George Keith

1638 - 1716  (78 years)

• Name	George Keith
  Birth	1638	Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  Gender	Male
  Education	1654	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Admitted to Marischal College
  Residence	1658	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Graduated Master of Arts from Marischal College, Aberdeen. Mathematician and later surveyor. Said to be distinguished also in oriental languages and philosophy. Intended to become a minister
  Religion	1663	Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Quaker
  Residence	1663	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Became a Quaker. Proceeded to proselytise and published 30 books and tracts. Friend and co-worker to George Fox, William Penn and Robert Barclay
  Residence	Dec 1663	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Ordered, with two other 'traffiquying Quakers' to be escorted out of the Town by the Town Council and warned not to return on pain of such corporal punishment as the Council might determine. + Byelaw against residents giving Quakers hospitality or accomm'n
  Residence	1664	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	10 months in prison
  Residence	Jul 1667
  	Brought before the Privy Council with fellow Quaker Alexander Jaffray for holding meetings
  Residence	1669
  	Nine months in prison
  Imprisonment	11 Mar 1669/70	Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland   [1]
  	Date released by order of the Privy Council, "furthwith to depart furth of this kingdome and not to return therto without licence for the King or his Councill"
  Occupation	1672	Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Surveyor
  Residence	1672	Dyce, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Living on Johnston property
  	Note a George Keith 'in Baylieston' was summoned by the Privy Council on 19 Jun 1673 along with other Quakers and fined on 17 July. The place name is Biedlieston in the parish of Dyce. The Privy Council records also show 'Eilderstoun' and 'Bieldistoun'. This may well be a different George Keith of Beildistoun, who had a son George who matriculated at Marischal College in 1670 and later became an advocate. This George Keith (father) obtained the signature of the lands of Meikle Crichie on 29 Nov 1678 (NRS SIG1/93/37)
  Property	5 Apr 1672	Dyce, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	On marrying Elizabeth Johnstone, became owner of half the lands of Beidleston
  Residence	1676
  	15 months in prison (and three other short stints between 1670 and 1680)
  Imprisonment	12 Mar 1675/76	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
  	Held in Aberdeen Tolbooth, accused of attending Quaker meetings at the houses of Alexander Harper, Alexander Skein, George Keith and Robert Bruce, and of failing to attend Kirk services
  Occupation	1677  [2]
  	Quaker preacher touring Holland and Germany with Fox, Penn and Barclay
  Imprisonment	13 Jun 1677	Banff, Banffshire, Scotland
  	Five Quakers (Patrick Livingstone, George Keith, Robert Barclay, John Skene and Alexander Jaffray) were removed from Aberdeen to prison in Banff, where they could not preach out the tolbooth windows!
  	On their release he accompanied Robert Barclay to London where he met William Penn
  Legal	17 Jul 1678	Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland
  	With other Quakers, fined by the Privy Council for keeping conventicles at a house on the north side of Kirkgate, Aberdeen
  Residence	Oct 1681	Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland
  	Reco0rded as resident in Edinburgh when purchasing a stake on Pennsylvania
  Property	25 Oct 1681	Pennsylvania, USA
  	Recorded as one of the the 'First Purchasers of Pennsylvania', obtaining 500 acres
  	Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission., The First Purchasers of Pennsylvania : October 25, 1681. (Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission) http://archive.org/details/firstpurchaserso00penn
  Occupation	Abt 1682	Waltham Abbey, Essex, England   [3]
  	Quaker schoolteacher
  	Or Edmonton, Middlesex? - see '1688, Middlesex village, to suburb of London, 1938: Two Hundred and Fifty Years of Winchmore Hill Meeting' Irene L. Edwards Journal of the Friends Historical Society vol 35, 1938 p32
  Residence	1683	London, England   [3]
  	18 months in jail. In Newgate in February 1684. Released in Aug 1684
  Departure	Aft Aug 1684	London, England
  Role	1685	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA
  	Free emigrant
  Arrival	Feb 1684/85	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [4]
  	Aboard The Blossom (master, Richard Martin), with daughters Anna and Elizabeth, apprentice and two servants, having overwintered
  Residence	Mar 1684/85	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA
  Occupation	Apr 1685	New Jersey, USA   [5]
  	Surveyor-General for East Jersey, having been appointed by Scots Proprietors on 31 Aug 1684
  Occupation	9 Apr 1685	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [6]
  	Member of the Board of Proprietors. Post held until 12 Apr 1688
  Property	9 Apr 1685	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [5]
  	Grant confirmed of 500 acres and a town plot in Perth Amboy in recognition of his role as Surveyor
  Property	20 Aug 1685	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA   [7]
  	Warrant for 500 acres in the Blew Hills
  Property	24 Aug 1686	Manasquan, Monmouth, New Jersey, USA
  	Patent to George Keith for 677 acres, principally 650 acres - land he called Wellspring
  Property	10 Sep 1686	Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [8]
  	Deed relating to land obtained from Gawen Lawrie and Peter Sonmans, south side of Raritan River
  Residence	1689	Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
  	Head of a new Quaker school, Penn Charter Academy
  Property	11 Jun 1690	New Jersey, USA   [9]
  	Sold half his land (150 acres) by the Raritan River to John Craig
  	NJSA.EJD/B321
  Property	15 Aug 1690	Manasquan, Monmouth, New Jersey, USA   [10]
  	Deed by Peter Sonmans, by attorney Miles Forster, to George Keith for 500 acres
  Property	26 May 1691	Monmouth, New Jersey, USA   [11]
  	Sold 90 acres to Robert Rea
  Property	25 Oct 1693	Monmouth, New Jersey, USA   [12]
  	Sold land to John Hampton, on north side of Burlington Path
  Residence	1694	London, England
  	Returned to London to attend the London Yearly Meeting of Quakers. Was critical of the practices of Quakers in North America. Disowned by his fellows.
  Residence	1695	London, England
  	Established a meeting at Turner's Hall, Philpot Lane, administering baptisms and the Lord's Supper
  Residence	1700	London, England
  	Converted to Anglicanism
  Departure	28 Apr 1702	Cowes, Isle of Wight, England
  	Left for America aboard the Centurion, accompanied by Rev Patrick Gordon (bound for Long Island) and John Talbot
  Arrival	Abt Jul 1702	Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA
  	Returned to North America as a missionary for the SPG (Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts) to promote the Episcopal Church. Cowes
  Residence	Jan 1703/04	Holborn, Middlesex, England   [13]
  	High Holborn
  Departure	5 Jun 1704	Kecoughtan, Elizabeth, Virginia, USA
  	Aboard the Dreadnought. (Alternative place name: Kirketan)
  Arrival	6 Aug 1704	Portsmouth, Hampshire, England
  Title Suffix	in Beidlestoun
  	Also 'in Bayliestoun' and 'in Eilderstoun' RPCS, 3rd Series, Vol. IV, p61 and p77 respectively. This land came from his wife Elizabeth's family holdings, probably in consequence of her inheritance as an heir portioner in 1658.
  Occupation	Abt Sep 1704	Edburton, Sussex, England
  	Vicar - presented with the living of Edburton by Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury
  Death	27 Mar 1716	Edburton, Sussex, England
  	He had suffered from rheumatism for many years.
  Person ID	I18885	East Jersey Genealogies
  Last Modified	19 Oct 2025

  
  

  Family	Elizabeth Johnstone,   b. Abt 1640, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland d. 1704, London, England (Age 64 years)
  Marriage	5 Apr 1672	Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland   [14]
  	Elizabeth was described by fellow Quaker, Robert Barclay as a "gentlewoman of good condition" (Some property transferred from the Johnstons on marriage)
  Children	1. Anne Keith,   b. 9 Apr 1674, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   2. Elizabeth Keith,   b. 16 Feb 1675/76, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   3. Margaret Keith,   b. Abt 1686, Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   4. Helen Keith,   b. 12 Jun 1679, Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]
  Family ID	F11137	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	19 Oct 2025

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 1638 - Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Education - Admitted to Marischal College - 1654 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Residence - Graduated Master of Arts from Marischal College, Aberdeen. Mathematician and later surveyor. Said to be distinguished also in oriental languages and philosophy. Intended to become a minister - 1658 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Religion - Quaker - 1663 - Aberdeenshire, Scotland Residence - Became a Quaker. Proceeded to proselytise and published 30 books and tracts. Friend and co-worker to George Fox, William Penn and Robert Barclay - 1663 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Residence - Ordered, with two other 'traffiquying Quakers' to be escorted out of the Town by the Town Council and warned not to return on pain of such corporal punishment as the Council might determine. + Byelaw against residents giving Quakers hospitality or accomm'n - Dec 1663 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Residence - 10 months in prison - 1664 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Imprisonment - Date released by order of the Privy Council, "furthwith to depart furth of this kingdome and not to return therto without licence for the King or his Councill" - 11 Mar 1669/70 - Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Occupation - Surveyor - 1672 - Aberdeenshire, Scotland Residence - Living on Johnston property - 1672 - Dyce, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Property - On marrying Elizabeth Johnstone, became owner of half the lands of Beidleston - 5 Apr 1672 - Dyce, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Marriage - 5 Apr 1672 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Imprisonment - Held in Aberdeen Tolbooth, accused of attending Quaker meetings at the houses of Alexander Harper, Alexander Skein, George Keith and Robert Bruce, and of failing to attend Kirk services - 12 Mar 1675/76 - Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland Imprisonment - Five Quakers (Patrick Livingstone, George Keith, Robert Barclay, John Skene and Alexander Jaffray) were removed from Aberdeen to prison in Banff, where they could not preach out the tolbooth windows! - 13 Jun 1677 - Banff, Banffshire, Scotland Legal - With other Quakers, fined by the Privy Council for keeping conventicles at a house on the north side of Kirkgate, Aberdeen - 17 Jul 1678 - Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Residence - Reco0rded as resident in Edinburgh when purchasing a stake on Pennsylvania - Oct 1681 - Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland Property - Recorded as one of the the 'First Purchasers of Pennsylvania', obtaining 500 acres - 25 Oct 1681 - Pennsylvania, USA Occupation - Quaker schoolteacher - Abt 1682 - Waltham Abbey, Essex, England Residence - 18 months in jail. In Newgate in February 1684. Released in Aug 1684 - 1683 - London, England Departure - Aft Aug 1684 - London, England Arrival - Aboard The Blossom (master, Richard Martin), with daughters Anna and Elizabeth, apprentice and two servants, having overwintered - Feb 1684/85 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Residence - Mar 1684/85 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Occupation - Surveyor-General for East Jersey, having been appointed by Scots Proprietors on 31 Aug 1684 - Apr 1685 - New Jersey, USA Occupation - Member of the Board of Proprietors. Post held until 12 Apr 1688 - 9 Apr 1685 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Property - Grant confirmed of 500 acres and a town plot in Perth Amboy in recognition of his role as Surveyor - 9 Apr 1685 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Property - Patent to George Keith for 677 acres, principally 650 acres - land he called Wellspring - 24 Aug 1686 - Manasquan, Monmouth, New Jersey, USA Property - Deed relating to land obtained from Gawen Lawrie and Peter Sonmans, south side of Raritan River - 10 Sep 1686 - Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Residence - Head of a new Quaker school, Penn Charter Academy - 1689 - Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Property - Sold half his land (150 acres) by the Raritan River to John Craig - 11 Jun 1690 - New Jersey, USA Property - Deed by Peter Sonmans, by attorney Miles Forster, to George Keith for 500 acres - 15 Aug 1690 - Manasquan, Monmouth, New Jersey, USA Property - Sold 90 acres to Robert Rea - 26 May 1691 - Monmouth, New Jersey, USA Property - Sold land to John Hampton, on north side of Burlington Path - 25 Oct 1693 - Monmouth, New Jersey, USA Residence - Returned to London to attend the London Yearly Meeting of Quakers. Was critical of the practices of Quakers in North America. Disowned by his fellows. - 1694 - London, England Residence - Established a meeting at Turner's Hall, Philpot Lane, administering baptisms and the Lord's Supper - 1695 - London, England Residence - Converted to Anglicanism - 1700 - London, England Arrival - Returned to North America as a missionary for the SPG (Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts) to promote the Episcopal Church. Cowes - Abt Jul 1702 - Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA Residence - High Holborn - Jan 1703/04 - Holborn, Middlesex, England Arrival - 6 Aug 1704 - Portsmouth, Hampshire, England Occupation - Vicar - presented with the living of Edburton by Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury - Abt Sep 1704 - Edburton, Sussex, England Death - 27 Mar 1716 - Edburton, Sussex, England  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Sources

  [S3611] Privy Council of Scotland, The Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, 3rd Series, III, p156. [S3670] Hull, William Isaac, Benjamin Furly and Quakerism in Rotterdam, p49. [S3626] Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, (Name: Oxford University Press; Location: Oxford;), Keith, George (2005). [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p69. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p52-53. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p2. [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, L(EJ): Folio 34-35 (PEASJ003). [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, B(EJ): Folio 61-63 (SSTSE023). [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, D(EJ): Folio 321-323 (SSTSE023). [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, D(EJ): Folio 249-250 (SSTSE023). [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, D(EJ): Folio 298-299 (SSTSE023). [S3652] "Early Land Records, 1650-1900s", State of New Jersey, Department of State, Early Land Records, 1650-1900s, E(EJ): Folio 531 (SSTSE023). [S3648] London Metropolitan Archives, (Name: London Metropolitan Archives; Location: London;), Reference Number: P69/AND2/A/010/MS06673/007. [S3615] Strath-Maxwell, Archibald, Digest of Quaker births, marriages and burials in Scotland, 1647-1878, (Location: Aberdeen; Date: 1960;), p92.