John Kneeland

Personpeople/john-kneeland-1632.md

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As written

name
John Kneeland
aka
[John Kneland]
sex
male
access
public
summary
A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston in 1657, whose subscribers gave "for the relief of ourselves, being Scottish men"; he was almost certainly born in Scotland, but his parents are unknown. Probably married by 1659 to Mary Hawkins, he had six children recorded at Boston between 1659 and 1673, among them John (b. 1668), who married Mary Green.
born
date
c. 2 Aug 1632
basis
documented
confidence
probable
sources
[gravestone-john-kneeland-1691, book-scots-charitable-society-1840]
note
From the gravestone, "Aged 59 years & 9 days." Mollie's "in New England" is almost certainly wrong.
died
date
11 Aug 1691
basis
documented
confidence
proven
sources
[gravestone-john-kneeland-1691]
note
Mollie has him dying at Roxbury.
buried
place
Eliot Burying Ground, Roxbury, Massachusetts
basis
compiled
confidence
probable
sources
[online-tree-wikitree-low-profiles, gravestone-john-kneeland-1691]
note
Plot B79 (Find a Grave 53853652, via WikiTree Kneeland-163). Kneeland 1897 puts the stone "In the old burial ground at Roxbury."
residences
date
1657
place
Boston, Massachusetts
basis
documented
confidence
proven
sources
[book-kneeland-1897-seven-centuries]
note
A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston on 6 Jan 1657, almost certainly born in Scotland.
spouses
id
mary-hawkins-fl1659
married
date
by 1659
basis
compiled
confidence
probable
sources
[book-torrey-new-england-marriages]
note
Torrey, "Mary [HAWKINS], dau James; by 1659," at Boston.
basis
compiled
confidence
probable
sources
[book-torrey-new-england-marriages]

A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston, 6 Jan 1657, whose subscribers gave "for the relief of ourselves, being Scottish men, or for any of the Scottish nation." He was almost certainly born in Scotland, not in New England as Mollie has it. That he came as a prisoner from Dunbar (1650) or Worcester (1651) is possible but unproved; he is not in the OCR of the 1652 John and Sara list.

He came from Scotland to Boston by 1657. "Jno Kneeland" is on the list of Boston men who took the oath of allegiance in 1678 (Records of the Suffolk County Court 1671-1680, 2:967).

Children (Boston RC 9): Mary 1659, Hannah 1663, Mary 1666, John 1668, Solomon 1671 and Ruth 1673.

Kneeland 1897 (p. 49) quotes what it calls his "unsigned will, which was dated in 1684 and recorded in the Boston record of wills": "I give my biggest gun and my cutlass to my eldest son, my best gun and my rapier to my youngest son." It adds that the will made "an abortive attempt to leave to his brother, Bartholomew, his house and grounds near Sudbury." No such record has been found, and the same book's Scottish pedigree is unfounded, so this is unverified.

Savage (3:34) gives him no English or Scottish origin, no father Edward and no brother Bartholomew. Mollie's pedigree, from S. F. Kneeland (1897), Anderson's Scottish Nation and Burke's Landed Gentry (1847), runs through the Clelands of that Ilk to Sir William Wallace, the Somervilles, the Hepburns of Bothwell, Stewart of Blantyre and James V. No record links the Boston Kneelands to the Clelands, and each step fails:

  • Alexander Kneland, "Parson O' Gowie," and Margaret Wallace: Blind Harry's uncle at Gowrie is unnamed and not a priest, and Kneeland admits the identification is his own deduction.
  • James Kneland, Wallace's "cusying": Harry's Kneland has no forename; one manuscript reads "Cleland."
  • William and Jean Somerville, 1462: garbled from Janet Somerville's marriage to James, son and heir of William Cleland of that Ilk (Scots Peerage 8:9-11).
  • Hepburn of Bonnytoun: no such child of the 1st Earl of Bothwell; the 4th Earl "had no legitimate issue."
  • Capt. John and Mary Dunbar, and John (b. c. 1575) and his mother Mary Dunbar arriving about 1630: no record.
  • Mary Stewart, daughter of Walter, 1st Lord Blantyre: he had no daughter Mary; his sister Marion married William Cleland of that Ilk (Scots Peerage 2:81-85). The Blantyre Stewarts descend from Stewart of Dalswinton, not James V.

The 1897 book's own author wrote: "Personally, I do not stand sponsor for the truth of all this ancestry."

Open questions

  • His origin and parents.
  1. ---
  2. name: John Kneeland
  3. aka: [John Kneland]
  4. sex: male
  5. access: public
  6. summary: >-
  7. A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston in 1657, whose subscribers gave "for the
  8. relief of ourselves, being Scottish men"; he was almost certainly born in Scotland, but his
  9. parents are unknown. Probably married by 1659 to Mary Hawkins, he had six children recorded at
  10. Boston between 1659 and 1673, among them John (b. 1668), who married Mary Green.
  11. born:
  12. date: c. 2 Aug 1632
  13. basis: documented
  14. confidence: probable
  15. sources: [gravestone-john-kneeland-1691, book-scots-charitable-society-1840]
  16. note: From the gravestone, "Aged 59 years & 9 days." Mollie's "in New England" is almost certainly wrong.
  17. died:
  18. date: 11 Aug 1691
  19. basis: documented
  20. confidence: proven
  21. sources: [gravestone-john-kneeland-1691]
  22. note: Mollie has him dying at Roxbury.
  23. buried:
  24. place: Eliot Burying Ground, Roxbury, Massachusetts
  25. basis: compiled
  26. confidence: probable
  27. sources: [online-tree-wikitree-low-profiles, gravestone-john-kneeland-1691]
  28. note: Plot B79 (Find a Grave 53853652, via WikiTree Kneeland-163). Kneeland 1897 puts the stone "In the old burial ground at Roxbury."
  29. residences:
  30. - date: "1657"
  31. place: Boston, Massachusetts
  32. basis: documented
  33. confidence: proven
  34. sources: [book-kneeland-1897-seven-centuries]
  35. note: "A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston on 6 Jan 1657, almost certainly born in Scotland."
  36. spouses:
  37. - id: mary-hawkins-fl1659
  38. married:
  39. date: by 1659
  40. basis: compiled
  41. confidence: probable
  42. sources: [book-torrey-new-england-marriages]
  43. note: Torrey, "Mary [HAWKINS], dau James; by 1659," at Boston.
  44. basis: compiled
  45. confidence: probable
  46. sources: [book-torrey-new-england-marriages]
  47. ---
  49. A founder of the Scots' Charitable Society of Boston, 6 Jan 1657, whose subscribers
  50. gave "for the relief of ourselves, being Scottish men, or for any of the Scottish
  51. nation." He was almost certainly born in Scotland, not in New England as Mollie has it.
  52. That he came as a prisoner from Dunbar (1650) or Worcester (1651) is possible but
  53. unproved; he is not in the OCR of the 1652 *John and Sara* list.
  55. He came from Scotland to Boston by 1657. "Jno Kneeland" is on the list of Boston men who
  56. took the oath of allegiance in 1678 (Records of the Suffolk County Court 1671-1680, 2:967).
  58. Children (Boston RC 9): Mary 1659, Hannah 1663, Mary 1666, John 1668, Solomon 1671 and
  59. Ruth 1673.
  61. Kneeland 1897 (p. 49) quotes what it calls his "unsigned will, which was dated in 1684 and
  62. recorded in the Boston record of wills": "I give my biggest gun and my cutlass to my eldest
  63. son, my best gun and my rapier to my youngest son." It adds that the will made "an abortive
  64. attempt to leave to his brother, Bartholomew, his house and grounds near Sudbury." No such
  65. record has been found, and the same book's Scottish pedigree is unfounded, so this is
  66. unverified.
  68. Savage (3:34) gives him no English or Scottish origin, no father Edward and no brother
  69. Bartholomew. Mollie's pedigree, from S. F. Kneeland (1897), Anderson's *Scottish Nation*
  70. and Burke's *Landed Gentry* (1847), runs through the Clelands of that Ilk to Sir William
  71. Wallace, the Somervilles, the Hepburns of Bothwell, Stewart of Blantyre and James V. No
  72. record links the Boston Kneelands to the Clelands, and each step fails:
  74. - Alexander Kneland, "Parson O' Gowie," and Margaret Wallace: Blind Harry's uncle at
  75. Gowrie is unnamed and not a priest, and Kneeland admits the identification is his own
  76. deduction.
  77. - James Kneland, Wallace's "cusying": Harry's Kneland has no forename; one manuscript
  78. reads "Cleland."
  79. - William and Jean Somerville, 1462: garbled from Janet Somerville's marriage to James,
  80. son and heir of William Cleland of that Ilk (*Scots Peerage* 8:9-11).
  81. - Hepburn of Bonnytoun: no such child of the 1st Earl of Bothwell; the 4th Earl "had no
  82. legitimate issue."
  83. - Capt. John and Mary Dunbar, and John (b. c. 1575) and his mother Mary Dunbar arriving
  84. about 1630: no record.
  85. - Mary Stewart, daughter of Walter, 1st Lord Blantyre: he had no daughter Mary; his
  86. sister Marion married William Cleland of that Ilk (*Scots Peerage* 2:81-85). The
  87. Blantyre Stewarts descend from Stewart of Dalswinton, not James V.
  89. The 1897 book's own author wrote: "Personally, I do not stand sponsor for the truth of all this
  90. ancestry."
  92. ## Open questions
  94. - His origin and parents.
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