John Francisco

Male 1792 - 1864  (72 years)


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  • Name John Francisco  [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
    Born 1792  New Jersey, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  [2, 3, 4, 8
    Gender Male 
    Died May 1864  South Abington, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I1330  MySiscoFamily
    Last Modified 17 Jan 2018 

    Family Margaret Weiss,   b. 1794, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Aft 1865, South Abington, Lackawanna, Pennsylania Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age > 72 years) 
    Married Abt 1815 
    Children 
     1. Margaret Francisco,   b. 25 May 1821, Clarks Green, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 5 Feb 1890, Clarks Green, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 68 years)  [natural]
     2. Orpha Francisco,   b. 1830, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Feb 1877  (Age 47 years)  [natural]
     3. Mary Ann Sisco,   b. 12 May 1817, Clarks Green Penn'a Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 29 May 1896, Pennsylvania, Somerset, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 79 years)  [natural]
     4. Sarah Francisco,   b. 26 Jan 1826, Abington, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 13 May 1886, South Canaan, Wayne, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 60 years)  [natural]
     5. Alvah Francisco,   b. Mar 1828, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 13 Oct 1905, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 77 years)  [natural]
     6. Henry Sisco,   b. 3 Mar 1819, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1894, Clarks Green, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 74 years)  [natural]
     7. Stephen Sisco,   b. 28 Sep 1842, Clarks Green, Lackawanna, Pennsylvania, United States Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 3 Jul 1924, Nicholson, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 81 years)  [natural]
     8. Solomon Sisco,   b. Dec 1832, Abington Twp, Luzerne, Pennsylvania Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Bef 1910, Lenox, Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 77 years)  [natural]
    Last Modified 17 Jan 2018 
    Family ID F354  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 1792 - New Jersey, USA Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 

  • Notes 
    • John Sisco came from Easton, Northampton Co. PA and settled near Clarks Green, Pennsylvania on a fine farm now owned by the Baptist Bible College. He was living there by 1830. He married Margaret Weiss and they raised eight children, four boys and four girls. The farm was sold to Ben Courthright in 1878 and in 1916 it was sold to the Catholic Diocese which built the Vangaurd Convent there in 1920. They sold the property to the Baptist Bible College in 1968.

      Based on DNA testing of Terry Sisco, this line of Sisco's can be traced to Johannis Fransoy, a French Huegonot.

      John, Johan, Fransoy /(Francisco)Birth: 1660[1]
      Death: 19 Nov 1733Place: Newark, NJ[2]Residence - - Newark, Essex County, Province of East Jersey in 1691.
      Jan FRANSOY 1666It is not known when Jan arrived in America. He is noted in the Newark, NJ Town Book, dated December 30, 1695, where he is called "Jonn Francis" as selling land within the bounds of Newark on the east side of the third river, containing 24 acres. This land had been purchased August 1,1698 and is probably the confirmation of an earlier unrecorded deed. It appears that Jan died before November 19, 1733, as confirmed by the will of Abraham Vrelant of Newark who wrote his will December 10, 1734 and in which he bequeths land "bought of the sons of John Fransoy" on November 19, 1733.[3]
      The name could be Francois (French or Waloon Belgian) or Franicus (Latin) or Fraser / Francis (British). In a later NJ census, descendants of Fransoy list themselves as "Francifka" which has a ring of Slovak to it. Then again "Jan Fransoy" could be nothing more than a nickname meaning "John, the Frenchman" with no surname indicated. .
      "November 27,1685. Aboard ' Henry & Frances of New Castle' Last will and testament of William Rig, son of Thomas Rig of Athorny, dec'd, names as heirs children of brothers Walter and James Rig of Scotland, Eupham Scott, dau. of George Scott of Pitlockey,dec'd, Rev. Archibald Riddall, James, son of said George Scott, Executor..................................Witnesses-James Dundas, brother of the Laird of Armestonn, James Hutchinson, apothecary, and John Fraser, writing master. Proved February 9,1685-6." [4] -
      Some believe the writing master, John Fraser is Jan Fransoy because the date is about right for Fransoy to have arrived in this country, the name of the ships are identical to the names of two of Fransoy's sons and Fransoy is reported to have been able to read & write ( not a common thing at that time). I have not been able to uncover anything written by or signed by Fransoy.
      Children of John · Hendrick "Old Henry" FRANCISCO Born: 11 Jun 1686 France.
      · France FRANCISCO Born: Abt. 1700, Essex, New Jersey
      · Barat FRANCISCO Born: Abt. 1700 Essex, New Jersey
      · Abraham FRANCISCO Born: Abt. 1700
      · Johannis FRANCISCO Born: Abt. 1700 Essex, New Jersey
      Sisco/Francisco DNA Project The Sisco/Francisco DNA Project has produced a wealth of information.[5] [6]
      Paul, the project leader, recommends the 37-marker Y chromosome test.[7]
      Francisco-417's background is:1. A large family descended from John Fransoy, a French protestant (Huguenot) born about 1660 in France, who fled north to the Netherlands to escape religious persecution. His name probably just means "John the Frenchman" = Jean le Francois in French. He married a Dutch woman, Elizabeth Geitje, either in the Netherlands or in New Jersey. In the Netherlands and in the Dutch community of Second River, New Jersey, he was known as Johannis Franse, which means "John the Frenchman" in Dutch. Later the name was written as Francisco or Fran Sisco. He is supposed to have had five sons, Henry, Frans, Johannis, Abraham, and Barent. Many of the descendants of Barent in New Jersey shortened the name to "Sisco", whereas the descendants of Henry in New York and points west kept the full name of "Francisco". A southern branch of this family is descended from a John Francisco who moved to North Carolina about 1750. The southern branch changed the name from Francisco to Sisco or Cisco about 1800. A letter from Elon Francisco in the Family Research Documents at left shows how the name was in transition from Francisco to Cisco or Sisco in the early 1800's. Men of this lineage have the R1b1b2a1b Y chromosome haplotype of Western Europe.[8]
      We haven't connected all the dots. But it appears our common ancestor was a French Protestant born about 1660 in France who fled France during the period of persecution of the protestants by King Louis XIV. His name is variously given as Johannes ( John ) Francisco, John Fransoy, and Johannis Franser. The name is probably a Dutch variant of "Jean le Francois" -- John the Frenchman. The word "Frans" in Dutch means "French. He married a Dutch woman named Elizabeth Geitje (pronounced and sometime spelled "Geeshee"). He died and is buried in New Jersey.[9]
      It is a pleasure to make the acquaintance of a descendant of a famous member of our town's past. 'Anthony Francisco' and 'John Francisco' are interred in the cemetery at the Old Dutch Church. Their names are read each year at the roll-call on the 4th of July. For the Revolutionary War Veterans, 66 patriots buried in the churchyard at the Old Dutch Church in Belleville, New Jersey.
      My 'Cisco' Family descended from Johannes "John" Francois ( Fransoy, Francis, Francisco/Sisco ), a French protestant (Huguenot) born about 1660 in France, who fled north to the Netherlands to escape religious persecution. His name probably just means "John the Frenchman" Jean le François in French. He was married to a Dutch woman, Elizabeth Geitje, either in the Netherlands or in New Jersey. In the Netherlands and in the Dutch community of Second River, New Jersey, he was known as Johannis Franse, which means "John French" in Dutch. Later the name was written as Francisco or Fran Sisco. He is supposed to have had at least five sons, Henry, Frans, Johannis, Abraham, and Barent. Many of the descendants of Barent in New Jersey shortened the name to "Sisco", whereas the descendants of Henry in New York and points west kept the full name of "Francisco". A southern branch of this family is descended from a John Francisco who moved to North Carolina about 1750. The southern branch changed the name from Francisco to Sisco or Cisco about 1800.
      We are Related to (Old Henry Francisco) of Whitehall, New York, U.S.A. [10]
      Some exciting DNA results have just come in. Louis Joseph Francisco III, a direct descendant of Henry Francisco of Whitehall, NY, was DNA tested and his Y chromosome is an excellent match to the Y chromosome of other men who are part of the large Francisco/Sisco/Cisco family of French Protestant origin.
      Not all of you may be familiar with Old Henry. He claimed to be 134 years old when he was interviewed by Benjamin Silliman in 1819. I’ve attached excerpts from that interview compiled by Shirley Wicker Hendrix of Murray, KY.
      It’s generally agreed that some things in the interview are inaccurate. Henry may actually have been born in Essex County, NJ, as a son of Johannes "John" Fransoy/Franse/Francisco and his wife Elizabeth Geitje. It is more likely that his father John fled France at the time of the persecution of the French Protestants in the late 1600’s. John then married a Dutch girl. French Protestants were usually Calvinists, and they fled to countries or provinces where Calvinists were welcome: the Netherlands, England, parts of Germany, British North America, and Dutch-colonized South Africa. Frederick William, the ruler of the German state that included Berlin, was a Calvinist, and he issued a special Edict to help his co-religionists – the Edict of Potsdam.[11]
      But his family did believe Henry died at the age of 134. I’ve attached page 2 of the family bible of his son Solomon Francisco of Cincinnati, Ohio. In the lower left-hand corner you can see the note about Henry’s death. If that is correct, Henry (born in 1686) would have been 82 when Solomon was born in 1768.
      You can also see how fluid the spelling of the family name was. There are three spellings on this single page of the Bible – Francisco, Fran Sisco, and Sisco. Henry’s pension records from his service in the Revolutionary War also use all three spellings.
      Henry is probably the most famous member of our family An article in Military History magazine in 2010 repeated much of the Silliman interview, and also included information about his pension records. [12]
      Don’t believe everything you read about Old Henry. The events of his life and his age when he died are still controversial. But later generations of Francisco, Sisco, and Cisco men were noted for their long lives and their ability to produce children over a long period. Don’t forget that Senator Strom Thurmond started a family of four when he was 70 years old. The grandfather of one of my neighbors married a 14-year-old girl when he was 65 and proceeded to have nine children with her. Winter-spring marriages of that sort were not unusual in those days, especially when the man had a pension as Henry did. That gave security to his young wife.
      Here is the lineage of Louis Joseph Francisco III from Old Henry. Louis’ ancestor Charles Austin Francisco of Richmond, Indiana, was a prominent banker in that town.
      Louis Joseph Francisco III
      Louis Joseph Francisco, Jr. (1921 – 1989)
      Louis Joseph Francisco (1884 – 1949) m. Marie Marguerite Dumas
      Charles Austin Francisco (1843 – 1907) m. Hannah Dickinson
      Louis Jones Francisco (1819 – 1874) m. Abigail Jane Casad
      Calvin Francisco (1796 – 1871) m. Sarah Ashmore Jones
      Solomon Francisco (1768 – 1844) m. Mary Freeman
      Henry Francisco (1686 – 1820) m. Ruth Fuller
      Sources · ↑ New York Genealogical and Biographical Review Vol. 96 Author: George F. Kent Publication: July 1965 issue. pp. 156-172
      · ↑ New York Genealogical and Biographical Review Vol. 96 Author: George F. Kent Publication: July 1965 issue. pp. 156-172
      · ↑ - NYGBR, Vol. XCVI, (1965), p.156-164.
      · ↑ N.J. Colonial Documents-Patents & Deeds - HR929.3749, page 70
      · ↑ http://franciscofamily.wikifoundry.com/
      · ↑ http://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?Group=Sisco
      · ↑ The results of the DNA tests are posted at [1]
      · ↑ described in the following Wikipedia article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R1b1b2a1b
      · ↑ The Johannes ( John ) 'Francisco' Sisco Family History. From: Paul Hardeman Sisco Jr. who is conducting a Cisco/Sisco/Francisco Family DNA Project
      · ↑ From: Paul Sisco of the Cisco/Sisco/Francisco Family DNA Project:
      · ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edict_of_Potsdam
      · ↑ A link to that article is: http://www.mediabistro.com/portfolios/samples_files/88544_wuTnOmFSZzh7sYpWY4ti6MUix.pdf
      · NJGS. "Francisco: Francisco, John (Francoys; ffrances; Frances)" njgsbc.org. Accessed 22 Nov 2016. http://njgsbc.org/indexes/bergen-county-families/

  • Sources 
    1. [S221] 1830 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2010;), Year: 1830; Census Place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania; Roll: ; Page: .
      Residence date: 1830 Residence place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania, United States

    2. [S189] 1860 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2009;), Year: 1860; Census Place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania; Roll: ; Page: 12; Image: 17.
      Birth date: abt 1792 Birth place: New Jersey Residence date: 1860 Residence place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania, United States

    3. [S176] 1860 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Name: Name: The Generations Network, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2004;;), Database online. Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania, post office Clarks Green, roll M653_1134, page 12, image 14.
      Record for John Sisco

    4. [S188] 1850 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2009;), Year: 1850; Census Place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania; Roll: M432_794; Page: 94A; Image: .
      Birth date: abt 1792 Birth place: New Jersey Residence date: 1850 Residence place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania

    5. [S4] Ancestry Family Trees, (Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.;), Ancestry Family Trees.
      http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=11714637&pid=-412809860

    6. [S2] Ancestry Family Trees, (Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.;), Ancestry Family Trees.

    7. [S326] 1840 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com, (Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.Original data - Sixth Census of the United States, 1840. (NARA microfilm publication M704, 580 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record G;), Source Citation: Year: 1840; Census Place: Abington, Luzerne, Pennsylvania; Roll: 472; Page: 220; Image: 450; Family History Library Film: 0020549.
      Name: John Sisco
      residence date: 1840
      residence place: Luzerne, Pennsylvania, United States

    8. [S327] Pennsylvania, Death Certificates, 1906-1963, Ancestry.com, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2014;).