MySource:Samples 59/Biographical Sketch of McGaugh Family

Biographical Sketch by Thomas S. McGaugh Oct. 1897

• Thomas S. McGaugh, in Oct. 1897, wrote the following information in regard to his grandfather, William McGaugh

"My grand father was born in Ireland of Scotch descent and came to Virginia in the middle of the last century where during the Revolutionary War he volunteered and served as a private until the war ended. He married Ruth Hill. They had five sons and three daughters all of whom lived to be over 80 except for one daughter. . After the revolutionary war, he moved to Williamson Co., TN."

William McGaugh is listed In Colonel Washington's Company, Colonial Militia on August 28, 1757. He is listed as being from Ireland, 5' 7", age 30, a planter from Frederick. Frederick County, Virginia was formed in in 1738 from Augusta and Orange Counties and is at the north end of the Shenandoah Valley. Augusta County where William lived when his children were born is south of Frederick in the Shenandoah.

Virginia Colonial Soldiers, French and Indian War, 1754–1763, page 105, from Virginia Colonial Records on Genealogy.com.

The entry is from the Size Roll of Col. George Washington, 28 August 1757.

The Hill family, surname of William's wife, is found in Augusta County and Frederick County where William was in the Colonial Militia.

In 1776, North Carolina annexed what is now the State of Tennessee and designated it Washington County.

Prior to the 01 June 1780, William moved to Tennessee.

In 1782, North Carolina declared a large portion of middle Tennessee a Military Reservation. The purpose was to set aside the land for grants in payment of services to members of the North Carolina Continental Line.

There were settlers already present in 1782 and they were concerned that veterens who had served for North Carolina would push them off their land. North Carolina sent surveyors into this area granting to those settlers 640 acres of land as their "preemption right." This was available only to those settlers on the land before 1 June 1780.

Thomas Edminston and James Sayers, surveyors, entered the following as item #360 on March 10, 1783

William McGuoch obtained a preemption of 640 acres of land lying on Arrington' Creek east side of the Harpeth River about four miles from the mouth of a creek with a improvement at the head of the spring marked W M running as the law directs for quantity including improvement and spring.

The William McGaugh and the William McGouch in the preemption are the same person which can be attested by land transactions at a later date involving the same land as being the preemption right of William McGaugh. Being from Ireland, when asked his name by the surveyors, they wrote what they heard, the "gh" sounded like "ch" or "ck".

Indenture 18 May 1802 William McGaugh and Samuel McKnight, $100 paid. tr on Arrington's creek the waters of the Big Harpeth, being part of Wm. McGaugh Senior preemption, 20 acres. Wit. Samuel Buchanan, Robert McGaugh.

Indenture 9 April 1804 (7 June 1804) David Shannon and Robert McKnight, $125 paid, tr on waters of Arriington's Creek beg. at SW cor of William McGaugh guard right, being 50 acres. Wit: James Borland, John McKnight.

The preemption rights came from his being on the land prior to 1 June 1780. The guard rights accruing to William McGaugh came from his service for the State of North Carolina.

When the surveyors were sent into Tennessee to layout the Military District for the State of North Carolina, they required an armed escort in the performance of their tasks. William McGaugh served as a "Commissioner's Guard".

North Carolina granted the following, Wm McGuaioch 320 acres one of the guards to the commissioners for laying of the lands allotted to the officers and soldiers of the Continental line 320 on both sides of Arrington's Creek about 3 and 1/2 miles above the mouth. Dated October 8, 1787 Thomas Edmiston and James Sayers were the surveyors.

William was killed in an Indian raid at Hickman Station in the summer of 1789. One daughter perished with him. Hickman Station was one of several stations which were small outposts stratigically placed to guard settlers in case of Indian attack.

In the book, "History of Middle Tennessee, or Life and Times of Gen. James Robertson" by A.W. Putman, Esq.. 1859, page 315, Chapter XIX, 1789, is noted: 'In the summer of this year, Miss McGaugh was killed, near Hickman's Station, but a short distance from Nashville."

Although William McGaugh is not listed in the quotation, it likely he died in the summer of 1789. The name of Mattie is given to the daughter killed by Indians in an article in the Williamson County Historical Quarterly. In this same article, it states William was killed near Hickman Station, west of Nashville.

In the Davidson County Court Minutes in October 1789, William's daughter Susannah McGaugh was granted letters of Administration on the Estate of William McGaugh.

• William McGaugh's estate was appraised by Amos Heaton and Issac Drake

Amos Heaton and Isaac Drake of the Davidson County, NC, being sworn according to law to appraise the estate of William McGaugh, deceased, do appraise as follows

4 cows, 3 calves, and 2 two year old heifers, one black mare, one sorrell horse, and one black mare, and one black yearling colt, 2 beds and furniture, one bible, one book known by Issac Ambrose Works, one dutch oven, 6 pewter plates, 12 spoons, one brass kettle, four pails, and one cooler and chest, one bar shear plow, three axes, and grubbing hoes, 2 cheeves, one lot of triggers, four hoes and an iron wedge, one hatchet, one smoothing iron, one gun, one churn, one tub, one half bushel and three spinning wheels. The whole estate amounting to 105 pound sterling and 131 shillings.

According to the family sketch by Thomas S. McGaugh, Ruth Hill was William McGaugh's wife whom he married in "Old Virginia." Since one of his sons had reached his maturity, it is unlikely that Susannah was a sister and was probably William's daughter. Thomas S. McGaugh's Sketch appears to be the source of Ruth Hill being the wife of William. Matthew McGaugh son of William named his first daughter Susannah. While names of the male children are used in every generation, the name Ruth is not used.

The Susannah who was in charge of William's estate married Robert Roseberry and no other record could be found.

• Division of William McGaugh's land occurred in May or June of 1799. This is found in the Davidson County Tennessee Wills and Inventories, Volume One, 1783-1816. Compiled by Helen and Timothy R. Marsh, page 79.

Plats of lands belonging to Thomas McGaugh, lot of 228 acres, John McGaugh lot of 201 acres, William McGaugh lot of 200 acres, Robert McGaugh lot of 200 acres, Matthew McGaugh lot of 200 acres, and Robert Edmondson's land is represented by the above figure but not number, being due by covenant from William McGaugh deceased.

• SEE ALSO THE McGAUGH FAMILY HISTORY