Ancestors of Captain John Spann
There is no proof that the father of Captain John Spann was another individual named John Spann, for the simple reason that there was NEVER any such person.
The John Spann theory was first put forth by genealogist Earl Steadman in the 1960's.It was based on a rather wishful interpretation of the early Virginia Land Patent books and the presence of a "Spain" family in what is now Halifax County, Virginia.Mr. Steadman was a fine researcher, but even he had given up on this idea prior to his death in the 1990's.Unfortunately, others took Earl's theory as fact and published it over and over again without any basis. It can now be found in databases all over the Internet.
In fact, Captain John Spann immigrated directly to North Carolina from Ireland and was part of a distinguished English family.His uncle Jonathan Spann was the commander of the British Navy in the Caribbean.John and his brothers were all alumni of Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland.
There are several ways of proving Captain John Spann's ancestry, but the most direct would be to consult the alumni records of Trinity College.His birthdate, birthplace and parentage are recorded there.Your trip to Ireland will be a nice bonus!
https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/spann/842/
