Twelve- James McClurkin (1787-1851)

I thought about writing about another family with 12 children for the 12 prompt, but since I just did that for the large family prompt I’m rather going to write about an ancestor who fought in the war of 1812, James McClurkin, nephew of Archibald the “Bachelor Uncle” I wrote about a week ago.

James was born in 1787 in Chester County South Carolina. His parents were Matthew Henry McClurkin and Jennet McClurkin, Scotch Irish immigrants who were probably cousins. Jennet came with her father James aboard the Lord Dunluce in 1772, part of a large immigration led by the covenanter minister Rev. William Martin from Ballymena. Jennet’s older siblings claimed land on arrival, but Jennet was probably still a minor at that time and was counted as part of her father’s household. It is less clear when Matthew and his siblings came over from Ireland, but it was certainly before the revolutionary war, as his pension file records extensive service during that conflict. In fact both McClurkin families were extremely involved in the war. All four of Matthew’s known brothers served, as did Jennet’s brothers. There is even a story that Jennet’s older sister carried messages for the continental troops in her hair.

James was the oldest child of Jennet and Matthew, probably named after his maternal grandfather. In 1795 he, along with other grandchildren named James, was mention in his grandfather’s will. His parents had three more children, before his mother died about 1797. Matthew remarried to a widow named Mary Gaston and had many more children. In 1803 Mathew sold his land in South Carolina and moved north, eventually settling in Indiana. James seems to have stayed in Kentuky, however, and in 1811 he took out a marriage bond to marry Susanna Leeper with her father, John Leeper’s, full consent. Susanna’s parents, John Leeper and Susannah Henderson, were part of a Scotch-irish settlement in Augusta County Virginia. However, John, the younger son in a large family, had decided to move further west, probably to gain more land of his own.

               It must have been soon after his marriage that James served in the War of 1812. I know little about his service, but many years later, after his death, Susanna sold a piece of land calling herself the widow of “James McClurkin Private in Captain Rays(?) Company Ohio Militia war of 1812. I’d like to do more research on his service and hopefully find out more, but for now that’s all I know. His oldest three children were born in Ohio between 1813 and 1817. In 1818 James moved to Randolph Illinois, where he would become one of the prominent early settlers.

               It was around 1819 that a group of covenanters migrated to Randolph County from South Carolina. The covenanters, or Reformed Presbyterians, were Scottish Presbyterians who differed from most Presbyterians in that they believed in a nation should acknowledge Christ as over the nation, and refused to participate in American politics because they considered it a godless country. They also believed in racial equality and saw the slavery as a horrible evil. These beliefs did not gain them much popularity in the slave-holding south and they faced persecution from their neighbors, lack of economic opportunity, and many watch their children leave the church so that they could hold slaves. Because of this many of them moved north. The McClurkin family had originally been covenanters in South Carolina, though James himself was part of the Associate Reformed

Presbyterian Church. However, it seems that he had not forgotten his family’s covenanter roots. When the group of Reformed Presbyterians came to settle in Randolph County James welcomed them. He sold my paternal ancestor, Robert Weir, a house and land and was extremely helpful to the new settlers. In fact he was not long in joining the congregation himself. He signed a call that the congregation made out to a pastor Wylie in 1819, promising fifteen dollars towards the minister’s support. Below the names of the subscribers were the names of others who “had not the opportunity to sign in their rightful place”, these were all women including Susanna McClurkin. James was ordained as an elder in April of 1820, serving alongside my other ancestor William Edgar.  

               James was extremely industrious. He erected a saw mill, and a “steam grist” in Sparta, as well as an oil mill to manufacture castor oil. His mills were major contributors to the economy of Sparta and James was even elected to the state Legislator. James and Susannah had eight children Susannah, Jane (my ancestor), Samuel, Sarah, James, Matthew, Florence, and Thomas. Their youngest son, Thomas, was a major in the Union Army and was mortally wounded in action. James Died 17 January 1851 and was buried in the Old Bethel Cemetery in Randolph County Illinois. His probate is something of a mystery as he seems to have had significant property, but I can’t locate any probate files for him at all. Susanna outlived him by fifteen years and died at the age of 77 in 1866.