Elizabeth McKeehan
Sex: F
Individual Information
Birth Date: 29 Sep 1749 - Ireland Christening: Death: Burial: Cause of Death:
Parents
Father: John McKeehan ( -1783) Mother:
Notes
General:
On page 295 of her book The Familes of Joshua Williams of Chester Co., Pa. and of John McKeehan of Cumberland Co., Pa., Bessie P. Douglas asserts without providing any evidence that Elizabeth McKeehan's husband was William Appleby and then says "From her father's will we may judge that Elizabeth lived with him and kept his house after her mother's death. It is apparent that her husband was not a successful man, as her father evidently expected them to continue living with one of his sons after his death."
See notes under John McKeehan for the text of his will. It mentions 1) an Elizabeth Appleby who is now living with John McKeehan, 2) his daughter Elizabeth, and 3) his son-in-law William Appleby, who by definition is married to a daughter of John McKeehan. Bessie P. Douglas evidently believes that 1) and 2) and the wife of William Appleby are the same person. I think the will itself, apart from any other evidence that may or may not exist, strongly suggests that they are 3 separate and distinct people.
In the third item John McKeehan bequeaths a new Bible to 1) and then in the following paragraph he bequeaths a new Bible to 2). If 1) and 2) were the same person, it would not be normal to make a bequest to 1) and almost immediately make the same bequest to 2). I conclude that 1) and 2) are distinct. The paragraph in which he describes the details of the upkeep of his daughter Elizabeth is the longest of the will, and he provides a substantial amount of money for that purpose. That suggests that she is unmarried, and that her father anticipates that very possibly she will never marry. It is not plausible to believe that she is William Appleby's wife if her father anticipates that she may well spend the rest of her life in the care of her brothers James and Benjamin. Contrary to the opinion of Bessie P. Douglas, it appears that John McKeehan holds William Appleby in high regard since he makes him one of the executors of his will.
The Elizabeth Appleby who lives with John McKeehan cannot be the wife of William Appleby because then she would be his daughter, and we have shown that that is not the case. Moreover it would be very strange if William Appleby's wife were living on a long-term basis with her father rather than with her husband and children, who in 1782 range in age from 2 to 12.
If the Elizabeth Appleby who lives with John McKeehan is not his daughter and not William Appleby's wife, who then is she? There are various possibilities. Elizabeth is an ubiquitous name. There are probably other Appleby's in the county that we know nothing about. It isn't necessary to demonstrate that she is any specific person; it is sufficient to present a plausble possibility. She might be John McKeehan's sister who married someone named Appleby (maybe an uncle of William) who died young, and who now lives with her brother. She might even be William Appleby's widowed mother, who is now living with her brother instead of with her son, in which case there was a marriage between first cousins.
I conclude from the will that the daughter of John McKeehan who married William Appleby was not Elizabeth, even though essentially everyone else says that she was. They have provided no proof for their assertion; if it exists, let them provide it. I have concluded provisionally that William Appleby married Agnes McKeehan. See notes under Agnes for details.
1
Dorothy (Dee) Appleby Turner, Appleby Heritage Association, http://appleby.rootsweb.com.
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