Naesmyth 'Family Lines' of the United States
(This page is a work-in-progress)

Our Naesmyth Ancestor's migrated from Scotland at different times to different countries. Some traveled to Ireland and some to European countries.  We find some that traveled as far away as Australia.  Still others emigrated to the Americas.

During a period of intense religious persecution in Scotland, many tens of thousand Scots left their homeland and migrated to Ireland.   Among them, many of the Naesmyth branches which eventually migrated to America, came by way of a several generation stop over in Ireland.  It is said that although these Scottish Naesmyths resided in Ireland for all these generations, they never inter-married with the Irish.

The Naesmyths that emigrated to the Americas didn't all enter the Americas at the same place or time.  Some are known to have landed in New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Georgia and South Carolina.

By the time the earliest Naesmyths reached America, the spelling of the 'Naesmyth' surname had changed.  It had come to be spelled 'Nesmith'.  Still later we find that in different regions of America, the spelling changed even further.  Today we find such various regional spellings as; NeSmith, NesSmith, Nessmith and Neesmith to name just a few.  Pronunciation in different regions also vary.  The two predominant variances are one with the 'Ne' pronounced as in 'knee' and the other with the 'Ne' pronounced as in the name 'Ned'.  There seems to also be a less prominent variation with the 'Ne' pronounced as 'nay', which would be much closer to what is believed to be the earliest pronunciation of Naesmyth (see Legend Version #1).

Some Naesmyth descendants never did leave Scotland.   Typically, of those that remained in Scotland, their surnames came to be spelled; Nasmyth or Nasmith.  It is presumed that some Naesmyth branches which had migrated to Ireland, didn't leave Ireland and their descendants reside there to this day.

Later, different branches of the American emigrant families migrated even further throughout America.  It is known that one such branch of the Nesmith family which had originally landed in South Carolina, migrated south to Georgia.  Descendants of this Nesmith branch are known as being of the "Georgia Line".

This is an example of how we are said to be of different lines yet still related.  What defines each 'Line' within the United States is as follows:

Georgia - Georgia - Georgia - Georgia - Georgia - Georgia - Georgia

Georgia Naesmyth Line
James Nesmith, Sr. (c1730-c1763) born in Craven County, South Carolina, removed to Augusta, Georgia sometime before 1750.  James, Sr. was married to a woman presently known only as "Mary" (perhaps "Mary Tanner" or "Mary Ann Young").  The children of James, Sr. and Mary were the first descendants of the Naesmyth Scottish Line to be born in the State of Georgia, USA, the eldest of which was Sarah Nesmith (1764), followed by; Mary Nesmith (1766), John Tanner Nesmith (1768), Unknown Nesmith (1770 - 1808), James Nesmith, Jr., (January 31, 1774 - September 20, 1845) and finally, the youngest, Reverend Charles R. Nesmith (1780 - 1877).  It is this "line" which has been the primary focus of The Naesmyth Genealogical Society and is perhaps the most widely researched of all the Naesmyth Lines with most of the available information being on the descendants of James Nesmith, Jr. (1774 - 1845).

Louisiana - Louisiana - Louisiana - Louisiana - Louisiana - Louisiana - Louisiana
Louisiana Naesmyth Line

Maryland - Maryland - Maryland - Maryland - Maryland - Maryland - Maryland
Maryland Naesmyth Line
After the suppression of the rebellion of the partisans of Prince Charles Edward, "The Young Pretender", the participators in it were punished with vindictive severity.  Great numbers were put to death, and multitudes transported.  The Scottish prisoners were taken to England for trial, lest their own countrymen should be disposed to deal with them too leniently;  And at one time there were no less than three hundred and eighty-five crowded in Carlisle Jail.  Of these, the rank and file were permitted to cast lots, one man out of every twenty to be tried and hanged, and the rest to be transported.  One ship-load of the latter were sent to Maryland in the Americas.  They came by the ship Johnson, of Liverpool, William Pemberton, Master, and arrived at the port of Oxford, Maryland on July 20, 1747 .  Names taken from a worm-eaten, certified list among the records at Annapolis, indicate that a John Nesmith was among these poor souls.

Upon arrival in the "New World", John Nesmith was indentured as a servant for a period of four years.  He married Sarah Dykes in Swede's Church, Philidelphia, Pennsylvania, December 2, 1751.  His Will, dated 1790 does not indicate any family.

No other record of this John Nesmith can be found.  It appears that the Maryland Naesmyth Line died with John Nesmith.  If anyone has information to the contrary, we would love to hear about it.

New Hampshire - New Hampshire - New Hampshire - New Hampshire
New Hampshire Naesmyth Line 
Deacon James Nesmith and his family left Ireland in 1718 and reached the coast of New Hampshire that same year.  All Nesmith Descendants of James Nesmith (1692 - 1767) and Elizabeth McKeen (1696 -1763) are said to be of the 'New Hampshire Line'

New Jersey - New Jersey - New Jersey - New Jersey - New Jersey - New Jersey
New Jersey Naesmyth Line

Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Naesmyth Line 

South Carolina - South Carolina - South Carolina - South Carolina - South Carolina
South Carolina Naesmyth Line

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This page was last updated: 07/18/2000 04:43:17 PM