John's estate and family

[Raphael]

Is there anyone living now who is from his family line ( from George)? Who runs his estate? I'm wondering who gets the sales from his works. It's so sad that John never got much return for his wonderful poetry.

[keatsclose]

There is a Keats family website - it's not that uncommon a name - but of course it's quite likely
that George's descendants haven't yet got round to tracing their ancestry.
An interesting topic.

[keatsclose]

Re the same subject, on genealogy.com, top of the Keats searches is one from Heather Gelabert
entitled 'Looking 2 prove the relationship between John Keats (poet) and Mary Ann Keats-Hiscox',
who was born c.1819.

[Saturn]

This thread might interest you

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3884

A book about John and George apparently written by a descendant of George. No idea if anything came of this book, but worth investigating perhaps.

[Raphael]

Thanks the thread and book were interesting.I don't think John would have emigrated to America though if he hadn't got consumption- he would have married Fanny and lived at Hampstead- he loved the English countryside and his Sweet Girl too much. But he might have visited George there tho. I think he was secretly chuffed at being an “unkle”!

[Saturn]

He certainly was very proud of his little nephew and famously hoped he would become the first great American poet.

[BrokenLyre]

Some time ago, I spent considerable time tracing George Keats' descendants in America (and some who went back to England). It seems like a descendant of George Keats was alive in England in the 1950's. Then the trail grew cold. Sorry, that's all I know.

I would imagine that Keats (G or J) have no living descendants. Too bad. I would like to know one!

[Malia]

I'm pretty sure George has descendants here in America. What about the "Speed" family? I expect because George had more than one girl (did he even have any boys? I can't remember) that the Keats name might not still be attached to the family--but there surely are direct descendants of George still in America.

[Raphael]

It would be interesting to know, and I wonder if they would have a look of George? The genes would still be there..

[keatsclose]

You might be interested to see - if you haven't done so already - the photos of Fanny Keats and her children in Keats and His Circle, a book of chiefly portraits, by Joanna Richardson (Cassell, 1980). Which reminds me, must get hold of that author's Fanny B biog. Apparently George 'Beau' Brummell was a sort of cousin - and they wer both fashionistas!

[Raphael]

You might be interested to see - if you haven't done so already - the photos of Fanny Keats and her children in Keats and His Circle, a book of chiefly portraits, by Joanna Richardson (Cassell, 1980). Which reminds me, must get hold of that author's Fanny B biog. Apparently George 'Beau' Brummell was a sort of cousin - and they wer both fashionistas!

Yes, I've borrowed this from the library- I'll be looking out to buy a copy though! I was struck on how like Tom Fanny Keats was ( as John himself said). Interesting to see Joseph Severn's photo when he was elderly.If only they had had photos when John was alive!

[Raphael]

I'm pretty sure George has descendants here in America. What about the "Speed" family? I expect because George had more than one girl (did he even have any boys? I can't remember) that the Keats name might not still be attached to the family--but there surely are direct descendants of George still in America.

In a letter to Gerogiana John advised her not to call any son she might have John as he thought his name an unlucky one and the notes say she didn't take the advice so it looks like there was another John Keats.
Interestingly , the name John liked- Edmund was the name Fanny Brawne chose for her first son.

[Cybele]

I've spent a good deal of time researching George.

There was a dissertation by a lady named Naomi Kirk on George. Alas, it was never published, but you can read some about it here: http://www.filsonhistorical.org/archive ... ellow.html

James Freeman Clarke wrote a brief memoir of George that I've scanned and keep meaning to post on line.

The "little nephew" Keats mentioned in one of his letters turned out to be a little niece, I think. I believe George and Georgiana's first child was named Emma. And it was Emma who married Phillip Speed, brother of James Speed, who was Abraham Lincoln's second Secretary of State. Emma was also a friend of Margaret Fuller, the American feminist and anti-slavery activist. (Emma had a falling out with Fuller, I don't know the details but I suspect it was over Emma's marriage into a family who had large slave holdings.)


They also had a child named "John." I think it was Emma Keats Speed who commented in a letter that John was "an eccentric genius who wanders we know not where." (or words to that effect.) I think I remember reading that John was a civil engineer.

I read somewhere that Clarence was a journalist who died during the American Civil War of disease. I have it in my head that he died in Gettysburg, shortly after the famous battle there. (I found no corroboration of this in Naomi's Kirk's dissertation.)

I'm sure there are living descendants of George & Georgiana. In fact, I think one woman descendant posted on this forum, (I think there may have only been one or two of her posts, tho') while she was in the process of researching her family tree. The Keats family had *lots* of kids -- eight I think -- most of whom lived to adulthood, but only two boys. It looks like the Keats name (as inherited from George) has died out.

Caveat & Disclaimer: I have just pulled all this stuff out of my head. I am not 100% certain of its accuracy. We know how unreliable my memory can be. (My biological C-drive is full, and I'm not able to delete unnecessary files. )
On July 25, 2010 I got around to editing this after my trip to Louisville.

[Raphael]

There was a dissertation by a lady named Naomi Kirk on George. Alas, it was never published, but you can read some about it here: http://www.filsonhistorical.org/archive ... ellow.html

Thank you Cybele for your efforts! What a shame it hasn't been published- but never say never- it might yet.

They also had a child named "John."
I think it was Emma Keats Speed who commented in a letter that John was "an eccentric genius who wanders we know not where." (or words to that effect.)

Eccentric genius...hmmm...I wonder who he took after?

I think I remember reading that John was a civil engineer.

I wonder if he looked like his lovely namesake?

I'm sure there are living descendants of George & Georgiana. In fact, I think one woman descendant posted on this forum, (I think there may have only been one or two of her posts, tho') while she was in the process of researching her family tree.

I think that was spam.

The Keats family had *lots* of kids -- eight I think -- most of whom lived to adulthood, but only two boys. It looks like the Keats name (as inherited from George) has died out.

so there are no more Keats.

[Cybele]

Spam? Boo hiss.
No more Keats that we know of for sure.