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Abington Church in Glouster, Virginia where
Cluverius was born |
Cluverius Coleman was my 5th
great grandfather on my paternal line. He had a role in the American Revolution. He was born in Abingdon Parish which is
in Glouster County Virginia. His parents were Joseph Coleman and Grace Cluverius
so it is clear where his unusual name came from. Cluverius had five siblings –
two brothers Thomas and Samuel and three sisters Elizabeth, Rebecca and Sarah. Glouster
County was formed in 1651 and was a major tobacco growing area.
By 1760 Cluverius had relocated to
Mecklenburg County where many of our Pattillo ancestors lived. Cluverius
married Elizabeth Massey in Mecklenburg that year. They had nine children –
four boys and five girls including my 4th great grandmother Rebecca
Coleman.
In 1775 Cluverius had a key role in the
start of the American Revolution. He along with twenty other representatives
met on the eighth and thirteenth of May to “secure a due observation of the
association entered into by the Continental Congress”
They went on record stating that Lord Dunmore’s actions were alarming in
response to his having declared Patrick Henry an outlaw. Patrick Henry and his
body of militiamen objected to Dunmore having removed the gunpowder from the
public magazine in Williamsburg. “Taking a dramatic step ….. each member of the
committee was implored to exert his endeavors to enlist volunteer soldiers for
defensive rather than offensive purposes”.
This led us one step closer to the American Revolution.
On October 13, 1777 Cluverius, along
with five other men, was appointed as a Gentleman Justice for the county.
His term was renewed in September of 1778. Cluverius and his fellow jurists were
charged with administering loyalty oaths from the citizens of Mecklenburg. The
objective was to “dispel or at least render harmless potential enemies of the cause.” Some
who were unwilling to sign the oath were asked to leave.
Records show that on at least three
occasions in 1776 and 1777 Cluverius was listed on polls taken to determine
delegates for Mecklenburg County. Between 1777 and 1779 he witnessed three
different deeds that were recorded in Deed Book 5 for Mecklenburg County.
In September of 1778, Justices in
Mecklenburg ordered a man named John Cardin to appear in court and answer a
charge of “speaking disrespectfully of the measures of this Commonwealth …”
Cardin was found guilty, fined five pounds and spent two days in jail. Then in
October of 1777, “Leonard Cardin was accused, apparently by Cluverious Coleman,
of “harboring two deserters from the militia in the southern service.”
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Diagram from Katherine Elliot book of Mecklenburg
County showing the Buckhorn District that Cluverius
collected names of residents |
Land Acquisitions
Between 1771 and 1797 Cluverius
purchased twelve tracts of land and only sold one parcel as far as I can
determine from studying the deed books for Lunenburg and Mecklenburg Counties.
His first purchase, at the age of 21, was a 285-acre parcel in Lunenburg County
located on the Meherrin River. Six of the deeds noted that he bought land on
the Meherrin River. Most were on the south fork of the Meherrin and most of
those were on the south side of the south fork but one was on the north side of
the south fork. Other parcels were located on Buckhorn Creek, Laton Creek and
Allen Creek. All of these parcels were located generally northeast of the town
of Chase City which is very close to the town of Boydton – the county seat and
the place where our Pattillo ancestors lived for four generations. You may ask
how can parcels in two different counties be located in the same place? The answer
is because in 1771 what is now Mecklenburg was a part of Lunenburg County.
Mecklenburg was carved out of Lunenburg in 1765.
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1870 Map of Mecklenburg Co. from the Library of Congress.
The Buckhorn District is the gray section on the top of the map |
The purchases varied in size from a
one-acre parcel that he bought from Anthony Street for 15 shillings to a 370
acre parcel he acquired in 1774 from Joseph Turner. In total he owned at least
1877 acres. That amount of land constitutes a plantation whereas total acreage
of less 500 acres would have been considered a farm. His will noted that
Cluverius grew tobacco on his plantation.
Two parcels were mentioned in his will
when he left them to his son Thomas. Of those one had a mill on it.
Census Enumerator
In May of 1782, Cluvarius was one of
eight men who were appointed to record the number of tithables in Mecklenburg
County which meant males sixteen years of age or older including slaves. This
data has been used in place of the first US census taken in 1790 because the
census was destroyed during the war of 1812. The district that Cluvarius
counted was in the northern part of the county bordering Lunenburg County.
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This is the list of names collected by Cluverius that were
published in lieu of the 1790 census which was destroyed. |
In October of 1787, Cluverius was
involved with an unusual and interesting court case. He submitted an
application to be compensated for a slave he owned that had been falsely
convicted of burning a barn owned by a man named John Thompson. The record of
this case, dated October 24th noted that it included condemnation, a
valuation and a certificate. Likely this was the same Mr. Thompson who was his
neighbor on Buckhorn Creek.
One month later Cluvarius was engaged in
another court transaction when he was named as the guardian of Elizabeth, Jane
and Benjamin Coleman who were three of the four children of Cluvarius’s son
James Coleman. It is likely that James’s wife, Sarah Whitehouse was still
living but it was customary at that time for a man to be appointed as the
guardian. The children would have continued to live with their mother but their
grandfather was made responsible for their well-being until they came of age.
Will of Cluverius Coleman
On September 14, 1799 Cluverius signed
his will. He was fifty-nine years old at the time and living in St. James
Parish of Mecklenburg County. In his will he left his wife Massey the land they
were living on and five slaves named Anthony, Bob, Primus, Hanna and Amey. In
addition, she was to receive six choice head of cattle, one yoke (that’s two)
of oxen, one ox cart, ten head of sheep, fifteen head of hogs, thee choice work
horses, three choice featherbeds and furniture. He also left Massey his desk
and a bookcase, one dozen setting chairs, two choice tables, and such household
and kitchen furniture as she may stand in need of. His will stipulated that she
should be given sufficient plantation utensils for her use and the crop of corn
and tobacco growing on his plantation.
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A clip from our family tree showing how Cluverius is
related to James William Pattillo, our great grandfather. |
He left each of his son James
Coleman’s children five pounds cash which was to be distributed to them
when they came of age. That is the equivalent of $140 in 2020. His daughter Elizabeth
Coleman Jeffries received one slave named Phebe and each of her five children
got thirty pounds cash which is comparable to $838 today. The will offers no
explanation as to why he gave so much more to Elizabeth’s children. Possibly he
had already given James’s children, his three wards, other cash or property.
My fourth great grandmother Rebecca
Coleman Phillips received one negro boy named Moses and one negro woman
named Jenny and her increase, plus one hundred pounds to her and her heirs.
His daughter Mary Coleman Boswell’s
five children received one negro woman named Abbe and her increase and thirty-five
pounds cash a piece. His daughter Grace Coleman Hicks received one negro
boy named Edmund and one negro woman named Rachel and her increase. Grace’s
children also received one hundred pounds cash each.
His son John Coleman received one
hundred pounds, and two cows and calves for himself and his heirs. Anne
Coleman Green received five Negroes named Milly, Aggy, Jude, Mike and Sam,
as well as a young unbroken mare of her choice, and two cows and calves for her
heirs. Anne and each of her children received two hundred pounds.
Son William Coleman got the tract
of land that Cluverius had purchased from Nevin Stewart and the tract he bought
from John and David Holmes which he estimated contained 313 ¾ acres. This was
the parcel that Cluverius and Elizabeth lived on at the time. William and his
heirs also received five hundred pounds apiece.
Finally, his son Thomas Coleman
and his heirs got all of his land lying on both sides of the Meherrin River
including his mill. Anything not otherwise stipulated was to be equally divided
between his sons William and Thomas, and upon his wife’s death they were to
received everything that he had left to her. He also appointed his sons William
and Thomas as his executors.
The will was signed by Cluverius and
witnessed by John and Matthew Allen. It was proved in the Mecklenburg County
Court in October of 1799. One month later Cluverius died in Mecklenburg County
on October 14, 1799.
So, Cluvarius left his children and
their heirs between five and five hundred pounds each that’s $140 to $14,000.
Why the discrepancy? I don’t think we will ever know. From my experience in
reading historic wills I would say that it is more typical that parents tried
to provide a more equitable distribution except sons typically received more
than daughters.
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Map of the area of Mecklenburg where Cluverius owned land.
The black arrows point to the Meherrin River, the South fork,
Buckhorn Creek and the small creek at the top right may
be the Bare Branch. |
