Photogenetic: My Earliest Known McKnight Ancestors

Elizabeth (Madden) McKnight and twin boys John and Frank
Elizabeth (Madden) McKnight and twin boys John and Frank. | Photo on right altered for clarity. | Photo provided by Ann Dalton.

About the Photo

This image was given to me by my father’s cousin Ann Dalton. If I remember correctly it was a tintype and likely taken around 1855-1856 in Brooklyn, New York. Elizabeth (Madden) McKnight is my great-great-great-grandmother. She and her husband James McKnight are my earliest known ancestors on this branch of the family. I descend from their son Frank.

About Elizabeth

  • Full Name: Elizabeth Madden
  • Birth: about 1834, Ireland 1
  • Death: unknown
  • Burial: unknown
  • Spouse: James McKnight 2
  • Parents: unknown

About John

  • Full Name: John H. McKnight
  • Birth: about 1855, New York 3
  • Death: 22 September 1900 4
  • Burial: Holy Cross Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York 5
  • Spouse: unknown
  • Parents: Elizabeth Madden and James McKnight 6

About Frank

  • Full Name: Francis M. McKnight
  • Birth: about 1855, New York 7
  • Death: 20 May 1939 8
  • Burial:  Holy Cross Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York 9
  • Spouse: Catherine McDonald/McDonnell 10
  • Parents: Elizabeth Madden and James McKnight 11

Sources
1 1855 New York state census, Kings County, Brooklyn, population schedule, 9th ward, dwelling 297, family 377, James, Elizabeth, John H. and Francis “McNight.” And 1870 U.S. census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, ward 9, p. 157, dwelling 698, family 1253, Elizabeth, John, Francis, Jas. and Mary McKnight. Alsp, 1880 U.S. census, Kings County, New York, Brooklyn, enumeration district (ED) 71, p. 43, dwelling 245, family 416, Elizabeth, John, Francis, James and Mary McKnight.
2 1855 New York state census, Kings County, Brooklyn, population schedule, 9th ward, dwelling 297, family 377, James, Elizabeth, John H. and Francis “McNight.”
3 Ibid.
4 Brooklyn Borough, New York, death certificate no. 18122, John H. McKnight, 22 September 1900; New York City Municipal Archives, “Historical Vital Records,” database with images, NYC Department of Records & Information Services (https://a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov/search : viewed 12 February 2023).
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid.
7 1855 New York state census, Kings County, Brooklyn, population schedule, 9th ward, dwelling 297, family 377, James, Elizabeth, John H. and Francis “McNight.”
8 Kings County, New York, Certificate of Death, certificate no. 186, for Frank M. McKnight, 20 May 1939; New York City Municipal Archives, “Historical Vital Records,” database with images, NYC Department of Records & Information Services (https://a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov/search : viewed 12 February 2022).
9 Ibid.
10 Kings County, New York, Certificate of Death, registered no. 3888, for Catherine McKnight, 15 February 1935; New York City Municipal Archives, “Historical Vital Records,” database with images, NYC Department of Records & Information Services (https://a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov/search : viewed 12 February 2023).
11 Kings County, New York, Certificate of Death, certificate no. 186, for Frank M. McKnight, 20 May 1939; New York City Municipal Archives, “Historical Vital Records,” database with images, NYC Department of Records & Information Services (https://a860-historicalvitalrecords.nyc.gov/search : viewed 12 February 2023).

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