John Keathley/Keithley

Perhaps the best documented of all is John Keathley/Keithley (1730-1793), of Duplin Co, North Carolina. John left a Will, and named his three sons therein: Richard (1748-1807), Jonathan (1750-1818), and John Jr. (1763-1823). John Sr spelled his name three different ways in his Will, but ultimately settled on "Keathley". Richard and Jonathan used the same spelling, but John Jr opted for "Kethley". Richard and Jonathan's large families proliferated in the South, while John Jr moved to Montgomery Co, Tennessee (1796-1810), then to St. Francisville Parish, Louisiana, dying there in 1823. He had 9 children.

These Keathleys, from eastern North Carolina, are almost certainly English, although there is yet some argument about that.

View brief overview of John Keathley families (PDF)