Patriot Ancestor: John Blakeney
Submitted by Compatriot John Hester
John Blakeney was born in Ireland around the year 1732. It is believed that he was part of the Blakeney family that settled in County Limerick, Ireland in the seventeenth century in an area that is still known today as Mount Blakeney. Among the Mount Blakeney branch of the family is William Blakeney, a general in the Irish army, who in his time was one of the most famous military heroes in the British Isles. In 1757, he was created a Baron. It has been thought by generations of descendants, although no documentation has yet been found, that John Blakeney was a close relation to Baron Blakeney.
It is believed that John Blakeney first arrived in the colonies around 1750. The first known record we have of him dates from 1753, when he witnessed the will of a man named John Lynch in Granville County, North Carolina. John Blakeney lived in Butte County, North Carolina (which was once part of Granville County) for several years, since we know this to be the birthplace of at least his first two children, Thomas (born in 1756) and John, Jr. (born in 1758). The name of his wife is not known with any certainty, although it is believed to be Margaret. John and his wife would eventually have eight known children, the youngest of which was Hugh, born about 1774.
John Blakeney and his family settled in the Cheraws District of Craven County, (in the area later to become Chesterfield County) South Carolina about 1760. He was an important part of his community even before his service in the Revolutionary War. On April 12, 1773, he was elected vestryman for St. David’s Epicopopal Church in Cheraw, serving as overseer of the poor in the parish. He was elected to this office again in 1776.
In St. David’s Parish during 1775, along with other parts of the state, companies of militia were being organized in anticipation of hostilities with the British. John Blakeney was appointed by the Provincial Congress as a captain in the militia on November 16, 1775. For this reason, he has been known to generations of his descendants as Captain John Blakeney. His company, along with others in the district, were organized into the Cheraws District Regiment of Militia.
This regiment was initially part of the South Carolina 2nd Regiment under the command of Colonel William Moultrie. Over the course of the war, the Cheraws District Regiment would undergo a number of changes in command. By 1778, they were part of the 4th Regiment under the command of Brigadier General Alexander McIntosh. By January of 1781, they were part of the 2nd Brigade of Militia under the command of General Francis Marion, known to history as the Swamp Fox. Direct command of the Cheraws District Regiment was first given to Colonel Abel Kolb. By late 1782, as the war was winding down, and after several changes in command during the course of the war, the regiment’s final commander was Colonel Lemuel Benton.
Records do not seem to indicate that Captain John Blakeney’s company was part of any major battles or skirmishes. His service in the war, however, did extend to the war’s conclusion, with surviving records showing his service as late as 1783. In addition to his military service, surviving records show that John Blakeney also provided numerous provisions to soldiers serving in the area at various points during the war.
The life of Captain John Blakeney has been researched for generations. He and his descendants were the subjects of the 1928 book “The Blakeneys in America,” by his descendant John O. Blakeney (1856-c.1937), who was a longtime member of the Sons of the American Revolution.
It has been thought for many years that John Blakeney died in 1832 at the age of 100, but documents have come to light that indicate he likely died as early as 1805. He is buried in the family cemetery near Pageland, South Carolina.
Among the descendants of Captain John Blakeney is Martha Blakeney Hodges (1897-1969). She was the wife of Luther H. Hodges who served as Governor of North Carolina from 1954-1961. He served as the United States Secretary of Commerce in the administrations of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. .