In the 1700’s 3 Coltrane/Coltrain/Coltrin families have been found in North Carolina, all leaving records in the colony.

David Coltrane arrived from Wigtownshire, Scotland before 1737, and by 1739 he had bought property in Edgecombe County.  He married Mary, daughter of a local innkeeper James Trotter and they had a son by the name of William in about 1745.  In Nov 1740, David became a colonial Captain for the Expedition to Cartagena, Columbia. Although no direct evidence shows that he returned from this battle, the birth of his son William makes it very likely that he did so.  William was the administrator for his mother’s will and by 1760 he moved to Rowan County.

James Coltrain of Bertie County, son of Rachel Savage was probably b. about 1745, based on contemporary tax records. Because the Coltrane and Coltrain families  Y-chromosome DNA match,  it is very likely that James’ father was David Coltrane.

John Coltrin (so called Coltrain) of Wareham, Massachusetts stated in a proposal for guardianship that his father was William Coltrain of North Carolina.  John was b. in 1743, but no such William has been found either in North Carolina or in Massachusetts.  Using Y-chromosome DNA including the Big Y has shown that the descendants of John match a Lane family of Edgecombe.  No court record has been found for John, but on a 1761 militia roll, a Richard Adams, mariner of Kingston, Massachusetts, is mentioned as ”master”.  It is very likely that Richard or some member of his family brought John to from North Carolina to Massachusetts before 1761.