Pocahontas

Pocahontas was the daughter of a Powhatan Indian Chief who married John Rolfe, an early American English settler. Their daughter Jane Rolfe married Robert Bolling. In the next generation Jane and Robert had a son, Colonel John Bolling, whose daughter Mary, married Colonel John Fleming in Virginia. The Virginia Fleming family also claim to descend from the Earl of Wigton. The children of Col John Fleming and Mary Bolling would marry into families with kinship to George Washington, Stephen Douglas, Stonewall Jackson, James Madison, members of Congress and at least one Supreme Court Justice. While we do not share kinship with Pocahontas, we do share ancestral kinship with her descendants from the children of John and Mary.

More Pennsylvania Information

More on the Flemings in early Pennsylvania has been found, particularly about Robert Fleming, the brother to my 4th great grandfather, John Fleming. This confirms the relationship found in John's will and adds information about land ownership.

All of this information was found in "Past and Present of Clinton, County, Pennsylvania".

" Prominent among the early settlers of the West Branch Valley was John Fleming. He was a descendant of the Earl of Wigton, a Scottish Nobleman. His ancestry can be traced back to the fourteenth century. In 1773 he secured possession of a large tract of land lying between the Susquehanna river, and the Bald Eagle creek, which is the land upon which the city of Lock Haven and Part of Flemington now stands. His territory was a part of Dr. Francis Allison Tract. After the death of John Fleming which occurred in 1777, his land consisting of over 1000 acres was divided among his five sons and three daughters, namely Joseph, John, David, Robert, Ezekiel, Mary, Elizabeth and Rosanna. John Fleming built a house on the bank of the Susquehanna, near the abutments of the dam, where he died in 1777. Several hearth stones of the chimney of this house were found by workmen in excavating for the erection of the abutments at the time the dam was built, nearly half a century later.

His son the Hon. John Fleming, who came to this section in 1773. was appointed to the associate judgeship of Lycoming county by Governor Mifflin, in 1798. He was a native of Chester County, Pa, and born near the London Cross Roads, He was married to Susan Chatham, a daughter of Col. Chatham who at one time owned a mill and large tract of land at Chathams Run. Mrs. Fleming was born in Dublin, Ireland, coming to this county when an infant she died in 1824. Hon. John Fleming had nine children, namely, General Robert Fleming, John Fleming, who was one of the first associate judges of Clinton County, Algernon Sydney, who was sheriff of the county, from 1866 to 1869, Exekiel, who went to Kentucky in 1833, William, who died at Alton, Illinois in 1846, Sarah, who Married Joseph Montgomery, Nancy who married David McCormich and Mary, who was the wife of Hon. Joseph Quay

Land Holdings:

Land; Grantee index, Northumberland Co., PA; John and Robert Fleming, grantees, Nehemiah Breese grantor; Vol. D page 8; 26 Sep 1777; 6 Sep 1787;

Biographical; John Fleming (who died in 1777); "The Fair Play Settlers of the West Branch Valley 1769-1784; A Study of Frontier Ethnography" by George D. Wolf, 1969, F157.L9W6; BYU-Idaho. P. 67, "However after the treaty one Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Francis Alison, pastor of the college of Philadelphia, applied for land above the mouth of Bald Eagle Creek and was granted some 1500 acres. Alison never came into the region and,in fact, sold his entire purchase to John Fleming in 1773." (The author cites 'History of Centre and Clinton Counties' by John Blair Linn, page 520.)
Page 53 Refers to Squire Fleming's daughter Betsey, and says the Squire had "two fine daughters (including Betsey).
Page 77 (Referring to their roles in the Revolutionary War) Robert Fleming was a regional leader, John Fleming was a local leader.
Page 81 (Regarding Robert Fleming and his several leadership positions): "During the revolution he was primarily concerned with the area around the Great Island (in the West Branch of the Susquehanna, near Jersey Shore), serving at Reed's Fort (present Lock Haven) and on the Fleming estate, which some referred to as Fort Fleming. Robert had a brother John...Their combined holdings ran to almost 3,000 acres of which 1,250 was Robert's."
Page 82 John Fleming actually resided outside the Fair Play territory, on the Provincial or State side of the Susquehanna (he lived on the north or west side). He died in 1777.

Famous Flemings

From select surnames website:
Select Fleming Names

Sir Thomas Fleming was the Lord Chief Justice who sentenced Guy Fawkes and the gunpowder plotters in 1605.
Thomas Fleming was the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin in the early 17th century.
Michael Fleming, a Catholic bishop, was regarded as the most influential Irish immigrant to have come to Newfoundland in the 19th century.
Sir Sandford Fleming was a Scots-born Canadian engineer and the creator of Standard Time.
Robert Fleming was a Scots financier from Dundee who founded the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co.
Sir Alexander Fleming was the discoverer of penicillin in 1929, for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine in 1945.
Victor Fleming was the director of two classic American films, Gone With The Wind and The Wizard of Oz.
Ian Fleming was the novelist and creator of James Bond.
Tommy Fleming from Sligo is one of Ireland's top singers.

Select Flemings Today

• 28,000 in the UK (most numerous in Lanarkshire)
• 28,000 in America (most numerous in Texas)
• 35,000 elsewhere (most numerous in Canada).

Possible Royal Kinship

While Squire John Fleming is as far back as I have been able to get in our Fleming family tree, there is evidence that he descends from Scottish royalty. Here is a citation to make the argument:

From Linn's County History of Clinton, Pennsylvania

Prominent among the early settlers of the West Branch Valley was John Fleming, he was a descendant of the Earl of Wigton, a Scottish nobleman. The families descended from him still prize and use the earl's coat of arms. This very year (the year, John McCormick came to the neighborhood) he entered into the possession of the large track of land lying between the Susquehanna River and the Bald Eagle Creek, on which the city of Lockhaven now stands and part of the borough of Flemington, which he had purchased of the Rev. Dr. Francis Allison. After his demise which occurred in 1777, his land containing over 1600 acres was divided among his five sons and three daughters. John Mc Cormick, who had married his daughter Elizabeth, subsequently purchased the part that fell to her brother Joseph.That was the part commonly known as the "point" lying immediately west of the junction of the Susquehanna with the Bald Eagle.

The royal connections for the Earl of Wigton are well documented. The Earl of Wigton was descended from King James V of Scotland. If you climb his tree further you will find a daughter of the famous rebel Robert The Bruce who married James I of Scotland.

While this is a citation, it is far from complete. It indicates this lineage but we do not know what the exact family tree was and, therefore, still must look for proof.

This is not the only royal connection to the Flemings. The Bartlett family is said to descend from William the Conqueror. the first Norman King of England, pictured above. He lived from 1028 to 1090, about. While this is a very long time ago, it is not that far fetched. The Bartlett family had a chapel on their property in England within which was a bible recording the previous 300 years of baptisms, marriages and deaths. This would take us back from 1600 to 1300, and someone as famous as this would be remembered for that long.

Goodeth Gilman is said to be related to royals and Mary Stearns is said to descend from the last queen of Albania. I have listed these ladies in my lineage previously.

But, in all of these cases, we have to look much further for definitive proof.

Squire John Fleming

Pictured here is the current view from John Fleming's land on the Susquehanna River near Lock Haven Pennsylvania. As you will see from his will he owned quite a large tract of land. He and his wife Mary had eight children. His son David is the one from which I descend. One of his children, John, went on to become a judge. Flemington, Pennsylvania is named after him.

His will was written May 1, 1777. He died a few days later, May 6, 1777. It remains on file in the county records of Northumberland County located in Sunbury, Pennsylvania.

In the name of God Amen, I, John Fleming, of Bald Eagle township, in the county of Northumberland and the state of Pennsylvania, farmer, being sound in mind and memory, thanks be to Almighty God for his mercies. but at the same time knowing the uncertainty of this fleeting and transitory life, and do make and publish this my last will and testament in manner following, that is to say;

First: I recommend my soul to God that gave it, and my body I commit to the grave; I desire that after my decease, that my just debts be paid, and I give and bequeath until my well beloved son Robert Fleming the place whereon William Reed now lives of two hundred acres, and to my well beloved son Joseph Fleming two hundred acres at his choice, except the place I live on; and to my well beloved daughter Rosana Jameson, one hundred acres of land or one hundred pounds as soon as conscience will admit, and to my well beloved daughter Elizabeth Fleming one hundred acres of land or one hundred pounds in money aforesaid,

And to my well beloved son John Fleming two hundred acres of land, and to my well beloved daughter Mary Fleming one Hundred acres of land or one hundred pounds to be paid in manner aforesaid. and to my well beloved son Ezekiel Fleming two hundred acres of land and to my well beloved son David Fleming the place whereon I now live, and the stock to be divided in equality among them, that are of age, and the aforesaid land to them their heirs and assigns forever, and I do order and appoint my BROTHER Robert Fleming Executor, together with my sons Robert Fleming and Joseph Fleming Executors, of this my last Will and Testament, hereby revoking all former Wills by me made, and do declare this to be my last will and testament. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this first day of May 1777 John Fleming signed in presence of us, John McCormick, William Reed, John Fleming (Seal)

His will was probated on June 13, 1777. There was no mention of any provisions for his wife, Mary, so she is presumed to have deceased before this time.

More Presidential Kinships

Completing my research on the advice of Gary Boyd Roberts to look at the Perkins family, I have discovered several more presidential kinship worthy of mention.
Thomas Perkins was born in England in 1525. Through the chart below, he became my tenth great grandfather. He is also connected to a number of U. S. Presidents.
Thomas Perkins is the 10th great grandfather of Calvin Coolidge(30), the ninth great grandfather of Franklin Delano Roosevelt(32) and Richard Nixon(37), and the eighth great grandfather of Millard Fillmore(13).
Here is the line of descent into the Fleming family;
My tenth great grandparents: Thomas Perkins = Alice Kebble
My ninth great grandparents: Henry Perkins = Elizabeth Sawbridge
My eighth great grandparents: John Perkins = Judith Gater
My seventh great grandparents: Rev. Thomas Wells = Mary Perkins
My sixth great grandparents: Moses Chase Jr. = Elizabeth Wells
My fifth great grandparents: Seth Chase = Elizabeth Bartlett
My fourth great grandparents: Rebecca Chase = John Bartlett
My third great grandparents: Silas Leland = Lucina Bartlett
My second great grandparents: Robert King Fleming = Lucina Leland
My great grandparents: Thomas H. B. Fleming = Ellen Giblin
My grandparents: John Leland Fleming = Margaret Finnegan

Our Connections to various Presidents

Once again, thanks to the help I received at the New England Historical and Genealogical Association from Gary Boyd Roberts, I discovered a number of Presidents of the United States which we have kinship to. Gary Boyd Roberts has literally written the book(s) on the ancestry of the United States Presidents. Each time a new President is elected, Gary updates and publishes another book. His most recent publication was in 2009 after President Obama was elected. He has also done research on various royal family lines and published those works. When Gary advised the group he would work with each of us for two hours, we were sure to learn some interesting things. Here is a little background on Gary. He grew up in Texas, went to Yale and has worked in genealogy his whole adult life. Gary has a great memory for names and history. He has a few beliefs that are quirky. He refuses to use computers, ATM machines, cell phones or credit cards. When Gary was tearing my Fleming family tree apart, and ran into the name Aquila Chase, he told me we had kinship with a number of presidents. Below is my line back to Aquila Chase and his wife Anne Wheeler.

My ninth great grandparents : John Wheeler - Agnes Yeomans
My eighth great grandparents: Aquila Chase - Anne Wheeler
My seventh great grandparents : Moses Chase - Anne Follansbee
My sixth great grandparents : Moses Chase Jr. - Elizabeth Wells
My fifth great grandparents : Elizabeth Bartlett - Seth Chase
My fourth great grandparents : Rebecca Chase - John Bartlett (cousins)
My third great grandparents : Lucina Bartlett - Silas Leland
My second great grandparents : Robert King Fleming - Lucina Leland
My great grandparents : Ellen Giblin - Thomas Hart Benton Fleming
My grandparents: John Leland Fleming - Margaret Finnegan

John Wheeler is the ninth great grandfather of:
1) Leslie Lynch King, Jr., whose name was legally changed to Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr.,the 38th U. S. President,
2) George Herbert Walker Bush, 41st U. S. President and
3) Herbert Clark Hoover, 31st U. S. President.
He was also the tenth great grandfather of George Walker Bush, 43rd U.S. President, and the sixth great grandfather of James Abram Garfield, 20th U. S. President. All of this is straight out of Gary Boyd Roberts book "Ancestors of American Presidents" 2009 Edition.
There is another line that may connect us to a few more Presidents: Nixon, Coolidge, Fillmore and FDR. I have a little research to do on this line.