James Irwin (1705 - 1778)

Born 1705 in County Antrim, Ulster, Ireland

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 28 Apr 1778 at about age 73 in Mercersburg. Franklin County, Pennsylvania, USA

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This person is an ancestor of President Benjamin Harrison 23rd US President

Parents

Scottish naming traditions would have named the first or second born son after his father. Their firstborn was James and second born was John. There were no recorded sons named Robert, which calls into question the claim that he is the son of Robert Irwin and Margaret Wylie.

In Anne Elizabeth Irwin's book "William Erwin (Before 1716 - 1774) of York County, Pennsylvania: A Search for the Parents of Archibald Irwin," published in 2017 - she compares DNA and Irwin family stories and speculates that this James might have been the son of James and Mary Irwin, for example.^[1]

There are NO researchers for the US Presidents family that agree with the parents shown. ^[2][3]

The manager of the Find a Grave memorial where most of the false information about parents is stated, has indicated that the information was copied from another unsourced site.^[4]

Biography

James Irwin and his two brothers immigrated to the U.S. from Ulster, Ireland in the early part of the 1700s.^{[citation needed]} No records have been found to support this theory.

In about the 1730s, James Irwin and his wife Jane/Jean McDowell, and their several children, joined a colony in Cumberland (now Franklin) County, PA. With his two brothers he first settled in the lower end of the Cumberland Valley, eight miles west of the Susquehanna River, on a winding, crooked, mountain stream, Conodoguinet Creek.

James Irwin was a blacksmith and a farmer, and later, a distiller. He was also a devout Presbyterian. He brought up a large family of sons and daughters, influential citizens, loyal to their country and to the church of their Fathers.

Among his many children: His third son, Archibald, served in the Indian Wars and in the Revolution.

About 1758, Martha, fourth daughter of James Irwin, married George Paull, a young Virginian of Scottish ancestry.

Joseph and James inherited equal shares of the home tract.

James, the bachelor son, was willed the "Waggon, Team Still, and Still vessals".

In 1778, James Irwin the pioneer closed his eyes upon a comfortable home in the presence of his "beloved wife Jean", and his sons and daughters. He was buried in the White Stone graveyard at Church Hill. --information gathered from "Paull-Irwin: a family sketch" By Elisabeth Maxwell Paull; 1915

James' Will

JAMES IRWIN'S WILL

In the name of God Amen. I James Irwin of Peters Township in the County of Cumberland and Province of Pennsylvania blacksmith being very weak in body but of sound and disposeable mind and memory thanks be to God for the same calling to mind the mortality of my body and knowing that it is appointed for all once to die do this twenty sixth day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy six make and ordain this my last will & testament that is to say principally and first I give and recommend my soul into the hands of God who gave it and my body to be decently buried at the discretion of my Executors hereafter named, and as touching such worldly estate as it hath pleased God to bless me with in this life I will devise and dispose of them in manner following namely first I allow all my just debts and funeral expenses to be paid out of my personal estate Item 1 will and devise unto my sons Joseph Irwin and James their heirs and assigns the plantation I now dwell to be equally divided as to quantity and as it may best suit the improvements allowing Joseph the side whereon he now lives and James the other half including my old improvements the said James paying unto my beloved wife Jean ten pounds yearly together with her maintenance and the full use of the house I now live in during her natural life, also I give and devise unto my son James my waggon and team still and still vessals likewise I give and devise unto my beloved wife Jean the third of all the remainder of all my personal estate exclusive of her mare and saddle bed and furniture Likewise I give devise and bequeath unto my son Archibald Irwin his heirs and assigns all my right title and interest in or to the plantation I purchased from Andrew Simpson adjoining the tract I now dwell on Also I will that the plantation whereon my son in law Aaron Tarrens and daughter Elizabeth now lives on be sold at the discretion of my Executors the one third of the value thereof be given to my daughter Elizabeth her heirs or assigns And the remainder to be equally divided amongst the children of her the said Elizabeth born to William McConnel decd. also I will and devise unto my two grandchildren Phineas Porter and Jean Porter their heirs and assigns a tract of land in Fannet Township for which I obtained an order of survey for in the name of Joseph Irwin, to be sold and divided amongst the rest of my children in manner following Viz; Unto my son John Irwin his heirs and assigns the sum of ten pounds Pennsylvania Currency and unto my daughter Jean Boggs the sum of twenty pounds and to my daughter Lidia Porter ten pounds and to my son Joseph and my Daughter Martha Pawl five shillings Sterling Each likewise I will and devise unto my son Archibald Irwin his heirs or assigns a tract of land in Awhick (sic) which I bought of Mr. Croghan and for which I obtained an order of survey out of the land office he paying to my son in law and daughter Thomas and Margaret Patton their heirs or assigns the sum of twenty pounds currency out of said Plantation when recovered and it is also my will that what remains of the Price of the plantation in the Cove and my personal estate after all just debts and legacys above mentioned be discharged shall be to the use and behoof of my son James aforesaid his heirs and assigns and lastly I do hereby ordain and appoint my son James together with my son in law William Nesbit to be Executors to this my last will and testament to see that the same be executed according to the true intent and meaning thereof. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the year and day above written.

Signed Sealed and James Irwin Acknowledged by said James Irwin as his last will and testament in presence of

J. Mazwell Wm. Lowrey Robt. Vance

(The words Thomas and Margaret Patton interlined before signing).

Inventory of James Irwin's estate, appraised by James Maxwell & William Lowrey list one oak bed bedstead, one walnut bedstead, one armchair, looking glass, a round table, a large square table, six chairs, a walnut chest and a dough chest, two pewter dishes and two basins. Eight pewter plates, two pewter mugs, velvet jacket and britches and a blue broadcloth coat. Cows, colt, wheat, one bar of iron mettle.^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ https://www.amazon.com/William-Erwin-Before-1716-Pennsylvania/dp/1530726476
2. ↑ Brogan, Hugh and Charles Mosley, American Presidential Families, New York: Macmillan Publishing Company (1993), 535.
3. ↑ Keith, Charles P., The Ancestry of Benjamin Harrison, President of the United States of America 1889-1893 . . ., Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Company (1893), 53.
4. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #78674494
5. ↑ Cumberland County, Pennsylvania: Tax List, Deed Records and Will Records

• WikiTree profile Irvine-256 created through the import of Barking Up the Mattox Family Tree-1_2012-04-11.ged on Apr 11, 2012. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Deborah and others.