Background

The earliest progenitor we have found is James Courtney who emigrated to America about 1635 possibly under the auspices of Charles Harwer. James settled in Westmoreland County, VA. The family emigrated over the years into other Virginia Counties, most notably Stafford and Fauquier, and in the late 1790s early 1800s, groups migrated initially to Kentucky and Tennessee. Another group, a Quaker Branch, moved north into Ohio via Pennsylvania. As the mid 1800s approached, parts of the family continued migration into Louisiana and Texas and into Illinois, Iowa and other points west.