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107. John Cunningham Jr.: (Married 1st: Margaret Donnell --bond: 20 March, 1786 in Guilford County, daughter of James Donnell, 1786, Married 2nd: Mary (McMurray) Mitchell (#108) in 1798 (widow of John McMurray Jr.) --bond: 13 March, 1797 in Guilford County (13 February 1799 in Guilford, North Carolina according Ancestry.com. North Carolina, Marriage Index, 1741-2004 [database on-line] Provo, UT.; His wife was listed as Mary McMurry) (13 February 1799, North Carolina Marriage Bonds, 1741 - 1868, Image 005331 in Guilford, Record #01 105, Bondsman: Adam Mitchell. She is listed as Mary McKurry.), Married 3rd: Mary Polly Findley, daughter of James Finley in 1818--bond: 28 December 1818 in Guilford County).

Born: 1763 of John Cunningham, Sr.(#213) & Isabelle (Mary) ___(#214) .[Note: John's father died before his birth and his mother died the same year John was born. A guess is that she might have died in childbirth.] [Note there is confusion about his mother's name. The document Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Cemetery Greensboro, North Carolina compiled by Raymond Dufau Donnell, March 1996 p. 72 states his mother was Mary. History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and her People, Greensboro, N.C. by Rev. S. M. Rankin page 23 states that his mother's name was Mary. But, “Guilford County Pioneers: The Cunningham Family” by Donald R. Simpson, published in The Guilford Genealogist, Vol. 27, No. 4 Fall 2000, Issue No. 91, pgs 204-210 states that John Sr.'s Will refers to her as Isabelle.]

Died: 24 January 1821 in 58th year of life. He is buried in Buffalo Church Cemetery, North Carolina, where he was an Elder as listed by Rev. J. C. Alexander. (Source: p. 126 History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and her People, Greensboro, N.C. by Rev. S. M. Rankin. According to Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Cemetery Greensboro, North Carolina, compiled by Raymond Dufau Donnell, 1996, p. 14, he is buried at 5E-6E/5D-6D. He is listed as the son of John Sr. & wife Mary. Margaret Donnell (his first wife) and Mary Polly Findley (his 3rd wife) are buried with him. There is no record of the burial site of Mary (McMurray) Mitchell(#108). (John's gravesite was verified during a visit to the cemetery on 29 September 2005 by Susan Snyder (#2) and her cousins Sandra Henson and Mary Lue Finch.) [Note: A query by the webmaster found a reference at Find-A-Grave website which states Mary Mitchell Cunningham died on 26 May 1818 in Guilford County, North Carolina and is buried at Buffalo Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Find-A-Grave Memorial #114361501 states that the stone was broken and leans against a cedar tree.]

[His siblings included:

a) Jean Cunningham: ( Married: William Wilson, 1774) Born: ? Died: ?,

b) James Cunningham: Born: ? Died: ? Miscellaneous: Moved to Tennessee after the Revolutionary War. Received 640 acre grant in Tennessee for War Service,

c) Joseph Cunningham: Born: ? Died: ? Miscellaneous: Lieutenant in North Carolina Militia in the Revolutionary War,

d) Jeremiah Cunningham: (Married: Hannah Coots, 1779) Born: ? Died: ? Miscellaneous: In Revolutionary War-Pensioner,

e) William Cunningham: (Married: Martha Blair, 1771); Born: ? Died: ?

f) Hugh Cunningham: Born: ? Died: ? Miscellaneous: Was in Captain Bell’s Company in the Revolutionary War,

g) Mary Cunningham: (Married: William Smith) Born: ? Died: ? Miscellaneous: Lived in North Buffalo, North Carolina --Smith died 1783.]

[Note: The above listed siblings and their spouses are documented in Rev. S. M. Rankin’s book: History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Her People ca. 1934. p. 23. However, according to "Guilford County Pioneers; The Cunningham Family, The Guilford Genealogist Quarterly Journal of the Guilford County Genealogical Society, Vol. 27, No. 4, Fall 2000, Issue #91, by Donald R. Simpson, p. 204, the Rankin information is not correct. Simpson says that much of Rankin’s information is based on oral family history, but Simpson bases his findings on John’s father’s will, probated in Rowan County, and other wills that are in the North Carolina State Archive. Simpson states that John’s siblings really include:

a) Jane Cunningham: (Married: William Wilson, bond 16 August 1774, Guilford County) Born: ca 1756, Died: ? Miscellaneous: She and her husband moved to Pendleton Co., South Carolina;

b) Margaret Cunningham: (Married 1st: John Work, probably ca. 1770-75; and then Married 2nd: Patrick McGibboney, bond 16 Sept, 1783 in Guilford County.) Born: perhaps 1754-57 Died: ?

Simpson states that William Cunningham and Jeremiah Cunningham were two of the five children of a different Cunningham family. He states that their father was James Cunningham).[Note: Jane is probably Jean. In both cases, the husband is listed as William Wilson.]]

 

Miscellaneous:

According to Guilford County Pioneers; The Cunningham Family, The Guilford Genealogist Quarterly Journal of the Guilford County Genealogical society, Vol. 27, No. 4, Fall 2000, Issue No. 91, page 205, "At the Rowan Court of 13 July, 1763, it was ordered that Thomas Donnell, William Denny, Hugh Brawley & George Hamilton 'do lay off and value according to law one acre of land belonging to the orphans of John Cunningham [Sr] (#213) on the South Fork of Haw River, unto John Boyd, Junr., to build a public grist mill thereon & make return thereof to our next Court.' John Boyd's Mill was located on Reedy Fork [i.e. South Fork] of Haw River just west of George Finley's Mill and near the present bridge for U.S. Hwy. 29. This land, from which the Boyd Mill tract was taken, continued to be held by John Cunningham, Jr. In 1785, he sold of it to Samuel Thompson by deed which gives the bounds as including "John Cunningham's line through Boud's [=Boyd's] old mill pond." [Note: The above passage refers to John Sr.'s children as orphans, which means that his wife died prior to 13 July 1763. She may have died in childbirth with John Cunningham, Jr. who was born in 1763. John Sr. died before John Jr. was born. It is not known who raised John and his siblings.]

In Guilford County, North Carolina Land Grants 1778-1934, by Elizabeth "Pat" Shaw Bailey, 2001, John Cunningham Sr.'s property is referred to numerous times after his death. [Note: John Sr. died in 1762, but the land continued to be held by his son John Cunningham, Jr.]. Page 7 states that David Brown was granted 40 acres (Entry date: 16 May 1815 Location: "wtrs Reedy Fork/Haw River- Cunningham - John Milloway". ) Page 42 states that Edward Loney was granted 300 acres (Entry date 18 Nov. 1778) Location: head Cunningham Branch of Reedy Fork - Thomas Blair. Page 48 states that John McKibbin was granted 160 acres (Entry date: 20 Feb. 1779) Location: "South side Haw River at Cunninghams line". Page 58 states that Isaac Relph? (Ralph) was granted 50 acres (Entry date: 8 Feb. 1798) Location: "wtrs Haw Rvr - Geo Nelson-Cunningham-Loney-Person." Page 69 states that Robert Thompson was granted two parcels of land. The first was 100 acres (Entry date: 30 Sept. 1789) Location: "waters Reedy Fork - begin at John Cunningham's corner." The second was 130 acres (Entry date: 21 July 1794) Location: "wtrs Reedy Fork - John Cuningham -Robt Thompson decd." Page 75 states that Andrew Willson was granted 311 acres (Entry date: 1 Apr. 1779) Location: "on the Haw River - Cunningham line-Widow Wilson."

There are additional references made to land that John Jr. was granted in Guilford County, North Carolina Land Grants 1778-1934, by Elizabeth "Pat" Shaw Bailey, 2001. Page 16 states that John Cunningham was granted 339 acres (Entry date: 21 Nov. 1778) Location: "on Big Troublesome Creek - Thomas Henderson." Page 28 states Andrew Hall was granted 250 acres (Entry date: 29 Feb. 1780) Location "waters Rosses Creek - John Starat- John Cunningham."

John was probably in the Revolutionary War with his brothers.

Page 504 of the 1790 Census for Guilford County, North Carolina lists John with his family of four and a total of 7 people in his household. Details are shown at the link. [Note: Born in 1763, John would have been ~27 when this census was taken. He was married to his first wife, Margaret Donnell.]

The NC Early Census Index of 1795 lists John Cunningham living in Guilford County, N.C.

Page 973 of the 1810 Census for Guilford County, North Carolina lists John with his family of 10 and a total of 26 people in his household. Details are shown at the link. [Note: John would have been ~47 when this census was taken. He was married to his second wife, Mary (McMurray) Mitchell (#108).]

The 1820 Census for Guilford County, North Carolina lists John with his family of 8 and a total of 27 people in his household. Seven of these individuals were involved in agriculture. Details are shown at the link. [Note: John would have been ~57 when this census was taken. He was married to his third wife, Mary (Polly) Findley.]

During his life, John had three wives and 11 children. With Margaret Donnell, he had three children: James, Isabella, and John. With Mary (McMurray) Mitchell, he had 8 children: Mitchell, Hannah (#54), Joseph, Polly, William, Andrew, Elizabeth, and Nancy. He had no children with his 3rd wife Mary (Polly) Findley.

According to "Guilford County Pioneers; The Cunningham Family, The Guilford Genealogist Quarterly Journal of the Guilford County Genealogical Society, Vol. 27, No. 4, Fall 2000, Issue #91, p. 206, John “made his will in 1820 naming his wife and children, and disposing of his considerable estate.” He is buried in the Buffalo Church Cemetery with at least two of his wives and some of his children."

John Cunningham's will in its entirety can be seen at this link. It was filed in February 1821. In his will, he names 1) his third wife, Mary, 2) nine of his 11 children: Mitchel, Joseph, Polly, William, Andrew, Elizabeth, Nancy, Hannah (#54), and James, 3) two of his grandchildren: Rufus Sims and Milton Cunningham, 4) two sons-in-law Edward Sims and Erwin Donnell (#53) and 5) Ten Negroes: Tom, Abram, Mime and child, Nathan, Willis, Jacob, Looce, Beck, and Barbara. [Note: Two of John's children preceded him in death. Isabella had been wife to a Mr. Sims (likely Edward Sims) and she died prior to John's 1820 will. John's son John died in 1817.]

At the time of his death, five of John's children (Polly, William, Andrew, Elizabeth, and Nancy) were minors. Following his death, it is assumed the minors remained in the home with their stepmother until the boys reached 21 years of age and the girls married. During that time, all of the children had guardians: Polly's guardian was Erwin Donnell. William's guardian was Samuel Donnell. Guardians for Andrew were at different times Samuel Mitchell, Adam Mitchell and William Pritchett. Elizabeth's guardian was Erwin Donnell and Nancy's guardian was James Findley. By clicking on the word "guardian" for each child, you can see the guardianship papers of each.

Below: John's tombstone at Buffalo Presbyterian Church Cemetery. (GPS 36° 6.596 minutes N, 79° 46.78 minutes W). These pictures were taken on 29 September 2005. One photograph shows blue chalk was applied to the stone in order for the inscription to be more easily read.

 

His tombstone states:

IN Memory of JOHN CUNNINGHAM DIED Jan’y 24, 1821 In the 58th Year of HIS AGE.

 

Lifetime Events Summary for John Cunningham Jr.:

Event	Date	John's age
Death of Father	1762	Was not yet born
Birth	1763	0
Death of Mother	1763	0
Revolutionary War	1775 - 1783	12 - 20
1st Marriage	1786	23
2nd Marriage	1798	35
Birth of Daughter Hannah (#54)	1801	38
War of 1812	1812 - 1815	49 - 52
3rd Marriage	1818	55
Death	1821	58

 

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Contact person for this website is Susan Snyder: susanleachsnyder@gmail.com