DAR #A021375

John Chenoweth III was born in Baltimore County, Maryland, 13 November 1735 to John (1706-1771) and Mary Smith Chenoweth. As a young child he went to Virginia with his parents. It was there that he grew to manhood. During his lifetime John married twice. The first marriage was to Mary in the late 1750s, probably in Virginia, while the second was to Eleanor Parke. As the dates of death for Mary and the dates of marriage for Eleanor have not been found, it is uncertain who was the mother of each child. Based on John’s will it would seem that Mary was the daughter of William Smith and that the one child of this marriage was son William S, born between 1755-1760, died about 23 September 1838, Allen County, Ohio. It is thought that all of John’s children were born in Hampshire County, Virginia (created from Frederick County in 1754). Children of John listed in the DAR record are John who married Mary Ann Swisher, Eleanor who married Levi Ashbrook, James W who married Susan McBride and Elias who married Nancy Carleton. All known children were Elizabeth born Virginia 1746 - died 1829 Marion County, Indiana; James (twin of John) born 16 December 1768, in Virginia - died May 1946 in Delaware County, Indiana; John (twin of John) born 16 December 1768 - died 15 October 1747, Posey Township, Washington County, Indiana; Absolom born 1767 Virginia - died after 1850; Eleanor was born in 1774 in Virginia; Rachel was born in 1777 in Hampshire County, Virginia - died before 1850; Mary W was born 1779, Hampshire County, Virginia - died after 1810; and Elias was born 10 October 1781, Hampshire County, Virginia - died before 1880, probably in Indiana.

Early records are not always reliable however it appears that John had received land located in Hampshire County, upon the death of his father, as did his brother William. William sold his share of the 248 acre division to John within that same year. John is known to have acquired other lands and held property totaling 792 acres at this death. He died in Hampshire County at the age of 76. John's family and his land are known by his will, prepared on April 19, 1811, and probated in Hampshire County after his death in 1812. Elias, the youngest son, and John Monroe were executors. Unlike many other Chenoweth wills, John designated that all his personal property and land be sold. These monies were to be evenly distributed. The sale of the land may have been the impetus to move west as all John's children left Virginia. William would go to Warren Co., OH. The son, John, Jr., settled in Washington County, Indiana in 1807. Absolom, James and Elias went to Perry Co., OH, the three Ashbrook sisters, Mary, Rachel and Eleanor went to Kentucky, and it is believed that Elizabeth's Monroes went to Illinois.

The son of John Chenoweth III and his second wife, Eleanor Parke is John who married Mary Ann ‘Polly’ Switzer in Virginia, probably Hampshire County; John had one half brother William of Allen County, Ohio and siblings Elizabeth who married Alexander Monroe; Absolom who settled in Perry County, Ohio; James who settled in Perry County, Ohio initially and then moved to Delaware County; Eleanor who married Levi Ashbrook, Jr and went on to Clark County, Kentucky; Rached who married Absolom Ashbrook, her first cousin and moved first to Kentucky where she was widowed, and married her second husband Henry Dusenbery in Ohio; Mary married John Ashbrook and sent to Pendleton County, Kentucky and then on to Lawrence County, Illinois; Elias went to Perry County, Ohio, with Absolom and James and then removed to Indiana. *It is noted that Philip, a child not listed, 15 February 1806 to 22 September 1834, married Martha Ann Sallee. Family lore says there was also a first born daughter that died in route to Indiana.

John is found in the 1820, 1830, and 1840 census in Washington County, Indiana. Many of his descendants continued to live in the area of Indiana that contained Washington and Orange Counties. One son, William, went on to Fulton County, Illinois and a daughter Eleanor married William C Wilson and went on to Peoria County, Illinois.

William Chenoweth was the 7th child of John Chenoweth IV and Mary Ann “Polly” Switzer, born in Ohio, during the family’s journey from Hampshire County, Virginia (now WV) to Washington County, Indiana. William married Martha Ann Jones on 18 September 1834 in Washington County, Indiana. They had seven children, Elias Birdine 1835-1915; Adeline 1837-1855; John Birdine 1840-1842; Joseph W 1845-after 1910; Edward Woodward 1845-1915; James Levi 1847- 1909; Milton Andrew 1852-1936. William and Martha Jones Chenoweth must have moved to Illinois sometime after June of 1835 when Elias was born in Indiana and November of 1837 when Adeline was born in Illinois, according the Federal Census records. Settling in Fulton County, Illinois, in the 1830a, the family flourished. William is the 5th generation in the family of John Chenoweth and Mary Calvert.

William Chenoweth is found in the book, The Chenoweth Family in America: Some descendants of John Chenoweth b. ca. 1862, page 171. Author, Shirley D Harris. Hardcover – January 1, 1994.

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