Our earliest research efforts lead us back to John Campbell-McKeever who was born in Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland on August 10, 1838. He was the son of William Campbell and Mary Margaret Paul-Campbell. William Campbell and Margaret Paul were married June 15, 1833 in the Parish Church of Gorbals, Glasgow, Lanark County, Scotland. Their children were John Campbell, James Campbell, Mary Ann Campbell, and Agnes Campbell. The children all immigrated to the United States and all settled in the Albany, NY and Boston, MA areas. James Campbell (unknown if he ever married) settled in Chicopee, Hampden Co., MA or the Boston, MA area. From his photos and family stories, it appears as if James Campbell was a door to door pot and pan salesman. Mary Ann Campbell married a Mr. McBride and had a daughter Mary Ann McBride (who taught school) and settled near Boston, MA. The Mary Ann McBride also reportedly grew an apple orchard on the land where they lived.
Agnes Campbell married a Mr. James Andrews and then a Mr. DuBois. Mr. and Mrs. Agnes DuBois lived in the Albany, NY area.
There are various stories about how the name John Campbell was changed to John McKeever. The most common story was one about a young John Campbell who got himself in trouble at school in Glasgow, Scotland. It was stated that John and another boy had beat up a school teacher and thought they had seriously hurt him. John Campbell left and went to Ireland to live with people named McKeever. This by some accounts was his Grandparents and if so, would possibly have been the McKeever’s on his Mothers side. It was also reported that Johns Grandfather McKeever was off fighting some Irish War at this time. While living with them John Campbell took the Surname of McKeever and used it as his own.
While in Ireland, John married Margaret Ann Mullen. This marriage took place in about 1857-1858 in County Antrim, North Ireland. Margaret Ann Mullen was thought to be born on October 23, 1840 in Ballyharvey, Killead, County Antrim, Ireland. Their first born was a son that they named John McKeever, Jr. He was born March 22, 1859 in County Antrim, North Ireland. Next was James McKeever born on December 18, 1861 in County Antrim, North Ireland. The third child was Robert McKeever born in February 1863 in County Antrim, North Ireland. The first daughter was Nancy McKeever born on April 24, 1865 in County Antrim, North Ireland.

John Campbell-McKeever Immigration

John McKeever first traveled to the United States alone on the S. S. Minnehaha. John McKeever arrived in the Port of New York on May 18, 1864 at the age of 24. He is listed as a steerage passenger on the ships manifest. He had departed from Londonderry, Northern Ireland on the S.S. Minnehaha. John’s ship passenger record is shown on the New York Passenger Lists, 1851-1891 on the National Archives microfilm, M237, rolls 95-580 on roll #240, list #395, Line 48.

Margaret McKeever and the four children, immigrated the next year. Margaret and the children arrived in the Port of New York on December 4, 1865 on the S. S. Kangaroo from Queenstown, Ireland. They are shown on manifest as: Marg. McKeever age 24, John McKeever age 6, Robert McKeever age 2, James McKeever age 4, and Mary McKeever, infant child. This passenger arrival is recorded in the National Archives Microfilms of the New York Passenger Lists, 1851-1891. This passenger list does not list Nancy McKeever and I am at a loss as to why the discrepancy. Mary was not born yet and Nancy would have been an infant child at that time. Possibly John and Margaret had named her Nancy Marie and called her Mary as an infant.

The John McKeever family first settled near Waukesha, Wisconsin and then they moved to Trimbelle, Pierce County, Wisconsin. Trimbelle is a small town South of River Falls and West of Ellsworth, Wisconsin.
John McKeever bought some land 2 miles NW of Trimbelle, Pierce County, WI with lots of timber on it. The 1870 Pierce County Tax Rolls show 40 acres in Trimbelle Township at SW1/4 of SW1/4 - Section 8 - Town 26 - Range 18 West. He built a log house here and cleared the land for farming. The family lived here until they lost the farm to multiple locust infestations. There was reportedly a two year infestation where everything was lost and the bank foreclosed on the farm. The McKeever family moved one mile North of River Falls, Wisconsin and rented the Marshall Farm. This was probably just into St. Croix County in Troy Township, Wisconsin.

Margaret McKeever gave birth to nine children. She had asthma very bad. It was said that she was combing her hair to go to church and just fell back dead. Another report was that she was churning butter and was not feeling well and went to lie down while one of the girls finished and she never woke up. She died on January 10, 1892 in Prescott, Pierce Co., WI. She was buried Big River Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Section 1 of Oak Grove Township, Pierce County, Wisconsin. The Big River Presbyterian Church is gone and the cemetery was abandoned long ago and the area is overgrown with trees and brush. There are few headstones left in the cemetery and the burial records have been partially lost. None of the cemetery records or headstones have been located for Margaret, Isabella, or John McKeever. John and Isabella McKeever’s death certificates and funeral notices all indicate burial at the Big River Presbyterian Cemetery.

Perhaps Margaret Mullen-McKeever’s parents came to Wisconsin about the same time as the John McKeever family. It is known that her mother Jane Mullen and brothers Sam and James lived not too far away ( adjoining land to the West). *Names are shown on old Plat Map dated 1877 for Trimbelle Twp., Pierce County, Wisconsin. James Mullen owned 40 acres in Trimbelle Twp. in Section 7 - Town 26 - Range 18 West. Margaret’s brother Sam Mullen had a wife named Mary Jane and they had six children. Brother James Mullen’s wife was Eliza Malone-Mullen and they had three children. Sam Mullen, James Mullen and Eliza Mullen all died of Tuberculosis about 1879 to 1880. All are buried in the abandoned “Big River Presbyterian Cemetery” in Oak Grove Township (T26N-R19W Sec 1) in Pierce County, Wisconsin. After their death an old maid Aunt took the three girls, Mary, Agnes and Annie Mullen and raised them. Mary Mullen married a Mr. James Leach, Agnes married a Mr. Gadbois, and Annie Mullen married a Mr. David Grey. Sam Mullen had three girls and three boys. Margaret Mullen married a Mr. Bill Ray, Jane Mullen married a Mr. Miller. Reportedly the rest of the Mullen’s left to make their homes in Spokane, Washington and nothing else is known about them.
Jane Mullen lived on and off with her children at the last. She was reportedly a hard boiled kind, and she longed for the ways of Ireland. She didn’t think anything in this country was done right.
As recently as 1941 there was listings in the Oak Grove Twp. Plat Map for Pierce County, WI showing land in Sections 3 and 10 as belonging to the heirs of Mary Mullen and the 1877 maps show this land belonging to S. Mullen. This is probably Sam Mullen.

In the family records there is a photo of James Campbell sitting on a horse drawn wagon.
The photo was reportedly brought back from Boston when John went East to visit about 1902. He went to visit his brother James in Boston, a sister Mary Ann McBride who had a daughter, Mary Ann who was a teacher in Boston and his other sister Agnes Dubois who had first been married to a James Andrews. She had no children. Mr. and Mrs. Dubois lived in Albany, NY. John McKeever stayed until just after Christmas and came home with gifts from the relatives and ten barrels of apples.

The preceding photograph (right) shows John McKeever sitting in a rocking chair in the yard. Mildred McKeever stated that it was John (her father) waiting to go to church. The photo was taken by Alice Soice when she and Will McKeever were courting. This was thought to be about 1902. The photo was taken at the farm in Trimbelle, WI on 40 acres of timber. John had cut the timber and built the home and then he cut wood and hauled it to Prescott, WI to sell. Most of the children from the first family were born in this house.
The John McKeever family moved to Prescott, Wisconsin in 1908. John McKeever died March 27, 1913 in Prescott, WI at 76 years, 7 months and 17 days old. The funeral was held in the United Church of Christ Church at 206 Locust Street North in Prescott, Wisconsin. John McKeever was buried at Big River Cemetery West of Ellsworth, WI in Section 1 of Oak Grove Township. No headstone has been located for John or either of his wives, Margaret Mullen-McKeever or Isabell McCaughey-McKeever.
On April 24, 2004, a Boy Scout named Ian Johnson from River Falls, WI took on a cemetery cleanup project at The Big River Presbyterian Cemetery. The grounds and trees were cleaned up by a group of about 30 local volunteers. The brush pile limbs are going to be chipped up to make a walking path from the roadway to the cemetery. A large wooden sign and archway were installed at the start of the footpath. We found one headstone for James S. Mullen, but no McKeever grave markers were located. Many graves are unmarked and many headstones have slipped into the ground or have disappeared

The children from the first marriage were John, Jr., James, Robert, Nancy, Mary, Margaret, Matthew, William “Willie”, and Harvey McKeever.

JOHN McKeever, Jr. - John McKeever was born March 22, 1859 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. John was only 6 years old when he immigrated with his mother, Margaret and two brothers and sister to the United States. They arrived in New York City on December 4, 1865 on the S.S. Kangaroo from Queenstown, Ireland. John McKeever married Mariah Alice Thompson in Pierce County, Wisconsin on May 1, 1895. They lived in Spring Valley, Pierce County, Wisconsin. John owned a Feed Mill/Grain Grinding business in Spring Valley, WI. They had twins but both died at birth on February 15, 1903. There were no other children. John had also been the Postmaster at Waverly, El Paso Twp., WI for a time. John McKeever died November 25, 1939 at the Rollie Traynor Farm near Gilman, Pierce Co., WI.
John is buried in the Poplar Hill Cemetery at Rock Elm next to his wife, Maria. Maria Thompson-McKeever had died in 1931. Johns Obituary appeared in the Spring Valley Sun Newspaper in December 7, 1939. John McKeever was visited frequently by his half-brother Walt McKeever and niece Gloria McKeever. John McKeever had made out a will that left his wedding ring to Gloria Francis McKeever and she wore it frequently. Gloria was wearing the ring one day in Wanamingo, MN when some older boys took the ring away from her. She tried many times to recover the ring with no success.


JAMES McKeever - Born in County Antrim, Northern Ireland on December 18, 1861. James was only 4 when he arrived in New York City from Queenstown, Ireland. James McKeever was located on the July 1880 US Census and was listed as a Servant (age 18) for the William & Sabra Staples family in River Falls, WI. He married Mary “Mamie” H. Filkins February 13, 1889 in Oak Grove Twp., Pierce County WI. She was always in a wheel chair, crippled from rheumatism. James and Mary moved to North Dakota about 1890 or 1891. They had five boys, Clarence J. McKeever on July 26, 1890, Lee Chester on August 24, 1892, Glenn McKeever on May 27, 1895, Daniel Henry McKeever was born June 7, 1898 and Jesse McKeever on June 5, 1902. The family lived on a farm near Thompson, Grand Forks County, ND. James reportedly could tell the best stories.
Clarence used to work for Irma McKeever’s Dad and he later married Frances Filkins about 1916. Clarence and Frances lived in Bowesmont, ND where he had a pool hall. Clarence and his wife Frances died in October and November 1918 in a Flu epidemic. They had no children.
Lee Chester McKeever married Magdalena “Lena” Holweger on June 24, 1920. Their children were Eleanor Gladys, Delores Francis, Gordon Duane and Vernon John McKeever. Lee died in June 11th 1973 in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Glenn McKeever married Mildred Anna Kristine Ellefson on October 15, 1929 in Thompson, Grand Forks, ND. Their children were Ralph Thomas, Glendon James, Noel Ray and Elaine Josephine McKeever. Glen passed away December 7, 1954 in Middle River, Marshall County, MN and is buried in the cemetery of the First Lutheran Church of Middle River..
Daniel Henry McKeever married Mary Rose Nikle in 1919 in Grand Forks, ND. Mary Rose McKeever died March 6, 1937. Their children were Dorthea Mae, Inez, Daniel Henry, Jr., Rose Ellen, Ione, and Betty Joyce McKeever. Dan passed away February 21, 1955 in Pennington County, MN.
Jesse McKeever was married to Minnie Marie Laurman on June 29, 1941 in Crookston, MN. Jesse and Minnie had no children. Jesse McKeever died on September 15, 1979 at Northwood, Grand Forks County, ND. He and his wife are buried in the Thompson (Protestant) Cemetery in Walle Twp., Grand Forks, ND.
Mamie McKeever passed away in August 1932. James McKeever passed away in December of 1934 in Thompson, ND. Both are buried in the Thompson (Protestant) Cemetery in Walle Twp., Grand Forks Co., ND.
ROBERT McKeever - Born in February 1863 in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Robert McKeever was only 2 years old when he traveled to New York City from Queenstown, Ireland with his mother, two brothers, and sister. He arrived with them on December 4, 1865 on the S.S. Kangaroo. Robert McKeever married Mary Keefe about 1886. Mary Keefe was born in September of 1861 in Illinois. They had no children and lived in Duluth, St. Louis Co., MN prior to Robert’s death. He died on September 29,1907 in Duluth, St. Louis Co., MN. Robert was buried October 1, 1907 in the Oneota Cemetery, 6403 Highland Street in Duluth, MN. Robert’s grave has no headstone and is located in Section L, Block 5, Grave #472. Robert