The Maternal Family Tree of Jonathan Van Ness

Jonathan Van Ness was born on March 28th, 1987 in Quincy, Illinois to Jonathan Lyle Van Ness and Mary McDonald Oakley. Van Ness has been openly gay since he was young and he was one of the few openly gay students at his school. He later became the first male cheerleader and received a scholarship for cheerleading from the University of Arizona. He would later drop out of the program and pursued a career as a hairdresser at the Aveda Institute in Minneapolis. He is now the grooming expert on the Netflix show Queer Eye and hosts the podcast Getting Curious. He married his husband Mark Peacock in early 2020.

Parents: Jonathan Van Ness and Mary McDonald Oakley

Mary McDonald Oakley was born around 1960 to Thomas Allison Oakley and Anne McDonald. Jonathan Lyle Van Ness was born to Albert Lyle Van Ness and a mother whose name is unknown. Mary attended Quincy High School in Quincy. Illinois where she was the President of her school's student council and was on the golf team.

Mary and Jonathan married on February 21st, 1981 in Quincy, Illinois when Mary was 21 years old.

Grandparents: Thomas Allison Oakley and Anne McDonald

Thomas Allison Oakley was born in 1932 to Thomas C Oakley and Mary S Sullivan. Anne McDonald was born on February 7th, 1932 in Raleigh, North Carolina to Ralph McDonald and Mabel Alice Peele. Thomas and Anne married on December 22nd, 1954 when they were 22 years old in Raliegh, North Carolina.

Thomas and Anne had three children together during their lives, Mary, Ralph, and Thomas. Anne died on January 30th, 2015 in Quincy, Illinois when she was 82 years old.

Great-Grandparents: Thomas Oakley and Mary Sullivan

Mary Sullivan was born June 21st 1908 in Bridgeport, Michigan to Richard H Sullivan and Lucy A Edget. Thomas Oakley was born October 11th, 1909 in Quincy, Illinois to Kate Burks and Ray Miller Oakley. Thomas and Mary married on November 24th, 1930 in a Catholic Church in Quincy, Illinois. According to the record from the local diocese, Mary was Catholic and Thomas was not Catholic. By 1940, Thomas was working as an office manager for the local newspaper. Peter would become the general manager of the Quincy Herald-Whig newspaper, the President of Quincy Broadcasting, and Vice-President of Quincy Cablevision by the time he died on July 27th 1969. Mary died on December 30th, 1993 when she was 85. Thomas and Mary had three sons together, Thomas, Peter, and David.

2x Great-Grandparents: Kate Burks and Ray Oakley

Kate Burks was born October 23rd 1873 in Burlington, Iowa. Ray Miller Oakley was born April 2nd 1876 in Mechanicsville, Iowa to Aaron Burr Oakley and Hannah Marish Miller. Ray and Kate had three sons together, Burks, Allen, and Thomas. By 1930, Ray worked as the general manager at the local newspaper along with two of his sons, Allen, the night editor, and Thomas, the office clerk. Ray died May 12th, 1948 at age 72 in Quincy, Illinois. Kate died January 19th, 1954 in Quincy when she was 80.

3x Great-Grandparents: Aaron Burr Oakley and Hannah Marish Miller

Aaron Burr Oakley was born August 8th, 1835 in Stamford, Connecticut. Hannah Marish Miller was born October 1st, 1838 in Portage, New York to Ezra Marvin Miller and Jane Kershaw Wells. Aaron worked as a teacher for a time and valued education, even though he had a limited one himself, according to his obituary. Aaron and Hannah married on April 6th, 1858 and moved to Missouri in 1860 where Aaron was the principal of Chillithe public schools. They then moved to Mechanicsville, Iowa at the outbreak of the civil war where Aaron was elected superintendent of the county. Aaron also taught himself about the laws and legal procedures of Iowa and passed the certification exam in the state. He became a leading lawyer in Iowa. Aaron died April 22nd 1906 at age 70. Hannah died July 19th 1926 at age 87.

4x Great-Grandparents: Ezra Marvin Miller and Jane Kershaw Wells

Ezra Marvin Miller was born April 12th 1812 in Scipio, New York to Allen Miller and Hannah Tripp. Jane Kershaw Wells was born May 30th 1812 in Montgomery, New York. Ezra and Jane married in 1834 in New York when they were 22 years old. Ezra and Jane had seven children together, Mary Jane, Ezra Allen, Hannah Marish, Jonathan Tripp, James Fritz, Charles Lamartine, and Julia Fidelia. Ezra died on May 6th 1874 in Indianapolis, Indiana when he was 62 years old. Jane died January 10th 1882 in Rockford, Illinois when she was 69 years old.

5x Great-Grandparents: Allen Miller and Hannah Louise Tripp

Allen Miller was born July 20th 1788 in Hartland, Connecticut to Johnathan Allen Miller Jr. and Sarah Woodruff North. Hannah Louise Tripp was born February 22nd 1788 in New York. Allen and Hannah married in New York in 1810 when they were 22 years old. Allen died on January 28th 1868 in Cherry Valley Illinois when he was 79 years old. He was part of his local Masonic lodge and was buried with full honors. Hannah died March 8th 1877 in Cherry Valley, Illinois when she was 89 years old.

6x Great-Grandparents: Jonathan Allen Miller Jr. and Sarah Woodruff North

Jonathan Allen Miller Jr. was born February 13th 1729 in Northampton, Massachusetts to Sarah Ann Allen and Captain Jonathan Miller. Sarah Woodruff North was born September 18th 1734 in Farmington, Connecticut to Josiah Woodruff and Sarah Woodland. Before marrying Jonathan, Sarah was married to Joseph North until his early death. She married Jonathan Miller on September 24th 1761 in Farmington, Connecticut when she was 27 and Jonathan was 32. At the outbreak of the American Revolution, Jonathan was around 50 years old. He joined the fight as a Private in 1781 as part of the 1st Connecticut Regiment. He stayed as part of that regiment until 1783. This means that Jonathan Van Ness is eligible for membership in the Sons of the American Revolution. Sarah and Jonathan had three sons together, Elijah, George, and Allen. Jonathan died on July 29th 1810 at age 81 in Hartland, Connecticut. Sarah died on April 7th 1811 at age 76 in Hartland, Connecticut.

Finally, jumping ahead to Jonathan’s 9th great-grandmother, Patience Bacon. Patience Bacon was born in 1620 in St. Nicholas Parish, London, England. She immigrated to the American Colonies where she was one of the founders of Northampton, Massachusetts. She is most noted for being the first recorded female physician and surgeon in America.