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I’ve seen the Looney surname mentioned a fair amount on the forum, so I’m sorry if my subject matter is rehashing old ground. What I’ve seen is spread over various threads, making it a little difficult to make a coherent picture of it all.
I’m curious if any of you folks with Looney relations are connected to the Looney family on the following site:
http://home.flash.net/~johnsonl/index1.htm#index
If so, how far back in the Looney lines are the known/suspected/believed NA ancestors? I do know there are Cherokee Looneys in later generations, but I’m curious if there is suspected Indian ancestry that predates this, or if that Cherokee ancestry actually goes back into the mid to early 1700’s.
I have previously posted a thread regarding the Renfro family that I descend from. While there is no specific tradition of them being “Blackfoot”, it is commonly believed (with little supporting evidence, I might add) that there is early Indian ancestry in this family. The Renfro family widely interconnected with this Looney family. Some Looneys were with my Renfro family on the Donelson Voyage from the Watauga Settlement to the present day Nashville, TN area in 1780, but their connections apparently began well before that. In addition, I have seen the Guest surname among descendants of this group. Throughout the generations, various branches of all these families seemed to migrate with each other. On into the 1800’s, at least, these are all surnames that one also sees in Cherokee families. Of course, it was also common for Euro-Americans to migrate in closely knit family groups, so these facts do not necessarily translate into some widespread Indian ancestry for any of these surnames.
My curiosity, though, keeps bringing me back to the possibility that these inter-connected frontier families, all stemming from the same areas of Virginia in early times may have had some intermarriage with Indians that predates any of their better known Cherokee connections that later show up in these families. My Renfro line goes all the way back to the James City area in the 1600’s, but subsequent generations were found in Botetourt, Augusta, present day Bedford and Franklin Counties…areas I believe would have been occupied by Siouan peoples during the same time frame.
All this rambling has a point, so I’ll try to get back on focus and summarize what I’m curious about. These families seem to all derive from immigrants who arrived in early colonial days. By the time of the American Revolutionary period, they all seem to have been well established families on the southern frontiers, though presumably regarded as white, in general. Going forward from about this time, we do know that some groups of these families, though certainly not all, start intermarrying with Cherokee both in the east and in Oklahoma after the Removals. Is it likely that these families, or parts of them, were already mixed bloods at some point in those early Virginia generations? Does anyone have information that might suggest this was the case?
Randall
I was poking around the internet after starting this thread and found the following website. Scrolling down the page, there is a photo of a Moses Looney; son of Capt. John Looney and Elizabeth Renfro. The picture quality isn’t too great, but based on his physical features, I would be easily convinced that he had NA ancestry. I’m not familiar with the author of the site, but maybe someone here is, since he makes reference to “Eastern Blackfoot” on his site. I think I will try to contact him for more info on NA lineage of either this Moses Looney.
http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/p/a/n/Donald-N-Pantheryates/
A wonderful lady Corrine Hanna Diller did some research several years back on the traders of the upper Potomac that she eventually published. Here is one of her posts concerning her research. This area was very interesting and some may be interested in the various connections. Corrine is a Friend descendant & their family oral tradition has Israel Friend married to a Shawnee woman. I was interested in Charles Mounts Anderson whose descendants used the surname Mounts- another Indian trader. If you notice in Corrine’s list of settlers along the Upper Potomac- Robert Looney, the original immigrant, is here.
(There were Looneys in Mingo & McDowell County, WVA in my parents stomping grounds…..)
The Shawnee were here at the time, as well as Susquehannas like Capt. Civility. I don’t know if she ever discovered who the Cunnawehala were…..Conoy maybe?????
Brenda
Publication info:
WESTERN MARYLAND GENEALOGY
http://www.genlawresources.com/Contents.htm
Contents Volume 16 (2000) Available for $21 per 4 issue volume
First Whites on the Upper Potomac by Corrine Hanna Diller.
Contents Volume 19 (2003). Available for $21. Volumes 19-2&3 were a combined issue.; “Early Traders on the Upper Potomac,” by Corinne Hanna Diller.
An old post of Corrine’s:
Natives, Traders, & Settlers on upper Potomac, pre-1735.
My research focuses on the Potomac River above the Shenandoah (Harper’s
Ferry). The time frame is limited to pre-1735. The following lists are
not complete. I need help documenting the presence of most of these
men.
(1) = on 1736 Winslow map of Potomac.
(2) = evidence places him on Potomac before 1736, even if he’s not on
the
map.
(3) = I have further info./especially interested in him.
NFI = He is on the 1736 map, but I have not found any other evidence to
place him in the area.
Traders:
ANDERSON, Charles Mounts (adult 1707, died 1743+) (2) (3)
Bradford, Major (mentioned in 1721 debt)
Cartledge, Edmund (adult 1710, died 1742)
Chartier, Martin (adult 1680, died 1718)
Chartier, Peter (son; died 1748+)
DALBO, Charles & Lars (both died 1721, smallpox) (3)
FRIEND, Israel (1693-1750) (3)
HOUSE, John Valentine Jr. (@1717-1808) (3)
LeTort, James (adult 1718, died 1742+)
MICHEL, Franz Louis (1675-1720) (3)
Patterson, James (active 1721-1730)
Settlers on Maryland side, going upstream, from east to west:
John Moore, (active 1733-1756+) (2)
William Spurgeon, (1)
William Shepherd, (1)
William Chaplin, (1690-1745) (1)
Richard Spriggs, (died by 1750) (2)
Henry Roan, (1) NFI
John Perrin, (1729 Thomas Perrin trading with Indians in Pa.)
William Moore, (1) (2)
George Moore, (1) (2)
Samuel Chew Jr., (2)
Charles FRIEND, (1698-1751) (1) (2) (3)
(name unknown) 1739, Md., warrant 95 acres: “White Oak Swamp”
Jeremiah Jack, (1) (2)
Samuel Owen, (1) (2)
Thomas Flory, (1) NFI
James Cole, (1) NFI
James Matson, (1) (2)
John Nicholls, (1) (3)
Virginia side, going upstream, from east to west:
Bernard Patterson, (1) NFI
ISRAEL FRIEND, (1693-1750) (2) (3)
Samuel Taylor, (d. 1762) (1) (2)
William Spurgeon Sr., (1) (2)
Thomas Shepherd, (2)
William Chaplin, (born 1709) (1)
Richard Paulson, (alive 1744) (1) (2)
Jeremiah York, (1) NFI
John Williams, (1) (2)
Robert Looney (Lusey), (1) (2)
Barent Newkirk, (1) (2)
John Hood, (died 1742) (1)
Capt. Freeland, (1) NFI
Thomas Cherry, (died 1761) (1) (2)
Others could be added to the list, such as Daniel Dulaney and Dr.
Charles Carroll who speculated all over the area. In 1727 Humberton Lyon and
Giles Margalith (Markwith?) witnessed a deed at the mouth of Antietam
Creek; Lyon is found on occasional records,
and appears to have moved to Augusta Co., Va.
Shawnee Chiefs:
Opessa, (d. 1720) aka Ophesaw
Oneakoopa, (1720’s)
Pockaseta, (1720’s)
Loyparcowah, son of Opessa
(and any other Shawnee on upper Potomac)
Susquehannock (Conestoga) Chiefs:
Callakahutt, (1727 deed) aka Calhagheherot.
Civility, (active 1693-1736) aka Tagotolessa
Shoe Hays, (active 1701-1758) aka Soohayesse.
Tawenna, (active 1700-1728) aka Taw Wenaw.
Toile Hangee, (active 1722-1744) aka Tyoolhousie.
Unidentified tribe:
Cunnawehala. (1727 deed)
http://listsearches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/ifetch2?/u1/textindices/M/MDCECIL+2001+6161101507+F
Posted:
Date: Sat, 06 Jan 2001 15:35:18 -0900
From: Helen West
Message-ID:
Subject: Re: [MDCECIL] Traders
This is from Corinne at:
NATIVEAMERICAN-DELMARVA-L@rootsweb.com
.
Brenda,
I have seen the Looney name a lot when researching my family, thought I would post what I have from the 1860 Buchanan VA census.
Shirley
30 Looney Joseph 31 m Farmer 800 30
Vicy 29 f 1 Ky Illiterate
Mary 9 f Va
Lucinda 7 f
Didema 4 f
John W. 11mo m
John was neighbors to my 4xGrandfather George Gibson (1860 Buchanan County Census)
124 Looney John 26 m Farmer 1000 25 Illiterate
Lucy 22 f Illiterate
Jemima 5 f
Winney 3 f
Mary J. 1 f
287 Looney John 52 m Farmer 3000 1000
Cyntha 50 f
Joseph 33 m Farmer
William 16 m Farmer School
Daniel 9 m School
319 Looney Joseph 55 m Farmer 1000 563
Malisa 26 f House Keeper Illiterate
Mathias 24 m Farmer Illiterate
Robert 18 m Farmer
Daniel 16 m Farmer
Emeline 12 f
James 6 m
Silket 3 m Va
Mary J. 1 f
325 Looney Henry 28 m Farmer 800 412
Elizabeth 24 f House Keeper Illiterate
Mary 6 f Va
John 4 m
Joseph 1 m
Immigrant Robert Looney early location close to traders & Indians
This goes with Message #3 (Brenda’s posting about Corinne’s research on the upper Potomac). The following “Looney Book” website reproduces the section of the referenced 1736 Winslow map that shows the location of Robert Looney’s settlement, across the Potomac and a little upstream from present Williamsport, MD.
http://www.looneybook.com/id47.htm
By the way, there is a very small piece of park land in Williamsport with a historical marker about Looney’s contemporaries Charles and (or?) Israel Friend. It’s at the intersection of Conococheague Creek and the Potomac, more or less under the bridge that carries US Hwy. 11 over the Potomac. I took a photo of it about 23 years ago, but probably couldn’t find that, now (and goodness knows, it wasn’t digital).
I guess that I ought to add a bit here. Isn’t this near the island where the Conoy were found, Heater’s Island, I think it is called?
It is also very near the location of my Greens and Butts. They were near Shepherdstown. It is also the location of the Ricketts who end up intermarrying and living near my Sinkeys and Hustons in PA.
Techteach
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