McKean Family

The information on this page was researched and written by visitors to this site, as a way of correcting some of the errors in the earlier version. You can contact them via their email addresses posted at the bottom of the page.

There are various ways of spelling the surname(s), McKean / McKeen / McKeon / McKeone. While their descendents may well be related, we believe the McKean and McKeone families are actually two separate entities. We can trace the McKeone from their arrival in New Jersey through to most of their living descendants. The McKeans do not yet appear to be related. However we dedicated this page to both families in the hopes of determining if and how they relate to each other and to other families in the area.

The following is the known McKeone family lineage.

ALEXANDER JOSEPH "Pa" MCKEONE (Senior), was born in New York, September 1851 and died in Pleasant Mills, Atlantic County, New Jersey, 25 January 1928. He married ELIZABETH MAHR/MAHER in 1874 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was born December 1856 in Pennsylvania and died in 1904 in Atlantic County, New Jersey. Both are buried in the Greenmount Cemetery in Hammonton, New Jersey.

His children were:

1. ROBERT MARLOWE MCKEONE (Senior), born 19 June 1875 in Pennsylvania and died 25 November 1927 in Hopewell/Petersburg, Virginia. He is also buried in the Greemount Cemetery. Robert married Gertrude Elizabeth Wescoat. Gertrude was born 12 November 1888 in Hammonton, New Jersey and died in May 1969 in Hammonton. She was the daughter of Thomas Richard Wescoat and Hannah W. Mart, both of Atlantic County. Robert and Gertrude were the parents of:
   • Robert Marlowe "Marlowe" McKeone, Junior, was born 5 July 1907 in Atlantic County and died 19 September 1965 in Virginia. Marlowe married Blanche Elizabeth Jones in Virginia around 1930. She was the daughter of John David Jones and Nannie Belle Howell of Radford, Virginia. They had three children - two daughters and a son, all living.
   • Marie G. McKeone was born in 1908 in Atlantic County and is believed to have married a Philips and to have had at least one son.
   • Howard Thomas McKeone was born 17 January 1919 in Hopewell, Virginia and died July 1964 in New Jersey. He had a son and daughter by this first marriage. He remarried and had three daughters, all still living in the Hammonton area.
2. KATHERINE M. MCKEONE, was born September 1877 in Pennsylvania and died in 1965. No issue.
3. ALEXANDER JOSEPH MCKEONE, Junior, was born 4 August 1882 in York, Pennsylvania and died April 1966. He married Marguerite Esther Vernier, the daughter of Mary A. (-) and Henry A. Vernier. They were the parents of:
   • Alexander Joseph McKeone, was born 28 July 1911 in Oakmount, Delaware County, Pennsylvania and died 2 February 1990. He married Hazel (-) and had offspring still living.
   • Marguerite McKeone, born 1917
4. FRANCIS MCKEONE, was born September 1884 in Pennsylvania and died in 1950. She married William Alfred Hofstetter, the son of John Hofstetter and Mary Knoppel. They had:
   • Elizabeth Hofstetter, born 1910, Married James Rafferty (1898-1981). They had two sons.
5. MARIE MCKEONE, born in either 1880 or 1885, and died in 1896
6. ELIZABETH V. MCKEONE, born 29 September 1886 and died January 1978. She married David Rafferty and had:
   • David Rafferty, born 13 January 1929 and died September 1985. He married Mary Jane Brown, and it's believed they had seven children.
7. HAMILTON MCKEONE, born November 1888 and died 1954.

Alexander "Pa" McKeone and his family::

Not much is known of Alexander, Senior's ("Pa"), origins or childhood. We know from census data that his father came from Ireland and his mother from Scotland. As we have no idea of his siblings, we have not been able to tie the line into any other McKeone lines. Family facts and fictions claim his father came from county Sligo.

Through family oral history, we believe Elizabeth Maher's parents were Robert Maher and Bridget Hamilton, both from County Mayo though they met in America. Her known siblings were Mary, Hannah, and a younger brother Michael.

Alexander married Elizabeth in Philadelphia around 1874, and all their children were born in Pennsylvania. Alexander brought his family came to the Hammonton area in 1899 when he arrived to manage the Pleasant Mills paper mill. Arthur Pierces' Iron in the Pines provides an insight into his character and management skills. Alexander later bought the mill and house in 1917, but scarce resources during World War I eventually forced its closure. He sold the mill but kept the house which he later passed down to his two daughters, Elizabeth and Katherine. Elizabeth and her husband restored the house to its original features. It was sold out of the family in the 1990s.

Their eldest son Robert later took over managing the mill. When the mill shut down, he moved to Petersburg, Virginia and worked for DuPont. His namesake, "Marlowe" remained in Virginia while Robert's other children, Marie and Howard, eventually returned to New Jersey.

Katherine McKeone never married. She appeared to have been the epitome of the proper Victorian-era maiden aunt. She was always on hand to run her father's household and help with nieces and nephews. She was very involved in church activities as the original McKeone family were devout Catholics. It's said that the church doors were never open but at least one member of the family was there. On an odd side note, it's also said she never let her back touch the back of a chair.

Alexander Joseph McKeone, Jr, returned to Pennsylvania. According to the 1920 Census Newton, Delaware County, he, his wife and two children lived with his in laws. He opened his own electrician shop.

Francis McKeone remained in Hammonton and married Will Hofstetter, an artist. They renovated a cottage on the property, Patches, where they lived and Will had his studio. For more information on Will's work, see this link.

Hamilton McKeone was the youngest of Alexander and Elizabeth's children. He became an avid machinist and helped build early race cars. It's believed he eventually settled in Palm Beach County, Florida

This page was compiled by various descendents using public records and family oral history. While Brian and Kim are kind enough to provide this site and post it for us, they are not responsible for any erroneous information. Anyone addition information and sources can reach us through email at :
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This page was last updated on January 25th, 2001