John Marshall Mystery
The Family of Chief Justice John Marshall
Marshall Men
The chart below shows the males in the family of Col. Thomas Marshall/Chief Justice John Marshall’s family. Since Jane’s father was Thomas Marshall, she would have to descend from one of these men to be closely related to John Marshall. The men shown in green lived at least part of their life in Mason County, Kentucky.
John’s Sister Jane
Chief Justice John Marshall,son of Thomas Marshall, had 14 siblings including a sister Jane. She is not our Jane Marshall as she remained in Virginia and married a man named Taylor. She is listed in her father’s will as Jane Taylor. Furthermore, had this Jane been her mother, she would have referred to John Marshall as an uncle.
John’s Brother Thomas
Thomas Marshall, brother of Chief Justice John Marshall, does not appear to be our Jane’s father either as he had a son in 1793 and no records have been found of a daughter Jane.
Brown Middle Name
Giving women surnames as middle names was very common in this family similar to Elizabeth Brown Donaldson. Where did the name Brown come from? This isn’t clear; however, a Thomas Marshall was the marriage bondsman for a Sarah Reed and David Brown who married in 1812 in Mason County. Perhaps this is a lead.
Coincidence?
Possible family tie or simply coincidence, both Chief Justice John Marshall’s sister Jane Marshall and Elizabeth Brown Donaldson lost their eyesight late in life becoming blind or nearly blind. Similarly, Elizabeth Brown Donaldson’s sister was called “Blind Jane.” I am not sure if she was blind, had poor sight or had another reason for the name.
