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Facts and Events
Working notes
Note: The 1803 letter from son Presley Nevill that states that his father John Nevill was the son of Joseph Nevill and Mary Barget, not "Ann Bohannon" as is often claimed.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 John Neville (general), in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia
last accessed Dec 2022.
John Neville (July 26, 1731 – July 29, 1803) was an American military officer, land speculator, and local official who served in the French and Indian War, Lord Dunmore's War and the American Revolutionary War. As an early federal tax collector he became a central figure in the Whiskey Rebellion. ...
Whiskey Rebellion
On July 16, 1794, a group of men surrounded the Neville mansion, demanding to see the US Marshal. The confrontation led to Neville's shooting of one of the protesters. This further angered the people, and the next day, over 500 again surrounded the home. At least one more protester died, and Neville's home, "Bower Hill", was burned to the ground.
This incident persuaded President George Washington to take the drastic action of leading a militia force of 13,000 men into western Pennsylvania to squelch the uprising. This response marked the first time under the new Constitution that the federal government had used a strong military presence to exert authority over the nation's citizens. In 1802, the tax was repealed.
- Craig, Neville B. The History of Pittsburgh: With a Brief Notice of Its Facilities Of Communication And Other Advantages For Commercial And Manufacturing Purposes. (Pittsburgh: J. R. Weldin Company, 1917)
2nd Edition, 238.
“The next morning, (July 17th) the assailants reappeared, five hundred strong, led on by one John Holcroft, who, under the assumed name of Tom the Tinker, had been deeply concerned in stirring up previous outrages against officers who attempted to enforce the law, and distillers who were disposed to submit to it. On the approach of his force, Neville escaped from the house, leaving his kinsman, Major Kirkpatrick, with the soldiers, to make such defense or capitulation as might seem expedient. The assailants had appointed a committee of three as directors of the enterprise, and they had chosen as commander on M’Farlane, formerly a lieutenant in the Continental service. The surrender of Neville was demanded, and, on information that he was gone, the admission of six men to search the house for papers connected with his office was claimed. This being refused, a flag was sent for the women to leave the house, soon after which an attack was commenced. M’Farlane was killed and several other of the assailants were wounded; but they succeeded in setting fire to the outhouses, and, as the flames threatened to spread, the garrison, three of whom had been wounded, found themselves obliged to surrender. The men were dismissed without injury, but all the buildings were burned to the ground. The marshal and the inspector’s son, who came up just after the surrender, were made prisoners.* The marshal was subjected to a good deal of abuse, and was only dismissed after a promise, extorted by threats of instant death, and guaranteed by young Neville, not to attempt to serve any more processes west of the mountains. The next day a message was sent to Pittsburgh, where the inspector and the marshal had taken refuge, requiring the one to resign his office, and the other to give up the warrants in his possession. This they refused to do. The means of protection at Pittsburgh were small; and…
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* Also, Major Craig, Ensign Semple, and another name not recollected.
- 1803 Letter from Presley Nevill in historical records of the LeMoyne House, Washington County, Pennsylvania.
The following is the only history of my family which I am in possession of and which I this day collected from my father Gen. John Nevill Feb 8, 1803. ... Joseph Nevill, my grandfather, one of the sons of the aforesaid couple [John Nevill and Miss Weeks] was born about 1700 in Gloucester County, Virginia and was bred a planter, he married a Mary Barget a very handsome and genteel woman. She was an only child, ...
- "NEVILLE MANSION." A large, two-story building set in a garden on the northwest corner of Water and Ferry Streets.
This was the famous shingle-roofed house built about 1766 by George Morgan for the conduct of sales and the storage of goods which were to be sent for trade in the Illinois country. When George Croghan visited Philadelphia, in 1765, he induced George Morgan, youthful member of the firm, Baynton, Wharton, and Morgan, to enter the western Indian trade. After the company closed their business in the Illinois country and removed from Pittsburgh, the house was rented to Samuel Semple. In 1770 when George Washington made his tour to the Ohio, he "lodged in what is called the town, distant about 300 yards from the fort, at one Mr. Semple's, who keeps a very good house of public entertainment." Later, General John Neville bought the home and lived there at least until the latter part of 1801. At that time he advertised the place for sale.
General John Neville, a Virginian, served in Braddock's Army and in Lord Dunmore's War. Neville was commandant at Fort Pitt, renamed Fort Dunmore during Virginia's occupation. He served as an officer in the Revolution and later as an inspector of revenue under the excise law. General Neville, Abraham Kirkpatrick, and others were targets for the Whiskey Insurrectionists in 1794. His country estate, Bower Hill, was burned by that angry mob. General Neville died in 1803. This home for many years was known as the "Neville Mansion."
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