NJSA Early Land Records — John Cooper of Newark + Joseph Bonnel of Elizabethtown — Grantees from John Alford of Boston — 25 March 1730 — DEED for 1250 acres in 4 Lots in Hanover Township, between the Rivers Passaick and Whippaning, Essex County and Hunterdon County. Includes Lot No. 13, Lot No. 20, Lot No. 94 on the Branches of Delaware River, and Lot No. 120 on the Lower side of Pophannunck Branch. Essex Co Deed Book B (1728-1793) Folio 83-84 (CESRD001). STRONG CANDIDATE for [p.215 John Cooper of 1718 Whippanong](../../people/p.215%20John%20Cooper%20of%201718%20Whippanong.md) = the same John Cooper attested as witness on the 1718 Hanover First Presbyterian Church founding deed ([F.162](../F-Church-Vital/F.162.yaml)) — same Hanover-Twp geography + 12 years later + 'of Newark' confirms F.162 narrative that 1710 Whippany settlers came partly from Newark. ALSO LIKELY = the same John Cooper of Newark who died Nov 1732 with will at NJA Vol 30 p.108 per [pr.60 sweep](../../projects/pr.60%20NJA%201670-1817%20Cooper-testator%20sweep.md) Tab A = 3-document chain primary-source-locking same individual across 1718 deed witness + 1730 deed purchase + 1732 probate. Critical for resolving [pr.2 Daniel Sr father search](../../projects/pr.2%20Daniel%20Sr%20father%20search.md) — if this John Cooper had a son Daniel born ~1695, that primary-source-locks Daniel Sr's parentage.

Transcription and notes

SIGNIFICANCE — JOHN-COOPER-OF-NEWARK IDENTITY-CHAIN PARTIALLY-RESOLVED 2026-05-22

This single record, combined with previously-cataloged sources + NJA Vol 30 p.108 1732 will FULL TEXT now read 2026-05-22:

3-document chain spanning 1718-1732 = if identification holds, primary-source-locks "John Cooper of Newark" = single individual active in Hanover Twp 1718-1730, died Nov 1732 leaving probate.

NEW FINDING 2026-05-22 — NJA Vol 30 p.108 1732 will body FULLY READ

The pr.60 sweep abstract had been cut off mid-children-list; full Vol 30 p.108 PDF page now read:

1732, Nov. 16. Cooper, John, of Newark, Essex Co.; will of. Son-in-law, John Sergeant, who is under age. Brother, Samuel Cooper. Children of sister Sarah Woodruff, deceased. Children of sister Mary Ward. Eldest daughter of sister Elizabeth Frayley, deceased. Sons-in-law—Thomas and Daniel Sergeant. Real and personal estate. Executors—wife, Hannah, and son-in-law, Jonathan Sergeant. Witnesses—Sam'll Farrand, Ezekiel Alling, Nathaniel Farrand. Proved March 11, 1736. Lib. C, p. 154.

** CRITICAL DETERMINATIVE FINDING:**

John Cooper of Newark (d. 1732) had NO OWN SONS — only daughters who all married Sergeants. Sons-in-law named: John Sergeant (under age), Thomas Sergeant, Daniel Sergeant, Jonathan Sergeant (executor) = 4 Sergeant in-laws. The will lists his brother Samuel Cooper + nieces/nephews via sisters Sarah Woodruff (deceased), Mary Ward, Elizabeth Frayley (deceased) — but NO OWN SONS or daughters by name.

The absence of own sons in the will is determinative: a man with sons in 1732 NJ would name them in the will (unless they predeceased him without issue, which would be unusual + typically still get a mention). The presence of named sons-in-law + heirs-via-sisters means John of Newark left a daughter-only estate.

Conclusion 2026-05-22

John Cooper of Newark d. 1732 was NOT Daniel Sr's father = Candidate Identification 2 in this entry DEFINITIVELY RULED OUT. He had no sons, ergo no son Daniel.

The [p.215] 1718-Whippanong-deed-witness = K.3 1730-grantee = 1732-testator chain is STILL plausible (same person across all 3 documents, an active Newark resident with Hanover Twp interests, sonless), but this person is NOT Daniel Sr's ancestor. He is more likely a collateral Cooper (= same fam.1 LI English-colonial Cooper or fam.X Newark Cooper cluster) whose Hanover-area land activity contributed to the local Cooper geography but whose Y-line does NOT lead to Daniel Sr.

Catalog impact: - pr.2 Daniel Sr father search — adds "John Cooper of Newark d. 1732 RULED OUT" to the refuted-candidates list - p.215 — Hypothesis A (= John of Newark = Daniel Sr's father) DEFINITIVELY FALSIFIED; Hypothesis B (uncle / collateral) still on table; Hypotheses C-F still on table - K.2 Daniel Cooper Weaver of Hunterdon 1720 candidate-identification is UNAFFECTED — separate question, separate evidence chain

Source identification

Verbatim transcription — NJSA database abstract

Cooper, John (of Newark) (Grantee) TO: Joseph Bonnel (Major) (of Elizabethtown); John Cooper (of Newark) FROM: John Alford (of Boston) DEED. 1250 acres. Four Lots, between the Rivers Passiack and Whippaning, including Lot No. 13, No. 20, and Lot No. 94 on the Branches of Delaware River, and No. 120 on the Lower side of Pophannunck Branch; Hanover Township; Essex County and Hunterdon County.

OTHERS NAMED: Adam Hude (His Majestys Council)

LOCATIONS: East Jersey; Essex; Hunterdon; Hanover; Delaware River; Passaic River; Pophahnunk River (Pophannunk); Whippany River; Lots, Allotments

Date: 25 Mar 1730

Reference: Essex Co Deed Book B (1728-1793) : Folio 83-84 (CESRD001)

Access: Available at NJ Archives on microfilm for in-person research only. For original records Contact Essex County Clerk.

Data from the document (verbatim → mapped to fields)

Key data points — what the document literally says

• 1250 acres is a SUBSTANTIAL real-estate transaction. For context, this is ~3x the 370-acre Kingwood Twp Joseph Cooper purchase (1773; K.1 Record 8). John Cooper of Newark + Joseph Bonnel were investing at a scale consistent with proprietary-level landholders or wealthy yeomen + civic-prominent men (Bonnel held the rank of Major in colonial militia).
• 4 separate Lots spread across the Hanover-Twp area between Passaic + Whippany Rivers, with two lots specifically on the Delaware-River-branches side + one on Pophannunck Branch.
• Boundary-spanning property "Essex County and Hunterdon County" = pre-1739 administrative configuration where Hanover Twp straddled the Essex/Hunterdon boundary; this geography would all become Morris Co. in 1739.
• John Alford of Boston as the grantor = the property had a transatlantic-investor chain (Boston-based proprietary holder selling to NJ local buyers).
• Co-investment partnership with Joseph Bonnel = John Cooper of Newark was sufficiently civic-established to enter into a joint deed with an Elizabethtown Major.

Catalog significance — candidate identifications

Primary identification: John Cooper of Newark = p.215 John Cooper of 1718 Whippanong

Supporting evidence:

• Same Hanover Twp geography — 1730 land purchase in the SAME Hanover-Twp area where John Cooper witnessed the 1718 founding deed (F.162).
• 'of Newark' origin — F.162 narrative places 1710 Whippany settlers from Newark + Elizabethtown + East Hampton LI; "of Newark" attribution to John Cooper in 1730 deed = directly fits this settlement-origin narrative.
• 12-year interval — 1718 (founding deed witness, suggesting an active adult landowner) → 1730 (major Hanover land purchase, suggesting continued active landowner with capital) = consistent with the same individual continuing through middle-age into senior years.
• NJA Vol 30 p.108 1732 will of John Cooper of Newark Essex Co. (per pr.60 Tab A) = same individual's death 2 years after this 1730 purchase. Chain ties together.

Counter-evidence / risks:

• Possible multiple John Coopers of Newark co-existed in the same generation; primary-source signature comparison (1718 deed witness signature vs 1730 deed grantee signature vs 1732 will signature) would be definitive.
• The F.162 1718 deed witness identification is itself provisional (per p.215 6 hypothesis listing); K.3 narrows but does not lock the identification.

Confidence: probable to certain pending primary-source signature comparison + will-body reading.

Secondary identification — Is this John Cooper of Newark = Daniel Sr's father?

FALSIFIED 2026-05-22 after reading NJA Vol 30 p.108 full text (= same day as K.3 was first drafted). The 1732 will names no own sons — only sons-in-law (4 Sergeants) + brother Samuel Cooper + nieces/nephews via three sisters. John Cooper of Newark had only daughters; he cannot have been Daniel Sr's father.

Prior reasoning that supported the hypothesis (age fit, geography fit, naming-pattern fit) is moot once the will's son-absence is established. Daniel Sr was a Cooper-male-line descendant of someone, but NOT this John Cooper.

Catalog impact for pr.2: John Cooper of Newark d. 1732 = refuted candidate (third on the refuted list after Daniel Cooper of Camden + Col. John Cooper of Newark from the militia generation).

Confidence: certain (falsified) — primary-source will body lists no own sons.

Property analysis — Hanover Twp 1730 4-Lot purchase

"Between the Rivers Passiack and Whippaning" = the Hanover area along the Whippany River, the same area where the 1718 First Presby Hanover founding deed (F.162) was located.

4 Lots: - Lot No. 13 — location not specified beyond Hanover Twp - Lot No. 20 — location not specified beyond Hanover Twp - Lot No. 94 — on the Branches of Delaware River (= unusual for a "Hanover Twp" property; suggests one of the lots was on the Hanover-Twp / Hunterdon-Co. western frontier where Delaware-tributary branches reached) - Lot No. 120 — on the Lower side of Pophannunck Branch

Total 1250 acres ÷ 4 = ~312 acres average per lot, large parcels typical of 1730 NJ frontier surveys.

Adam Hude (His Majesty's Council) = referenced person; possibly the Provincial Council member whose office approved the survey or one of the original grants.

Open questions / follow-ups

Critical follow-ups

• [ ] ** Pull Essex Co Deed Book B Folio 83-84 manuscript deed** = NJ Archives microfilm OR Essex County Clerk's Office (Newark NJ). Per database note: "Available at NJ Archives on microfilm for in-person research only. For original records Contact Essex County Clerk." Should resolve:
• Signature comparison with the F.162 1718 founding-deed witness "John Cooper" signature (= confirm same-person identification across 1718 + 1730)
• Any kinship language (e.g., "with my brother Samuel")
• Witness signatures (= possibly other Cooper family members)
• [x] ~~Pull NJA Vol 30 p.108 John Cooper of Newark 1732 will full text~~ — DONE 2026-05-22 (= same-session as K.3 first-draft). Full will body read; NO OWN SONS; only sons-in-law (4 Sergeants) + brother Samuel Cooper + nieces/nephews via 3 sisters. Daniel-Sr-father hypothesis FALSIFIED.

Secondary follow-ups

• [ ] ** Create stub p.N for John Cooper of Newark d. Nov 1732** — separate from [p.215] if catalog wants to distinguish "John Cooper of 1718 Whippanong witness" from "John Cooper of Newark d. 1732 testator" pending identification confirmation. OR merge by updating p.215 to incorporate K.3 + 1732 will findings.
• [ ] ** Create stub p.N for Joseph Bonnel (Major) of Elizabethtown** — co-grantee + civic figure.
• [ ] ** Create stub p.N for Samuel Cooper** (brother of John of Newark; possibly = Samuel Cooper Esq. of Newark d. 1737 per Vol 30 p.109).
• [ ] ** Search Newark + Elizabethtown 1700-1732 town records** for John Cooper + Samuel Cooper attestations — Bonnel records + Newark Town Records 1666-1836 (published) + Essex Co. NJ early deeds.
• [ ] ** Search East Jersey Proprietary records** for the "Lot 13 / 20 / 94 / 120" original surveys + warrants — establishes when these lots were first carved out + first sold.

Cross-references

• K.1 NJSA Cooper-Hunterdon search-result entry — parent meta-entry; K.3 is Record 16 of the 29
• K.2 Daniel Cooper Weaver 1720 conveyance — companion K-entry; same K.1 search; both major catalog finds
• F.162 1718 Hanover First Presby founding deed — earlier-attestation source for John Cooper Whippanong; K.3 likely-same-individual 12 years later
• I.119 Ancestry-search snapshot Hanover First Presby 1718-1968 — companion search-result; identifies the "John Cooper named in 1718 deed" tombstone-data Coopers
• p.215 John Cooper of 1718 Whippanong — candidate-identification target
• pr.2 Daniel Sr father search — Daniel-Sr's-father open question; K.3 + 1732 will may RESOLVE
• pr.27 LI English-colonial Cooper kindred + pr.28 Hanover Chester LI satellite — fam.1 LI source for some 1710 Whippany settlers
• pr.60 NJA 1670-1817 Cooper-testator sweep — NJA Vol 30 p.108 abstract identifies John Cooper of Newark d. 1732
• fam.10 Morris Plains Hanover Cooper Holland origin — Hanover area Cooper family; possibly related or distinct
• Memory reference_njsa_searchable_databases.md — for Essex Co Deed Book B acquisition path