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TOGA NEWS
Issue 3, March, 2002
THE PETER LEMARE WILL REVISITED
In the November, 2001 issue of this newletter we questioned the accuracy of the transcription of the Peter Lemare will. If you recall, one copy read Joseph O'Neill and another read  Jo (or John) O'Neill.
Cousin Bev Crowe sent to the Annapolis, Maryland  Hall of Records and we now have a photocopy of the actual will in our hands. 
Our ancestor is indeed listed as Jo O'Neill. While some of our family believe this confirms his name was Joseph I believe that it proves his name was actually John, for reasons which I'll spell out below.

The 17th Century Abbreviation 'Jo.' 
by William Feland Meacham, Jr. 

It is very difficult to imagine an abbreviation being used in official documents unless it was crystal clear to everyone what the intended word was. The abbreviation "Jo." meant John (Johannes) in the 17th century. It was such a common abbreviation for such a common name that it would never be taken for anything else. Reading it as Joshua or Joel or Joseph would be like taking our "Jr." for a title likeJP or JD. 
There are junior partners, and junior barristers are actually called juniors, but EVERYBODY knows what Jr. after a name stands for. That is how
abbreviations work. And they are  used for something which occurs frequently; we have LA for Los Angeles and no one would ever think of using it for Los Alamos orlower Andover. 
Staying with this example, there could be confusion to an outsider over "Monroe, LA" and "Anaheim in LA" but to an American of the 1990s there is no question whatever about  the meaning of each. To counter the notion that taking Jo. for John might have been an early Americanism of some sort, I found in Everyman's Dictionary of Abbreviations the following: Jo.Bapt. = John the Baptist, Jo. Div. = John the Divine, Jo. Evang. = John the Evangelist. 		 Finally, to put the matter beyond the slightest doubt, I managed to find an English publication of a 17th century work: AthenaeOxonienses -- An exact history of all writers and bishops who have had their education in the University of Oxford authored by Anthony Wood, written in 1672, published in 1813, reprinted in 1967 by Johnson of NY and London. In the Introduction "The Life of Anthony A. Wood" taken directly from his hand-written manuscript, one finds within the first five pages: page iii, para. "1639" :  His younger brother John Wood died ..."  page v 3rd para line 7: "...Jo. Wood, his son, whome I have mention'd under the yeare 1639." 
And on page xliv: " ... Dr. Jo. Fell, deanne of Ch.Church, and Dr. Jo. Dolbin, treasurer." A footnote directs the reader to vol. iv, year 1686, wherein is described the lives of John Fell and John Dolbin. 

If this article were not convincing enough, we can look at the actual will itself for clarification. The will mentions a Joseph Edwards. I have seen numerous records for Joseph Edwards and his name was always spelled Joseph or 
Jos Edwards, never Jo Edwards. The will also mentions Jo O'Neill and Jo Davis. We know that Jo Davis was in actuallity John Davis, Sr. (NOTE: John Davis, Jr. witnessed the will of Peter O'Neale) So, if the clerk that wrote this will wrote Jo Davis for John Davis, he invariably must have followed suit and spelled Jo O'Neill for John O'Neill.
Another point in fact is that numerous researchers have spent countless hours searching for another record naming Joseph O'Neill/O'Neale. Not one has ever surfaced. However we have recently come across a document showing that in 1693 Peter Lemare and John O'Neal both owed the estate of Henry Brent. Then we found another document in 1704 showing that Peter Lemare and John O'Neal showed up on a debtors list. Taking all this into consideration I am now thoroughly convinced our ancestors name was indeed John. .