From The Maiden family of Virginia and allied families, 1623-1991 : Aker, Alburtis, Butt, Carter, Fadely, Fulkerson, Grubb, Hagy, King, Landis, Lee, Scudder, Stewart, Underwood, Williamson, and others / by Sarah Finch Maiden Rollins. Henington Pub. Co. ; Houston, Tex. : Order from S.F.M. Rollins, c1991.
"Nothing is positively known of Dr. John Stewart's early years, but "family tradition" says he was born in Scotland ca. 166O. His recorded history begins in Newtown, Long Island, New York."
"It is recorded that about 1687 John Stewart married Elizabeth AIburtis, daughter of John AIburtis and Elizabeth Scudder. John Stewart's history indicates a roving disposition, a strong will, and efficient action. He began the western migration of the Stewart family, going from Long Island to New Jersey to Delaware. It was his great-grandson, also named John, who was born in Delaware, live in North Carolina, and died in Virginia, establishing the line there."
"When John married Elizabeth he married well, considering that the respected Alburtis family was well established and well off. The question is: how long had John Stewart been in Newtown? It would be helpful to know if he was related to the only other Stewart in early Newtown records, a James Stewart. This James Stewart was on the 1656 list entitled "The Indian Rate," a valuable record which presents a nearly perfect list of the male residents of Middelburg (which is the early name for Newtown), just four years after the town was begun."
"John Stewart is recorded as a witness to a deed dated 22 March 1689/90. He signed his name and Elizabeth, also a witness made her mark."
"John and Elizabeth must have moved to Hempstead, N.Y. because 2 years later, on 11 July 1691 John Stewart petitioned the proprietors and freeholders for a `right" to 18 to 20 acres of land. In his petition he stated that he was a cooper, a surgeon, and master of a family."
"Six months later John and Elizabeth were living in nearby Jamaica, New York, bout six miles west of Hempstead on Long Island. John and Elizabeth Stewart stayed in Jamaica about five years, 1692&emdash;1697."
"Sometime in 1697 John and Elizabeth decided to move their family (four or five children by now) to the Province of East Jersey. The move would have been made by sailing a sloop from Jamaica, across the Lower Bay, going into Sandy Hook Bay to the Navesink River, or since Shrewsbury was their destination, maybe into Shrewsbury River. The old village of Shrewsbury was about one and a half miles south of Red Bank. John and Elizabeth Stewart moved to Monmouth County, to the town of Shrewsbury."
"The first mention of John Stewart in Shrewsbury, East Jersey, was in 1697 when he made two land purchases. No deeds after 1697 refer to John Stewart as a cooper, only as a physician."
"About this time John Stewart and Elizabeth decided to move again. Just as they had retained title to some land in Jamaica, they would also continue to own some of their land in Shrewsbury."
"We can't know for sure why the Stewart family moved from Monmouth County to the County of Sussex-on-the-Delaware. Surely it was not pleasant to continue to live where there was so much wrangling and contention. John Stewart was a substantial landowner and had a place in the community. Maybe he disdained confrontational politics and wanted a quieter place to rear his family. He was only about forty years old when he chose to move."
"They settled in Sussex County, the most southern of the three Delaware counties, known for the fertility of its back country. At this time Delaware was part of Pennsylvania.
John and Elizabeth Stewart and their family of six children moved from New Jersey to Delaware in the last part of 1700 or early 1701 and settled in Lewes-and Rehoboth Hundred in Sussex (County) on the Delaware, where John is referred to as `Physician."
"Dr. John Stewart died sometime between 1 September 1704, when he wrote his will, and 13 January 1705, when his will was probated at Lewes, Sussex County, Delaware. He was in his early forties. John Stewart designated his wife Elizabeth to administer his will."
"The will makes it apparent that Dr. John Stewart still owned property in four locations: in Queen's County, Long Island, New York; in Monmouth County of East New Jersey; and in New Castle County, Delaware; as well as owning his Sussex County, Delaware, property."
"Elizabeth (AIburtis) Stewart, widow of Dr. John Stewart, was in her mid- thirties and was left with the care of their six children, ranging in age from about two to sixteen. It is understandable that three weeks after the will was probated Elizabeth had to sell some property. Aside from selling off some land for ready cash, with six minor children it is also understandable that Elizabeth (AIburtis) Stewart remarried within a year (between February 1705 and February 1706). Her second husband was Thomas Davock. In February 1706 Matthew Stevens brought suit in the Sussex court against "Thomas Davock and Elizabeth his wife, executrix of John Stuart deceased," in a disagreement as to who owed whom money. "