Individual Details
William Keene
(10 Mar 1642 - 8 Feb 1683/84)
William Keene was the son of Thomas Keene, Jr. and Mary Thorley. He was born on Kent Island, Queen Anne's County, Md. (in the Chesapeake Bay). He married Elizabeth Rogers (b. 1643 d. 1720). Elizabeth was the daughter of Major John Rogers, a justice in Nothumberland County, Virginia, and his wife Ellin. William and Elizabeth were the parents of six children, two sons and four daughters. One of the daughters was Hannah Keene who married Colonel John Bushrod, they were the parents of nine children.
William's parents Thomas and Mary Thorley Keene left Kent Island, and migrated to the shore of the Virginia Colony, along the Potomac River.
They settled in Northumberland County, formed October 1648. William's father Thomas Keene, Jr., was granted 527 acres of land there on 13 October 13, 1653. The exact date of the arrival of the Keene family in Northumberland County is unknown, as the date of the land grant is not the date of possession. Obtaining a land grant was a lengthy process, beginning with a warrant, then a survey, then the grant. Thomas had probably established himself on the land, built a home and cleared his land, prior to actually receiving his grant in 1653. Thomas's land was located upon Cloughton's Creek and Cherry Poynt (Point). William would have been a boy, probably between the ages of 7 and 10, when his family moved to Northumberland County.
William's plantation was at Cypress Farm, Cherry Point, Northumberland County, Virginia. The house was destroyed by the British in 1812 and has been replaced by a later structure. William's grave is located near the road that leads to Lewisetta, Northumberland County, Virginia (on the left side), near the sight of his early residence. This is at the beginning of Garner's Creek. John Garner owned land there, across from William. John Garner married William's sister Susanna Keene.
William died February 8, 1684, age 42, leaving his widow Elizabeth and their six children. His will has not been found, but it was probated on May 20, 1685, having been petitioned by Mrs. Elizabeth Keene. Elizabeth remarried after William's death. Her second husband was Thomas Banks.
Elizabeth Keene Banks died in 1720.
(NOTE: Queen Anne's County, Maryland was founded in 1706, Chapter 3, Acts of 1706, Kent Island became a part of Queen Anne's County at that time.)
William's parents Thomas and Mary Thorley Keene left Kent Island, and migrated to the shore of the Virginia Colony, along the Potomac River.
They settled in Northumberland County, formed October 1648. William's father Thomas Keene, Jr., was granted 527 acres of land there on 13 October 13, 1653. The exact date of the arrival of the Keene family in Northumberland County is unknown, as the date of the land grant is not the date of possession. Obtaining a land grant was a lengthy process, beginning with a warrant, then a survey, then the grant. Thomas had probably established himself on the land, built a home and cleared his land, prior to actually receiving his grant in 1653. Thomas's land was located upon Cloughton's Creek and Cherry Poynt (Point). William would have been a boy, probably between the ages of 7 and 10, when his family moved to Northumberland County.
William's plantation was at Cypress Farm, Cherry Point, Northumberland County, Virginia. The house was destroyed by the British in 1812 and has been replaced by a later structure. William's grave is located near the road that leads to Lewisetta, Northumberland County, Virginia (on the left side), near the sight of his early residence. This is at the beginning of Garner's Creek. John Garner owned land there, across from William. John Garner married William's sister Susanna Keene.
William died February 8, 1684, age 42, leaving his widow Elizabeth and their six children. His will has not been found, but it was probated on May 20, 1685, having been petitioned by Mrs. Elizabeth Keene. Elizabeth remarried after William's death. Her second husband was Thomas Banks.
Elizabeth Keene Banks died in 1720.
(NOTE: Queen Anne's County, Maryland was founded in 1706, Chapter 3, Acts of 1706, Kent Island became a part of Queen Anne's County at that time.)
Events
| Birth | 10 Mar 1642 | Kent Island, Queen Anne's County, Maryland | |||
| Marriage | 1663 | St. Stephen's Parish, Northumberland County, Virginia - Elizabeth Rogers | |||
| Death | 8 Feb 1683/84 | Northumberland County, Virginia | |||
| Burial | Cypress Farm Burial Ground, Lewisetta, Northumberland County, Virginia |  |  |
Families
| Spouse | Elizabeth Rogers (1643 - 1721) |
| Child | William Henry Keene Jr. (1665 - 1701) |
| Child | Elizabeth Keene (1669 - 1704) |
| Child | John Keene ( - 1740) |
| Child | Hannah Keene ( - 1738) |
| Child | Sarah Keene ( - 1712) |
| Child | Isabel Anne Keene (1680 - 1725) |
| Father | Thomas Keene II (1593 - 1653) |
| Mother | Mary Elizabeth Thorley (1620 - 1661) |
Notes
Burial
On Cypress Farm at the head of Garners creek, near the site of the early Keene residence, two heavy slabs are to be seen, one of them partly overgrown by a large persimmon tree. One of them has this inscription:"Here lyeth the body of William Keene, the eldest Son of Thomas and Mary Keene. Born in Kent in Maryland the 10th day of March anno Dom. 1642, Who marryed Eliza, the Daughter of John Rogers Gent. and Ellin his Wife of Northumberland Co. in Virginia by Whome he had two Sons and four daughters And dyed ye 8 day of Feb. 1684 in ye two and Fortieth year of his Age." (William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine, Vol. 8, No. 1., July, 1899, pg. 45)
This site is said to be near the site of the William Keene residence and lies on the left of the road leading from the main highway to Lewisetta at the head of of Garner's Creek. Garner's Creek was named for John Garner, who owned land across the creek from William Keene.
Endnotes
1. Find A Grave Memorial 107466580.