasper Newton Maple b. Jan. 6, 1832, OH (headstone has 1830, 1860 Census gives age 26); d. Sept. 12, 1899, Decatur Co., IN; bur. Old Ross Cem., New Point, Decatur Co., IN. m1. Lydia (Land) Warren, June 23, 1853, Decatur Co., IN; b. April 22, 1830, OH; d. Feb. 7, 1875, Decatur Co., IN; she m1. Irvin Warren (he d. June 10, 1875). m2. Rebecca (Hunter?) Fletcher, Dec. 5, 1875, wid. of Jacob Fletcher (she had a son Jonas Fletcher b. 1859 OH by earlier m.); b. 1826, OH; d. Jan. 18, 1916, Greens­burg, Decatur Co., IN. Civil War: Co. A, 68th IN Inf. Enl. Aug. 6, 1862, dischg. June 20, 1865. Wid. certif. 512226 IN. 1860 Census, Salt Creek Twp., Decatur Co., IN: Jasper Newton Maple 26 farmer b. OH, Lydia 30, David 5 b. IN, John J. 3 b. IN, George H? 1 b. IN.

12113. (dau.) Maple b. 1834, OH; d. inf.?

12114. Sarah Maple b. 1836, OH.

12115. Joseph Maple b. 1838, OH. m. Mary _____, Oct. 25, 1856; b. 1836, OH.

12116. Rebecca A. Maple b. 1840, OH. m. Henry Miller, June 6, 1857.

12117. Daniel B(rown?) Maple b. 1842, Decatur Co., IN; d. Jan. 26, 1888, Adams Co., IL. m. Phoebe Frances Denham, Feb. 14, 1865, Canton, Lewis Co., MO by Rev. J. A. Barrett. Enl. Aug. 16, 1861, age 36, Co. A, 18th IN Vol. Inf., Rising Sun, Ohio Co., IN. Disch. July 14, 1862. Disabilty certif. 377193. Widow's certif. 446843 MO.

12118. Margaret Ellen Maple b. Mar. 9, 1844, IN. m. Edwin Ruthvin Littell, June 16, 1860, Decatur Co., IN; b. April 4, 1839, Ripley Co., IN.

12119. Henry S.(or L.) Maple b. 1848, Boone Co., KY. m. Nancy Denham, sister of Phoebe F. Denham.

1211A. James K. Maple b. 1849, Boone Co., KY.

Here the data for David Maple III (my 4th great grandfather) and his family are essentially correct. David III was born in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, moved with his grandfather and parents to Jefferson County, Ohio, and lived in Boone County, Kentucky for a time, before moving to Decatur County, Indiana. It also appears that Grant (correctly) used an 1820 US Census record for a David Maple who lived in Knox Township, Jefferson County, Ohio as a template for the family of David Maple Jr:

"David Maple" - Males: 1 (>44), 1 (26<45), 2 (10<16), 2 (<10); Females: 1 (26<45), 1 (16<26), 1 (<10)

Unfortunately, as I will explain later, the siblings Grant gave for David Maple III (the other children of David Maple Jr) are completely incorrect, and I believe this stems partly from his mistaken belief that David III "got the old home farm in Carroll Co., OH.". In 1838, David Maple Jr of Carroll County, Ohio purchased 80 acres in Decatur County, Indiana, and T. Grant, apparently, assumed that this David was the same person as the David Maple III who lived in Decatur County, Indiana in 1860. Looking over Decatur County deed records, however, I found that this same 80 acres was sold in 1852 by David Maple Jr of Carroll County, Ohio and his wife, Elizabeth. This David was actually the son of John Maple, and he used the suffix "Jr " in deed records to distinguish himself from his older cousin David, the son of Jacob Maple.

With regard to the father of David Maple III, David Maple Jr, in the 1993 book Grant had only that the latter was the eldest son of David Maple Sr:

121. David Maple Jr. b. ca.1766, NJ.

No additional information was given for David Maple Jr or his descendants

Note that in the 1993 edition, under "Children of William Rich and Nancy (Maple) Maple", Grant wrote:

14831. Mary Margaret Maple b. Jan. 23, 1828, Jefferson Co., OH; d. May 8, 1873, Adams Co., IN; bur. Monmouth M. E. Churchyard. m1. Henry Brown Maple, son of David Maple (1231?); b. 1818, Carroll Co., OH; d. Mar. 22, 1875, Adams Co., IN. He had four brothers and 2 sisters: William, David (got the old home farm in Carroll Co.), John (lived Brush Creek Hills, Jefferson Co.), Jacob (lived near McKee­sport, Allegheny Co., Pa.). He was the son of David Maple according to his step-son Lemuel E. Maple, but his middle name suggests he may have been the son of George (144) and Ann (Brown) Maple, m2. _____ Herring.

One can only wonder what, and how many, sources this information came from. but the brothers mentioned here sound like children of John Maple. In his will, John left his farm, in Carroll County, to his son David. He also mentioned sons William and John, and mentioned that his son Jacob was living in Pennsylvania. At the time of the 1850 US Census, his son John was living on a farm in Brush Creek Township owned by John's widowed sister Susanna (Maple) Marshall. Note that David Maple Sr's sons John and William R. Maple both had sons named Henry, and it is not clear if Grant had evidence that the middle name of the Henry that married Mary Margaret Maple was Brown, or if that may have just been his surmise. To emphasize how confused the situation is, it should be noted that in his 1993 book, Grant listed William R. Maple's son as Henry (Brown?) Maple. That would make sense, as the mother of that Henry was Rebecca (Brown) Maple. As for the claimed statement of Lemuel Maple, I have been unable to make sense of it, and without better documentation of what he actually said, I don't think it carries much weight.

I believe that in the 2001 edition of his book, T. Grant Maple created an erroneous family for David Maple Jr, by concluding that David Maple III was one of the brothers mentioned in his entry for Mary Margaret Maple. In reality, those supposed brothers were children of John Maple.

Around 2002, as I was beginning to doubt Grant's account of the family of my 5th great grandfather, David Maple Jr, I noticed that a family consistent with David Maple III's was enumerated in the 1840 US Census in Coshocton County, Ohio

1840 US Census - Linton Township, Coshocton County, Ohio:

David Maple - Males: 1 (30<40), 1 (10<15), 1 (5<10), 1 (<5)

Females: 1 (20<30), 1 (10<15), 1 (5<10), 1 (<5)

Curiously, this census entry was not mentioned in Grant's book, so I began to look over records concerning the Maples of Coshocton County, Ohio.

T. Grant Maple believed that the Maples of Coshocton / Guernsey Counties, Ohio were all descendants of Jacob Maple Sr, who moved to Coshocton County around 1807. Concerning Coshocton County Maples with the name David, in the 1993 edition of his book Grant had:

Children of Jacob and Elizabeth (Stanford) Maple:

132. David Maple b. 1770?

Children of David Maple:

1321. William B. Maple b. 1793; d. after 1870, bef. 1880 (not in 1880 census). m. Sarah Johnson, Oct. 2, 1817, Guernsey Co., OH by Geo. Mitchell, J.P. (Book A, p. 63), dau.of Ephraim and Catherine (Bridgewater) Johnson; b. 1798, PA; d. after 1870, bef. 1880 (not in 1880 census). Rem. to Coshocton Co., OH Dec. 25, 1832.

1840 Census, Linton Twp., Coshocton Co., OH: Maple, Wm. B. 1 male under 5, 1 male 5-10, 2 males 10-15, 1 male, 40-50, 1 female under 5, 2 females 15-20, 1 female 40-50. He owned 35 acres, Wheeling Twp., Guernsey Co., OH in 1840. 1850 Census, Wheeling Twp., Guernsey Co., OH: Maple, William B. 57 b. OH farmer, Sarah 52 b. PA, Johnson 21 b. OH, Ann 30 b. OH, David 20 b. OH, James 18 b. OH, Ephraim 14 b. OH, Amelia 12 b. OH. 1870 Census, Coshocton Co., OH: Mapel, William B. 71 b. OH. Sarah 72 b. PA. Not in 1880 Census.

1322. David Maple b. 1794?; d. Oct. 14, 1839, Coshocton Co., OH (Admin. Docket 1837-40, Coshocton Co., OH). m. Joanna Addy, Oct. 15, 1818, Coshocton Co., OH, b. bef 1796. Served in War of 1812. 1820 Census, Perry Twp., Coshocton Co., OH: Maple, David 1 male 26-45, 1 female 26-45. 1830 Census, Perry Twp., Coshocton Co., OH: Maple, David 1 male under 5, 1 male 5-10, 1 male 20-30, 1 female under 5, 1 female 30-40.

1323. Joseph Maple b. 1810?; d. 1841, Coshocton Co., OH. m. Mrs. Elizabeth (_____) Cain, wid. with son John Cain; b. 1805, OH.

1840 Census, Linton Twp., Coshocton Co., OH: Maple, Joseph 1 male under 5, 1 male 5-10, 1 male 15-20, 1 male 20-30, 2 females under 5, 1 female 5-10, 1 female 30-40. 1850 Census, Coshocton Co., OH: Maple, Elizabeth 45 b. OH, Maria 18 b. OH, Jacob 17 b. OH, Nelson 16; b. OH, Lucinda 13 b. OH, Matilda 10 b. OH, Anderson 8 b. OH.

Children of David and Joanna (Addy) Maple:

13221. Elizabeth Maple

13222. Thomas Maple

13223. John Maple

I was able to access some old land deed records for Coshocton County, and I found data that seemed inconsistent with Grant's account, most notably:

1) In 1835 "David Maple Sr of Jefferson County Ohio" patented the NE1/4 NE1/4 of Section 15 Twp 4N Range 4W (Linton Township, Coshocton County)

2) In 1840 "Ezekiel Mahon and wife Hannah Mahon. daughter of David Maple, deceased" sold their interest in the land David Maple purchased in 1835 to Thomas Johnson.

3) In 1840 "David Maple and wife Hannah" sold their interest in the land of David Maple, deceased, to Joseph Maple.

It appeared likely that the David Maple enumerated in Linton Township in 1840 was my David Maple III, especially since tax records indicated that David III's brother in law, Ezekiel Mahon, was living near him in Boone County, Kentucky in 1847. It seemed that the father of David Maple III was a David who came to Linton Township from Jefferson County in the 1830s and who died in Linton Township in 1839. Neither David Maple III nor his father David seemed to correspond to the David Maple (possible descendant of Jacob Maple Sr) who married Joanna Addy in 1818.

I got some insight into how Grant put together his description of 132 David Maple's family when, in 2003, I asked a Guernsey County Addy/Clark lookup for information about the Joanna Addy who married David Maple in Coshocton County in 1818. I was given the following information that had come from Ruth Maple, one of the researchers who shared information with T. Grant Maple:

Chapter 10

DESCENDANTS OF JOANNA ADDY

9. Joanna Addy, b ca 1790-1794 in VA, married David Maple in Coshocton Co OH 15 Oct 1918. We know very little about this family except that tragedy struck very early in their lives. Prior to her marriage, Joanna is shown in William Addy's account with James Miskimen as Annah or Anny. She did spinning to apply against her father's account, and also picked up items for him at the post.

Joanna and David Maple are in the 1820 census, Linton tp, with one male 26/45 and one female 26/45. In the 1830 census, both LINTON and PERRY tp names appear at the top of the page; David is shown with one male under 5, one 5/10, one female under 5, he is 20/30 and Joanna is 30/40.

David was b ca 1794 and died 15 Oct 1839 without a will, his brother William B Maple was appointed Administrator of the estate, which was not settled until October term 1848. Named as heirs were Elizabeth, Thomas and John Maple, said to be "living out of state", no mention of just where or with whom. Joanna was not mentioned, and it is assumed that she had died either before David, or before the 1840 census, as that family does not appear in the Coshocton Co census.

We found no guardianship case for the children, and they were probably just sent to live with relatives, but with whom or where, we do not know. Perhaps they were in Peoria Co. IL where several Maple/Addy families had settled, but we have found no concrete evidence of this. David was a cousin of Abraham Maple who also married into the Addy family, not just once, but three times! David served on the Mansfield Frontier in 1812-1214;

Third Generation

Descendants of Joanna Addy (Wml) and David Maple

91 John Maple

92 Thomas Maple

93 Elizabeth Maple

Ruth Maple's narrative seems to be based on an assumption that the David Maple who married Joanna Addy in 1818 was the David who died in 1839, and it does not appear to be the product of a careful analysis of historical facts.

It was actually in the 1820 US Census that opposing pages held data for different townships. Despite the intercalation of data for Linton and Perry Townships in the microfilm record, David Maple was clearly listed on a page for Linton Township. There is no such confusion in the 1830 US Census, and there a David Maple clearly appears in Perry Township, which is across the county from Linton Township. The age given for the David in the 1830 census is not consistent with the age given for the David in the 1820 US Census.

Here is what court records actually said about David Maple's estate.^[1] In 1845, William B. Maple, administrator of David Maple's estate, petitioned the court for permission to sell David's land in order to pay the debts of the estate. The record states that at that time, interest in the estate was held by Elizabeth Maple, Thomas Maple, John Maple, John M. Johnson, and the unknown heirs of Harrison Butler. Elizabeth Maple was the wife of David's son Joseph, who died in 1841. We know that David Maple III and his sister Hannah had sold their interest in the estate to Joseph in 1840. The court record states that Thomas Maple and John Maple were living out of state at the time of this suit.

There is nothing in the court records stating or suggesting that John, Thomas, and Elizabeth were minor children of David. This was an assumption made by Ruth Maple, based on her assumption that the David Maple who died in 1839 was the David enumerated in Perry Township in 1830.

Towards the end of 2003, I became disillusioned with T. Grant Maple's book. It was clear that the book had many errors, and it was not clear to me whether I was a descendant of David Maple Sr, Jacob Maple Sr, or some other son of Benjamin Maple Jr. At that time I became extremely busy (managing a new research grant as my my soon to be pregnant wife entered a medical residency program in a city far away from where I worked) and I had no time for genealogy. When I moved to California in 2006, my genealogy research materials were boxed up, and they remained so for over a decade.

In 2016 I reached a point where I had more free time, and I dusted off my genealogy materials, buoyed partly by the hope that DNA testing might answer some of my questions. At this time many county records, previously difficult to obtain, were becoming available online. I began using Wikitree as a tool for organizing the records I found, and since then I have worked towards creating a Maple family tree based on historical records. My research has led me to believe that I am, in fact, a descendant of David Maple Sr. I have come to realize that the Maple families that lived in Salt Creek Township, Decatur County, Indiana (where Jasper Newton Maple lived) were all descendants of three brothers (David Maple Jr, John Maple, and William R. Maple) who lived together, with their young families, on David Maple Sr's farm at the beginning of the 19th century. Results of more recent research will be summarized in other Wikitree free-space profiles, such as Decatur County MAPLEs and Coshocton County MAPLEs.

DNA findings are now supporting my conclusions. Of the 5 autosomal DNA matches Bruce Maple has at Family Tree DNA with Maple descendants having a nearest common Maple ancestor more distant than Jasper Newton Maple (Bruce's 3rd great grandfather), 2 are descendants of David Maple III (one through son Thomas, and another through son Daniel), 2 are descendants of William B. Maple (one through daughter Ann, and another through daughter Amelia), and 1 is a descendant of Mary Maple Roseberry (Benjamin Maple Jr's daughter). Of the 24 Ancestry DNA matches Bruce Maple has with Maple descendants having a nearest common Maple ancestor more distant than Jasper Newton Maple, 21 are believed to be descendants of David Maple Jr (7 through his son William B. Maple, 9 through his son David Maple III, and 5 through his son Thomas Maple). and 3 matches have a nearest common ancestor David Maple Sr. No matches descend from Jacob Maple Sr or any of David Sr's other brothers. (In cases where a closely related group of individuals have tested, only 1 individual per group is counted in these tabulations).

Stronger evidence is coming from Y-DNA testing by the Maple Surname Y-DNA Project at Family Tree DNA. So far, no SNP variants have been found that distinguish between the descendants of Benjamin Maple Jr's 6 sons, but it appears that the repeat count for STR marker DYS497 changed with the birth of David Maple Sr. All of David Sr's descendants (including descendants of John Maple and William B Maple) have a value of 15 for this marker. A descendant of David's brother John Maple Sr and a descendant of David's nephew William Maple both have a value of 14, which appears to be ancestral in the human Y-DNA tree.

While I have been critical of T. Grant Maple's book, I would like to acknowledge the great importance of his contributions to Maple genealogy. His writings concerning the descendants of William Maple Sr (his ancestor) and his nephew William Maple (ancestor of John Jameson Mapel, whose notes laid the foundation for Grant's book) are especially valuable. Grant didn't know much about the descendants of David Maple Sr, however. Regarding his book Grant told me, "The initial framework for descendants of David Maple Sr. was based on research of Miriam deHaven Page (now long deceased), of the Moody branch. Unfortunately, she labored under the misapprehension that her Jacob Maple was a son of Jacob Maple (of Coshocton C., OH) and Elizabeth Stanford, and only realized her mistake shortly before she died. Hence, she didn't give as much attention to David Sr. as she might have otherwise." Grant worked diligently, up to his death in 2005, towards creating a complete Maple genealogy. Unfortunately, Grant pushed the limited data available to him too far, and he created numerous errors in the process. Maple genealogists now have a much greater amount of historical evidence available to them.