…“Tale of Two Johns” Character Profiles… |
Mary
Ann Knox
b.
John’s near-kin; probably half-sister, but unproven child
of Allison and Mary (Smith-Knox) Knox;
some
accounts say Allison was her uncle, not father. See email exchanges below at
bottom.
1826 February Session, page 124
[
[Mecklenburg County NC- Minutes of the Court
of Pleas and Quarter Sessions - Volume III: 1821-1830; transcribed by Herman W.
Ferguson, page 94]
---------------------------------------------
Notes re Guardianship Bond:
1) Notice that this bond does not state that
Moses Shelby is deceased...this is
unusual. Is it also significant? No Estate papers are filed in
2) Bond is for only seven of his nine
children…two minors are omitted. Why?
3) Moses Shelby m. Mary Ann Knox, dau of
Allison and Mary ((Smith) Knox) Knox.
Mary Ann Knox is said to be the half-sister of John Knox, son of Capt
Patrick and Mary (Smith) Knox.
4) Moses Shelby was the son of Dr. Evan
Shelby and Susannah Polk Alexander, dau of Benj
Alexander and Susannah Polk.
5) Doherty/Shelby/Alexander Connections:
James Doherty/Doughtery
(Security on the Guardian Bond) was the husband of Rachel McAuley, daughter of
Daniel J. and Prudence (Alexander) McAuley/McCauley. Prudence (Alexander) McCauley was the sister
of Stephen Winslow Alexander. Prudence
and Stephen Winslow Alexander were children of James and Rachel (Alexander)
Alexander.
Winfield Shelby (son of Moses & Mary Ann)
m. Melissa Alexander, daughter of Stephen Winslow Alexander and Isabella
Shelby... Isabella Shelby was Moses A.
Shelby's Aunt...she was the sister of his father, Dr. Evan Shelby, daughter of
Moses Shelby Sr and Isabella Alexander.
Too many Alexanders!!
============================================================
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~bruckner/bethel_meck/bk2.html
SHELBY Records found at Bethel Presbyterian
Church, Mecklenburg Co, NC
Session Records - Book #2:
page 4 - White Communicants
Winfield Shelby - June 1831
page 5 - White Communicants
Mary*
J. M. Shelby -
Eleanor S. Shelby - June 3, 1834 [noted as
"removed" which means moved...]
[* Speculate that this MAY be Mary Ann (Knox)
Shelby, widow of Moses A. Shelby]
page 12 - Adult
Baptisms:
James M. Shelby -
Eleanor S. Shelby -
page 16 - Infant Baptisms:
Joel Houston
Franklin B. Shelby - March 1834
*[son of John Knox, half-brother of Mary Ann
(Knox)
page 17 - Infant Baptisms:
Mary Ann
Mary Jane Shelby -
James Adams Shelby -
page 18 - Infant Baptisms:
Mary Eleanor Shelby -
---------------------------------------------------------------
Mary Ann Shelby is said to have d. 1855 in
Dallas Co, near
No 1850 Census record is found.
===============================================================
CAUTION...there is a lot of debate regarding the ancestry
of Mary Ann Knox...
The following sites and emails document the problems:
===============================================================
On Tue,
Sep 30, 2008 at 2:12 PM, Martha Mordecai <[email protected]> wrote:
Peggy,
On going through your info on Mary Ann Knox Shelby, I have to say that
filtering through the Shelby's is about as messy as the Knox's. There are
things to be straightened out there also.
Back in the 50s my cousin, Bobbie Kaiser (Rich at the time), was working with
Cass K. Shelby (foremost authority on the Shelby's of Tregaron,
Wales). They came up with information based on misgathered
census data that lead them to believe that Moses Shelby (m. Mary Ann Knox) was
"Moses A. Shelby". Also, that Mary Ann Knox was daughter of
Samuel Knox.
Far from
true. Moses A. Shelby, b. abt 1789 in Mecklenburg Co., was
the son of Thomas Shelby and Mary Helms. Thomas was son of Sgt. Moses
Shelby and Isabell Alexander (?). Moses A.
Shelby was married to Martha Washington Polk, daughter of Charles A. Polk, son
of William J. Polk II & Margaret Nancy Taylor) and Phoebe Helms.
William J. Polk (great-grandfather of Pres. James Knox Polk). Margaret
Nancy Taylor was a great-grand aunt to Pres.
Zachary Taylor. Early America (specially in NC)
was rampant with relatives of US Presidents. One of the Knox line's
starts out in Rowan Co., NC and ends in Mecklenburg Co.; The Polk line
starts out in Chester Co., PA and ends up in Mecklenburg Co.; the Knox's of
Steele Creek began in Mecklenburg. Patrick started in Lincoln Co., and
was married in Mecklenburg Co., wasn't he?. And
Allison ended in Mecklenburg Co. All roads led to Mecklenburg Co., at
least for a time, where the Polk's, Alexander's, Shelby's, and Knox's co-mingled.
Samuel Knox, son of John Knox II & Jean Gracy
(Gracie), who married Mary Lucky had a daughter
named Mary Knox in Rowan Co., but I don't believe for a second that she was our
Mary Ann Knox because they ended up in Jackson Co., GA.
Later,
Martha
===============================================================
http://www.mytree.net/gen/getperson.php?personID=I890&tree=MAST
My theory is that Allison was not the uncle,
but the father of Mary Ann Knox. Allison had a brother named Patrick who was
married to a Mary Smith, 1766 in Mecklenburg Co., NC. They had five children:
Matthew, Ruth, Hannah, John and Jane (or Jean). When Patrick was killed
I think the John Knox, who was appointed
guardian of Moses & Mary Ann's children following Moses' death in 1826, Charlotte,Mecklenburg Co., NC, was
Mary Ann Knox Shelby's half brother and son of Patrick and Mary Smith Knox. I
also believe Mary Ann Knox and Moses Shelby gave one of their children the
first name of "Smith "because that was Mary Ann's mother's maiden
name. (MCMordecai-2004)
--------------------
PRB NOTES:
Who are Mary Ann Knox parents: Allison and Mary (Smith Knox) Knox or Allison
and Jane? Knox. But...who is Jane
Knox????
References in Patrick's Estate papers give a
timeframe that Allison m. Patrick's
widow between his death (1780) and March 1, 1786 when papers state:
Administrator "Allison Knox now married to relict"
If Mary Ann was b. May 28, 1785, and Allison
is said to have m. Jane AFTER the death of Mary...then Mary Ann must be the
child of Mary Smith Knox...since she was m. to Allison Knox between 1780 and March 1786.
Could Mary have been Mary Jane...causing this
confusion?
==========================================================
READ
THIS EXCHANGE WITH MAC ALEXANDER REGARDING
DOCUMENTATION OF MARY ANN'S PARENTAGE:
==========================================================
---- Original Message -----
From: Ezra \"Mac\" Alexander <[email protected]>
Sent:
Subject: Mary Ann Knox
Peggy,
She was born
Moses was the son of Dr. Evan and Susannah
Polk (Alexander) Shelby...he was a pvt. in Rev. War. They had
6 daughters and 4 sons.
Susannah's parents were Benjamin and Susannah
(Polk) Alexander of Mecklenburg Co.,NC. Susannah who married Dr. Evan Shelby above
was my Alexander greataunt of yore. Their dau., Susannah
Shelby, became my 3Ggreatgrandmother, who married my 3Ggreatgrandfather, Daniel
Alexander [1st cousins]. Susannah (
Do you have anything for these Knoxes, or the
wife of Allison Knox, father of Mary Ann (Knox)
Thanks, Mac.
-------------------------------------------
MY SECOND REPLY:
------------------------------------------
Hi Mac, I was looking at your note again this
morning, and noticed Mary Ann's
We know that Mary (Smith?) Knox, widow of
Patrick, wife of Allison Knox was still alive in March 1, 1786 -- this
according to this statement
contained within Patrick's Estate Papers: On March 1, 1786 papers were filed stating
that Administrator "Allison Knox now married to relict" ...which
means that if Allison Knox was the
father of Mary Ann Knox, b. March 1, 1786, then Mary (Smith? Knox) Knox was by default
the mother of Mary Ann Knox.
I've read postings on the internet that state
Jane Knox (the presumed widow of Allison) married a brother of Allison after his
death. I do not know when Allison died
(no will or estate records found in my searches), but he appears to be very
much alive in
Also, what is the evidence that Allison Knox
was her father?
I look forward to your view of this
info.
Best Regards,
Peggy Reece Bruckner
-------------------------------------
Mac's
REPLY to above note:
-------------------------------------
----- Original Message -----
From: Ezra \"Mac\" Alexander
Sent:
Subject: Re: MORE RE: Mary Ann Knox...
Peggy, I do not have any source for
them. Not in the notes, at least, but I
got the info and thought it valid at one time.
I lost my files at one time and had to reconstruct them. But, likely, I had the info when I was using a very poor
quality computer (nephew's jr. high model) and was reluctant to put any notes
down for fear of losing the storage.
I have made notes which you sent. If I ever see anything on them in the future,
I will let you know as I have your email address in my notes for this
family. Please do the same. I think that I told you that per my file I
show a Patrick Knox as Allison's brother, w/o backup.
Mac.
---------------
MY REPLY:
---------------
----- Original Message -----
From: Peggy Bruckner
To: Ezra \"Mac\" Alexander
Sent:
Subject: Parents of Mary Ann Knox...
Hi Mac, thanks for
looking.
In the absence of other proof, for the time
being I'm going to assume that if Allison Knox was Mary Ann's father, then Mary
((Smith) Knox) Knox (the widow of Capt
Patrick Knox), whom we know for sure was married to Allison Knox during this
timeframe) had to be her mother, since current proof offers no
alternative.
Please let me know if you uncover any new
data on this mystery! Good luck with
your research.
Best regards, Peggy
=====================
GENFORUM
POSTINGS
=====================
Mac
Alexander
Subject: Re: Knox -
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/knox/messages/1071.html
Forum:
Knox Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/knox/
Hi Franck: Years ago, I obtained information
w/o proof that Mary Ann Knox's parents were Allison (Alison?) and Jane (nee)
Knox. That is in one of my files SHELBY11.FTW). In another file, ALEX2.(12).FTW, I have
another father for her and it is John Knox.
Recently, I saw in GenForum, as I recall,
that another relative, Mary B. Knox who m. McCamey Clark Alexander, son of
Stephen Alexander, Jr., and Martha Montgomery of Mecklenburg Co., NC, listed
John and Jean (nee) Knox as her parents, and it is proven. [PRB NOTE:
This looks like confusion with the Jane Bell Knox who m. John Knox, son
of Robert and Mary (Ewart) Knox]
There was a statement that her uncle was
Allison Knox. It is possible that confusion has arisen over brothers
John and Allison Knox and who m. whom. I would love to find a connection
between Mary B. Knox of McCamey and Mary Ann Knox of Moses Shelby. Both are
relatives. I see more and more crosslinking.
McCamey is descendant from aunt
Isabella Shelby who m. Stephen Winslow Alexander, and also from the fact that
Stephen is from James and I am from Samuel, sons of Rev. James A. Alexander,
etc. Likewise, another aunt, Susannah Polk Alexander, m. Dr. Evan Shelby,
parents of above aunt Isabella Shelby, and they are the parents of Moses Shelby
who m. Mary Ann Knox...ancestors of Sen. Richard
Another aunt, Susannah Shelby, sister of Isobella, is also my direct line Alexander grandmother by
m. Daniel Alexander, nephew of above Susannah Polk Alexander Shelby. Strange as
it may seem, her mother, Susannah Polk Alexander, is also my grandmother of
yore! My Alexander aunt, and my
Let me know if you figure anything out for
Mary Ann Knox, please. Thanks, Mac Alexander.
Posted By: Johnnie Mullinax
Johnson
Subject: Re: MOSES
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/messages/827.html
Forum:
Shelby Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/
Allison and Jane Knox both died in Meck.co
North
---------------------------------------------------------
[PRB note:
I think Johnnie is confused about this, but have not been able to locate
her to discuss the evidence she believes is in the NC Archives. I, as well as others, have personally
searched the Archives. There are no Allison Knox probate records for
======================================================
Posted By: Ezra McLaurin Alexander
Subject: Re: MOSES
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/messages/808.html
Forum:
Shelby Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/
Hi
again, Johnnie: I just scrolled down and read another of your responses. It
answered
part of my question,
i.e., while Alison is the father of Mary Ann (Knox)
Back to Franck, he is asking if John is Mary
Ann Knox's father, and saying that he had an uncle,
perhaps, in Franklin Co., MS. This is what initiated my original query that you
answered. If this 'John' Knox had a brother Allison in MS, perhaps this John
and the father of Mary B. Knox, wife of McCamey
Clark Alexander,
might be the same or related. I cannot afford to be bashful in queries. Thanks.
Mac.
=================================
Posted By: Johnnie Mullinax
Johnson
Subject: Mary Ann Knox of Allison Knox? of NC
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://www.genforum.com/knox/messages/1184.html
Forum:
Knox Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://www.genforum.com/knox/
One of our Moses Shelby married Mary Ann Knox
whose parents, re memory, was Allison and Jane Knox of around Charlotte, Meck, NC...do you know this Knox family...Allison died and
Moses was executor for widow...then she married a brother of Allison
Knox... Ring any bells???
[
=====================================================
Posted By: Johnnie Mullinax
Johnson
Subject: Re: Knox -
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://www.genforum.com/knox/messages/1185.html
Forum:
Knox Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://www.genforum.com/knox/
Here I am again...and in the Knoxes!!! I
researched some of this as connected to a Moses Shelby & I was to but which
one...the quandry over which Knox Mary Ann was from
is that her father was Allison and then her mother married his brother after Allisons death...got this in Raleigh's State Archives...
there are a bunch of estate papers for Jane re Allison and Mary Ann Knox's
husband Moses Shelby is the administrator/exe. of his
estate...
=========================================================
Posted By: Franck Shelby
Subject:
Post
Date:
Message URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/messages/1665.html
Forum:
Shelby Family Genealogy Forum
Forum
URL: http://genforum.genealogy.com/shelby/
Published by Central AL. Genealogical Society
- 1989
Spouse DOB
Shelby, Cornelia (
Shelby, Eloise
Shelby, Inez Cook
Shelby, John R.
Shelby, Joseph
Shelby, Margaret Ann (Porter)
Shelby, Margaret E.
Shelby, Margaret (
Shelby, Martha
Shelby, Mary
Shelby, Mary (wo of Moses) May 28, 1785 *
Shelby, Nancy C. Morrow (wo of J.H. Shelby)
Shelby, Quintilla
Shelby, T. D. 1851
Shelby, William A. 1858
Shelby, Zena H.
* My line
Any help appreciated with this community or
Perry, Hale or Sumter Co., AL.
=======================================================================
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=sassytazzy2&id=I12167
ID: I89488256
Name: Moses SHELBY
Given Name: Moses
Surname:
Sex: M
Birth: Abt. 1784 in
Death: Abt. 1825 in
Father: Evan SHELBY b: 1748 in Hunts Cabin,
Mother: Susannah Polk ALEXANDER b: 1752 in
Marriage 1 Mary Ann KNOX
Married: Bef. 1810
Children
David
Daniel SHELBY
-----------
ID: I12168
Name: Mary Ann Knox
Sex: F
Death: in
Marriage 1 Moses Shelby b: CA 1784 in
Mecklenburg Co., NC
Married: < 1810
Children
David
Daniel Shelby
------------
ID: I12334
Name: David Daniel Shelby
Sex: M 1
Father: Moses Shelby b: CA 1784 in
Mecklenburg Co., NC
Mother: Mary Ann Knox
Marriage 1 Prudence Morrison Alexander
========================================================
This file says Samuel Knox/Mary Luckie are Mary Ann's parents...
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:2708562&id=I195
Lynchpins
Entries: 432 Updated: Sat Nov 1
--------
ID: I195
Name: Mary Ann KNOX
Sex: F
Birth: MAY 1785
Death: 27 MAY 1855
Change Date: 15 MAY 2002 at
Father: Samuel KNOX
Mother: Mary LUCKIE b: 1 MAR 1756
Marriage 1 Moses
Children
Ann
Salina (Eleanor)
--------
ID: I201
Name: Samuel KNOX
NSFX: Sr.
Title: Sr.
Sex: M
Change Date: 15 MAY 2002 at
Father: John KNOX b: 1708 in
Mother: Jean GARCY
Marriage 1 Mary LUCKIE b:
Children
Mary
Ann KNOX b: MAY 1785
=========================================================
http://wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:3089848&id=I601668859
ID: I601668859
Name: Mary Ann KNOX
Given Name: Mary Ann
Surname: Knox
Sex: F
Birth:
Death:
Note: buried Mount Pleasant Church Cemetery
22 miles North of Selma, Alabama
Father: Allison KNOX
Mother: Jane UNKNOWN
Marriage 1 Moses A. SHELBY b: ?-?-1780 in
Children
James
Madison SHELBY b:
Winfield M."Winnefred"
Smith
John
Rufus
David
Daniel SHELBY b:
Elenor Selenia
Samuel
SHELBY b:
Joseph
Theodore SHELBY b:
Thomas
A. SHELBY b:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------