Deborah--we may very well have a connection, though not yet documented. I have a John Burns 2 (Burnes on his first marriage license) b. 1807, Hagerstown, Md, parents names yet unknown. I have no other information other than John's brother, William, b. 1814-1816 in Ohio. John married in Ashtabula County and John and William both went to Illinois in 1843 with other residents of Ashtabula County, so I assume their parents settled somewhere nearby. I have contact with a woman who is in possession of a family Bible, which may yield the name of John and WIlliam's parents. (I've been waiting for the info. since before Christmas--the Bible is in a bank vault and I may still be waiting at Easter.) I do know that John and William's father was born in Ireland, was probably Scotch-Irish and his mother was from Maryland. Because of the similarity in family first names, I wouldn't be surprised if your William was a brother to my missing g.g.g.grandfather. How did you find a marriage license for such an early date (1804)? Perhaps, I could look for a license for another BURNS in Maryland, around this same time. Hagerstown is in Washington Cty., could have been Frederick back then. Should I ever get the "mystery" info., I'll let you know. Marcia