I am currently researching the Ishee family and have traced my direct lineage all the way back to Niciaus Ischi, born in 1650 in Switzerland.
Here is a thumbnail sketch of the early family tree.
At some point in the 1700s, some Ischis migrated from Switzerland to Germany.
Three Ischi brothers immigrated from Germany to the U.S. in the early 1800s. The brothers were Jacob (b. 1780), John (born 1784) and Fred (b. ?). They also had two sisters (Anna Marie and Anna Barbara) who evidently did not immigrate to America. Within a few years of their arrival in the U.S., two of the brothers (John and Jacob) wound up in Mississippi. There is evidence, however, they spent some time in Florida and Georgia (children born in these states) before homesteading in MS . The other brother Fred is believed to have moved to Ohio and was not heard from again. There is an EXTENSIVE line of Ishees in Geauga County, Ohio starting in the early 1800s.
It is probable the brothers arrived at the port of Savannah or perhaps Charleston. I have no direct evidence, but much early activity (marriages and births) centered around this area.
There are a tremendous number of variations on the spelling of the name since arrival in America, including Eshe, Eska, and Eische. But most of the names can be directly linked to Ishee and the Old Country spelling of Ischi.
My own direct lineage is:
Niciaus Ischi, Switzerland, b: about 1650
Jacob Ischi, unk, b: ?
Hans Ulrich Ischi, unk, b: about 1762
Hans Jacob Ischi, Germany, b: about 1780
Jacob Barr Ishee, Georgia, b: 26 MAR 1815
John Jefferson Ishee, Louin, MS, b: 7 JAN 1852
Benjamin Franklin Ishee, MS, b: 12 FEB 1884
Joe Quitman Ishee, Bay Springs, MS, b: 15 FEB 1920
(me) Jeffrey Wayne Ishee, Montgomery, AL, b: 3 JUN, 1958
Anyone who has (or needs) info is free to contact me at
jeff@onthefarmradio.com.
Jeff Ishee
Mount Sidney, Virginia