RHEA-L Archives

Archiver > RHEA > 2000-07 > 0964652842


From: Norma Lewis <>
Subject: [RHEA-L] Re: RHEA-D Digest V00 #108
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 2000 16:07:22 -0700
In-Reply-To: <200007261633.e6QGXdk11931@lists5.rootsweb.com>


Hi to everyone! I just joined this list in Digest mode. What an adventure!
Please note I snipped the old messages! I used to belong to lots of lists
but got off them for a long time, doing my own thing, but I still have
questions about collateral families and thought I'd try the Surname lists
again. I research the huge Koiner family in America, all of it, and one of
our branches, Martin Coiner married Elizabeth Rhea in 1796 in VA. In our
old history, published 1892, it gives lineage for this family and I've been
told it is all wrong, so I'd like to find out what is correct. Have you
talked about this family on this list? I will check out your archives too.

As for different spellings, I'd like to point out, nobody worried about
spelling before 1800 at all, and until after the Civil War when they had to
make lists and notify next of kin, spelling of the last name was almost
never consistent.
Also, the census taker sometimes spelled names the way he heard
them. County Clerks, ministers and such, just spelled the name the way
they thought it was spelled, sometimes several different ways in the same
document. Sometimes if they knew a large family and had been writing their
name for years, they would spell this new name the same way. As with my
Coiners who became Comers (a large VA family) or Criners (another large VA
family). So, if you aren't following your family through the documents, it
would be easy to assume you had found the wrong one.

My family began in the US as Keinadt, found in PA as Kinnert, Kinard,
Keiner, Keinerd, Keinert, Kunert, Coiner, Koiner, Kyner and Kiner (I'm sure
I've missed a few). All but one child moved to VA in 1789 and we find those
spellings in VA also (and OH, IA, IN, IL, etc. ) . The PA child spelled his
name Kyner and most of those who went west spelled it Kiner. But in the
1880s a bunch of Swiss Kieners came over and they spelled their name Kiner,
which makes a real problem to research that branch of the family to this
day. Ihave since found the Swiss and Germans may be related back about 1400.

Those in VA settled on Koiner, Koyner, Coiner and Coyner. Two sons went to
OH and all used Coyner, so that makes it easy (they started out in OH as
Kiner), Martin who married Elizabeth Rhea, also used Coyner, and another
brother who went to WV, however, some of his family uses both Coiner and
Coyner ~ Most of the hold-backs in VA who tried to keep the German K by
using Koiner finally gave in and most of their descendants use Coiner, as
did my branch of the family. However, we find a pocket in MD who use
Koyner, call themselves "the Northern Koyners." And a bunch who went to TX
use Koiner.

We have researched this family back to Germany in 1540, and the variations
there are very different, it makes it hard to find them all. The name in
Germany now is Keinath and many by that name migrated to the US after 1850,
and they are all from our branch in Germany which makes it interesting.

When I find Rhea, Wray, Ray, Rea in different parts of the country, I
assume they are all related somewhere back in antiquity. I believe the
different spellings were used in Ireland and Scotland also. Of course, you
have to be reasonable about it. A Wray in New England may be English ~
could be related way back but not for the purposes of the research on this
list. Unless you found a Rea or Rhea from NC or TN who went to New
England. I don't know the early history of this family, that's why I got
on this list, but I assume from the numbers I find in VA and TN and NC that
they were among the early Scotch-Irish immigrants to PA and VA in this
country by about 1750, and when they came that early that gave them time to
expand and travel to different new parts of the country ~ Arkansas, for
instance,was a late blooming state ~ Arkansas was almost entirely Indian
reservation before it became a state, and I have found early Rays in
Arkansas ~ I assume they were originally Rheas who went early from TN to AR
and used that spelling. So, I think you may be making a mistake by
discounting any spelling that sounds like Rhea. I think any family should
be researched from earliest times to the present and eventually you will
find them all fitting together somehow. One large family in TN could have
sons who went to MO, IL, IN, OH, VA, NC, etc. all before 1800. By 1860 they
could be fighting in the Civil War on both sides and never know they were
related. By 1900 they could be using different spellings and for sure know
they weren't related! But, as genealogists of one surname, it is our job
with diligent research to bring them all back together again, at least on
paper. It isn't easy work, it is a very frustrating hobby (?), but you
can't give up.

Sorry to be so wordy, I'll climb off my soap box now and read replies
nicely and quietly! I hope somebody on this list knows and will give me
the history between the TN and VA Rheas, and the story of the Indian
massacre that supposedly killed Elizabeth Rhea's family. I like the story,
just don't know if it is true.
Thanks for your patience and stamina!
Norma


At 09:33 AM 7/26/00, you wrote:
>RHEA-D Digest Volume 00 : Issue 108
>
>Today's Topics:
> #1 Re: [RHEA-L] Warren County, Tennes ["Johnita P. Malone"
> <]
> #2 Re: [RHEA-L] Warren County, Tennes ["Anthony Brazell"
> <]
<snip>

This thread: