Elijah McClanahan (1713 - 1794)

Born 1713 in Antrim, Ulster Province, Ireland

Ancestors

Husband of Ann (Ewing) McClanahan — married 1727 in Antrim, Ulster, Ireland

Descendants

Died 2 May 1794 at about age 81 in Staunton, Augusta, Virginia, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Michael McClanahan [send private message]

Biography

Elijah McClanahan is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A074900.

Elijah arrived in America with his brothers James (married Mary Cochrane), and Robert (married Sarah Breckenridge). He was a well-known soldier of the American Revolution^[1] and the militia among the settlers of "Beverly Manor" and the "Borden Tract" in Old Augusta.

Daughters of the American Revolution information:

• MCCLANAHAN, ELIJAH
• Ancestor #: A074900
• Service: VIRGINIA
• Rank(s): CIVIL SERVICE, PATRIOTIC SERVICE
• Birth: CIRCA 1718 IRELAND
• Death: POST 5-2-1794 AUGUSTA CO VIRGINIA
• Service Source: CHALKLEY, CHRONICLES OF THE SCOTCH-IRISH SETTLEMENT OF VA, VOL 1, PP 188,192,196,217
• Service Description: 1) JUSTICE OF PEACE; COMMISSIONER OF SPECIFIC TAX 2) TOOK OATH OF ALLEGIANCE
• RESIDENCE: Created: 2002-03-27 23:23:55.3, Updated: , By: Conversion 1) County: AUGUSTA CO - State: VIRGINIA
• SPOUSE (1) ANN EWING: Created: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, Updated: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, By: Conversion 1)
• SPOUSE (2) LETTICE BRECKENRIDGE: Created: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, Updated: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, By: Conversion 2)
• SPOUSE (2) MARGARET X Unknown: Created: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, Updated: 2002-03-27 23:17:13.16, By: Conversion 3)
• Child daughter: HANNAH MCCLANAHAN, [Spouse #] Spouse: [1] JOHN GREENLEE
• Child son: ELIJAH MCCLANAHAN, [Spouse #] Spouse: [1] ELIZABETH PURCHASE
• Child son: WILLIAM MCCLANAHAN, [Spouse #] Spouse: [1] SARAY NEELEY

He married Ann Ewing. Among their children are:

• Elijah, b. abt. 1725; m. 1) Letitia "Lettice" Breckenridge and 2) Margaret Trimble; d. bef. June 1796
• James
• John
• Robert
• William, m. Sarah Neeley;
• Jane, m. Rev. Joseph Caldwell;
• David
• Virginia "Jennie", m. William Holliday;
• Hannah, m. John Greenlee, son of James and Mary (McDowell) Greenlee in 1767 at Old House, on cedar Creek above Natural Bridge;
• Mary "Polly", m. Capt. Robert McCreery;
• Infant son, no name-no birth date. Killed in the Indian massacre of 1764

Elijah bought from James McCorkle and his wife Jane 370 acres in Beverley Manor; the graveyard in Wm. Nutt's line; corner Breckinridge; corner Wm. Nut; also 23-1/2 acres part of tract formerly Wm. Nut in Beverley Manor; line of McCorckle's former survey. Teste: Wm. Lusk, Robt. Breckinridge.

An Indian massacre took place in the early spring of 1764 in The Cowpasture, now in Bath County, Virginia. It was here that "Olde Elijah" lost his wife, Ann and their youngest child. "Olde Elijah" himself was severely tomahawked, but was saved only by the fact that he had a pen in his hat. The Indians, realizing he could write, did not kill him and apparently wanted his writing ability for an unknown purpose. Fortunately for Elijah, ,Captain Lewis followed the raiding party with a group of local militia and caught up with them. "Olde Elijah" and other captives were rescued. This was attested to in a letter written by Reverend John Brown who wrote to his brother-in-law Colonel William Preston in June of 1764: Captain Lewis came up with the Indians that killed the people at cowpasture and one Frenchman and it is thought wounded some Indians and rescued several prisoners, among whom were old Elijah McClanachan.

Further evidence of this massacre was penned by "Olde Elijah's" grandson, Colonel Elijah McClanahan of Roanoke, Virginia. He was the son of William and Sarah (Neeley) McClenachan. Colonel McClanahan corresponded with Lyman C. Draper. In one of these letters, dated 19 March 1846, is given an account of the massacre.

Sources

1. ↑ United States Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783

• https://services.dar.org/Public/DAR_Research/search_adb/?action=full&p_id=A074900
• https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/LD1D-L2T
• Green, Thomas Marshall. Historic families of Kentucky. With special reference to stocks immediately derived from the valley of Virginia; tracing in detail their various genealogical connexions and illustrating from historic sources their influence upon the political and social development of Kentucky and the states of the South and West. R. Clark, publisher, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1889. Page 10
• Elijah McClanahan
• White, H.M. The McClanahans. The Stone Printing and Manufacturing Company, Roanoake, Virginia, 1894. Pages 15-19.
• Chalkley, Lyman. Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish settlement in Virginia. The Commonwealth printing co. , Rosslyn, Virginia, 1912. [https://archive.org/details/chroniclesscotc00lockgoog/page/n92/mode/2up
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, "Pedigree Resource File," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/2:2:9QVR-9Z8 : accessed 2017-06-19), entry for Elijah McClanahan, submitted by tsiler1159631.
• WikiTree profile McClanahan-129 created through the import of McClanahan-20121014.ged on Oct 15, 2012 by Anonymous McClanahan. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Anonymous and others.