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From: Hermon B Fagley <>
Subject: [OHCLER] John Simpson Noah, Jesse+ Pres US Grant
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2003 06:40:19 -0400


John Simpson Sr +Jr lived in Montgomery Co,Pa.
Noah Grant lived in Westmoreland Co,Pa
Hannah Simpson m Jesse Grant 3\4 mile from where I type,in 1821-
Clermont Co,sw Ohio
Robert Belville Simpson was my Dad's [1898-2000] uncle.

THE SIMPSON FAMILY. -We are not at present prepared to give the
earliest
history of this family, but it is known from records that before the
Revolution Samuel Simpson resided in Abington township, the owner of a
farm
of one hundred and eighty-eight acres and a few years later there was
Benjamin Simpson, who probably was his son. John Simpson, the great
grandfather of General Grant, was a collector of taxes in Horsham in
1776,
and we find him rated for this year as holding one hundred fifty acres,
four horses four cattle and fourteen sheep, taxed 14. 14s.
For several reasons we are inclined to believe that the latter was the
son of Samuel Simpson, of Abington, and probably the first ancestor of
the
family in this country. It has been stated that this family is of
Scotch-
Irish origin, about which we have doubts. The name is found in Friends'
records, and there was a minister of Abington Meeting in the last century

of the name of James Simpson. A close examination has been made of the
numerous tombstones in the graveyard of Abington Presbyterian Church, and

none have been discovered there bearing the name.

The aforesaid John Simpson, as we learn, purchased his property in
Horsham at sheriff's sale November 30, 1763, which really contained one
hundred and sixty-four acres, situated in the extreme northern corner of
the township, adjoining Montgomery and extending to the Bucks County
line.
It is presumed that he must have moved on it soon after the purchase. He

is stated to have had at least three children, -a son John and two
daughters. Respecting the latter, we possess no information. he must
have
been a man of some note to possess this property, and likewise of
responsibility to be invested with the powers and duties of a collector
of
the revenue, and that, too, in the most memorable year of the Revolution.

It is stated he died near the beginning of this century, when his son
became the owner of the homestead, whereon he was born in 1767. He is
said
to have married Rebecca Wier, a daughter of a substantial farmer in
Warrington, or New Britain. He was probably married in 1793, for his
eldest daughter, Mary was born in 1795, and Hannah, the mother of General

Grant, in November, 1797. His son Samuel was still living, at a very
advanced age, in the spring of 1883, near Bantam, Ohio. John Simpson,
Jr.,
continued to reside in Horsham until his children were grownup, when,
with
the idea of going westward, he sold his farm, in the fall of 1817, to
John
Meyers, and in the following year moved with his family on a farm he had
previously purchased near Bethel, Clermont Co., Ohio. All the school
education that he or his children had received was obtained near by, at
the stone schoolhouse on the county line. He died August 20, 1837, in
his
seventieth year. His daughter Mary had married James Griffith in 1818.
Hannah was married, Jane 24, 1820, to Jesse Root Grant, who was a son of
Noah Grant, and also a Pennsylvanian, born in Westmoreland County January

23, 1794.

To Dr. Jackson, of Pittsburgh, we are indebted for an interesting
relation
made to him by Jesse R. Grant, in 1867, on the subject of his marriage
into the Simpson family, which refutes several errors that have been
current on the subject,-

"In 1820" (he states), "I settled temporarily at a small place called
Point Pleasant, situated on the Ohio River, twenty-five miles above
Cincinnati, and in June, 1820, I was married to Miss Hannah Simson, and
commenced house-keeping at that place. Mrs. Grant was an unpretending
country girl -handsome but not vein. She had previously joined the
Methodist
Church, and I can truthfully say that it has never had a more devoted and

consistent member. Her steadiness, firmness and strength of character
have
been the stay of the family through life. She was always careful and
most
watchful over her children, but not austere, and not opposed to their
free
participation in innocent amusement. At Point Pleasant, on the 27th of
April, 1822, our first child, Ulysses Grant was born. The house in which

this event occurred, is still standing. Five other children, three
daughters, and two sons were subsequently added to our family. Mrs.
Grant
was the second daughter of Mr. John Simpson, of Montgomery County,
Pennsylvania. She was burn and brought up in that County, about twenty
miles from Philadelphia. When in her nineteenth year, she moved with her

father to Clermont County, Ohio. The family were highly respectable
-people
of veracity and integrity, but licit of any particular ambition beyond
that
of independent farmers. Mrs. Grant's father was with some property, but
it
was all inland, and which he kept until he died. It was nearly three
years
after their removal to Clermont that we were married. A few of the
neighbors expressed their surprise th one of Mr. Simpson's daughters
should marry a young man hardly yet established in business. But this
did
me no harm, and as soon as it was seen how I was getting along I heard no

more of it."

879

The children of Jesse R. Grant were
Gen-Pres Ulysses Simpson Grant
Samuel Simpson
Orville L. Grant m Asher Medary's daughter
Rachel
Virginia Payne and
Mary Frances.

The father died June 27, 1873, and Mrs. Grant at New York, May 11, 1882,
aged eighty-four years and six months. Mary, the eldest sister, was
still



[Samuel Medary and Hannah Simpson [Grant] were elementary schoolmates in

Montgomery Co,Pa,they said


Third Governor of the Territory of Kansas + Minnesota Samuel Medary
February 25th, 1801 - November 7th, 1864
Democratic Party
Third Governor of the Territory of Minnesota
1857 - 1858
Samuel Medary was born in Montgomery Square, Pennsylvania on
February
25th, 1801. He served as a member of the Ohio State House of
Representatives in 1834. He moved to the Ohio State Senate in 1836.
He
then moved to Minnesota and was appointed Territorial Governor of
Minnesota.
Governor Samuel Medary had a short-lived life in the Territory
of
Minnesota. He was appointed to the post by President James
Buchanan, but
left to pursue other exploits after Minnesota became a State of the
Union.

The citizens then held open elections to find their first
Governor of
the State of Minnesota. This first Governor was Henry Sibley.
After serving the Territory of Minnesota, Medary traveled to
Kansas
Territory and served as Territorial Governor there from 1858 to
1860.
After Kansas became a State, Medary became a candidate for the
Governor of
Kansas, but was unsuccessful.
After his loss in the gubernatorial race in Kansas, Medary
served as a
delegate to the Democratic National Convention from Ohio in 1864.
Samuel Medary was indicted by a federal grand jury in 1864 for
conspiracy against the government and was arrested. He was released
on
bonds, but died before he could be tried.
Samuel Medary died in Columbus, Ohio November 7th, 1864, at the
age of
64.

Kestenbaum, Lawrence. "Index to Politicians: Meagher to Meek."
http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/meagher-meek.html (November
12,
2001).

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