James Mackey

My grandmother Helen traced her lineage back to 1751, when her ancestor, John Mackey, emigrated to America from Ireland with his wife Ann Alexander. They settled in North Carolina, where they had nine children. Their oldest son, James Mackey, was born on May 24, 1759 and fought in the Revolutionary War. He was wounded in the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775 when he was sixteen years old, but lived to witness American independence. His brother John Mackey was Helen’s great grandfather on her mother’s side. Therefore, James Mackey, who fought in the revolutionary war was not my grandmother’s direct ancestor. Otherwise, she, my mother and I would have been eligible to join the Daughters of the American Revolution!