John (II) Downing

John was a Cherokee man

Biography

John was born about 1750 in Cherokee country, North Carolina. Supposedly, he had 17 children over a span of 40 years. Ollie, Samuel, David, Isaac, Peggy, Nellie, Moses, Elizabth, Celia, Jesse, Charlotte, William, Cynthia, James, Catherine, John, and Sallie. Starr did not assign the children to a mother. [1]

He first married Nani, with whom he had six children.

He married Jennie, a member of the Twister/Long Hair Clan.[2]

His death date is unknown.

According to James Hicks, he was a member of the Wolf Clan

Research Notes

Note: Mother (name) Annie Beehunter differs from the Starr Genealogy. See my note under her listing.[3]

My primary sources, the Starr[4] and Hicks[5] genealogies claim Jennie as the mother of all 17 of John Downing's children, but Jennie could not possibly be the mother of all of his children, who span 40 years between the oldest and the youngest. She would have been in her mid to late 50s when the last child was born. There is a 13 year gap between Moses (1788) and Peggy (1801), so I speculate that either birthdates are wrong or another marriage happened about 1800. Because Jennie was still alive in 1851, my personal guess is that Na-ni is his first wife, and Jennie was the woman he married in 1800.--Duane Poncy

Sources

1. ↑ Starr, Emmet. History of the Cherokee Indians. Oklahoma Yesterday Publications edition, Tulsa, OK. 1979. p. 335. Digitized edition at Starr
2. ↑ The Genealogy of Major John Downing and his Cherokee Descendants; Title: Cherokee Lineages: Register Report of Major John Downing; Author: James R. Hicks; Publisher: Genealogy.com. Cherokee Lineages
3. ↑ Source: Marjorie L. Kopacsi, 2013 PHD dissertation, "How Native American Women Perceive Their Unique Lived Experiences: Three Women Tell Their Story. Louisiana State University. Includes an interview with a descendant of Annie Beehunter.
4. ↑ Emmett Starr, History of the Cherokee Indians
5. ↑ The Genealogy of Major John Downing and his Cherokee Descendants; Title: Cherokee Lineages: Register Report of Major John Downing; Author: James R. Hicks; Publisher: Genealogy.com. Cherokee Lineages

Source: https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Downing-1041
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Downing.

11 Major Downing A11. (A14. Major Downing, said to have been a Major in the British army married a full blood Cherokee woman of the Wolf clan.). A11 appears to be a misprint!_dvb
1112 George Downing.
2 John Downing. Jennie and Nannie.
3 William Downing.
4 Nannie Downing
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121 Ollie Downing. *
2 Samuel Downing. Susie Dougherty and Elsie Dougherty
3 David Downmg. Peggy Dougherty.
4 Isaac Downing. *
5 Peggy Downing. Archibald Tuckwa.
6 Nellie Downing. *
7 Moses Downing. Oo-yo-sti or Polly and Lydia.
8 Elizabeth Downing. Galcatcher.
9 Celia Downing. * Ezekial McLaughlin.
10 Jesse Downing. * Chicken.
11 Charlotte Downing. Ellis Beck.
12 William Downing. Elizabeth Dougherty and Elsie Downing.
13 Cynthia Downing. Joseph Beck.
14 James Downing. Parris.
15 Catherine Downing. * Still.
16 John Downing. Ollie.
17 Sallie Downing. Tadpole.

Curator Note: that Starr identifies 17 children but does not assign them to a mother.

Source: Starr, Emmett. “History of the Cherokee Indians and Their Legends and Folklore.” Warden Company, 1922.
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JOHN DOWNING II (JOHN1) was born Abt. 1754.
He married (1) JENNIE. She was born Abt. 1756, and died Aft. 1851.
He married (2) NA-NI. She was born Abt. 1760.

• Clan: Ani'-Wa'ya = Wolf Clan (H Fawling)

Children of JOHN DOWNING and JENNIE are:
10. i. JOHN3 DOWNING III, b. Abt. 1772.
11. ii. SAMUEL DOWNING, b. Abt. 1780.
12. iii. CATHERINE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1782.
13. iv. SALLIE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1784.
14. v. WILLIAM DOWNING, b. Abt. 1786.
15. vi. MOSES DOWNING, b. Abt. 1788.
16. vii. PEGGY DOWNING, b. Abt. 1801; d. Abt. 1857.

	viii.	 	NELLIE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1802; d. Aft. 1851.

	More About NELLIE DOWNING:

• 1835 Census roll: Ahmacolola River, GA
• 1851 Drennan roll: Delaware, 658

17. ix. ELIZABETH DOWNING, b. Abt. 1804.
18. x. CELIA DOWNING, b. Abt. 1805; d. Aft. 1851.
19. xi. JESSE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1806, CNE.
20. xii. JAMES BLANKET DOWNING, SR, b. Abt. 1807.

	xiii.	 	OLLIE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1808.

21. xiv. CHARLOTTE DOWNING, b. Abt. 1809, Georgia; d. Cherokee Nation Indian Territory.
22. xv. DAVID TSU-WA-NO-A-S-GI DOWNING, SR, b. Abt. 1810, CNE [GA]; d. August 30, 1862.

	xvi.	 	ISAAC DOWNING, b. Abt. 1811.

23. xvii. CYNTHIA DOWNING, b. Abt. 1812, Georgia; d. June 22, 1868, CNW.

Source: Hicks, James R. “Cherokee Lineages: Descendants of John Downing, Major” Genealogy.com, Sites.Rootsweb.com, 2023, https://www.genealogy.com/ftm/h/i/c/James-R-Hicks-VA/BOOK-0001/0010...
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Curator Opinion: _dvb
Speculation abounds… Who is the real Major Downing?
Please avoid History Hub @ https://historyhub.history.gov/

Also avoid Family Search as it has Major John B. Downing III (about 1710 – about 1811) married to Hannah "Cheto Wolf" "Nannie" Fawling (about 1720 – 5 April 1752) BOTH WITH PHOTOS of persons who were born and died BEFORE the camera was invented! As does find a Grave!