PAWESTMO-L Archives

From: "Dick" <>
Subject: [PAWESTMO-L] McClain early 19th century
Date: Thu, 25 Mar 2004 09:22:59 -0500

Boucher, John Newton, 1854-1933. Old and new Westmoreland, Vol. 4, pp.
982-983
>From the Historic Pittsburgh Full-Text Collection
[http://digital.library.pitt.edu/fulltext/index.html]

bio of Thomas McClain-- ... of Smithton. .

"Alexander McClain, great-grandfather of Thomas McClain, was of County Down,
Ireland, and emigrated to the United States, settling in Westmoreland
county, Pennsylvania. [Alexander surveyed early Pittsburgh.]

John McClain, son of Alexander McClain, was born in Westmoreland county,
Pennsylvania, and lived there all his life. He married Susannah Jones, of
Rostraver township, and their children were: 1. Alexander, went to West
Virginia."

[We claim Alexander]
Our Alexander can be traced back to Nicholas county, Kentucky, where his
marriage is recorded in 1817. The link from Westmoreland to Kentucky is not
firm. The Westmoreland family story tells of a produce business, wherein
the men built flatboats and floated produce down the Ohio. My great
grandmother, born in 1844, remembered the family visiting outside
Cincinnatti as they walked home. This story bolsters the claim, but is
still not evidence. Her maternal line was in a similar business. Is there
anyone out there with more information on this family?

Siblings of Alexander, to continue the quotation, are ...
"2. John, remained in the vicinity of his birthplace. 3. Thompson,
mentioned below. 4. Ellen, married John Miller, and went to Illinois,
where she died in early middle life. 5. Marjorie, married William Timms,
and lived to an advanced age; her children are still living in Westmoreland
county. 6. Abner, lived in the neighborhood of his birthplace and died on
his farm at the age of eighty-eight. 7. Valentine, removed to Boone
county, Iowa. 8. William, remained in his native environment, dying at the
age of sixty-seven. John McClain, the father, died in 1872, being then over
eighty, and his wife survived him, passing away at ninety-three."

There's more at the web site cited. I won't bore you here.

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• [PAWESTMO-L] McClain early 19th century by "Dick" <>