Two years ago, almost exactly, I joined the Guild of One-Name Studies as I have two surname projects on which I work – my Koonce Surname Project and my Vanderbilt Surname Project. As I renewed my membership this week, a reflected on a question my father asked me that relates perfectly to both my membership in the guild and this week’s 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks prompt of “Same Name.”
My father’s name is William Koonce. We were talking one day and asks me to look up other men with the same name. He then says to me – how many William Koonce’s can there be? Um.. a lot!
There are 68 entries in my Koonce Surname Project database of men with either the first or middle name of William, and the last name of Koonce.
- the first one that currently comes up on my list is David William Koonce (1846-1930). He was from Posey County, Indiana and son of George Small Koonce and Nancy Akins Hays. George was originally from Rutherford County, TN, which is nearby where I live in Nashville, TN. George moved to Indiana between 1835-1839 and had at least 9 children. I have no marriage or descendant info for David William Koonce at this point – that just means I have work to do.
- the last one on my list currently is Williams Koonce who was born about 1835 in North Carolina; I have no death information for him yet. He was the son of John Council Bryan Koonce and Eleanor Fordham. Williams was the brother of Marion Green Koonce and Marion was the very first person I entered into my Koonce research database.
- the William Koonce in my database that has been the longest deceased is William Koonce (1797-1825). He was the son of George Koonce and Rachel Jarman and he was only 28 years old when he died.
- the most recent deceased William Koonce in my database is Rev. William Russell Koonce, Sr. (1929-1999). He was from Kentucky, near Evansville, IN where my husband’s family is from.
It’s interesting to see all of these various men with the same name as my father. And I know there are many more out there!
Thanks for sharing your story. You have many intriguing middle names in your Koonce family. George Small Koonce and John Council Bryan Koonce. Where did they come from.
Off on a tangent I go in search of the origin of your surname, I Wondered if it might have been american indian ( so much for guesswork! ) but it turns out,thanks to a google search, to be of German origin.
Thanks again for your story, I look forward to reading more.
Yes, the Koonce surname is German in origin indeed! I do not know the source of the middle names of these individuals, but perhaps further research will help. Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Hi my names is Tyrik Koonce this is very interesting lol