John Neer

John Neer, son of Henry Neer and Susanna Potts, was born 1789 (?) in Loudon Co, VA and died in Loudon Co, VA. John married Sarah.

John may have been the father of Eden (Edon, Eaton) Neer. I take him to be Eden’s father only as an unproven theory on the basis of the following:

1. He and Sarah were the parents of Nancy Neer, in whose house Eden’s services were held. 2. The only John Neer I see in Ohio is one whose gravestone puts his life-span from 1771 to 1849. (The Williams County publication of cemetery records describes the Melbern or Neidhardt cemetery as a family plot located in Section 21, Center Township. It contains a marker for "Neer, John, d. Mar. 7, 1849, ae 78y." An estate record, inventory and bill of sale for a John Neer who died in 1849 are in the Champaign County Court of Common Pleas.) 3. The only John Neer born in Loudoun County within a decade of 1771 is the son of Henry Neer and Susannah Potts.

The chief problem with that theory is that all references to that John Neer found online put his birth at 1774 or 1775, and give no evidence connecting him to any children at all. The only family tree posted online connecting John to Eden is that of Richard Rhoads, whom I’ve emailed to ask for further information. Another complicating factor is the fact that Henry and Susannah appear according to some sources to have had a son named John in the late 1780s, which seems to me to be a bit too late to be the same man, still less the father of Eden. To make matters more complicated, the John Neer who died in Ohio in 1849 was married to a Mary, and left minor children, which makes a match still less likely. I have listed the John born in 1789 as the father by speculation, as it is true while he stayed in Loudoun County, he is known to have three children who went to Ohio. This may explain why he has been so hard to pinpoint. But other online sources have him marrying a woman named Elizabeth, so this may not work either.