Person:Joseph McMinn (1)

Information on Joseph McMinn

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Joseph McMinn (June 22, 1758October 17, 1824) was an American politician who served as the fourth Governor of Tennessee from 1815 to 1821. A veteran of the American Revolution, he had previously served in the legislature of the Southwest Territory (1794-96), and as Speaker of the Tennessee Senate (1805-11). He was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party.

Following his term as governor, he served as an agent to the Cherokee for the United States government.

From "The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography", Volume 7:

McMINN, Joseph, fifth governor of Tennessee (1815-21), was born in Pennsylvania, but the year and place of his birth are unknown. His parents, who were members of the Society of Friends, gave him a fairly good education, and he then took up farming as an occupation, his wife often helping him in the field. He fought in the revolutionary army, serving until the close of the war, when he removed to Tennessee, settling in Hawkins County, but the exact date of his arrival is not known. He was a plain, unpretending man and a hard worker, and his worth was soon recognized by the people who elected him to several offices, and in 1807 sent him to the state senate, of which he was chosen speakei. At the close of Gov. Willie Blount's third term, in 1815, five candidates strove for the vacant office. One of them was Jesse Wharton, who was an early settler, a lawyer and a member of the U. S. senate, from which he resigned to run for the governorship. Robert C. Foster, another candidate, had been speaker of the house. Robert AVeakly, the third, had been a pioneer, a member of the convention to ratify the U. S. constitution, a legislator and congressman, and the fourth, Thomas Johnson, had been a legislator in North Carolina and Tennessee, a member of the convention to ratify the Federal constitution, and of the constitutional convention of 1796. All these, as their circulars stated, were candidates under call by "fellow-citizens." Mr. McMinn, who came into the field long after the others, announced himself and received the largest vote, though not a majority over all. When he became a candidate for re-election, he was opposed by Mr. Foster, and the next time Enoch Parsons was his rival. Gov. McMinn was a man of great honesty and industry, but he lacked the foresight and judgment necessary in troublous limes. He favored the loan-office bill, which established a state bank with a brand) in each county to loan money to people in proportion to the tax. A county and town were named after Gov. McMinn. As has been stated, the records of the early part of his life are defective ; no portrait of him exists, and his wife's name is unknown. He died at the Cherokee Agency, Nov. 17, 1834.

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Ancestry.com - OneWorldTree (discontinued in 2013): - extremely unreliable source.

   Online publication - Ancestry.com. OneWorldTree [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: MyFamily.com, Inc.

2.   Joseph McMinn, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
3. ↑ Revolutionary War Pension Application of Willoughby Williams, filed by Nancy McMinn, Davidson County, Tennessee
   8 March, 1848.

   The application confirms that Gov. Joseph McMinn died in Calhoun, Tennessee, at the home of J.G. Williams, son of his wife, Nancy Glasgow Williams McMinn.

4.   .

   McMinn, Joseph (1758-1824)
   
   SENATE, 1st, 2nd (1st session only; resigned and replaced by Joel Dyer), 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th General Assemblies, 1796-1799, 1801-11; representing Hawkins County in the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th Assemblies; Hawkins and Sullivan counties in the 7th and 8th Assemblies; Speaker of the Senate in the 6th, 7th, and 8th Assemblies; Democrat. Born in West Marlborough Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, on June 22, 1758; son of Robert and Sarah (Harlan) McMinn. Educated in Virginia. Removed to Tennessee in 1776 and built his home, "New Market," near Rogersville, Hawkins County. Merchant; operated a tavern or hotel at Rogersville; advocate of public education and improved river navigation. Regimented command of militia, 1789. Member of Territorial Legislature, 1794; member of Constitutional Convention, 1796. Served as Governor of Tennessee from September 27, 1815,, to October 1, 1821. Indian agent, 1823-24. McMinn County and McMinnville, Warren County, are both named in his honor. He was married three times: (1st) to Hannah Cooper, (2nd) to Mary Kincaid, and (3rd) to Mrs. Nancy (Glasgow) Williams. He had one daughter, Jane McMinn, apparently by his first wife. After his terms as governor, he purchased property at Calhoun, McMinn County, and was appointed in charge of the Cherokee Agency, 1823-24. He died on November 17, 1824, in Hawkins County, and is buried in Calhoun Cemetery.
   
   Sources: White, Messages of the Governors of Tennessee, I, 442-43; Dictionary of American Biography; Tennessee Blue Book, 1969-70, p. 114; Clayton, History of Davidson County, 414.
   
   http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~tnhawkin/hawass.htm