• The David Kennison Dispute

By permission and courtesy of the Chicago History Museum.

11/10/1998
You should also be aware that there is a great deal of information published on David KENISON by a man named OVERTON who claims that D.K. never served in the Revolutionary War and that most of the information concerning this so-called service comes directly from a book entitled, "Field Book of the Revolution" by Lossing (whom Overton suggested was more interested in locating the last surviving Revolutionary War veteran than in accuracy). P. T. BARNUM requested an introduction to David KENISON when he made a trip to Chicago.

1/27/1999
We have a list of children's names for David Kennison (Boston Tea Party) that was handed down in our family. We do not have the mother's names for each child. David Kennison had four wives, but only children with two of these wives. I am a decendant of Jacob Kennison, 3/08/1780 Massachusetts, died 7/26/1856, Stockport, Ohio. The other names are: Hugh, Joab, Elizabeth, Mary Ann, Nehemiah, Lucretia, Polly, Jane, Peter, William David, Mamie, David, Nathaniel, Dorothy, Mary, Hannah, Jennie, Solomon, and three children with unknown first names. They may have died at birth. This makes a total of 22 children.

4/3/1999
Hello family!
Does anyone really know who David Kennison married? He supposedly had four wives and twenty-two children with the first two wives. I haven't a clue as to who are the mothers of the children I have listed. Please help.
I have photos of David Kennison's monument in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, that I can email.
Thanks!
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6/13/1999
This silly story about David Keniston and four wives and zillions of children has been repeated over and over ever since Mrs. Byrd E. Miles managed to roll at least three and possibly four different David Kenistons together into one man. There was a David Keniston who married Huldah Vittum - they were my ancestors and each of them was only married once!!! And they only had daughters, so the name died out in that line. Would love tohear from anyone definitely descended from this David and his ONLY wife, Huldah Vittum.

10/20/1999
Email me. I am a ggggg nephew.I have three different places where he could fit. Two people felt he was the brother of John Kenaston Keniston m Maraia Steward from the live of James Keniston & Anges Moody younges son. I also have been told he was the Brother of the same John and Maria Keniston. I also have been told he was from William Kenniston, son of John and Agnes. Can anyone tell me exactly who his parents were. Could someone give my up to date list of his descendants. I have at leawt 3 articles about him from Marge Kenison K????? from Washington State. If anyone would lik3 copiew or these contact me at hkenaston@sunline.com or hkenaston@fanet.com
I am interested in anything anyone has about David Kenniston Kennison Kenison or Kinnison.

11/12/1999
I agree that there are discrepencies in the Kennison Story: however, it would be very unusual for a man who lived to be 115 yrs and was known to be quite active to have been married only once. Women very often died during childbirth then. There is a letter from him on file in the U.S. Archives where he states he is a widower in his 70's with a five year old daughter, Polly. What makes you sure that he was only married once? What documents of proof are you going by? He traveled around the country,making it hard to follow how many wives he may have had, it seems he was a "professional soldier" fighting in every and any war he could join! My grandmother Anna D. Kennison was a descendant of his. I have ample proof of that.

11/25/1999
Patricia, please go back and read my posting again. You have misinterpreted it. I did not say that YOUR ancestor was only married once; I said that MINE was. My David Keniston, who married Huldah Vittum, was NOT the man in Chicago!

7/25/2000
Huldah Vittum married David Keniston, and they were my ancestors. They lived and died in N.H. Huldah's sister, Abigail Vittum, did not marry a Keniston; she married John Wallace.

Can you show me proof that the Tea-Party man ever said that his wife was Huldah Vittum? I ask everyone, and nobody can do so. They only refer to a published, secondary source, which apparently "invented" the identification for some mysterious reason. It would appear that some incompetent "genealogist" did so, not knowing how to separate three or more contemporary David Kenistons, and instead chose to roll them all together, as preposterous as it made the story.
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5/13/1999
I have located the information referenced in my first message. "The Pictorial Field - Book of the Revolution" by Benson J. Lossing with references to the Boston Tea Party, pp 400-501, Vol. I, Edition 1860. David Kinnison was born 11-17-1736 in Old Kingston near Portsmouth, province of Maine. He died in Chicago at the age of 115. (I guess that means we might get to live long enough to get our Social Security) He had 4 wives and 22 children. A photo of a Ripley's - Believe it or Not from the Sioux City Journal of approximately 1943 is in the packet. I have lots more if you are interested.

11/12/1999
What do you have for articles? David was born in Newmarket, N.H., was in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and was mustered into the U.S.Army at the age of 76 at Fort Dearborn, MI. He lived to be 115 yrs of age, died in Chicago, IL. Long after he died a momument was erected by the SSAR where he was supposed! to have been burried. He was written up in Ripley's Believe It Or Not, and his picture is in several books, including, Smithsonians/ A History of Photography. He dropped the T from his name when he dropped the tea in the Boston Harbor. There is a vial of tea in the Boston Museum which came from his boots after he threw the tea from one of the ships! I have several articles also so perhaps we could exchange!

9/22/2000
Why would you need proof that David's stories were NOT true? Why not require proof that they were?

There were several men named David, and one was a celebrated story-teller who died in Chicago in 1852. This David was probably born sometime in the 1760s and served in the War of 1812. He told contradictory stories (placing himself in different locations at the same time) and gave different ages or birth dates (depending upon which suited his purpose at the time). Which birth date should we believe?

Various wives and numerous children were credited to this David in the booklet, "The Kenison Story," by Mable Azeltine Rapp -- probably in a sincere, but misguided, attempt to fill-in gaps in his stories. Some wives and children were "borrowed" from other Davids, who WERE documented in New England history books. For example, the David who actually married a Vittum (Huldah, not Abigail), died in New Hampshire in 1841. Why are facts like this ignored?

I have strong feelings on this subject, because my ancestor, Joab, is listed in the Rapp book as one of the children of this David. This has really made it difficult for me to identify his real father. I am really troubled that people continue to repeat the myths about David of Chicago, without an accompanying statement that his stories may not be true.

Personally, I would like to see some proof that his stories were true and that all of these children were his. I would like to hear from someone who has RECENTLY been admitted into the DAR based upon a descent from the David who died in Chicago.

I'll get off of my soap-box now, but I hope someone is listening. I am open to being proven wrong, and I invite someone to step forward to do it.

10/1/2000
I think that the Revolutionary War Pension records are invaluable. As to David Kenison burried in Chicago, why are his stories untrue? His picture is in a Smithonian book of early photos and he is listed as the last living member of the Boston Tea Party. There is also a history book of New England (Title escapes me right now) that lists him the same. I do have a page from Ripley's Believe It or Not which has a picture of him and his claim. It would be hard to imagine that Ripley's or the Smithsonian would print something that they had not researched and found to be true. It is true that finding records can be very time consuming, and as a professional genealogist, I try always to garner information from primary sources, ie: birth, death certificates, probate records, pensioners records. It must be authenticated that he DID volunteer for the US Army and that his age was 75 or so then. In addition he is listed as a pensioner from the Revolutionary War age in his 70's with a five year old daughter. So we know there was a David in the Revolutionary War. I also have a letter written by my g g grandmother in which she says to her son "your grandfather dumped the tea overboard at the Boston Tea Party." It was thus handed down as fact by the Kenison Family itself. I did say - I would like to see proof why his claims were disputed - actually there must have been many who believed him or else they (DAR or SAR) would not have raised a monument in his honor in Chicago in Lincoln Park. If family oral and written history and his claim is to be doubted as well as the Revolutionary War records - then what can we go by? We know that he apparantly was what we would call a professional soldier. (guess he liked to fight). Right now I am waiting for some records from Quebec, Canada on the Henry James, Henry, Joseph, Joab Kennison lineage. Yes one can get into the Dar on the records as they stand. Family oral and written records hold as much weight as primary evidence in many cases.

11/12/2000
Hello from Oregon, I have some info on the Kinnisons. My mother, Laura, collected some info. There is a small book that was done by a Don Kinnison from NE that went back to the 1600's. David Kennison who was promoted to have been involved in the Boston Tea Party was listed. The story goes that he threw the e out of his name with the tea so that all Kinnisons are then his decendants. He was very prolific, something over 20 children with several wives. If you get this let me know and I can come up with info for you.