My Earnest Line

Limited Pedigree Information

Backwards from the Current Generation

Paternal

Joseph Samuel Edwards (Me)

Living

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Dana Kyle Sargent (born Earnest)

Living

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Aubrey Lawrence Earnest

Florida (1924-1976)

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James Earlie Earnest

Florida (1898-1981)

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James Robert Earnest

Florida (1874-1955)

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Uriah Nelson Earnest

Georgia & Florida (1823-1923)

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Thomas Earnest

Georgia & Virginia (1780-1840)

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George Louise Earnest Jr.

Virginia & Georgia (1762-1840)

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George Louise Earnest Sr.

Virginia (1720-1786)

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William Lewis Earnest III

Virginia (1684-1744)

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William Lewis Earnest Jr.

Virginia (1654-1719)

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William Earnest

Germany? & Virginia (1610?-1677?)

Genealogy is a very inexact science. Many records are either lost, destroyed or never written down to begin with, making a lot of Family History work a series of guesses with whatever information we can get our hands on. The above list for the Earnest Family Tree represents the best information I have been able to find so far. There is still a chance that some of my information is currently inaccurate, if so I will endeavor to update and correct my information as often as I can. 

Part of the problem here is that there are several Families bearing the surname "Earnest" which are unrelated to each other. I've noticed at least four independent Earnest Family Trees, and I've named them to try and help make people's lives a little easier.

1. The Virginia Line - This is the Family I descend from. It follows the descendants of the William Earnest who lived in Isle of Wight Co. Virginia in the 1650's. Primary locations for this family include Virginia, Georgia and Florida.
2. The Issac Line - This is perhaps the most common of the Earnest families, I believe theirs may be the one primarily located in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois etc. This family may have arrived in America in the 1600's or 1700's.
3. The Canadian Line - I know almost nothing about this family line other than seeing some forum threads about a heritage of Earnests in Ontario and Manitoba. There may be a possible connection between the Issac and Canadian lines however, I did see some comments about a link between the Canadian family and Pennsylvania.
4. The German Line - Basically all the Earnests appear to have come from Germany (Earnest is predominately described by Ancestry and other sources as being a German name). However, there is a family heritage that descends from a Jakob Ernst who emigrated from Germany in 1909. This makes the German Line in America the youngest of all the Earnest families, and perhaps the smallest.

I am only capable of posting Family History information regarding the Virginia Line of the Earnest Family. If you cannot find any familiar names on EarnestGen it is possible that you are actually descended from one of the three alternate families. The Issac Line has already had some of it's genealogy work published, which should be available through your local public library. I'm afraid I can be of no help with the other two families since I know so little about them.

If your local public library has a Family History department I would highly recommend that you go see their resources and staff, they can be of tremendous help!

Best of luck!