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Mary (Skeen) Cannon is the eldest daughter of Catherine White and John Skeen as derived from Skeen records held in the McClung Collection by the East Tennessee Genealogical Society in Knoxville, TN. Dates of her birth and death come from transcriptions of bible records held there.

In the genealogy community, for decades the long-held assumption was that she married Benjamin Cannon of the Mecklenburg Co., NC Cannons, and that her maiden name was McKnitt or McKnight. The progenitor of this information appears to be from the book, "A narrative genealogy of the Stewarts of Sequatchie Valley, Tennessee: and allied families" by Mary Stewart Blakemore. Mary Lynn (Stewart) Blakemore was born in 1889. She was the great-granddaughter of this Mary and Benjamin Cannon. In her book, she readily states, "There are very few wills and deeds which give enough information to make it possible to connect the generations with positive proof..." Whereas she gives details about records of the Mecklenburg Co., NC Cannons, she doesn't provide direct evidence to connect her specific line to the Mecklenburg Cannons. Her research, however, was very useful with many other details of her closer related family lines.

CONTRARY EVIDENCE:

Although some of the paper documentation is weak at this point, the DNA evidence is not. Understanding the geographic proximity of these Skeen/Cannon families in the state of Franklin in eastern Tennessee and their migration patterns from Virginia also better brings into focus the differentiation from the Mecklenburg Cannons/McKnitts.

-- Looking at the records of the longest-living of their children, Dr. Andrew Jackson Cannon, his 1880 and 1900 censuses state both his parents were born in Virginia. This would provide different evidence to what was previously thought of his parents being born in North Carolina or Maryland.

-- Autosomal DNA testers of the descendants of this Mary Skeen and Benjamin Cannon don't match the Mecklenburg Co., NC Cannons nor do they have close McKnitt/McKnight in their matches. Rather, descendants of Mary Skeen readily match the descendants of Catherine White and John Skeen of Virginia roots. Benjamin Cannon readily matches the Benjamin Cannon b. abt. 1742 (son of Jeremiah Cannon & Elizabeth Elam) and Mary East b. abt. 1742 (daughter of Joseph East & Mary Dean) also of Virginia roots.

۞ DNA from Mary Skeen matches the descendants of her siblings: Dorcas, Miriam, Elizabeth, Ingabo, Catherine, Moses, and Joseph Skeen.

۞ DNA from Benjamin Cannon matches the descendants of his siblings: Bartlett, Mary "Polly", Catherine, Zachariah, and Elizabeth.

Furthermore, even older ancestral descendant groups can be further matched with autosomal DNA matches on both the Skeen and Cannon lines. These older generations have more robust paper record documentation including wills, deeds, etc.

Mary Skeen and Benjamin Cannon

LINEAGE:

1. John Alexander Cannon Sr. b. abt. 1808 in TN

+ Jane Reed

2. Matilda Cannon b. abt. 1810 in TN

+ Hugh M. Boyd

3. Malinda Cannon b. abt. 1812 in TN [deceased bef. 1850 in Marion Co., TN Deeds with heirs]

+ ? Stuart

4.Mahala Cannon [deceased bef. 1850 in Marion Co., TN Deeds with heirs]

+ John J. Coulter

5. Mary "Polly" Cannon b. abt. 1814 in TN

+ Jacob Augustus Newman

6. Andrew Jackson Cannon b. 25 Dec 1815 in TN

+ Malinda Sawyer

+ Elizabeth Kolb

7. Benjamin B Cannon b. 25 Dec 1817 in TN

+ Malinda A. Tatum

8. Charlotte "Lottie" Cannon b. abt. 1820 in TN

+ John S. Cain

9. Susan "Susie" Cannon b. abt. 1827 in TN

+ John P. Varnell