Robert (Bruce?) Polk, Errors

(Jody Gray) I had to create a new Ancestry.com document for the Profile Page of Robert (Bruce?) Polk: Polk Family as Descendants of President Polk. The errors I found concern not only the "progenitor" of the line, Robert (Bruce?) Polk but his wife Magdalen Tasker.

*http://ancestors.pitard.net/getperson.php?personID=I5943&tree=Pitard *Hall,” Somerset Co, Maryland.

  Genealogies for a long time have named this couple as the ancestors of President Polk along the line of the immigrant Robert ("Bruce") Pollock. This couple is also usually labeled as the parents of Charles Polk(e), Indian trader. DNA testing, however, has now show that these connections are impossible--that neither President Polk's kin, nor Charles Polk's kin, descend from here. Their immigrant ancestors remain unknown.

  Because the male Polk descendants of William b. 1700 and immigrant Robert Pollock b. abt. 1635 do not share a common ancestor it is clear is that a relationship between the these two lines is not possible, cutting the descent to the President's line at this point.

Capt. Robert Pollock b. 1635, Coleraine, Co Laois, Ireland d. Bef 1704, Somerset Co, Maryland m: Magdalen Tasker b. Abt 1635, Ballindrait, Co Donegal, Ireland d. Bef 3/20/1726, “White Hall,” Somerset Co, Maryland.

*Polk-Pollock DNA Project, John Polk, administrator.

*https://books.google.com/books?id=Hu8xAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA157&lpg=PA157&dq=Mowning+Hall+Ireland&source=bl&ots=qZwc-a1J0P&sig=Syf1iY4kLAR9ffA-ORw6-c05cSM&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjN4qrK6L7ZAhVB_4MKHbzAA10Q6AEIKTAA#v=onepage&q=Mowning%20Hall%20Ireland&f=false *Google Books. American Historical Magazine, Vol 1. 1896. Pedigree of the Polk Family. Robert Bruce Pollok.

  Jane Knox, wife of Samuel Polk, and mother of President Polk; second generation, President James Knox Polk… Samuel Polk married Jane Knox; daughter of Col. James Knox, great nephew of the Scotch reformer… The Polk family in Scotland many times intermarried with the House of Stuart. Now we find that they also inherit the descent of the Knox family. I cannot find what degree Joanna Knox and her sister Nancy were related to the famous John Knox…

(Jody Gray) These two weblinks are perfect examples of the problems related to the early “Pedigree” publications and modern genealogies. When I add people to my Ancestry.com Family Tree, I “revisit” the “vitals” for each person. Sometimes, they don’t “add-up” i.e. it’s impossible for so and so to be the parent because they would have been 5 yrs old or 100 yrs old. My first priority, when adding a new “branch” to my tree is to search for a “Descendants of ___” document. I must confess, when I added the Robert Bruce Polk branch, I did not do my usual research. At present, I don’t have a “Descendants of Robert Bruce Polk” and I have not done the work of checking the “vitals” of the lineage.

  My “connection” to him: 3rd GGF of husband of 1st cousin 4x removed.

That 1st cousin 4x removed being Elisabeth Six, granddaughter of George Allender, my 4th GGF. Elisabeth Six and her husband Edward Payne Adams were part of the 1826 migration to Indiana. Integral to my latest Ancestry.com Document and Blog Post (by the same title): Scotch-Irish Kinsmen.

  So… I’m not interested in finding out if this Polk Family is related to President Polk. But, the information that I have added may be of use to those who are.

(Jody Gray) back, again. I checked the “vitals” and they are workable… I found a “Descendants of Robert Bruce Polk”; it doesn’t follow the lineage of Ephriam Polk. I found a Genealogy forum for Robert (Bruce”) Polk that supplies a list of errors. I will be making some changes to my Profile Pages...

*http://hdhdata.org/roots/c2470.html *descendants of Robert Bruce Polk of Somerset Co. MD m: Magdalen Tasker. *doesn’t follow the lineage of Ephriam Polk b. 1671, Donegal, Ireland d. 1739, Anne Ardel, MD

*http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/polk/1987/ *Genealogy forum. Robert (Bruce?) Polk/Polke/Pollock and Magdalen (Tasker) Porter Polk. *By Billy Polk, March 17, 2008.

  There is so much erroneous/questionable/undocumented information out there online and in print on Robert Polk/Magdalen Tasker Porter and family, and it keeps being repeated/perpetuated, that I thought I would provide a few items that I can reasonably substantiate. Maybe this list will help people differentiate between fiction and information that has some basis in documents. For your info, I have been researching Polks since the summer of 1986… I have done research in actual documents, not just online -make a BIG difference.

2. Robert Polk’s ancestry is unknown. 3. Came to America some years before 1687. 4. Did not have an estate called “White Hall”. White Hall did not come into existence until 1795. (Jody Gray) Looking for a photo of White Hall to add to Robert’s Profile Page, I Googled White Hall, Somerset, Maryland and found no reference to Robert or Magdalen Polk. 5. William Polk, son of Robert and Magdalen, is not the progenitor of the Polk line of President James Knox Polk, and William Polk and Charles Polke, the Indian Trader of Potomac, are not William Polk’s. 8. Robert Polk, JR. may be the progenitor of the SC Polk line of Thomas Polk… but proof of the father/son connection is lacking. 9. There is minimal proof that Magdalen Tasker’s father was Roger Tasker, that there was an estate in Ireland, and that Magdalen’s first husband was John Porter. (Jody Gray) Looking for a photo of “Mowning or Morning Hall” to add to Magdalen’s Profile Page, I Googled both Mowning and Morning Hall, County Donegal, Ireland and found nothing.

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