Often a family surname is taken as a first name. This is usually from the maternal side of the family tree. In this case, most likely, the name comes from the geographic location from which this family originated. The name "Abington Jones" appears in the Southampton County, Virginia marriages. On the 19th of February 1770, Abington was married to Mary Simmon "widow".
The parish Abington is given in "A Topographical Dictionary of England" by Samuel Lewis, p. 5. It was located in the county of Northampton. There was also a "Abington in the Clay", "Abington (GREAT)", and "Abington (LITTLE). These were all parishes in the county of Cambridge. [Lewis p. 6.] This would certainly give the genealogist a possible lead to the origins of this name. Unusual first names as maternal family surnames...interesting.
Caroline Cunningham, Vol. I, p. 1.
Showing posts with label unusual first names. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unusual first names. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
UFN : Abel Jones
During my childhood church going days [1950s early 1960s] the name "Abel" was tossed about fairly frequently. Every Sunday school class, and every pulpit discussed his name several times a year presenting the eternal question : "Am I my brothers keeper?". Well...anyway, I do not remember a single individual actually using the name Abel as a first name. For that matter, even today, recalling a single individual being named Abel escapes my memory.
Caroline Cunningham listed a few with :
1) an Abel Jones being found in the 1782 tax list, Isle of Wight Co., Virginia. He is
recorded as having "4 whites" and "6 blacks"
2) an Abel Jones found in the 1800 tax census of Buncombe County, NC
3) an Abel Jones found in the marriage list of Loudoun County Virginia 1831 when
on February 14 he joined with Julian Vanpelt (Cyrus Burson her guardian) .
So there you have it. Does anyone recall meeting an individual with the first name Abel?
These folks are recorded in Caroline Cunningham Collection: Vol.I p.1, Vol.II p.1, and Vol.III p.1.
Caroline Cunningham listed a few with :
1) an Abel Jones being found in the 1782 tax list, Isle of Wight Co., Virginia. He is
recorded as having "4 whites" and "6 blacks"
2) an Abel Jones found in the 1800 tax census of Buncombe County, NC
3) an Abel Jones found in the marriage list of Loudoun County Virginia 1831 when
on February 14 he joined with Julian Vanpelt (Cyrus Burson her guardian) .
So there you have it. Does anyone recall meeting an individual with the first name Abel?
These folks are recorded in Caroline Cunningham Collection: Vol.I p.1, Vol.II p.1, and Vol.III p.1.
Thursday, August 2, 2018
UFN : Abbridgston Jones
The first unusual first name [from here abbreviated "UFN"] is Abbridgston. Suspect it was spoken like Ab-bridgs-ton. Most likely it came from another surname or maybe from a geographic location. The name appears in the 1790 Census of Wake County, NC. He was listed as "head of household" with 1 male over 16, 2 males under 16, 2 females, and 1 slave. This would place him born around 1770 given his oldest was over 16 , and next two sons were under 16. [Based upon marriage age was started 18-21 years for males.] Anyone have this name in their family tree?
Source: Caroline Cunningham was a genealogist very interested in the JONES surname. Her focus was on JONES families from Virginia, North Carolina, and Maryland. Her goal was "...to record in print some of the records found in the various archives of the United States in such a way that the tracing of Jones families is made easier." She published her work from Raleigh, North Carolina, August 1964. Presently, this work can be found in East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J.Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC. It is titled: Caroline Cunningham Collection, Collection No 56. This first name appears on page 1, Vol.II. Would like to have thanked her in person, but her work stands alone in the Jones Surname Family Tree.
Source: Caroline Cunningham was a genealogist very interested in the JONES surname. Her focus was on JONES families from Virginia, North Carolina, and Maryland. Her goal was "...to record in print some of the records found in the various archives of the United States in such a way that the tracing of Jones families is made easier." She published her work from Raleigh, North Carolina, August 1964. Presently, this work can be found in East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J.Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC. It is titled: Caroline Cunningham Collection, Collection No 56. This first name appears on page 1, Vol.II. Would like to have thanked her in person, but her work stands alone in the Jones Surname Family Tree.
Monday, July 30, 2018
Unusual First Names
Over the years genealogy has brought before my eyes some very unusual first names. Different surnames, different geographical areas, different periods of time, and often different religious beliefs have all played some role. The next series of posts will deal with this subject for the surname JONES.
However, to begin this topic it might be helpful to present the most common first names being used among the JONES surname branches. The first table shows some work from years past published in my family newsletter. Of course for my own JONES family, Virginia was the geographic area. The time period was 1623 - 1666 since this was when my folks began to cross the great pond. In addition other common surnames like Smith, Williams, Johnson, and Brown were studied to discover if there were any differences in the first names that were being recorded. The four most common first names were William, Richard, Thomas, and John for the surname JONES. Other first names that were being used at least 100 times during this period are also shown. Interestingly, William was the most common first name among our JONES family tree branches.
The second table shows other first names for JONES compared to the different surnames evaluated. Only the surname Williams (a Welsh surname) shared any of these first names with JONES. None of these names were used with Smith, Johnson, and Brown. This would suggest that JONES and JOHNSON were not of the same tree branches. It is an interesting list of first names used among the JONES families during the period researched.
The next series of posts will present the very unusual first names. Let's go!
However, to begin this topic it might be helpful to present the most common first names being used among the JONES surname branches. The first table shows some work from years past published in my family newsletter. Of course for my own JONES family, Virginia was the geographic area. The time period was 1623 - 1666 since this was when my folks began to cross the great pond. In addition other common surnames like Smith, Williams, Johnson, and Brown were studied to discover if there were any differences in the first names that were being recorded. The four most common first names were William, Richard, Thomas, and John for the surname JONES. Other first names that were being used at least 100 times during this period are also shown. Interestingly, William was the most common first name among our JONES family tree branches.
The second table shows other first names for JONES compared to the different surnames evaluated. Only the surname Williams (a Welsh surname) shared any of these first names with JONES. None of these names were used with Smith, Johnson, and Brown. This would suggest that JONES and JOHNSON were not of the same tree branches. It is an interesting list of first names used among the JONES families during the period researched.
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