Jane's Names

Projects

Peter and I are involved in several genealogical projects. Some are collaborative efforts with other researchers, others are independent studies. We seek information, but are more than willing to share information. If you have information, want information, or are interested in being part of an ongoing project, please send an e-mail. All responses will receive a prompt reply.

Whitham Family - a collaborative effort to build the definitive Whitham family tree in America. Researchers include Tedd Rowley, Scott Whitham, Joe and Barbara Whitham, Norris Krall, Grace Whitham, and ourselves. John Whitham settled on the Patuxent River in what became Prince George's County, Maryland circa 1680. His descendants (we believe) migrated to Cecil County, Maryland. After the Revolution, some Whithams migrated to Western Virginia and Kentucky. Their descendants soon were established in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as many that remained in Maryland and (West) Virginia. Currently, we have over 1400 descendants of William (c1700-1756) and Elizabeth Smith Whitham.

Dement Family - a project to connect the early Dements of Charles County, Maryland with the Dements of North Carolina. The Dement family was well established in Maryland in the early 1700's. Before the Revolution, John Dement and family settled in eastern North Carolina. Is there a connection? The migration path from the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay areas (Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Maryland) to the Carolinas is well established. We are seaching for clues that link the two lines.

Labadists - Communists in Maryland?! Well, not the hammer and sickle variety, but an early commune of primarily Dutch immigrants established in Bohemia Hundred, Cecil County, MD around 1684 by Jasper Dankers and Peter Sluyter, alias Schilders and Vorsman. Associated families include Bayard, Bouchelle, de la Grange, Moll, Van Barkelo, de la Montaigne, de Konig (later King), and Kolchman, as well as Dankers and Sluyter. The commune disappeared after less than two decades of existance. We seek any historical and genealogical information pertaining to the Labadists.

The Jeanette Migrants - In 1774 a group of Scots from Sutherlandshire migrated to America on the Jeanette, landing in Bladensburg, MD and Philadelphia, PA. These migrants included the families of Ross, Frazier, McCoy, Sutherland, and McDonald. They worked off their passage on the plantations of Maryland and the farms of eastern Pennsylvania. Starting around 1780, they began migrating westward into the frontier forests of Washington Co, PA, gathering near Chartiers Creek. Between 1780 and 1800, they purchased land in Donegal (later Finley, then East and West Finley) townships and helped establish the Three Ridges Presbyterian Church at West Alexander, PA. In 1997, a project will begin to trace the history of these Jeanette families. Contributions (of information) and collaborations are sought.

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Jane Carson Topoly