Boone Family Page
Welcome to The Boone Family Page, which furnishes historical detail beyond the site index, exploring five generations of Boones in the line of Etheldred Boone of Stewart Co., Tennessee and North Carolina.
3. Sue Bunch Boone (Blann) -- Born July 8, 1925 in Nashville, TN., the youngest child of Marvin Boone and Stella Cathey. Sue went to Isaac Litton High School and completed at least one year of college at Trevecca Nazarene College (now University). She married Troy Blann, a soldier from New York who was stationed at Ft. Campbell, KY and was hosted by the Boone family in Nashville. They married May 5, 1944 in Nashville, Tennessee at the First Church of the Nazarene and were subsequently stationed in Washington DC, London, England, Naples Italy, Bayonne, New Jersey, Yuma, Arizona, Malesherbes, France, McCordsville, Indiana, and Columbus, Georgia, before Troy retired and the family settled in Nashville, TN. Sue died Sept.24,2007 in Nashville. Her siblings were: Oliver Boone (1905-1982}; married Tina Ives; one son--Robert ("Bobby") Boone--Oliver's 2nd wife was Hazel), he was vice-president of Kellogs Cereal); Hazel Denny (1907-1996; married Buford Biles, then W. O. Denny, who had a daughter, Francis; Hazel worked for the Health Dept).; Margaret Moore (1910-1998?; married Bob Moore-had one daughter, "Little" Hazel Buntin and one son, Bobby Jr.); Marvin Aaron Boone (1913-1987; married four times--Helen was mother of his only son, "Boonie"; other wives were: Dolly, Nellie, Marie and Grace--Aaron was a professional entertainer and a chef, after retiring from show business); Doris Johnson (1919-2005; married Russell Hall--they had one son, Jim Hall, then Doris remarried Henry Johnson--Doris was a beautician); Edith Galloway (1915-2009; married Rev. Claude Galloway and had two sons: Bill and Jack). Sue played piano, sowed and became a L.P.N. (nurse) in the 1960's and worked at various nursing homes until she retired. She is buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville, TN.
4. John Marvin Boone --J.M. Boone was born Feb. 17, 1884 (or 1885?) in Erin, TN (Houston Co.) and died Dec. 31, 1961 in Nashville, Tennessee. He married Stella Cathey (1886-1971) in 1903, in Erin. According to the 1950 census he completed an 8th grade education. A miller by trade, Marvin took over his father’s mill in Erin until it closed. He then moved his family first to Guthrie, KY. for a year, then on to Nashville in 1922, where he worked for Riverside Mills (12 years) and at H. G. Hill Co. (25 years) as a mill foreman. He also worked four years at Southside Milling Company prior to H.G Hills. He played mandolin in his early life, and had some artistic ability and loved to garden (he raised large elephant ears and also sketched hunting dogs, etc.). After Marvin was converted at a Nazarene camp meeting, the family attended the Nazarene Church, though Marvin’s mother’s parents were Cumberland Presbyterian. Marvin's six siblings were: Robert Boone (1874-1931), Fanny Blake (1876-1968), Sidney Boone (1879-1964), Mary Elizabeth (Lizzy) Metcalf (1881-1970), Hetty Lorraine Pullen (1887-1984) and Morris Blake Boone (1892-1897). Robert and Sidney Boone both served as mayors of Erin, TN in the early 1900's. J. M. (Marvin) Boone had two sons and five daughters (listed above). His parents were Jack Daniel Boone and Kate Graham. He is buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville, TN.
5. John Daniel Boone -- The father of Marvin Boone, J.D. (Jack) Boone was born Oct.8, 1844 and died Jan.15, 1913 in Erin, TN (Houston Co.). He married Mary Catherine (Kate) Graham (May 13, 1853- Jan. 17, 1920) in the early 1870's and they had seven children (listed above). According to newspaper accounts (Nashville Banner, Jan.20, 1913), as a young man Jack joined the old Campground Church in Erin and later transferred to the Erin Presbyterian congregation. "He was prominent in business affairs and ... was operating very successfully a large stock farm east of Erin and a flouring mill [in Erin] and a grist mill at Cumberland City at the time of his death [at age 68]." Jack worked as an engineer on the L&N Railroad for a time and later built a steam-powered rolling mill which he ran in Erin, and thus earned the nickname, "Flour mill Jack". He also raised livestock and farmed. The Nashville Tennessean (Jan.19, 1913) stated: "Mr. Boone had worked his way up from a poor orphan to be one of the wealthiest citizens of this county [Houston]. He was a man of broad sympathy and very charitable. The poor of this community have lost one of the best and most substantial friends." [Jack's father died when he was 12, thus the reference to his being an orphan; his mother lived until 1909.]
J. D. Boone had one sister, Emily Caroline (1848-1926) and one brother, William Henry (1856-1930). His parents were Bird Boone, and Betty Lee, who were thought by both family and local historians to be relatives, respectively, of Daniel Boone, the famous pioneer, and General Robert E. Lee of Virginia (though genealogical research and DNA testing indicates that neither is the case, although the family is probably distantly related to both further back in time).
6. Bird Richard Boone-- Byrd (or Richard Bird) Boone was born ca. 1817 in Tennessee and died on Oct.13, 1856 in Ashley, Illinois. He was of Scotch-Irish descent and his family was Cumberland Presbyterian. A farmer by trade, around 1843, Bird married Mary Elizabeth "Betty" Lee (May 18, 1823- June 18, 1909), with whom he had three children: Emily Caroline (Emma) Nichols, William Harrison Boone and Jack D. Boone. Bird was the son of pioneer, Etheldred Boon of North Carolina who moved to Stewart Co., TN in 1804. Bird’s seven siblings were: Charlotty (b.1800, NC), William (b.1809, NC), Susan ("Sooky"-b.1811, TN), Etheldred (Jr. -b.1820, NC), John (b.1822, TN), Brighton (b.1824, TN) and Elizabeth (b.1827, TN). Bird grew up in Stewart (now Houston) Co., but moved with his wife to Illinois shortly before the Civil War (allegedly to find work). Bird died in Illinois in 1856 and his widow Betty, returned to Erin with the children after his passing and lived in Houston Co. until her death in 1909.
7. Etheldred Boon- Etheldred ("Dred") Boon was born ca. 1776 probably in Hertford Co. North Carolina and died in Houston Co, TN sometime after 1850. The historian Goodspeed states that Etheldred was a famous pioneer who came from North Carolina to Stewart Co.,TN around 1804, that Etheldred was related to Daniel Boone and had several sisters and brothers. Goodspeed relates that Etheldred married Mary Holley (or Holly) and traveled from North Carolina in a wagon caravan to Stewart (now Houston) County in 1804 and settled on Well’s Creek near Erin, TN. A farmer, trapper and explorer, Etheldred had eight children and several sisters (the sister's names are likely Edith "Eady" and Martha). Mary Holley’s parents are not known with certainty and there is not adequate proof of the marriage (however, there is a record of a Mary Holley marrying a William Etheridge in Bertie, NC. in 1804. One wonders if the similarity of the names Etheridge and Etheldred was behind Mary's identification as Etheldred's wife.). I show two DNA matches to Nicolas Holley (1773-1848), brother of Mary Holly and son of Nicolas Holley & Mary Lewis, however, as I have 63 matches to Etheldred Boon, I would expect to see far more Holley DNA matches if Mary Holley was truly my g-g-g-grandmother. Our earliest confirmed Boone ancestor, Etheldred Boon, was born in North Carolina, according to the 1850 Stewart Co., TN census, the last census in which he appears. He is the father of Bird Richard Boone, who is the father of Jack Daniel Boone, John Marvin Boone's father.
Besides the names of his children and their descendants, very little is known with certainty about Etheldred’s life and ancestry. Census records show no Etheldred Boon by name on any census in North Carolina from 1790 to 1810, however a male matching his age is shown in the 1790 census of his likely mother, Mary Boon, widow of John Boon of Hertford Co. NC. The lack of tax or land records for Etheldred in Hertford Co., NC during this time period is likely due to the fact that the Hertford County records for this period were burned and are no longer extant. Margaret Schneider speculated in her book, Etheldred Boone and his Descendants that Etheldred might have gone by the name John or Jonathan on some records, however, I have not found any documentation that would confirm that Etheldred was actually named John or Jonathan. Fortunately, DNA results strongly point to the identity of Etheldred's family, Boons who lived in the area of Hertford and Northampton counties in North Carolina and farmed across the state line in nearby Southampton, VA (whose records are still preserved).
Goodspeed thinks that Etheldred may have gone back and forth to NC several times starting in 1804. According to census records, the first two children of Etheldred, Charlotty (b.1800) and William (b.1809), were born in North Carolina and the rest of his children were born in Tennessee, starting with Susan "Sooky" (b.1811). Land records show that Etheldred had built a home in Wells Creek, Stewart Co. TN by 1824. "Eldridge Boon" appears on 1829 Stewart County Tax List in Capt. Gorin's Company. Etheldred first appears in the 1830 Stewart Co. census, which shows a male (Etheldred) age 50-60 (born 1770-1780), three younger males and one female, presumably his wife, age 40-50 (born between 1780-1790). In 1840, he is listed as Eldridg Boon in the 1840 Stewart Co. TN census (age 60-70, wife 50-60), and finally in 1850 as Ethedriel Boon (age 74) along with daughter Elizabeth (age 33)--his wife deceased by inference. (As Elizabeth is listed in the household of Etheldred in 1850 at age 33 , she is probably his daughter, however this could be a young second wife). The names of the children of Etheldred are as follows: Charlotty (b.1800, NC), William (b.1809, NC), Susan (“Sooky”-b.1811, TN), Richard Byrd (b.1817, TN), Elizabeth (b.ca.1817, TN), Etheldred Jr. (b.1820, NC), John (b.1822, TN), and Bright(on) (b.1824, TN).
Note: There is an Etheldred Boone who appears in the 1830 Southampton, VA census at the same time as Etheldred of Stewart Co. appears in the Tennessee census. Whether this 1830 Virginia Etheldred (40-50 on census, thus born between 1780-90) is the same as the person listed as Dred Boon in the 1840 and 1850 Southampton, VA. censuses (and shown by the census to be black) has not been determined. There is also a Southampton City tax record showing a single Etheldred Boon living there between 1806 & 1811, and a 1807 court record of Southampton, VA, which seems to indicate that an Etheldred Boon had previously lived there but no longer did. Judgment Papers, 1807, Southampton County, Virginia on FamilySearch shows Etheldred Boon living on land of James Boon (possibly his uncle, son of Nicholas Boon). This could be the black Etheldred Boon who appears on the 1830 Southampton, VA census , but due to the mention of James Boon it is more likely our Etheldred who moved to Tennessee after this time. An 1816 Northampton Co., NC record shows James Boon functioning as justice of the peace (Northampton. Probate Estate Case Files 1766–1911 on FamilySearch). There is also an 1814 record of Etheldred Boon selling land to William Henry in New Hanover Co., North Carolina (New Hanover. Deeds 1813–1817 on FamilySearch)
Bird Boone (1790-1856), who is also listed as "Birdy" and Richard Birdwell Boon, is most likely a brother of Etheldred Boon. He was born in North Carolina and around 1847 moved to Stewart Co. TN (near Etheldred) along with his family and lived there until his death in 1856, after which his widow, Hannah Costin Boon, moved with her children back to North Carolina. Etheldred named a son Richard Bird Boone (my great-great-grandfather), probably after his brother, and this family name was also given to their likely cousin, Byrd Boon (1783-1816), in Hertford Co. NC. This Bird Boon, brother of James Boon, married Nancy Edwards and was the son of Nicholas Boon (b.ca.1745-55), possibly Etheldred's uncle.
Etheldred's brother, Bird Boone (1790-1856), appears on the 1820-1840 censuses of New Hanover Co. NC (which is on the southeastern coast of North Carolina near South Carolina--around Wilmington--while Hertford and Northampton counties are in northern North Carolina, near Virginia). The 1912 death certificate of Bird's daughter, Tabitha, confirms that she was born in New Hanover in 1838 and that her father was Birdy Boon. (Tabitha also appears in Bird's household in the 1850 Stewart Co. (Houston Co.), TN census. I have 10 atDNA matches to Bird's daughter, Caroline "Birdy" Boon Latham (1846-1895), 6 of which range between 18-39 cMs, as well as 10 other matches with Bird's children, Daniel, Tabitha and Margaret. Below Etheldred and Bird's children are listed. Both named sons William, which is the name of their likely grandfather, William Boon, and Bird named a daughter Mary, probably after his mother, and Etheldred named a son John, probably after his father.
Etheldred Boone Richard Birdwell (Bird) Boone (Etheldred’s likely brother)
(b.1776, NC) wife: Mary Holley? (b.1790, NC) wife: Hannah (Costin?)
Charlotty (b.1800, NC) Rebecca (b.1820) (*William has sons
William (b.1809, NC)* Daniel (b.1826) named Wm & Etheldred.
Susan ("Sooky"-b.1811, TN) William (b.1832)
Richard Byrd (b.1817, TN) Mary (b.1834)
Elizabeth (b.1817, TN) Elisabeth (b.1836)
Etheldred (Jr.) (b.1820, NC) Tabitha (b.1838)
John (b.1822, TN) Margaret (b.1842)
Bright(on) (1824, TN) Caroline (b.1846)
Years ago my Boone family (on my mother's side) believed that we were descended from Daniel Boone, the famous pioneer, or one of his brothers. In 1987, Margaret R. Schneider published a book entitled Etheldred Boone and his Descendants, which posited Daniel Boone's brother, Jonathan Morgan Boon, as a possible father of Etheldred, thus tentatively linking Etheldred to the line of George Boone I of Exeter, England. In 2006, my late cousin, Bobby Boone, a direct male descendant of Etheldred, took a Y-DNA test at FamilyTreeDNA in order to determine whether we were related to Daniel Boone. The results showed that Etheldred Boon's Y-DNA strand does not match the Y-DNA from the male heirs of Daniel Boone or the Isle of Wight Boone line. Daniel Boone's line belongs to haplogroup R1b, while Etheldred's line belongs to haplogroup I, a lineage which hails from northwestern Europe and is associated with Viking populations. (I also learned later that most Boone families, Etheldred Boon and his children included, spelled the name "Boon" without the e until the late 19th century when most of them began to add the e, while the family of Daniel Boone always spelled the name with an e in the old records.) The Y-DNA results showed that Etheldred Boon's line was chromosomally related to several Boons in the Hertford Co., NC area, notably Matthias Boon (1786-1835) and two sons of Matthias' brother, Allen Boon (1771-1812): Boling Boon (1801-1862) and Nicholas Boon (1806-1874). Matthias Boon (who married Margaret Joyner and moved to Madison Co. TN), and Allen Boon (who married Rebecca Boon Garriss), are both sons of John Boon and Mary Metcalf of Hertford Co. NC. These 3 Y-DNA matches from one set of Boon parents in North Carolina clearly imply that John and Mary Boon are very likely parents of Etheldred, and by extension, Bird Boon.
Note: Another Y-DNA match to Etheldred's line is Benjamin Boon, born in 1820 in South Carolina, who I have not been able to identify. There are three Boling Boons in this northeastern area of North Carolina who are sometimes confused. One is older and died ca. 1800 and his wife was named Sally. The second Boling Boon (Etheldred's Y-DNA match)--the son of Allen Boon--was born in 1801 in North Carolina, moved to Wayne Co., GA, married Mary Kemp, and had children named Nicholas, John and Allen. (I have both autosomal and Y-DNA matches to him.) The third Boling Boon was also born in 1801 in Northampton Co., NC, and was the son of William Boon (1755-1806) and Susannah Jenkins (1776-1806), William being the son of Joseph Boon (1730-1794) and Savory. This Boling is named as a son in the will of his mother Susannah Jenkins Boon and may be the Boling Boon who later appears in Edgecomb Co. NC records.
8. John Boon--The likely father of Etheldred and his probable brother Bird Boon, John Boon was born ca. 1747-49 in Hertford Co. NC. (Hertford Co. NC was created out of Northampton Co. NC in 1759.) John died shortly before the 1790 census was taken in August 1790. He is last mentioned in tax records of 1794 and 1797 in Hertford County. (Bird Boon was born about 1790, probably a few months to a year before John's death.) John married Mary Metcalf (ca.1756-1814) around 1770. While there are no birth records for John and Mary, their first child, Allen was born in 1771 and the 1800 census shows the widow Mary Boon as born no earlier than 1756. If accurate, a 1756 birth date for Mary would mean she was about 15 when her first child was born. Assuming Etheldred and Bird are their children, the 7 likely children of John and Mary Boon are: Allen (1771-1812), Nicholas (1773-1806; never married or had children), Martha (ca.1775-1809; she married William Jackson), Etheldred (1776-after 1850), Edith "Edy"(1778-1840; she married William Fergeson), Matthias (1786-1835; who moved to Madison Co, TN) and Bird (1790-1856).
A Chancery Court lawsuit by Matthias Boon against Allen Boon, administrator of his son, Nicholas Boon (b. 1806) names Allen and Nicholas (b. 1773) as brothers of Matthias, so these three are proven brothers. Further evidence is found in the 1814 will of their mother, Mary Boon, who cites two sons, Matthias and her deceased son, Nicholas (1773-1806). Allen Boone (b.1771) was probably the father of at least these three children: John Boone (1797-1828), Boling Boon (b.1801 in NC-d.1832 in GA) and Nicholas Boon (1806-1874). After the death of John Boon, his widow Mary Boon appears in the Hertford Co. census and it is here that we find implied evidence of Etheldred and newborn Bird in Hertford. Her household in Aug. 1790 consists of: 1 male over 16 (Etheldred), 2 males under 16 (Matthias & Bird), and 2 females (Edith and Mary). The 1800 Hertford census shows Mary as born between 1756-1776, with only one male, age 10-15, in her household (Bird). The other older children have all moved on by 1800. There is no 1810 Hertford census for Mary nor is she listed in Virginia but since her will was written in Southampton, VA, she might have been living in Virginia by 1810. In her will, she mentions only two of her 7 children: Matthias and Nicholas (deceased).
While there is minimal evidence other than proximity, some researchers believe that Nicholas Boon (ca.1745-ca.1806) of Hertford/Northampton Co. NC. was a brother of John Boon. Nicholas married a wife named Anne around 1770 and they had several children, including one named Byrd (1783-1816), as discussed above. So far no Y-DNA matches to Etheldred's line have been reported through Nicholas' line. It is further speculated (with little supporting evidence) that John and Nicholas' parents may have been William Boon (ca. 1705-1756) and Alice Winborn (ca. 1705-1759) who were both born in Isle of Wight, VA and died in Northampton Co. NC. However, these last relationships are more tentative and, in the absence of records, based primarily on proximity--Boons who lived in the same county in the same time frame.
Below is a genealogical chart showing the ancestors who are DNA matches with Etheldred Boon:
I would like to acknowledge credit to Leta Myles Boone Franklin for sharing the results of her extensive microfilm research into this family through e-mails and other documents before her passing. Her brother, John Franklin Boone, was a very close Y-DNA match (at 25 markers) to my line from Etheldred Boon. Without clear documentary proof from records (many having been destroyed), Leta was never sure whether we were related through John Boone as a most recent common ancestor. Ultimately the common connection through John and Mary Boon must remain a hypothesis based largely on the evidence of numerous DNA matches between our lines.
A discussion of other candidates often cited as possible fathers of Etheldred:
John Phillip (Joiner) Boon (b. 1755 in Hopewell, Jefferson Co., West Virginia)
John Boon (b. 1750-55 in York Co., Pennsylvania)
John Phillip (Joiner) Boon of NC and John Boon of VA
More recently, two further Y-DNA matches were added to FamilyTree DNA obstensibly connecting Etheldred's haplogroup with the line of John Phillip (Joiner) Boon. However, I learned that at least one of these matches is descended from Etheldred Boon and that the citation of Joiner Boone as the father of Etheldred was speculative. This individual told me he had found evidence that showed to his satisfaction that Etheldred's father, Joiner Boon, was an orphan adopted by a Boon family (or else his biological father, whose family name was "Joyner," died and his widow remarried a Boon). However, he had not retained the records that indicated this and I haven't been able to find evidence that would verify this hypothesis. (Matthais Boon married Margaret Joyner, but I've found no orphans associated with them.) The other DNA match did not respond to my e-mail inquiry but likely was speculating about his relation to Joiner Boon, as I have found no documents that would prove a relation between Joiner with Etheldred Boon. For completeness, I discuss what is known of him below.
Joiner Boon was born in June 16, 1755 in Hopewell, Jefferson, Virginia and died on Feb. 27, 1837 in Gibsonville, Guilford County, NC. It is uncertan who his parents were. Some have identified him as the son of Johann Jacob Baltzer Böhn (1726-1797), a German immigrant who died in Guilford Co, NC and had a son named John. (John Boon is cited on the 1812 Muster Rolls for the Northhampton Co. NC Regiment as "Joiner" Boon.) Joiner Boon's parents are said to have moved to Rowan, NC when he was a child; he enlisted in the War in North Carolina during the American Revolution. The 1790 through 1830 censuses show a John Boon residing in Guilford, NC. Joiner Boon married Anna Starnes (Abt 1760 – 1819) in 1780 and after her passing remarried twice. He died on Jan. 27, 1837 in Guilford County, North Carolina. As marriage records show that Joiner Boon's first wife, Anna, married him four years after Etheldred was born, it appears that this couple must also be ruled out as Etheldred's parents.
A slightly earlier Rowan Co. NC marriage record for a John Boone (with an e), shows a marriage to Martha Quinn on Oct.19, 1765 (North Carolina Marriage Bonds, 1741-1868; Bond #000123087). Although some trees connect Martha Quinn with Jonathan Boone, brother of Daniel Boone, I haven't seen records that clarify which of the many John Boones she married. Curiously, I have 49 atDNA matches to Martha Quinn (as shown on Ancestry's Thrulines), showing that she matches with the lines of Etheldred and his likely brother Birdwell Boone. (Thrulines works by combining actual DNA matches with Ancesry family trees that show a possible line of descendancy to a particular ancestor. However, if Thrulines accesses incorrect ancestors in various trees, it can easily associate the DNA match with a false ancestor. In this case, the 49 matches to Martha Quinn are probably true DNA matches to descendants of Etheldred and Bird Boon combined with Ancestry trees that speculatively list Martha Boon as the mother of Etheldred and Byrd Boon. While Martha cannot be ruled out as their mother, I have found no records in any of these trees or elsewhere that indicate she is the mother of Etheldred or Bird Boon nor that either ever lived in Rowan Co.)
Another John Boon who is often confused with John "Joiner" Boon of North Carolina is the John Boon who fought in the American Revolution in Virginia. He was born between 1750-1755 in York, Pennsylvania and died July 13, 1835 in Monroe, Amherst, Virginia. (Two of his descendants have taken Y-DNA tests and are shown to be of Haplogroup I-M223, which is a different chromosomal group than Etheldred Boon, 1-M253). John Boon married Elizabeth Alford (1765-1841) in Virginia. Thomas O. Miller, a Boone researcher, states that he found the record of John and Elizabeth's marriage in Rockingham County, Virginia and that it took place in 1785 with Elizabeth's father John acting as surety. Although this John Boon's military pension suggests that he thought he was closely related to Daniel Boone, the pioneer, many doubt that he was correct in this assumption. I do have a few atDNA matches with children of Elizabeth Alford and her parents, John B. Alford (1740-1809) and Jane Mallory Bates (1740-1796) which seems to indicate some relationship of Elizabeth Alford with Etheldred. However, the only marriage record of which I am aware shows that she married "John Boon" in Virginia in 1785 (a decade after Etheldred was born). There exists an extensive interview by this "John Boon" who appeared before the County Clerk in Monroe, VA. on Aug.20, 1833 to apply for a military pension for his service in the Revolutionary war. He identifies his wife as Elizabeth Alford and says he was born in PA, and conjectures that he is closely related to Daniel Boone, the pioneer, but unfortunately he does not say who his parents were, which makes identifying him very difficult. John stated in his pension application that "when he was 18 or 19 yrs old, he went to Kentucky with his Uncle Daniel Boon and returned the next year, which was 1774." If he was a nephew of Daniel Boone then he can be ruled out as as a potential father of Etheldred due to Y-DNA evidence as well as no record of a marriage as early as Etheldred's birth in 1776. On June 12, 1847, John's wife's sister, Peggy Alford, gave an affidavit, stating: "That the said John Boon lived a near neighbor to her father in Rockingham Co., Virginia. and was married to Elizabeth Alford about the year 1787 or 88 in Augusta Co., Virginia. That the affiant moved in company with the said Boon and his wife to that part of Virginia then called Greenbrier, now Monroe County, about two years after his marriage and lived neighbors until the said Boon died, which was about the year 1835; that Elisabeth Boon, widow of the said John Boon, after her husband's death, lived with her son Henry Boon in Monroe County; that the said Elizabeth Boon while living with her son Henry, came on a visit to the affiant's house, and was taken sick, and died on the 15th day of February 1841."
As John Boon was born in York, PA at a time when there were no Boons who might be his parents listed near York Co. , some have speculated that he might have been an orphan who took the name Boon. On the other hand, there were Bohns (an alternate German spelling of Boon) in the Pennsylvannia area who might have been his relatives. Despite some atDNA matches to this couple, John Boon and Elizabeth Alford would seem to be ruled out as Etheldred's parents because Elizabeth would have been 10 years old when Etheldred was born and the couple lived in VA, whereas the 1850 census states Etheldred was born in NC.
Other early Boones in Tennessee who might possibly be related to Etheldred include a William Boon (1799 & 1811 Davidson Co. tax list), a Daniel Boon who appears on the Warren Co. tax list in 1812, (another?) Daniel who dies in Madison Co. TN. around 1843. Madison Co. tax lists from around 1830 also show a William and Thomas Boon in that county. There is also a Richard Boon in Robertson Co. TN ca.1810 (or 1814), who is likely the son of John Boon (d.1795) of Northampton Co. NC. Also of interest is a Nathan Boon who appears on the 1810 tax list and 1814 court records for Stewart Co, then disappears. FamilySearch records a 1808 marriage in Sumner Co. TN between a Nathan Boon and Betsey Thorn as well as Nathan's military service in the War of 1812. A Nathan Boon (b. 1774-1784), who is very possibly Nathan Boon of Stewart Co, also appears in Northampton Co., NC. records; his mother was Elizabeth Sherrod, who married a Boon and later married Charles Lawrence. This Nathan could be a close relative of Etheldred.
Misc. note: A Jonathan Boone appears in the 1800 and 1820 Burke Co. NC and some Boone descendants have identified him as Etheldred, however the census data indicates that this Jonathan Boone is older than Etheldred and he is still in the Burke Co. census in 1830 while Etheldred is listed on the 1830 Stewart Co. TN census, so they cannot be the same person. A John Boon married Martha Quinn (b.1751) in Rowan Co. NC ca. 1768. They had children named John (b.1780 NC), James (b.1777 NC) and William (b. ca 1767), but later they all seem to have moved to Ohio, where they all eventually died. This does not appear to be Etheldred's family.
Further Boone/Bohun Ancestry: The Boone family, in one of its many lines, dates back to the time of the Norman Conquests in the tenth century and the name is likely of Norman origin. The Boones of NCorth Carolina Tennessee and Kentucky are mostly of Scotch-Irish descent. The name "Boon" is thought to be anglicized from the French word bon, meaning "good" or is a place name meaning one from Bohun in the Northwest corner of France. The haplogroup I has been found also to be related to some Boones presently in Ireland.
