Display Patriot - P-102366 - John McKnitt ALEXANDER

John McKnitt ALEXANDER

SAR Patriot #: P-102366

The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
 

State of Service: NC      Qualifying Service: Patriotic Service / Civil Service / Captain
DAR #: A001210

Birth: 06 Jun 1733 / Cecil / MD
Death: 10 Jul 1817 / Mecklenburg / NC

Qualifying Service Description:
  1. Member of the Colonial Congress
  2. Signer, Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence
  3. Member of the Provincial Congress at Halifax, NC on 04 Apr 1776
  4. Senator from Mecklenburg 1777-
  5. DAR RC#s 802012, 1025593 state:
    • GEN RUTHERFORD;
    • JUSTICE OF THE PEACE;
    • MEMBER OF PROVINCIAL CONGRESS;
    • SIGNER OF MECKLENBURG DECLARATION

Additional References:
  1. SAR Patriot Index Edition III (CD: PP2210, Progeny Publ, 2002) plus data to 2004
  2. DAR RC#s 802012, 1025593 cite:
    • PENSION OF ROBERT CARR;
    • *S8778;
    • CLARK, STATE RECS OF NC, VOL 23, pg 994;
    • SAUNDERS, COL RECS OF NC,
      • VOL 9, pg 1263-1264;
      • VOL 10, pg 165

Spouse: Jane Bain
Children: William Bain; Margaret; Jean Bain; Abigail Bain; Joseph McKnitt; Jean/Mary Jane; Kearney; Elias; Annie;
Members Who Share This Ancestor
Date Approved Society ACN SAR Member Info Lineage via Child View Application Detail
1965-05-12 GA Unassigned Albert Clement Bythe Jr (91871) William   
1979-03-28 SC Unassigned Harold W Funderburk Jr (115708) William   
1980-04-16 SC Unassigned Henry Glancy Wilson (116947) William   
1980-04-16 SC Unassigned Roderick Barbour Wilson (116948) William   
1983-07-19 SC Unassigned Albin Tudor Chalk (122467) Mary   
1993-01-21 NC 211653 Joe Mcknitt Alexander Jr (140098) William   
1994-02-10 AL 209553 William James Mathis Jr (141994) William   
2002-01-28 VA 11854 Johnny William Motley Jr. (157403) William   
2003-08-19 FL 16531 James Allen Davis III (160881) Abigail   
2017-02-17 NC 73112 Robert Lawrence Harding (201489) William   
2017-02-17 NC 73113 Jacob Lawrence Harding (201490) William   
2017-02-17 NC 73114 William Matthew Harding (201491) William   
2017-04-14 SC 73970 Slade Horton Funderburk (202156) William   
2017-04-14 SC 73971 Burch Hough Funderburk (202157) William   
2018-05-25 NC 81201 James Harry Puckett (207670) William   
2021-08-13 NC 98498 John Cunningham Wilson (220198) William   
2021-08-13 NC 98499 William Banks Wilson (220199) William   
2024-09-20 SC 113079 William Blake Deonne Amick (231096) William   
Burial:
Hopewell Presbyterian Church Cemetery (C-0371215)
Location:
Huntersville / Mecklenburg / NC / USA
Find A Grave Cemetery #:
174139
Grave Plot #:
Grave GPS Coordinates:
n/a
Find A Grave Memorial #:
8579651
Marker Type:
Granite Marker
SAR Grave Dedication Date:
28 Jan 2017

Comments:

Directions to Cemetery / Gravesite:


Author: David Alan Alls
John McKnitt Alexander was one of the original signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence.

He is probably one of the most famous signers. Born in Maryland, he came to Mecklenburg County with some siblings. His brother, Hezekiah, built a home that is reportedly one of the oldest homes in the county. When he arrived, he settled in the Hopewell section (north) of Mecklenburg County, before it was established in 1762. After arriving he left the occupation of tailor and became a surveyor. He acquired large tracts of land, many of which are now in other counties. His property may have been as large as ten miles square. He was a member of Hopewell Presbyterian Church and served as the treasurer for the Presbyterian Synod, which included what is now North and South Carolina.

When he was summoned to Salisbury to serve on a jury, he declined and was forced and fined by the sheriff to serve as a juror. When the British soldiers invaded Charlotte, he ordered his supplies be destroyed rather than have them fall into the hands of the enemy. He served as Mecklenburg’s Register of Deeds from 1788 to 1792. After the Revolutionary War, he served as a member of the State Senate, the House of Commons and the convention that formed the North Carolina State Constitution.

He reportedly was the secretary of the convention where the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence was adopted. This duty made him the custodian of the original document. Richard Barry, Sr., a neighbor and fellow signer, was named an executor of his will. When John died, he was one of the largest landowners in the county.

Two of his daughters married Presbyterian ministers. He sent his oldest son, Joseph McKnitt, to get an education at what is now Princeton University.

King, Victor C. Lives and Times of the 27 Signers of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence of May 20, 1775. Charlotte, NC, 1956.
http://www.cmstory.org/content/john-mcknitt-alexander-1733-7101817

Send a biographical sketch of your patriot!

Patriot biographies must be the original work of the author, and work submitted must not belong to another person or group, in observance with copyright law. Patriot biographies are to be written in complete sentences, follow the established rules of grammar, syntax and punctuation, be free of typographical errors, and follow a narrative format. The narrative should unfold in a logical manner (e.g. the narrative does not jump from time period to time period) or have repeated digressions, or tell the history of the patriot's line from the patriot ancestor to the author. The thinking here is that this is a patriot biography, not a lineage report or a kinship determination project or other report published in a genealogy journal. The biography should discuss the qualifying service (military, patriotic, civil) of the patriot ancestor, where the service was rendered, whether this was a specific state or Continental service, as well as significant events (as determined by the author) of the patriot's life. This is the entire purpose of a patriot's biography.

Additional guidelines around the Biography writeup can be found here:

Send your submission1, in a Microsoft Word compatible format, to patriotbios@sar.org for inclusion in this space

1Upon submission of a patriot biography, the patriot biography becomes the property of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and may be edited to conform to the patriot biography submission standards.


© 2025 - National Society of the American Revolution (NSSAR)