DNA Group J: Colonial Surry County, Virginia

Xref Status Rowland DNA Group J

This line has its North American origins in and around Surry County, Virginia. It is probably the line of the first known Rowland in North America, John Rowland II (1614-1653), who arrived at the Jamestown settlement about 1635. This is both a blessing and a curse, as hundreds of amateur genealogists (in their desire to be a Jamestown descendant) have incorrectly connected their trees to this John Rowland. Others then duplicate these errors, leading to hundreds (perhaps thousands) of incorrect trees on Ancestry and other sites.

Blue shading indicates new/change from the prior update
Red shading indicates a conflict between the DNA and WikiTree
Haplogroups in green are confirmed by SNP testing, while haplogroups in red are predicted

Conflicts

There are conflicts between the Paternal Ancestor identified by the test takers and the family trees of those ancestors as currently portrayed in WikiTree. The prior conflict with Group A has been resolved.

  • Two test takers have identified Richardson Rowland (1791-1872) as their earliest known ancestor. In WikiTree, Richardson is shown as a descendant of Robert Rowland (1716-1782) of Botetourt, who is believed to be in Rowland Y-DNA Group F.
  • Another test taker has identified William Rowland (1650-1714) of Rhosybavil Parish, Pembroke, Wales. This conflicts with documents stating the Rhosybavil line first settled in Chester County, Pennsylvania in the early 1700s, and later formed a manufacturing empire dubbed “Rowlandville” in Montgomery and Philadelphia counties.

Earliest Known Ancestors – Descendant Trees

  1. Earliest Known Ancestor 1: John Rowland II (1614-1653) was born in England and arrived in the New World about 1635 at the Jamestown Settlement.
    • 37,000+ descendants on WikiTree (as of 31 Dec 2023). This number is probably highly inflated due to incorrect connections as discussed above
    • WikiTree descendants in: Georgia (Greene), Kentucky (Caldwell), Mississippi (Monroe, Tippah), North Carolina (Chatham, Franklin, Rowan), Virginia (Henry, James City, Lunenburg, Pittsylvania, Surry)
  2. Earliest Known Ancestor 2: Ragsdale Rowland (1788- ) was born in North Carolina and probably died in Illinois. He married Margaret Wilie.
    • 90 descendants on WikiTree (as of 31 Dec 2023).
    • WikiTree descendants in: Illinois (Williamson), Missouri (Shannon, St Francois, St. Louis)
  3. Earliest Known Ancestor 3: Martin/Maslon Rowland (1794- ) was born in Virginia and passed away in Georgia (probably Clarke County). Given name is unsure between Martin, Maslon, and Masling. Married Elizabeth Carter.
    • 97 descendants on WikiTree (as of 31 Dec 2023).
    • WikiTree descendants in: Arkansas (Phillips), Georgia (Clarke, Franklin, Hart, Richmond), North Carolina (Buncombe), South Carolina (Anderson)
  4. Earliest Known Ancestor 4: William Amon Rowland (c1785 – a1860) was born and died in South Carolina. He married Margaret Golbie O’Brian.
    • 160 descendants on WikiTree (as of 31 Dec 2023).
    • WikiTree descendants in: Arkansas (Montgomery), Oklahoma (Johnston, Pottawatomie), South Carolina (Anderson, Oconee, Pickens, Richland), Virginia (Henrico)
  5. Earliest Known Ancestor 5: John Rowland (1785-1834) was born in Virginia and died in Rutherford County, Tennessee. He married Mary Robertson.
    • 75 descendants on WikiTree (as of 31 Dec 2023).
    • WikiTree descendants in: Tennessee (Coffee, Roane, Rutherford)

Group J Cladogram

Information on how to construct and interpret a cladogram is located in Rowland YDNA Cladograms.

Group Resources

Group J Articles

Group J Notables

(coming soon)

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1 thought on “DNA Group J”

  1. Don Bailey

    Does anyone have a actual marriage record to show that jesse junior actually married Elizabeth marcus or Sarah Simpson not just a family story?

    Reply

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