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The First Denune/Denoons in America
Contents
William Denune (ca. 1699-1751).
The first occasion of the name in Maryland, and probably in America, occurs
in a marriage record. On 24 October 1728, William Denune was married to Elizabeth
Duvall of Ann Arundel County. Elizabeth was the granddaughter of Marin &
Susannah Duval (sic). Marin was a former indentured servant, probably from
Normandy in France, who made good on the plot of land he received following
his indenture, becoming a prominent planter and businessman.
William Denune was a graduate of a French medical school (1721). The family
he married into was French, but the pastor's record states that he was "a
Scotchman." Why would a Scot attend medical school in France? you ask. Well,
in the 17th and 18th Centuries, because of arguments over the Crown of Britain,
the Scots were closely allied with the French who were also having heated,
even pitched, conflict with the English over matters of royal accession and
succession.) Coming to America, the good doctor took up a physician's practice
in "Queen Anne's Town" (now Annapolis), Maryland. Following his marriage,
he also accumulated and planted a sizable estate along the Patuxent River
in Prince Georges County.
Dr. Denune appears to have been a painter of portraits as well. A work
of his was made available for sale at the studio of William Young
& Co., Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts, in 1976.
William died in 1751, survived by Elizabeth and seven of their eleven children.
If you are a Denune/Denoon (or a DeNune/DeNoon), in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan,
Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, or California, chances are you are a
descendant of this couple.
James Denune (m. 1735; d. Dec 1738).
In order of arrival and evidence, the next Denune to mention is James Denune,
of Annapolis, Maryland. I learned of James when I was looking up William's
name in among some old Maryland colonial records, at that State's Archives.
James's name was listed as a creditor of the estate of an Ann Arundel County
man who died without a will in 1737. As did this man and James's brother
William, James died without a will and had to have his estate inventoried
upon his death. Rebecca (Woodall) Denune, James's wife, filed his estate inventory, 30 August
1739.
William Denune was listed next of kin, and sole survivor by blood, to James
Denune, on the inventory document. Who was this Denune in relation to William?
Probably a less fortunate brother, possibly brought to the colony at William's
expense. This is conjecture, of course. There is no evidence of the actual
relationship between the two. But in the listing of accounts applied against
the estate, William's name is there as the one who covered James's body's
disposition and burial expenses. (And somehow, I would prefer to think a
person of William's stature would have asked for his five pounds or so back,
had the deceased been his father or some other elder relative. This could
be wishful thinking, though).
The inventory of James's estate reveals a farmer of comfortable means with
pleasant but not opulent personal items, livestock, and three slaves (a woman
and two young children).
After the settlement of James's estate, Rebecca Denune's name is recorded
only once more in Maryland records, settling the accounts against the estate
of her previous husband, John Lawson, in January of 1739/40.
Click here to learn more about Dr. William Denune
and James Denune.
Click here to read the inventory of James Denune's estate.
Jo. Denune (arr. Georgia, 1736).
During one of my trips to the Newberry Library in Chicago, I
found myself flipping through an index of ship passenger lists, to American
ports. Among all the names in this very large volume was one occurrence of
the name Denune (and none of Denoon). The following entry was there:
"Denune, Jo 26; Georgia, 1735-1736 1322 p 13"
The "1322" turned out to be E. M. Coulter and A. B. Saye's volume, A List
of Early Settlers of Georgia (Atlanta: University of Georgia Press, 1941).
And on Page 13 is passenger number
344. Denune, Jo. Age 26; [Trust] servant; embark'd 20 Oct. 1735;
arrived 10 Jan. 1735/6.
The only things I know for certain about this person are: 1) this is neither
William nor James; 2) though most of the rest of the individuals arriving
in Georgia on that list are footnoted as to their whereabouts in 1741, this
person is not; and 3) a trust servant was someone travelling to America under
a colonial lord's charge, in this case John Percival, first and only Earl
of Egmont and an early Trustee of the Georgia colony. Exactly what ship he
(I presume "Jo." stands for either John or Joseph) was on, or its point of
origin, will require a trip to the University of Georgia to ascertain.
Hugh Denoon (b. 1762).
Included in the picture of America I am describing is our neighbor Canada
(too often we use "America" just to refer to the country south of 54 degrees,
40 minutes north latitude).
Well, get ready to begin forgiving, you of the U.S.! The members of our family
who have looked back toward William Alexander have found two Revolutionary
War veterans among us. The doctor's second son, William Jr., is said, according
to family tradition, to have died at Valley Forge. And his son John joined
a fife and drum corps at age 16.
In the late 1770s came Hugh Denoon, the son of Rev. David Denoon of Killearran,
Rossshire, Scotland. Hugh was a young recruit, who arrived in America scrappy
and wearing a red coat.
We'll forgo the details, since Hugh's side lost. But he did not come out
a loser. The youthful Scot became one of the earliest residents of Pictou,
Nova Scotia, setting up housekeeping in the area called Merrigomish. He
established himself as a merchant and recruiter of emigrants to the province.
A fuller description of his life may be found in A History of Pictou,
Nova Scotia (Montreal, Quebec, Canada: 1877).
David Denoon (of Charleston, South Carolina)
Now here's a challenge: Who is this person? In 1790, David Denoon (not me)
appears as a resident of Charleston, South Carolina. He is the head of a
household with two adult white males, one white male child, and one white
female. The family owned six slaves.
In 1820, Mrs. B. Denoon is the head of a household in Charleston, with seven
males of different ages, and five females including herself, all of European
descent, plus eleven slaves, all living there.
The name Denoon disappears from South Carolina censuses after 1820. Where
did they go? Does anyone know?
James Johnson Denoon (arr. Pennsylvania, before
1796).
Go to Powhatan, Virginia, someday, and you will have the opportunity to meet
Margaret Palmore, who uncovered a treasure of letters home, by the Confederate
First Lieutenant Charles E. Denoon, who perished at the Battle of the Crater,
30 July 1864. They were in a trunk in the barn at her home.
She will direct you to the Denoons of Powhatan County, who are the descendants
of James Johnson Denoon, an immigrant to America prior to 1796. James was
a bookseller of Philadelphia, who on 29 July 1796 purchased with his business
partner Thomas Condie, 3,000 acres of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania,
an area which apparently proved less than dream-fulfilling. It is now State
Game Land.
The family memories of James's descendants say that he was the son of Archibald
Denoon, a publisher who lived in Edinburgh, Scotland.
James married Elizabeth Forsyth of Philadelphia, and they had three sons,
John, Daniel, and Samuel. John was Charles E.'s father. Daniel was a gunsmith
in Richmond, Virginia, who was shot to death, at age 22, by his employer
in an argument. Samuel was a brass founder and politician in Richmond, and
was the one who made the arrangements after Charles's death for the disposition
of the soldier's body and effects.
— Excerpted from A Denune/Denoon Chronicle, Vol. 1, No.
1, January 1996. For a complete edition of this article, please contact
David Denoon. Please include your name
and mailing address in your message.
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