These research notes are provided as-is and contain supplementary working research.
Evidence
John Gurnell (freeman 1643) is a distinct surname, confirmed by an 1675 Dorchester death entry
A separate 'John Gurnell,' admitted freeman in Massachusetts on 10 May 1643, is not John Gurney-1 under a different spelling. Surviving 1600s Massachusetts Gurnell records are thin enough to invite a Gurnell-to-Gurney misreading, but a 30 July 1675 Dorchester death entry, checked directly, reads 'Gurnell' plainly -- confirming Gurnell as its own surname. The colonial John is recorded under Gurney/Gurny/Garny variants throughout his New England career, never Gurnell.
Why this conclusion
- Synthesized by Finding Other named households and the wider sweep hold ~8% combined residual; Candidate B remains the sole survivorThe Gurnell false-friend resolution is part of clearing the field.
Sources
- Paige, Lucius R. List of Freemen of Massachusetts, 1630-1691. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1849. Database: Ancestry.com, 'Massachusetts, U.S., Applications of Freemen, 1630-1691' (Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations Inc., 2000), collection 4296., John Gurnell, application 10 May 1643, keyed to Colony Records vol. II, pp. 27-28
Topic file location: Identity — Other Eliminations and Earsham
Technical details
- Research item:
G13-RI-000116 - Graph revision:
244 - Machine-readable JSON:
/assets/g13-graph/findings/G13-RI-000116.json
This is one research item from the John Gurney research graph; the fuller narrative treatment is in the linked topic above and the research library.