South Carolina 1675

The 10th of March 1675 was the first treaty made by those in South Carolina.  The Kiawan tribe made "land cession" of course.  However, it was not until those Welsh Baptist arrived from Delaware that the first with the JONES surname appears.

According to David Benedict the church was first called Pedee after the great Pedee River, 60 miles north of Georgetown.  When other arrived, its name was changed to "Welsh-Neck" which described from were most of the folks who founded the church originated.  In 1737, 30 members of the Welsh-Tract Church which first had been in Pennsylvania, then in Delaware, arrived to establish the church in South Carolina.

David Jones, Griffith Jones, and John Jones moved this year [1737] from "Welch Tract" in Delaware to "Pee Dee River" in South Carolina.  They must have been related, but I do not have any given relationship.  Pennsylvania, Delaware, to South Carolina...man those Baptist got around or were thrown out of most places.

The Palmetto State it is known. [A small palm tree.]

The references for this are found in An Abridgement of The Baptist Denomination in America, and Other Parts of The World, by David Benedict, Lincoln & Edmands, 1820. [Have a copy in my hands!]

The Jones folks can be found in Jones Journeys, Vol. VII, p. 201, July 1979.  Does anyone know the relationship among these folks?  Please post.

New Jersey 1664

The New Jersey marriage records 1665 - 1800 are abstracted for the surname JONES in Jones Journeys, Vol. IV, 1976 using a number of documents.  The earliest Jones is found April 12, 1687 and listed as "Thomas Jones, Salem, and Hannah Prior, Salem".  In other references "The First Settlers of New England" [Jones Journeys, Vol. VI , 1978 ] a "David Jones, Dorchester, freeman 1665, married 11 May 1659, Sarah, daughter of Clement Topliff".  This again points to the difficulty among the many records which might overlap arrival times and destinations.

New Jersey is listed as "Crossroads of The Revolution".  Certainly, those with the JONES surname arrived many years before.

Documents relating to the Colonial History of the State of New Jersey, Volume XXII.  Marriage Records, 1665 - 1800 by William Nelson, Paterson, N.J.  The Press Printing and Publishing Co., 269 Main Street, 1900.  Contributed to Jones Journeys by William A. Graves, pp. 16 - 20, Vol. IV, 1976.

Rhode Island 1661

It certainly gets confusing sorting out all these folks with JONES surname.  The chronology (ch.) of the last several posts is based upon the named colony's ability to begin official treaty negotiations with their local ethic groups.  For example, Virginia's first treaty was autumn 1607 with the Powhatan Confederacy. [a "peace treaty]  The first JONES was 1609.  For Massachusetts (Plymouth) it was April 2, 1621 with the Wampanoag tribe. ["land cession"]  The first JONES was 1631.  For Maryland it was March 1634 with the Maryland Indians. ["land cession"]  The first JONES was 1637.

Now for Rhode Island it was August 9, 1646, also with the Wampanoag tribe. ["land cession"]  It is noted in Jones Journeys that a large majority of Rhode Island people were former residents of Massachusetts. [Vol. 18, p. 1884 ] So, there may be those with the JONES surname that overlap with what was to become separate British colonies.

"The Ocean State" it says on its state quarter shown above.  The earliest JONES I could identify was found in Jones Journeys.  The names are said to be recorded on p. 331, Vol. II, in the reference titled: Genealogies of Rhode Island Families, selected by Gary Roberts, Vol.I & II.  It reads:

"p.331 - Salisbury, 14 Oct. 1661 - Mary Jones, dau. Thomas Jones of Gloucester, MA, married Nathaniel Winsley/Winslow."

A father daughter combination it is.  Does anyone have any connections to this Thomas Jones and Mary his daughter in 1661?

A list other JONES are given in Jones Journeys, pp. 1883 - 1884,  Vol. 18, 1990 - 1991.

Maryland 1637

John Jones, 1637,  was the first to be listed in the land patent records, Hall of Records, Annapolis, MD.  According to Gust Skordas this is recorded in Book 1, page 19, and is recorded in "Maryland Jones Arrivals", p. 1287, Jones Journeys, Vol. 14.  This is from "The Early Settlers of Maryland (1633 - 1680") compiled by Gust Skordas.  Whew...all that is to say you can get lost in the documents, but it extremely important to record where the records are available.  This documentation is a foundation to genealogy for the serious tree climber.

Above is shown the state quarter for Maryland.  It shows the year that the colony became a state.  The dates I am recording represent the chronology based upon the earliest settlement records that record a JONES surname.

Massachusetts 1631

The court party surrounding James I had all sorts of ideas about how to make money from this relatively new process called "Royal Patents".   The folks from Scotland were invited to "Nova Scotia", the Welsh had their colonial plans [Sir William Vaughan ], and most wanted a piece of this thing called the "Virginia Company".  A "New England" was visualized just north of the lands claimed by the Virginia Company, and it became the location of many with the surname JONES.

The first I have been able to identify is found Jones Journeys, Vol. VI, p. 89.  A Edward Jones is recorded as follows:

"Edward Jones, Charlestown, freeman 18 May 1631, with prefix of resp. was prbably therefore a passenger in the fleet with Winthrop, yet no more is known of him but that he was there in 1636 probably, and by wife Ann, daughter of George Griggs of Boston, had Mary, bapt. 8 Jan 1637; Elizabeth b. 11 May 1643.  His widow married Robert Latimeore."

Massachusetts was formed out of this "New England".  Its quarter is shown below.

There are many, many with the surname JONES abstracted from A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came before May, 1692, on the Basis of Farmer's Register, Vol. II, by James Savage, Little Brown & Co. (1860), Boston.  Any folks out there who share descent from this early group of JONES?  Let's network!

This abstract can be found in Jones Journeys, Vol. VI, pp. 88 - 94, and pp. 129 - 133.

Virginia 1609

The JONES surname and Virginia go way back.  The records show that in May 1609, the "Third Supply" with nine ships and around 500 men, women, and children left London. [ Six ships were from London, and three from Plymouth.]  A hurricane struck on the way, plague was found aboard some ships, and one ship was lost along the way.  It was August 1609 that 7 of the 9 ships arrived Jamestown.  An Elizabeth Jones [sometimes spelled Joones ] arrived in the Patience "sick, hungry, and travel worm".  She was described as "servant of Thomas Dunthorne".  She becomes known as "an ancient planter", and has a long history of survival among the early years of settlement.

The above shows the reverse side of the state quarter for Virginia.  I thought it might be of interest to show what each state was most proud.  Jamestown 1607 - 2007 declares 400 years of history.  Elizabeth Jones has 398 of them!

Anyone connected out there, or share an interest in this time period?  Please post.  Virginia...the first colony to begin the settlement along the coastal waters.

Bermuda 1639

Juan Bermuder (Spanish 1503-1511) first discovered this island.  The island was included in the third charter of the Virginia Company 1612, and 60 English settlers were sent to colonize.

In 1639, David Jones was described as "of Bermuda, planter".  A George Smith, "Citizen, grocer of London", along with this David Jones, leaves "share in Warwick on South Side, now in occupation of John Walker, on the west, and James Dorsett on the east.  Lots of folks involved here. [Smith and Jones connections go way back!]  Are there any other JONES still on the island?  Let's network...:-).

A post can be found at  http://thejonessurname.blogspot.com on Wednesday, January 11, 2012.