2024 Origins - Nancy Ann Simmons Family Origins

 2024 - Origins

Origins of Nancy Ann Simmons' Families

As a family researcher, it is not uncommon for someone to ask, "Where is your family from." And I usually respond, "What part of my family? " My father's Simmons, Rexroad, Michael, Moyers, Huffman, Propst, Voeglin, Heavener, and Arbogast families are all German but other families are also French, English, and Scottish. My mother's Martin, Larkins, Cronin, and Stackpole families are  Irish, but other families are English, and a wee bit of German.

 

To find your family's origins you must find the immigrant ancestor. To find my father's Simmons immigrant ancestor I had to research back many generations. My father's Simmons family is from Germany, but I had to research back seven generations to reach my 5th great-grandfather, Leonard Simmons, to find that he was born in Germany. 

Pedigree Chart
Nancy Simmons to Paul Simmons to Walter Simmons to Andrew Simmons to Peter Simmons to Henry Simmons to Immigrant Leonard Simmons; my 5th great-grandfather from Germany 

Leonard Simmons was born about 1738 in Germany. At this point, I am still searching for the name of his village. Leonard Simmons was on the South Branch of the Potomac River in Virginia by 1753 and claimed 257 acres of land. My father's immigrant great-grandfather, William Henry Leeton, was born in 1839 in France, and his wife, Margaret Newland was born in 1845 in West Virginia but her immigrant parents, William Newland and Elspeth Hall, were born in Scotland.

1880 U.S. Federal Census Wood County, West Virginia
Immigrant - Leeton, Henry 41 born in France, father born in France, mother born in France
Leeton, Margaret, 35, wife, born in WV, father born in Scotland, mother born in Scotland
Henry and Margaret are my great-great-grandparents

My father's mother is June Elizabeth Putman. I have traced the Putman line to 1747 in Culpeper County, Virginia, and from there back to Thomas Putnam born in 1646 in Chesham, Buckinghamshire, England. June Elizabeth Putman's grandmother was Catherine Deck who comes from German stock. I have traced the Deck family back to immigrant, Johannes Nicholas Deck, my 6^th great-grandfather, born in 1695 in Germany.

Pedigree Chart
Nancy Simmons to Paul Simmons to June Putman to Cora Wilson to Catherine Deck to Jacob Deck to Christian Deck to Johannes Heinrich Deck to Immigrant- Johann Nicholas Deck; my 6th great-grandfather

 

Turning to my mother’s family, we have a dominance of Irish origins since her maternal grandparents, Denis and Bridgette (Stackpole) Cronin were both born in Ireland in the late 1850s. They both emigrated from Ireland to Detroit, Michigan in the 1880s.

Pedigree Chart
Nancy Simmons to Josephine Martin to Mary Cronin to Denis Cronin and Bridget Stackpole
Dennis Cronin born in County Cork, Ireland; my great grandfather
Bridget Stackpole born in County Kerry, Ireland; my great grandmother

 

My mother's paternal grandfather was Francis Arthur Martin, and his grandparents, Edward and Julia Martin were born in Ireland and married in 1829 in Kilmactranny Parish, Sligo County, Ireland. They emigrated from Ireland to Wayne County, Michigan in 1843. Since they are of the protestant faith, they are most likely Scotch-Irish.

But Francis Arthur Martin's maternal grandmother was Margaret Ann Davis, and she leads us back eight generations to immigrant Thomas Rogers, a Mayflower passenger who was born in England and married in 1597 in Northamptonshire, England.  

Pedigree Chart Nancy Simmons to Mayflower Ancestor
Nancy Simmons to Josephine Martin to Edward Martin to Francis Martin to Elizabeth Larkins to
Margaret Davis to Deborah Stephens 

Cont. Pedigree Chart Nancy Simmons to Mayflower Ancestor
Robert Stephens to Thomas Stephens to Josiah Stephens to Remember Tisdale to Anna Rogers to John Rogers to Immigrant Mayflower Ancestors - Thomas Rogers; 11th great grandfather from England

 

Based on my research, my origins are strongly Irish with heavy English and German lineages. There is also a small percentage of Scottish and French through my father's line.

 

I have tested my DNA with Ancestry and love their circle graphs. According to Ancestry's database, my father's origins are predominantly from England and Northwestern Europe, then from Germanic Europe, Sweden & Denmark, Scotland, and a trace of Wales. My mother's origins are over 50 % from Ireland, then England and Germanic Europe. The circle graph on the right shows my origins from Ireland, England, Germanic Europe, Sweden & Denmark, Scotland, and a trace of Wales.

Ancestry.com Circle Charts of Origins
Father's origins from England & Northwestern Europe, Germanic  Europe, Sweden & Denmark, Scotland and Wales
Mother's Origins from Ireland, England & Northwestern Europe, and Germanic Europe
My origins from Ireland, England & Northwestern Europe, Germanic Europe, Sweden & Denmark, Scotland, Wales

My Origins 
Ireland, Great Britain, Scotland, France, Germany, Norway and Denmark

 

My disclaimer on my research is that I have not been able to trace back far enough to find the source of my origins from Sweden & Demark or Wales as revealed in my DNA. But based on my research, I can state my origins are Ireland, England, Germany, Scotland, and France.