The Keeler Genealogy

Our Keeler ancestors are the descendants of a Calvinist Puritan immigrant named Ralph Keeler (c.1613-1672), who was one of the founding settlers of Hartford and Norwalk in the English colony of Connecticut. In early records in England and America this family name is variously spelled Keiler, Keeiler, Keeler, or Keillor. In America there are some Keelers of German origin, their surname originally being spelled "Koehler," but the English Keeler name is an occupational one, signifying a maker of boat keels. As a surname of occupational origin, the Keeler name belongs to various unrelated English families. Thus, not every American Keeler of English origin is a descendant of our Ralph Keeler of Connecticut. For example, the noted radio personality and author Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor is the descendant of Thomas Keillor (1729-1777) of Skelton in Cleveland, Yorkshire, England, with no known link to Ralph Keeler.

Despite the efforts of genealogical researchers, Ralph Keeler's ancestry in England is as yet undetermined, but most Keeler genealogists favor a connection either to County Essex or to County Devon. Information on the Keeler surname in England, and speculative ancestors of Ralph Keeler, may be found in Wesley B. Keeler's monumental study, Keeler family: Ralph Keeler of Norwalk, CT, and some of his descendants, first published in 1985 and revised and expanded in 2000 -- a book that is a chief source for our descent from Ralph Keeler presented below. In Appendix A of the 2000 edition, Wes Keeler writes:

"Shane O'Neil, 'Earl of Tyrone, Hereditary Lord of the North Ireland, soldier, bully, braggart, cousin of St. Patrick, friend of Queen Elizabeth of England and enemy of all the world besides,' brought his fighting career to a sudden end at Antrim late in 1567 when he insulted Sir James Keeler, who ran his sword through O'Neil, hacked off his head and carried it to Henry Sidney, Lord Deputy of Ireland, and it was through his efforts that several rebellions were suppressed in Ireland. He was given or granted the Abbeys in Lawford by Queen Elizabeth in 1575 as his reward and he remained the rest of his life in England. He was the grandfather of Sir Ralph Keeler, born in Devon County in 1613."

In the 1985 edition of his book, on page 1, Wes Keeler said the immigrant ancestor Ralph Keeler was "probably the son of Ralph Keeler, yeoman, who was living in Lawford, County Essex, in 1600. A search of the Great Card Index there in 1950 by John Holmes of the Essex Record Office turned up references to nearly 20 Keelers in the Lawford area between 1578 and 1600."

The surname later died out in County Essex -- by the time of the 1881 British Census there were no Keelers living in Essex.

On the question of whether our Keelers came from Essex or Devon, Keeler genealogist Carol Roach remarked as follows in a RootsWeb message board comment dated 8 Feb 2001:

"The author of the latest book, Wes Keeler, has written that Ralph's origins were either in Essex or Devon. I think he has had numerous researchers support the Essex theory, and only a few the Devon theory. The difficulty has been finding a confirming birth in Lawford in 1613."

Despite the difficulties researchers have had in finding our Ralph Keeler in English records, a speculative English ancestry of Ralph Keeler of Norwalk, Connecticut, may be found at various websites, tentatively tracing a lineage of four generations in County Essex. This tentative genealogy proceeds as follows:

Ralph Keeler, born circa 1513, married Helen (NN), born circa 1514, parents of:

Ralph Keeler, of Lawford, County Essex, England, married Frances (NN). The children of Ralph and Frances Keeler were Ralph Keeler, b. circa 1561, Tendring, Essex, Henry Keeler, b. circa 1563, Grace Keeler, b. circa 1567, Richard Keeler, b. circa 1567, and Jone Keeler, b. circa 1569. The line continues with the eldest son Ralph:

Ralph Keeler, of Tendring, County Essex, England, married Grace Wilbore. The children of Ralph and Grace Keeler were Jonas Keeler, b. circa 1585, Annis Keeler, b. circa 1587, Frances Keeler, b. circa 1589, Ralph Keeler, b. circa 1590 in Lawford, County Essex, Rose Keeler, b. circa 1591, and Grace Keeler, b. circa 1593. The line continues with the younger son Ralph:

Ralph Keeler, yeoman, of Lawford, County Essex, England, twice married, with sons Ralph and Walter.

The yeoman Ralph Keeler of Lawford may or may not have been the father of the Connecticut colonist Ralph Keeler. Since we cannot be certain of the Keeler line in England, we will now turn to our Keeler ancestors in America.

1. RALPH KEELER, possibly son of Ralph Keeler, yeoman of Lawford, County Essex, England, born circa 1613 probably in Lawford, Essex, died between 20 Aug. and 10 Sept. 1672 in Norwalk, Fairfield County, Connecticut. The identity of Ralph's first wife, who was the mother of his children, has long been in doubt, but a 2005 article in The American Genealogist by Gale Ion Harris shows that she was very probably (NN) BETTS, whom Ralph would have married in Hartford, Connecticut, in the mid-1640s. This probable wife was "born say 1621, a previously unrecognized daughter of John and Mary Betts of Claydon, Oxfordshire, and whose mother became the widow Mary Betts, the early 'schooldame' at Hartford. The chronology indicates that this speculative daughter probably was older than her known sisters, Mary and Martha Betts, born about 1623 and 1625, respectively."

Harris' article shows that Mary Betts had a son named John Betts. On 21 Feb. 1660/1, Dr. John Winthrop Jr. wrote a prescription for Ralph Keeler's daughter "Keeler Elizabeth, 7 yr ... paine in stomack ... hir father lives at Norwalk she lives at her uncle Joh[n] Betts at Wethersfield." Harris showed that since the two wives of John Betts are known, and neither was a sister of Ralph, the natural meaning of Winthrop's reference to John Betts as Elizabeth's "uncle" is that an unknown sister of John Betts had married Ralph Keeler. It is thus speculated that this first wife of Ralph died probably in Norwalk before 21 Feb. 1660/1, by which time her daughter Elizabeth had been placed with her brother John Betts in Wethersfield just south of Hartford. (See Gale Ion Harris' "The First Wife of Ralph Keeler of Hartford and Norwalk, Connecticut: Probably an Unknown Sister of John Betts of Wethersfield," The American Genealogist, vol. 80, page 177.)

Other genealogists have said that Ralph's first wife was (NN) BECKWITH, daughter of Stephen Beckwith, an early settler (indeed a purchaser) of Norwalk, Connecticut. Some claim that her name was "Sarah," but that is a misattribution of the name of Ralph's second wife. This identity of Ralph's first wife was first proposed by G. Evans Hubbard in his unpublished "History of Wilton." The basis for identifying Ralph's first wife as a daughter of Stephen Beckwith is a Norwalk deed (4:552) dated 14 March 1714/15 that has been interpreted to mean Stephen Beckwith was the grandfather of Ralph's grandson John Keeler Jr. (See below under Ralph's son John.) At first glance that would seem to identify John Keeler Jr.'s mother as a daughter of Stephen Beckwith -- but John Jr. was born in 1682, four years after his father John's marriage to Mehitabel Rockwell, and Mehitabel is even said in her husband's will to be John Jr.'s mother. Since it was evident that Stephen Beckwith could not be John Jr.'s literal grandfather, Hubbard seems to have reasoned that Beckwith was John Jr.'s great-grandfather, which would mean John Jr.'s grandfather Ralph Keeler must have been the husband of an otherwise unknown daughter of Stephen Beckwith. However, there is a chronological problem with this hypothetical marriage, because Stephen Beckwith is thought to have been the 11-year-old boy named "S. B." whom Richard Pepper brought with him from Ipswich, England, in 1634. If so, Stephen was born in 1623, which means any hypothetical daughters would have been born in the 1640s -- the same time when Ralph Keeler began to have children. Even if "S. B." is not Stephen Beckwith, Beckwith is said to have been still living in Norwalk as late as 1687 -- and if that is correct, he would have to have been about 100 when he died in order to have a daughter old enough to marry Ralph Keeler in the mid-1640s. That is not impossible, but is obviously improbable.

Yet another hypothesis proposes that Ralph's unknown first wife was MARGARET RAYMOND, presumably related to Richard Raymond of Salem, Massachusetts, who bought Ralph's homelot in 1662 -- but at this time I do not know what grounds there are for this hypothesis.

Be all of that as it may, Ralph's second wife, whom he married in 1663, was SARAH WHELPLEY, widow of Henry Whelpley of Fairfield, Connecticut. Sarah's maiden name was HOWES, and she was a daughter of Robert Howes of London, England. Sarah's first husband was Edward Treadwell of Huntington, Long Island, who died in 1660. She then married Henry Whelpley, who was dead by 6 June 1662, after which Sarah married Ralph Keeler. After Ralph's death in 1672, Sarah married a fourth time to Thomas Skidmore of Fairfield, who died in 1684, Sarah following him in death just 14 days later in Nov. 1684. Ralph Keeler had no children by his second wife Sarah.

Ralph Keeler was a carpenter by trade -- apparently following along in his family's traditional occupation (for a "keeler" is a man who makes the keels of boats and ships). Ralph left England and came to America before February 1639, when his name first appears in the Hartford, Connecticut, town records (1:1:30) as the owner of several parcels of land. Ralph's homelot in Hartford was located on land in what was the West Park in 1884, north of the then site of the Capitol. He served as Hartford's chimney-viewer in 1645. Then on 2 March 1647, Ralph brought Nicholas Gynings to court "for a miscaridge, beateing of a Cow of Ralfe Keelers." A year later, at the 1 March 1648 session of the particular court of Hartford, John Webb brought an "action of slaunder" against Ralph. Webb asked for 10 pounds in damages, but the court ordered Ralph to pay only 4 shillings and court costs. (See Keeler Family, 1985, page 1)

Perhaps these conflicts with his fellow colonists led Ralph to seek a new place to live. Ralph's name next appears in the agreement of 19 June 1650 between the new proprietors of Norwalk, Connecticut, and Roger Ludlow of Fairfield, who had purchased the land from the Indians in 1640. Ralph and his family removed to Norwalk soon after that. A colonist named WALTER KEELER, almost certainly Ralph's brother, also settled in Norwalk. Ralph's original homelot grant in Norwalk is recorded as:

"Ralph Keeiler, 4 acres 1 rood. Bounded east by Common and Neck fence, west by Town Highway and Edward Nash's home-lot, north by Richard Webb's home-lot, south by Town Highway and Edward Nash's home-lot."

On 18 Dec. 1653, the townsmen of Norwalk agreed that Ralph Keeler and Walter Hoyt should build a house for Thomas Hanford, Norwalk's first minister (Hall's History of Norwalk, page 41) -- Ralph was given the contract to cut the timber and build the house for Hanford, with specifications of 16x26 feet. Two years later, in 1655, Ralph is mentioned in a list of Norwalk estates, with Ralph's estate values at �150. Ralph built a house on his four-acre homelot and sold it on 20 Oct. 1662 to Richard Raymond of Salem, Massachusetts. But a sale of Ralph's house and homelot to Thomas Betts is said to have been recorded in 1660. Be that as it may, after selling out to Raymond, Ralph went to Jamaica, Long Island. But Ralph was back in Norwalk by 1 Sept. 1665 when he bought Thomas Ward's dwelling house, barn, and lot. At a Norwalk town meeting in Sept. 1668, Ralph, a freeman of Norwalk, contracted to build forty rods of fence. On 20 Feb. 1672, Norwalk made an enrollment of the town's children, in which three of the children were Keelers.

Ralph made his will on 20 Aug. 1672 (Fairfield probate 3562), and the will was proved 5 Nov. 1672. Beginning 10 Sept. 1672, an inventory of his estate was taken in September and October, valuing the estate at 366 pounds. In his will, Ralph begins by saying he is about 59 years old, thus placing his birth in 1612 or 1613. He bequeathed one-third of his estate to his wife, Sarah, and left the remainder to his sons John Keeler and Ralph Keeler Jr. (Ralph being the eldest son, according to Donald Lines Jacobus), Samuel Keeler, and youngest son Jonah Keeler, and daughters Rebecca and Elizabeth Keeler, with the apportioning among the children to be done after his death. Ralph designated his friends Daniel Kellogg and John Bouton Sr. as overseers of his estate. Because Ralph's eldest daughter (whose name is unknown) was already married to Thomas Morehouse, Ralph did not mention her and Thomas in his will, but the Court afterwards ordered that a share of the estate be paid to her.

The first part of Ralph Keeler's will

Ralph Keeler had the following three daughters and four sons by his first wife:

     --  (NN) KEELER, born 1648 in Hartford, Connecticut, married Thomas Morehouse.
     --  RALPH KEELER JR., born circa 1646-48 in Hartford, Connecticut, married Grace Lindall.
     2.  JOHN KEELER, born probably circa 1646-48 in Hartford, Connecticut.
     --  REBECCA KEELER, baptised 9 Jan. 1650 in Hartford, Connecticut, married 1st. Benjamin Turney Jr., married 2nd. John Hull Sr.
     --  ELIZABETH KEELER, born circa 1653 in Norwalk, Connecticut, married James Pickett.
     --  SAMUEL KEELER, born circa 1655 in Norwalk, Connecticut, died 19 May 1713 in Ridgefield, Connecticut, md. Sarah St. John.
     --  JONAH KEELER, born 1658 in Norwalk, Connecticut, died 1673/4.

2. JOHN KEELER, eldest or second son of Ralph Keeler, born probably circa 1646-48 in Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut, died between 27 Feb. 1718/19 and 3 May 1720 in Norwalk, Fairfield County, Connecticut. Until Oct. 2018 the unsourced Mormon Ancestral File claimed John was born 9 Feb. 1654 in Norwalk, Fairfield County, Connecticut, and died 19 May 1717 in Norwalk, Connecticut. The Ancestral File's date of death for John is certainly wrong, as John made his will about a year or two after his alleged date of death, and the will was not probated until 3 May 1720, indicating that John most likely had died in Norwalk in the spring of 1720.

On 18 June 1678 in Norwalk, Connecticut, John married MEHITABEL ROCKWELL ("Hittabel"), born in Stamford, Connecticut, probably circa 1656, died some time after 15 Jan. 1725 in Connecticut, daughter of John and Mehitabel Rockwell of Stamford, Connecticut. Upon the death of Mehitabel's father John Rockwell, she and her sisters each received 4 pounds. John and Mehitabel Keeler had six daughters and three sons.

It should be noted that history knows of no other wife for John but Mehitabel. Nevertheless, Wes Keeler's exhaustive Keeler Family (1985), page 5, and other sources erroneously claim Mehitabel was John's second wife, and that John had previously been married to an unnamed daughter of Stephen Beckwith, an early settler of Norwalk, Connecticut. As proof of John's alleged prior marriage, Wes Keeler writes, "A Norwalk deed (4:552) dated 14 Mar. 1714/5 gave land to John's son, John, in return for a quitclaim to the 'homelot that was his grandfather Stephen Beckwith's'." Taken as read, the deed appears to state that John Jr. was a grandson Stephen Beckwith. However, it is known from John Sr.'s will and from John Jr.'s date of birth that John Jr.'s mother was Mehitabel Rockwell, daughter of John Rockwell (John Jr. was born in 1682, over four years after his parents' marriage). Consequently, assuming the statement in the deed isn't simply an error of the deed's original drafter, either the pronoun "his" in the deed's phrase "his grandfather Stephen Beckwith" cannot refer to John Jr., or else "grandfather" perhaps means "great-grandfather" (not very likely). Either way, there is no evidence that John Keeler Sr. was Stephen Beckwith's son-in-law.

According to The Ancient Historical Records of Norwalk, Connecticut, the Norwalk town meeting of 20 Feb. 1679 named John among four "masters or overseers of those pounds lieing by five mile river side." Also, John is named in a 1694 list of "persons who are members of town meetings, who have a vote and suffrage in town affairs." Lastly, this source states that a Norwalk town meeting of 9 Jan. 1719 considered the question of whether to repair and enlarge the meeting house or to build a new one "on the place where John Keeler's barn stands."

John Keeler and Samuel Hayes represented Norwalk as deputies in the General Assembly of the Colony of Connecticut from Oct. 1698 to May 1699.

John and his siblings Ralph Jr., Samuel, Jonah, Rebecca, and Elizabeth are named in their father's will dated 20 Aug. 1672 -- their father left them two-thirds of his estate, which was apportioned among them later. On 16 Dec 1684, the people of the town of Norwalk agreed to apportion homelots to the town's inhabitants by a public drawing, at three acres to hundred. In the apportionment, Ralph Keeler Jr. received two and his brother John Keeler three.

As noted above, John made his will (Fairfield Probate 3556) on 17 Feb. 1718/19, and it was proved 3 May 1720, showing that he died in the spring of 1720. John's will was probated 14 Dec. 1720, and his estate was thus valued at 161 pounds. He willed all of his real property to his three sons, John, David and Daniel, to be equally divided among them after their mother's death. He also bequeathed 20 pounds for his married daughters, Elizabeth Hait (i.e., Hoyt), Mehitabel Hoyt, Hannah Gregory, and Sarah Hoyt, to be divided among them, and his unmarried daughters, Jemima and Ruth, also shared 20 pounds. The remainder of his moveable estate was left to his wife, Mehitabel, whom he named sole executor.

After John's death, his widow Mehitabel remarried to Deacon ZERUBBABEL HOYT of Norwalk, whose daughter Rhoda married Mehitabel's son John Keeler Jr., while Rhoda's brother Caleb married John Jr.'s sister Mehitabel Keeler. These were among the very first of numerous tangled intermarriages among the Connecticut families of Hoyt/Haight, Whitney, Keeler, Rockwell, Benedict, and Riggs.

The children of John and Mehitabel Keeler were:

     --  SARAH KEELER, married [Joshua?] Hoyt.
     --  ELIZABETH KEELER, born 19 March 1679/80, married [Daniel?] Hoyt.
     --  JOHN KEELER JR., born 26 Dec. 1682, killed 11 July 1763 in the "Canada War," married 1st Rhoda Hoyt, married 2nd Sarah (Lockwood) Finch.
     --  MEHITABEL KEELER, born circa 1685, died 21 March 1755, married 1st Joseph Blatchley, married 2nd Caleb Hoyt.
     --  HANNAH KEELER, born circa 1687, died 29 June 1767, married Matthew Gregory.
     --  DAVID KEELER, born circa 1692.
     3.  DANIEL KEELER, born circa 1694 in Norwalk, Connecticut.
     --  RUTH KEELER, born circa 1702, died 25 Sept. 1763, married Matthew Benedict.
     --  JEMIMA KEELER

3. DANIEL KEELER, son of John and Mehitabel Keeler, born circa 1694 in Norwalk, Fairfield County, Connecticut, died in late Nov. 1764 in Norwalk, Connecticut. About 1730, Daniel married HANNAH WHITNEY, born 5 Nov. 1707 in Norwalk, Connecticut, daughter of Joseph and Hannah (Hoyt) Whitney of Norwalk, Connecticut. Daniel and Hannah had five sons and six daughters. After Daniel's death, Hannah remarried on 2 July 1766 in New Canaan, Connecticut, to SAMUEL BETTS of Wilton in Norwalk, Connecticut. S. Whitney Phoenix's 1878 Whitney Genealogy, vol. I, page 22, shows the following genealogical remarks on Hannah Whitney and Daniel Keeler:

"Hannah Whitney, b. in Norwalk, Conn., 5 Nov. 1707; married Daniel Keeler, a farmer, of Norwalk, son of John and Hittabel (Rockwell) Keeler, and g. son of Ralph Keeler, an early settler of Norwalk, and of John Rockwell, one of the first settlers of Stamford, Conn. They settled at New Canaan Society, in Norwalk, and were among the constituent members of the Congregational Church at that place, their names being the fourth couple on the list, having been recommended by Rev. Moses Dickinson, pastor of the First Church in Norwalk. His name often appears in the Norwalk Land Records, in the purchase and sale of land, chiefly in New Canaan. His will was made at Norwalk, 14 Nov. 1764, and he died soon after that date. She married (2d), 2 July 1766, at New Canaan, with Samuel Betts, of Wilton, in Norwalk; having made with him, 1 July 1766, a contract, by which, at his death, she and her heirs were to receive all goods which he received with her, and half of the linen and woolen cloth made by them, which should not be already worn or made into clothing. She probably went to Wilton, to dwell at his home."

Wes Keeler's Keeler Family (1985), page 11, says Daniel and Hannah joined the New Canaan Congregationalist Church on 20 June 1733. Wes Keeler provides this picture of Daniel's life in New Canaan:

"The New Canaan Historical Society's Annual for 1945 (pp.37-39) says Daniel, a shoemaker and weaver, was the first permanent settler in New Canaan, buying a half interest in a sixty-acre tract for 40 pounds in 1745. His land holding, which included choice farm land on the 'Ridge,' grew steadily and he made a wedding present of 55 acres to his oldest son Daniel when he married in 1745."

Wes Keeler provides this abstract of Daniel's will:

"Daniel made his will 14 Nov. 1764 (Fairfield probate 3549), naming his wife Hannah, sons Daniel, John, Joseph, Jeremiah and Isaiah, daughters Lydia, Elizabeth, Hannah, Dorothy and Dinah, and grandson Daniel Riggs. He named his wife and sons Isaiah and Jeremiah as executors. The will was proved 13 Jan. 1765. The estate was valued at 465 pounds with 191 pounds in debts."

The children of Daniel and Hannah Keeler were:

     --  DANIEL KEELER JR., born circa 1730 in Norwalk, Connecticut, died 24 Dec. 1803 in New Canaan, Connecticut, married Mary (NN).
     --  HANNAH KEELER, born in Norwalk, Connecticut, married Benjamin Bolt.
     --  DOROTHY KEELER, born in Norwalk, Connecticut, married Abram Hoyt.
     --  ISAIAH KEELER, born 1735 in Norwalk, Connecticut, married Melicent (NN).
     --  LYDIA KEELER, born 1737 in Norwalk, Connecticut.
     --  JEREMIAH KEELER, born circa 1740 in Norwalk, Connecticut, married Elizabeth Weed.
     4.  MARY KEELER, born circa 1742 in Norwalk, Connecticut
     --  DINAH KEELER, born circa 1744 in Norwalk, Connecticut, married James Canfield.
     --  JOHN KEELER, born 29 Aug. 1746 in Norwalk, Connecticut, married Phebe Hoyt.
     --  JOSEPH KEELER, born 29 Aug. 1746 in Norwalk, Connecticut, believed to have died unmarried.
     --  ELIZABETH KEELER, born 1748 in Norwalk, Connecticut, possibly married Samuel Northrop.

4. MARY KEELER, daughter of Daniel and Hannah (Whitney) Keeler, born 1742 in Norwalk, Fairfield County, Connecticut, baptised 16 May 1742 in Norwalk, died circa 1763 probably in New Canaan, Connecticut. On 4 Aug. 1761 in New Canaan, Connecticut, Mary married her first cousin JOSEPH RIGGS, son of Miles and Elizabeth (Whitney) Riggs, born 18 May 1738 in Stamford, Fairfield County, Connecticut; died 15 June 1805 in Norwalk, Connecticut; buried in East Line Union Cemetery in Ballston Center, Saratoga County, New York. The mothers of Mary and Joseph were sisters. Joseph and Mary had only one child, a son named Daniel. Joseph joined the church in New Canaan on 1 May 1763, and it is likely that his wife Mary was already dead by that date. After Mary's death, Joseph remarried and had seven more children. S. Whitney Phoenix's 1878 Whitney Genealogy, vol. I, page 46, has the following genealogical remarks on Mary Keeler and Joseph Riggs (and repeats most of those remarks on page 49):

"Mary Keeler, b. in Norwalk, Conn., about 1742; bap. in New Canaan, Conn., 16 May 1742; married, 4 Aug. 1761, in New Canaan, her cousin, Joseph Riggs, who was born in Stamford, Conn., 18 May 1738, son of Miles and Elizabeth (Whitney) Riggs. The fact that she was not alluded to in her father's will, 14 Nov. 1764, while mention was made of her son, Daniel Riggs, indicates that she died before that date; and it seems probable that she died before 1 May 1763, at which date he joined the church in New Canaan. He married (2d), 18 Sept. 1764, in Wilton, , Conn., Margaret Resseguie, both of Norwalk."

Mary's only child was:

     --  DANIEL RIGGS, born circa 1762

The Keelers of Norwalk, Fairfield Co., CT, - USA
Genealogy of the Family Keeler (1916), by Julian A. Keeler
Descendant Chart: Ralph Keeler, including speculative English ancestry of Ralph Keeler.
The Persun, Zellers, Keeler and Hess Family History, including speculative English ancestry of Ralph Keeler.
Mindrum Family History, with information on Ralph Keeler and his descendants.