Joseph McClellan (April 28, 1746 – October 13, 1834) was an American soldier, farmer, and politician from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

who served as a

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

captain during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. Wounded during the

Yorktown campaign The Yorktown campaign, also known as the Virginia campaign, was a series of military maneuvers and battles during the American Revolutionary War that culminated in the siege of Yorktown in October 1781. The result of the campaign was the surren ...

and invalidated out of the army, he later served in the

Pennsylvania State Senate The Pennsylvania State Senate is the upper house of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, the Pennsylvania state legislature. The State Senate meets in the State Capitol building in Harrisburg. Senators are elected for four-year terms, stagger ...

and became brevet colonel of militia.

Biography

McClellan was born on April 28, 1746, in Middletown Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. When he was 13 years old, the family moved to Sadsbury Township in

Chester County Chester County may refer to: * Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States ** Chester County Council, boy scout council in Pennsylvania. * Chester County, South Carolina, United States * Chester County, Tennessee, United States * Cheshire ...

. When the American Revolutionary War erupted in 1775, McClellan was commissioned lieutenant of a musket company on July 15, 1776. He commanded a company in

Samuel John Atlee Samuel John Atlee (1739 – November 25, 1786) was an American soldier and statesman from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress for the Province of Pennsylvania from 1778 to 1782. Early life Samuel was born in Tre ...

's battalion, which fought in the

Battle of Long Island The Battle of Long Island, also known as the Battle of Brooklyn and the Battle of Brooklyn Heights, was an action of the American Revolutionary War fought on August 27, 1776, at and near the western edge of Long Island in present-day Brooklyn ...

and the

Battle of Fort Washington The Battle of Fort Washington was fought in New York on November 16, 1776, during the American Revolutionary War between the United States and Great Britain. It was a British victory that gained the surrender of the remnant of the garrison of ...

. He joined the

as a captain in

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

's brigade, fighting alongside the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

at the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Am ...

in 1777. McClellan deployed with the

9th Pennsylvania Regiment The 9th Pennsylvania Regiment was authorized 16 September 1776 and was assigned to the main Continental Army on 27 December 1776. It was organized during the spring of 1777 to consist of eight companies of volunteers from Westmoreland, Lanca ...

through March 22, 1781, before transferring to the

2nd Pennsylvania Regiment The 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment, formed with lauded veterans from the 1st Pennsylvania Battalion, was raised in December 1776. The 1st Pennsylvania Battalion was raised in October 1775, under the command of Colonel John Bull for service with the Co ...

under Walter Stewart. Now commanding the York Rifle Company of light infantry, Captain McClellan was wounded in a skirmish with British troops during the

in the summer of 1781, resigning his commission and returning home to recuperate. Lafayette, now his commanding general, later wrote to McClellan praising the "strict military discipline and wonderful marksmanship" of the company he had commanded. Becoming a local dignitary after the war ended, McClellan was elected Chester County commissioner in 1784 and lieutenant of the county militia with the brevet rank of colonel in 1790. He served as county sheriff from 1792 from 1795. He was captain of dragoons and major of a regiment mustered to suppress the

Whiskey Rebellion The Whiskey Rebellion (also known as the Whiskey Insurrection) was a violent tax protest in the United States beginning in 1791 and ending in 1794 during the presidency of George Washington. The so-called "whiskey tax" was the first tax impo ...

in 1794. From 1797 to 1800, he served in the

, representing Bucks, Chester, and Montgomery counties as a

Federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters call themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of deep ...

. He was elected burgess of West Chester in 1814 and served as the first president of the

Bank of Chester County Bank of Chester County (also known as the National Bank of Chester County, National Bank of Chester County and Trust Company, and Fidelity Bank) is a historic two-story bank building located in West Chester, Chester County, Pennsylvania, the fir ...

(1814–1816 and again 1817–1819). He emerged from retirement to chair a committee to welcome Lafayette on a tour of Chester County in 1824–1825.

Death and legacy

McClellan died at his Chester County farm in 1834 at the age of 88. A five-foot-tall monument, comprising two blocks of Brandywine granite surmounted with a polished granite ball featuring an inscription, was dedicated to honor his service during the Revolutionary War on September 11, 1895. The memorial is located at the

Birmingham Friends Meetinghouse Birmingham Friends Meetinghouse is a historic Quaker meeting house at 1245 Birmingham Road in Birmingham Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. The current meetinghouse was built in 1763. The building and the adjacent cemetery were near the cen ...

. McClellan married Keziah Parke in 1786. His granddaughter, Keziah Ann Hemphill, married Thomas S. Bell, and their children included Thomas S. Bell Jr.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McClellan, Joseph 1746 births 1834 deaths American bankers Continental Army officers from Pennsylvania Farmers from Pennsylvania Mayors of places in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Federalists Pennsylvania sheriffs Pennsylvania state senators Politicians from Chester County, Pennsylvania Military personnel from Chester County, Pennsylvania 18th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly