USA Seckersons – Where did they originate from?

There appears to be two main Family lines of descent for the Seckersons now living in the United States.

North Dakota

The Seckersons now predominately living in North Dakota appear to be descended from Richard and Margaret Seckerson who originated in Coventry, England.

Although no record has yet been found for Richard’s emigration to America, Margaret travelled  to the USA in 1832 with her three children.
One of her daughters, Maria, married William Wallace Knox in 1839 in Tennessee.
The other daughter Margaret died unmarried aged 37 in Davidson Co. Tennessee in 1860.
Her son Richard married a Mary E Saxton in New York.

Richard junior was a corporal in the 29th Wisconsin Regiment during the civil war. He died of disease at Carrolton, Louisiana on 17th December 1861.

Richard junior and his first wife Mary E Saxton had four children;

  • Mary E. Seckerson born New York 1840
  • Sarah Seckerson born New York 1843
  • Richard S Seckerson born New York July 1845
  • William E Seckerson born New York 1848

Both sons, Richard S and William E enlisted in the civil war together with their father. They all served in the 29th  Wisconsin regiment.

Richard then married an Ethalinda Drake around 1854, they had two children;

  • John W Seckerson born Wisconsin February 1857
  • Helen Rosanna Seckerson born Wisconsin February 1859

Of these six children (three males) only the descendants of John W Seckerson carried the surname past one generation:
Richard S Seckerson remained in New York and had three children;

  • Frederick Clinton Seckerson (1873 – 1964) who only had one child, a daughter, Helen E (bn 1896)
  • Howard Arnold Seckerson (a Harvard professor) (1877 – 1970) who only had one child, a daughter, Ruth L Seckerson (bn 1912)

William E Seckerson (1848 – 1912) had two children;

  • Winnefred Seckerson born Minnesota 1873
  • William H Seckerson (1880 – 1916) died unmarried

John W Seckerson born 1857 Wisconsin had four children;

  • George Seckerson born Wisconsin March 1879 died Stutsman, North Dakota 1951
  • Hellen Seckerson born Wisconsin 1880
  • Le Roy M Seckerson born Wisconsin 19th April 1883 died 24th November 1929 Stutsman, North Dakota.
  • Ella Seckerson born Wisconsin 1895 married Albert e Clemens 1912 in Stutsman, North Dakota.

The Seckersons now living in North Dakota all appear to be descended from LeRoy M Seckerson.

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New York, Ohio & New Jersey
The second Seckerson line of descent are for those who are now predominately based in New York, Ohio and New Jersey.

John Seckerson, a potter, was born in Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire, England in 1820. He emigrated to the United States on 12th October 1844. Later that year he married Sarah Ann Jones in Jersey City, NJ. They had ten children (five male), all born in New Jersey and it is from these offspring that this line is descended.

One of John’s siblings also moved to North America. He was Benjamin Seckerson and was born in Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire, in 1825. He emigrated to the USA in the mid 1860’s. His wife was Hannah Hulse who he married in Stoke on Trent on 27th October 1851. Hannah joined Benjamin in New York in 1871. Although they were married for thirty years until Benjamin’s death in 1881, they never had any children.
Hannah’s half nephew, Benjamin Harrison married John Seckerson’s granddaughter May Hannah Seckerson on 15th April 1895 in Manhattan, New York.