William McCutchan family letters
Collection — Folder: S0875
Identifier: S0875
Scope and Contents
This collection includes letters from McCutchan family members who settled in Indiana and Ohio to their father and brother in Augusta County, Virginia ranging from 1819 to 1853. The majority of the correspondence is from siblings William McCutchan, Jr., Elizabeth (McCutchan) Straine, Jane (McCutchan) Smiley, Martha (McCutchan) Steele, and Mary Steele (McCutchan) Porter, who settled with their spouses in Parke County, Indiana, and their brother, Samuel McCutchan in Floyd County, Indiana, to their father, William McCutchan, Sr., in Augusta County, Virginia ranging from 1819 to 1848. These letters concern personal health, land purchases, Native American treaties including the 1818 Treaty of St. Mary's, farming, animal husbandry, taxes, local news, religion, westward migration, and European immigrants. There are also missives from other siblings, Robert McCutchan in Adams County, Ohio and Sarah (McCutchan) McCutchan in Parke County, Indiana, to their brother, James McCutchan, in Augusta County, Virginia.
Dates
- 1819-1853
Creator
- Smiley, Jane McCutchan (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Biographical Note
William McCutchan, Sr., born November 27, 1758, lived his entire life in Augusta County, Virginia, making his living as a farmer and landholder. He served as a wagoner and sergeant in the Virginia militia during the American Revolutionary War before marrying Jane (Jean) Finley (1770-1852) on May 20, 1794. The couple had many children, including Samuel, Robert, John, Martha, William, James, Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary, and Jane. Most of the McCutchan offspring migrated westward, settling in new states such as Indiana and Ohio. James McCutchan (1804-1885), who kept in touch with his siblings in the west, married Susannah (Susan) Harris (1811-1883) and remained in Augusta County. William McCutchan, the family patriarch, died on June 29, 1848.
Several McCutchan siblings and their families settled in Parke County, Indiana, largely working as farmers, including: William McCutchan, Jr. (1802-1894) and his wife, Margaret (Peggy) Cooper (1799-1874); Elizabeth (McCutchan) Straine (1806-1890) and her husband, William Straine (1805-1889); Martha (McCutchan) Steele (1800-?) and her husband Nathaniel Steele (1803-1877); Jane (McCutchan) Smiley (1812-1874) and her husband, William McClelland Smiley (1810-1874); Sarah McCutchan (1808-?), who married her cousin, Charles McCutchan, in 1838; and Mary Steele (McCutchan) Cooper Porter (1810-1849) and her second husband, James Porter. Their brother, Samel Finley McCutchan, who married Susannah Mowry on November 10, 1817, had settled to the south in Floyd County, Indiana with his family. Another brother, Robert, lived in Adams County, Ohio for a time, where he married his wife, Mary (Polly) Glasgow Finley on April 27, 1826, before relocating to Illinois.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current. Accesssed September 30, 2014. http://www.findagrave.com/index.html. Birth, marriage, and military records from Ancestry.com.
“McCutchan, William.” U.S. Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970. Accessed September 30, 2014. www.ancestry.com.
“McCutcheon, William,” section no. 124, p. 119. In McAllister, J.T. Virginia Militia in the Revolutionary War: McAllister’s Data. Hot Springs, VA: McAllister, 1913. Accessed September 30, 2014. https://archive.org/details/virginiamilitiai00mcal.
Several McCutchan siblings and their families settled in Parke County, Indiana, largely working as farmers, including: William McCutchan, Jr. (1802-1894) and his wife, Margaret (Peggy) Cooper (1799-1874); Elizabeth (McCutchan) Straine (1806-1890) and her husband, William Straine (1805-1889); Martha (McCutchan) Steele (1800-?) and her husband Nathaniel Steele (1803-1877); Jane (McCutchan) Smiley (1812-1874) and her husband, William McClelland Smiley (1810-1874); Sarah McCutchan (1808-?), who married her cousin, Charles McCutchan, in 1838; and Mary Steele (McCutchan) Cooper Porter (1810-1849) and her second husband, James Porter. Their brother, Samel Finley McCutchan, who married Susannah Mowry on November 10, 1817, had settled to the south in Floyd County, Indiana with his family. Another brother, Robert, lived in Adams County, Ohio for a time, where he married his wife, Mary (Polly) Glasgow Finley on April 27, 1826, before relocating to Illinois.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current. Accesssed September 30, 2014. http://www.findagrave.com/index.html. Birth, marriage, and military records from Ancestry.com.
“McCutchan, William.” U.S. Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970. Accessed September 30, 2014. www.ancestry.com.
“McCutcheon, William,” section no. 124, p. 119. In McAllister, J.T. Virginia Militia in the Revolutionary War: McAllister’s Data. Hot Springs, VA: McAllister, 1913. Accessed September 30, 2014. https://archive.org/details/virginiamilitiai00mcal.
Extent
0.01 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged chronologically.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from Ada C. Meek on 1939/06/01.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2014/09/30 by Brittany Kropf. EAD finding aid created 2014/09/30 by Brittany Kropf.
Creator
- Smiley, Jane McCutchan (Person)
- Straine, Elizabeth McCutchan (Person)
- McCutchan, William, 1758-1848 (Person)
- McCutchan, William, 1802-1894 (Person)
- McCutchan, Samuel (Person)
- Steele, Martha McCutchan (Person)
- Title
- William McCutchan family letters
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
