My Genealogy Hound

DAVID ROBINSON KENNEDY was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, March 24, 1802, and died at Port Kennedy, Upper Merion township, Montgomery county, February 11, 1882. He was the son of Alexander and Margaret (Robinson) Kennedy.

The Kennedy family originated in Scotland, near Ayr, in Dunure, or at any rate settled there after one of the early struggles. They were Highlanders. The first in history was Archibald Kennedy, the leader of a noble clan, who was made baron, also Marquis of Ailsa, and Earl of Cassillio in 1150, and was called Lord Kennedy. The family have been in possession of the estate in a continued line from the time of this Archibald Kennedy, who lived in 1150, until the present day.

The home in Ireland is a very beautiful estate, and in the time of William Kennedy included eight hundred acres of land. The Kennedy family are highly connected and well-spoken of in Ireland. Two of their number have been kings in that country, namely Brian and Mahon. They were praised by all and considered as honest and good monarchs who reigned for the good of the country.

The Kennedy coat of arms has the Arms Argent, Chevrons Gules, between three cross craslets fitchie and sable, the whole within a double tressure flory, a counter flory of the second crest, etc. The Kennedy Clan has a good plaid, the motto being, “Fight to the finish.”

William Kennedy (grandfather) lived at Bally, Clouch county, Derby, Ireland. His wife was Tamahil Kennedy, and their children were: Margaret, who married James Mairs; Mary, who married Mr. Johnson and removed to England; William, who came to America with his brother Alexander; Robert, who remained on the homestead in Ireland, where the widow of one of his sons, now a very old woman, lives with her three sons; and Alexander.

As has been said, Alexander and William Kennedy emigrated to America. Alexander settled at Port Kennedy, after a short time spent in Chester county, and William made his home in Exton, Chester county, Pennsylvania. At the time of his arrival at Port Kennedy. Alexander Kennedy was poor, and he entered into the employ of a wealthy man of the neighborhood. Through his industry and thrift he accumulated in the course of time a handsome fortune. At the death of its owner, Mordecai Moore, Mr. Kennedy purchased, in 1803, the farm now known as the Zook homestead. He moved to this farm in 1805 and continued to reside there until 1824, when he died, at the age of sixty-three years. Alexander Kennedy was a member of the Great Valley Presbyterian church, and both he and his wife are buried in the cemetery of this church. Like his sons he was a Democrat and was a man of wealth and influence, owning a great deal of property in Chester and Montgomery counties. He was the founder of Port Kennedy, as it is now called, or Kennedy’s Hollow, its original name.

Alexander Kennedy married Margaret Robinson. All his children, except the two eldest, who were natives of Chester county, were born at Port Kennedy, on the Zook farm. Their children were: William, deceased, who for a time was a merchant at Kennedy’s Hollow, but later removed to Kent county, Maryland; David Robinson; Margaret; Jane; Elizabeth; Alexander, who removed to East Pikeland, Chester county; John, born October 18, 1815, who married, in 1841, Margaret S. Connell, of Lancaster county, and had eight children. He died September 4, 1877.

David Robinson Kennedy grew to manhood at Port Kennedy, attending the public schools. He owned and operated a limestone farm, and he and his brother John were the principal property holders in Port Kennedy. He was a member of the Presbyterian church, the ground for which was donated by William Kennedy. The Kennedy brothers also were the principal contributors in erecting the church edifice. David Robinson Kennedy and his brothers built up a great part of Port Kennedy and furnished employment for a great number of people in their lime-manufacturing establishment.

During the early part of his life Mr. Kennedy was a Democrat in politics but he became a Republican about 1857. He was not a politician but always supported his party financially and otherwise.

David Robinson Kennedy married Miss Violetta M., daughter of Colonel Abel and Mary (Moore) Reese. Colonel Reese was a member of an old Chester county family, and Reeseville, near Berwyn, was named for him. The family is of Welsh descent. The father of Colonel Abel Reese, was also named Abel Reese and was an extensive landholder in the neighborhood of Berwyn, being a very wealthy man. Colonel Abel Reese commanded the Forty-fourth Regiment, Pennsylvania Militia, in the war of 1812. He and his wife were Presbyterians, and are buried in the same churchyard, in Great Valley, as Mr. Kennedy. The children of Colonel Abel and Mary (Moore) Reese were: Violetta M., born June 22, 1817, and Mary Ann, who married Squire James Sloan, of Philadelphia, afterwards of Port Kennedy.

The children of Mr. and Mrs. David Robinson Kennedy were as follows: Anna Mary died in childhood. John R. grew up in Port Kennedy and was educated in the public schools there and in Philadelphia. He now resides in Seattle, Washington, where he is engaged in business. Margaret K. married William Morrison, an attorney-at-law in York, Pennsylvania. Their children are Violetta J., Mary Kennedy, John K., and W. Earl. Elizabeth died in childhood. Violetta R. resides at home. Mary married George Gunkle, of Chester county, who is now deceased. They had one child, Robinson K.

Mrs. Violetta M. Kennedy, widow of David Robinson Kennedy, died October 23, 1903, at her residence at Port Kennedy in her eighty-seventh year. She had been an invalid for some time. She suffered a stroke of paralysis from which she failed to rally, being only partly conscious from that time until her death.

A sister of Mrs. Kennedy married Squire James Sloan.

Mrs. Kennedy was possessed of rare business ability, being endowed also with many of the virtues which adorn woman. At her husband’s death she continued the business of burning lime and furnishing fluxing stone for several years, giving employment to many persons, and only retiring when advanced age required her to relinquish it. She was charitable to the poor, and the later years of her life, when she was more at leisure, were spent largely in work of this kind. She was a valued member of the community in which she lived.