Burnetts of Yorkshire, England and Colonial Virginia (R‑M269J)
Descendants of this Burnett paternal line have been found in the United States and Canada, and at least one tester has traced this line back to Yorkshire, England. Peter Burnett (1752–1843), who was born and died in Yorkshire, is the ancestor of our Canadian tester. This is the only tester in this group who has successfully traced back in time beyond the shores of North America.
An American tester who traces his line to Richard O. Burnett (b. ca. 1808), who lived for some time in Washington, D.C., shares a common ancestor born ca. 1609 with the Canadian tester mentioned above. From Y‑DNA testing, we know that Richard O. Burnett was a direct descendant of Peter Burnett (1752–1843) of Yorkshire, England — or perhaps Peter’s father or grandfather — and is scientifically represented as R‑FT201995.
The chart at the end of this section shows what we know about the relationships between these men, based on a combination of Big Y results and historical records.
There are numerous testers in the project who descend from one of the three men found in Colonial Virginia and listed below:
- William Burnett (1755–1812) of Campbell County, Virginia. William married Martha (maiden name unknown).
- James Burnett (b. ca. 1740) of Prince Edward County, Virginia. James is the suspected father of William Burnett (1764–1841), who married Dosha Quarles. Records of Prince Edward County reveal James Burnett binding out a son named William in 1780, who is the ancestor of our testers. This William Burnett was a Revolutionary Patriot who filed for pension stating that he had been indentured (as was common for orphans of that time) and had run away from his master to join the Revolution. James’ descendants share the SNP / haplogroup R‑Y140909.
- James Burnett (1750–1803) of Chesterfield County, Virginia. Our testers descend from James’ sons Edward and Henry Burnett.
From their Y‑DNA test results, we know these three men shared an ancestor born 1672–1720, scientifically represented by the SNP / haplogroup R‑FT29178. Descendants of William Burnett and Martha of Campbell County share the SNP / haplogroup R‑FT211239. This man was likely the unidentified grandfather or great‑grandfather of the men listed above. Although the SNP is scientifically dated to 1752 ± 80 years, we have traced all three descendant lines to the period between 1740 and 1750, so we know this shared ancestor was born 1672–1720. We also know this common ancestor was not their father because there are two men named James Burnett.
Major Haplogroup: This group descends from R‑M269 (R1b), dated to 4465 BCE. R‑M269 is the most common haplogroup in Western Europe. The most recent haplogroup shared by all testers in this group is R‑FT29042, scientifically dated to 1375 ± 80 years and created by a forefather of all testers in this group.
Origins: Archaeological digs reveal that ancestors of this line were in the United Kingdom during the Iron Age.
https://discover.familytreedna.com/y-dna/R-BY211239/migration
Migration Map: Burnetts of Yorkshire England and Colonial Virginia (R‑M269J)
The map below illustrates the migration path of the Burnett paternal line (R‑M269J), beginning in the Middle East and extending through Europe to the United Kingdom. The highlighted region in Yorkshire marks the earliest known ancestral origin of this line, as confirmed by Y‑DNA testing and historical records.
Locations: All present‑day testers reside in North America.
Famous descendants: John Lawson Burnett (1854–1919), lawyer and representative in the U.S. Congress.
Y‑DNA‑Verified Paternal Ancestors
From the reported family trees of our testers, the paternal ancestors listed below are confirmed members of this paternal line. Many of these are represented by multiple testers. If your Burnett ancestor is listed below, it means you also descend from this paternal Burnett line. Many of the birth and death years are circa / estimated.
| Name | Birth | Death | Spouse |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Burnett | 1740 Goochland VA | 1780 Prince Edward VA | |
| James Burnett | 1750 VA? | 1803 Chesterfield VA | |
| William Burnett | 1750 VA? | 1812 Campbell VA | Martha / Patsy |
| William Burnett | 1764 Pr. Edward VA | 1845 Rhea TN | Dosha Quarles |
| Peter Burnett | 1752 Yorkshire Eng | 1843 Yorkshire Eng | Mary A. Handley |
| William Burnett | 1774 Yorkshire Eng | 1859 Yorkshire Eng | Alice Miers |
| Edward Burnett | 1775 VA? | 1813 Chesterfield VA | Rhoda Roper |
| William Burnett | 1778 Campbell VA | 1851 Pittsylvania VA | Susanna Wright |
| Henry Cox Burnett | 1780 Chesterfield VA | 1811 Chesterfield VA | Judith Carey |
| Jesse Burnett | 1788 Campbell VA | 1861 Gallia OH | Sarah Timberlake |
| John S. Burnett | 1797 Chesterfield VA | 1852 Floyd VA | Lucy (Stiff?) |
| Thomas Burnett | 1798 Campbell VA | 1860 Bedford VA | Mary F. Timberlake |
| Nathaniel Burnett | 1803 Wythe VA | 1857 Harrison TX | Elizabeth Oaks |
| Vincent Burnett | 1802 Campbell? VA | 1860 Warren KY | Nancy Botelar |
| Thomas Burnett | 1805 Yorkshire Eng | 1847 Yorkshire Eng | Fanny Wilson |
| Elihu Cox Burnett | 1808 Chesterfield VA | 1870 Chesterfield VA | Martha Young |
| Richard O. Burnett | 1810 VA | Mary Wells / Wade | |
| William Burnett | 1816 Pittsylvania VA | 1885 Campbell VA | Elizabeth East |
| Murwood Burnette | 1821 Campbell VA | 1889 Gallia OH | Mary Ann Parish |
| William E. J. Burnett | 1829 Jefferson TN | 1856 Thomas GA | Mary N. Brandon |
| Calvin P. Burnett | 1830 Knox TN | 1913 Howard TX | Susan A. Hill |
| John S. Burnett | 1830 Anderson TN | 1921 Warren KY | Mary Jane Allen |
| Pryor "Cal" Burnett | 1830 Knox TN | 1913 Howard TX | Susan Hill |
| Thomas Wilson Burnett | 1830 Yorkshire Eng | 1902 Durham Eng | Elizabeth Barrett |
| James Harvey Burnett | 1833 Knox TN | 1915 Erath TX | Mary A. Stracener |
| Franklin S. Burnett | 1835 Washington DC | 1915 Jefferson IL | Melissa Harper |
| Henry Cox Burnett | 1839 VA | 1902 Richmond VA | Mary J. Caldwell |
| Samuel P. Burnett | 1841 Bedford VA | 1923 Plymouth MA | Lucy M. Hurt |
| Pleasant Allen Burnett | 1849 Harrison TX | 1919 Erath TX | Florida J. Campbell |
| John Edward Burnette | 1851 Pittsylvania VA | 1938 Campbell VA | Avie Dudley |
| Samuel N. Burnett | 1853 Van Zandt TX | 1927 Van Zandt TX | Ada S. Board |
| William Henry Burnett | 1854 AL | 1913 Etowah AL | Josie Burnett |
| Peter Perkins Burnett | 1854 Gallia OH | 1930 Marion OH | Elga Haskins |
| David Dixon Burnett | 1861 Durham Eng | 1942 BC Canada | Maria Eyles |
| Richard W. Burnette | 1861 Gallia OH | 1938 Gallia OH | America Sheets |
| Charlie Cooper Burnett | 1867 Warren KY | 1950 Simpson KY | Cora Mayhew |
| Columbus Burnett | 1869 Van Zandt TX | 1923 Van Zandt TX | Cora Knight |
| John Newton Burnett | 1869 Jefferson IL | 1955 Jefferson IL | Letitia Riley |
| Charles Ryland Burnett | 1873 Richmond VA | 1949 Richmond VA | Eugenia W. Griffin |
| Edward Lawson Burnett | 1873 Bedford VA | 1946 Norfolk VA | Julia Chillary |
| Marcus D. Burnett | 1877 Gallia OH | 1963 Gallia OH | Cora Caldwell |
| Jesse Allen Burnett | 1880 Erath TX | 1966 Cleveland OK | Carah M. Richey |
| Cris Nathaniel Burnett | 1882 Van Zandt TX | 1954 Van Zandt TX | Nancy A. Whitaker |
| John Watson Burnett | 1887 Cherokee AL | 1947 Etowah AL | Hazel Ison |
| Otey Guster Burnette | 1887 Campbell VA | 1970 Campbell VA | Mary Keesee |
| Robert Lee Burnett | 1883 Erath TX | 1951 Taylor TX | Ella Nora Jones |
| Wilson Burnett | 1889 BC Canada | 1919 BC Canada | Lily Neilson |
| Truman Fulton Burnette | 1891 Gallia OH | 1946 Gallia OH | Stella Smith |
| John Ervin Burnett | 1894 Simpson KY | 1985 Simpson KY | Pauline Ausbrooks |
Family Chart
The family chart shown below is much abbreviated, showing only the earliest generations of our testers’ paternal lines.
Where Big Y 700 test results are available, the SNPs / haplogroups generated from the testing are shown. You can learn more about these SNPs using the FamilyTreeDNA Discover tool: https://discover.familytreedna.com/
Family chart illustrating the relationships suggested by Y‑DNA results for the R‑M269J Burnett line.