Joseph Cathcart, Sr.
(1748 - 1835) Gen. Sumter's Spy

 Children | Pension Statement | Notes

Joseph Cathcart is a very interesting person and very likely related to my line of Cathcarts.  The most detailed source for information about Joseph's life comes from his Revolutionary War pension application.¹   Also, several results from our Cathcart yDNA study provide tantalizing hints, which tie together various Cathcart lines with connections to eastern Tennessee (especially Monroe County)—and therefore point to the possibility of Joseph's offspring being responsible for these close genetic matches.

He was born about 1748 in County Antrim, Ireland.  In 1773, he immigrated to York County, Pennsylvania.  Five years later, he moved to Fairfield District, South Carolina² , where he later served as a spy for General Sumter during the Revolutionary War.  He apparently stayed in South Carolina until about 1814, when he left for Knox County, Tennessee. 

Trying to piece together Joseph's family requires quite a bit of investigation and sleuthing.  As far as we can tell, Joseph died without a will, so we lack that document as a possible source for more information about his offspring. The most compelling/direct evidence concerning Joseph's children comes from a pension application document for his daughter, Mary Cross.  There are also interesting tidbits of information in several land transactions  in South Carolina.  (more on both of these sets of documents later). 

We find Joseph in the 1790 census (Camden District, Fairfield County), and 1800 and 1810 censuses for York County, South Carolina.  Because of the lack of census enumerations for the eastern section of Tennessee until the 1830s census, we cannot rely on that source to help sort out Joseph and his family from the time he first settled in eastern Tennessee.

Looking more closely at the 1790 census—and assuming we have the correct Joseph—we can see that he had four male children age 16 or less.  In addition, there are four females listed; which implies at least three female children, and a wife—assuming she was still living at the time of the census.

In about 1824 he moved from Knox to Monroe County, Tennessee³  where he lived until his death on June 2, 1835.

Further details can be gleaned from the pension application of his daughter, Mary.⁴   First of all, the paperwork lists three "heirs at law" of Joseph's estate: Mary Cross, Rosey Thompson and Allen Cathcart.  Mary expands her oath to indicate that Allen moved to "some of the Western states" and that she had not heard from him for the last four or five years.⁵   Because the term "heirs at law" is usually used in the case where the deceased dies intestate, this is evidence leading to the conclusion that Joseph Cathcart died without a will—and that we will not be able to glean more information about his offspring from that source.  Finally, Mary's paperwork provides yet another source verifying Joseph's date of death on 2 June, 1835.

Joseph is worthy of more study, not only for his very interesting life, but also because he might be part of the link between my line of Cathcarts and the "Tennessee Cathcarts" to whom I am very closely related genetically.

For more information about Cathcarts in Tennessee, see my Tennessee page.

Children

It is difficult to know with certainty who all of Joseph's children were.  His pension statement confirms the identity of three children:

• Allen Cathcart
• Eliza Rose "Rosey" Cathcart Thompson
• Mary Cathcart Cross
  • In 1845, Mary applies for pension benefits based on the service of her father.  Here are the highlights of the package:
    • confirms date of death of Joseph June 2, 1835; that he left no widow at the time of his death (i.e. that she died before him); and that he resided in Monroe County, Tennessee  at the time of his death—and for the preceding 15 years before his death.
    • Given that there was no wife, application submits  the three "heirs at law" Mary Cross, Rosey Thompson and Allen Cathcart.
    • Mary further states that her brother Allen "removed to some of the Western states and that she has not heard from him for the last 4 or 5 years."
    • The application is signed by Monroe County Justice of the Peace, James Montgomery, who says that he is acquainted with Mary Cross.
  • click here for a PDF version of the entire application paperwork package

As mentioned above, most of the information we have about Mary comes from her application for a portion of her father's pension. At several points in the application references made to Joseph's three children: Allen, Rosie and Mary. It is possible that given the date of the application (1846) the references to three children were in fact references to living children only and that there still could have been other children of Joseph.

There are other tantalizing clues (primarily involving an 1807 land transaction in Chester County, South Carolina) indicating the possible existence of several other children:

• Joseph Cathcart, Jr.
• Hugh Cathcart
• David Cathcart

 

Pension Statement

Pension Declaration

State of Tennessee
Monroe County

     On this 20^th day of September 1832 personally appeared in aforesaid Court, before the Justice of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions now sitting, Joseph Cathcart, a resident of the said county and state aged 85 years⁶ , who being first duly sworn according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress, passed June 7, 1832.

    That he was born in Ireland, and came to the U.S. and settled in York County, Penna in 1773.  In 1778 he moved to Fairfield So. Ca. where he shortly after joined the Militia in Capt John Frances' Company, Col Jn.^o Winn's⁷  Regiment, under Genl Sumpter [sic].  The first service he did was, that he was marched in said Francis company to one Caldwell's, where Tories and British were collected, and had an engagement with them and took them, (which was about 20 miles before York C. House).  He went on with the prisoners as far as Hills' Iron Works when he returned home with the company, still however in service and daily on the watch, for the country was full of British or Tories, there being but three Whigs in the neighborhood in whom he could confide.  A few days after he reached home a company of Tories under command of Capt. [Rogers] took him to Camden about 40 miles, charging him with being a rebel spy.  When he was taken to Camden there was one Capt Smith (a Tory, but a neighbor of applicant) who took his part and had his trial brought on one day when the witnesses were absent, which saved his life.  While he was confined in Camden, Gen'l Sumpter (having learned of his confinement by one James Boyd) said he would give two men in exchange for him.  For the charge of spying should have been sustained, as Gen'l Sumpter had himself appointed applicant as a spy, his position being favorable for the purpose, and Whigs being scarce in that quarter.  He acted as a spy till the end of the war, nearly two years and lost all his property, being considerable, with the exception of two cows which were in the woods.  He was engaged in various ___ and skirmishes of which he cannot now give a minute account, as it is long since they occurred, and his memory has failed to a great degree.  He was then on the watch and immediately between the adverse parties, again taken prisoner by the Tories, but a liberty party rescued him a few days afterwards.  In the summer, not long before the surrender of Cornwallis,⁸  he went out for the last time, in the same company he had been in informally before (Capt. Frances') and was at a battle at the taking of a fort on the Congaree.  He can sometimes remember the name of the fort, but cannot now.  The British and Tories stacked their arms and surrendered.  They marched the prisoners off, he forgets where.  Applicant cannot at this time tell how often he [went] out or how long at each time, but he considered himself in active and dangerous service, and indeed in constant service for one year, and if the time he acted as a spy under Genl Sumpter's command be taken into account, which was highly dangerous and difficult, he was in service more than two years.

     He has no documentary evidence and three is no person by whom he can prove any service by him rendered so far as he knows.  He hereby relinquishes any claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present and declares that his name is not on the Pension roll of the Agency of any State.  There is no clergyman living in his neighborhood, he therefore [procures] a justice of the peace in his stead.

Sworn to and subscribed    }

The day and year aforesaid }    [signed] Joseph Cathcart

Wm [S. Callaway] Clerk         }

 

     We, William Upton, a Justice of the Peace and William Montgomery, citizens of Monroe County, Tennessee hereby certify that we are well acquainted with Joseph Cathcart who has subscribed and sworn to the above declaration, that we believe him to be 85 years of age; that he is [reported] and [believed] in the neighborhood where he resides, to have been a soldier of the revolution and that we concur in that opinion.

Sworn to and subscribed     }     [signed]
The day and year aforesaid }    William Upton
Wm [S. Callaway] Clerk       }     Wm Montgomery

     And the said court do hereby declare their opinion, after the investigation of the matter, and after putting the interrogatories proscribed by the War Department, that the above named applicant was a revolutionary soldier, and served as he states.  And the Court further certifies that, it appears to them that William Upton who has signed the proceeding certificate is a justice of the peace for Monroe County aforesaid and that William Montgomery, a Citizen of said County who has also signed the same, is a resident of said County and is a credible person and that their statement is entitled to credit.

  [3 signatures:] Thos [Caldwell], Wm [Bayles], John [Monroe?]

  I William S. Callaway, Clerk of the County Court of Monroe County do hereby certify that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said court in the matter of the application of Joseph Cathcart for a pension.

    In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and private seal having no seal of office in Madisonville.  September the 20^th 1832

(Seal) [signed] Wm S. Callaway

I H. S. White, Senator in Congress certify that I ___ believe the above to be the genuine signature of Wm S. Callaway, who was at the above date Clerk of the said Court.  [signed June 8th 1833]

 

State of Tennessee
Monroe County

     Personally appeared before the Subscriber, a Justice of the Peace for said County of Monroe, Joseph Cathcart, who being duly worn, deposeth and saith, that he is the identical individual who made the declaration hereunto attached, before the Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions on the 20^th day of September 1832, to which he now makes the following

Amended Declaration:

     That he was born in Ireland on, as he believes, the Month of May AD 1748.  He has no record of his age.  When he was called into Service he resided in Fairfield District So. Carolina, and volunteered each time.  He never received, nor applied for any discharge.  He states that the following persons are, at present his neighbors and can testify as to his integrity and their belief in his services as a soldier of the revolution [esp] Michael ___, Alexander Mullins⁹ , Aaron Dean, & Hiram Defrize.

     The period applicant served in the war was the three last years of the Revolution.  He was more than two years in Service, and was in the last battle fought in the South -- at the [taking?] of the fort on the Congaree River.  He [resided] in South Carolina ever since the Revolution, until AD 1814, when he moved to Knox County, Tenn, where he lived till 9 years ago, when he moved into said Monroe County where he now resides.

Sworn to and Subscribed       }                [signed] Joseph Cathcart

Before me this 18^th May 1833}

[signed] William James

Justice of the Peace

Notes

1. Nearly all of Joseph's pension application has been transcribed above.  Click here to see the entire pension application paperwork package from ancestry.com.  The original information is from the National Archives and Records Administration, and the specific database is called Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900.
2. If Joseph moved to Fairfield County, SC five years after immigrating to York County, PA, that equates to 1778.  Furthermore, if he left SC for Knox Co., TN in 1814, then we would expect to find Joseph in the 1790 and 1800 census for Fairfield Co.
   1. The 1790 Census, Fairfield Co., SC does have an apparent match; but...
   2.  There is Mary Kithcart (age 45 or greater) in Fairfield.
      1. Being 45 or older indicates Mary was born on or before 1756, which would be appropriate for Joseph's wife.  However, where is Joseph and why is he not listed as head of household?
      2. Most researchers believe that Mary was the wife of John Cathcart.  There's even a slight chance that Mary was the wife of John Cathcart of my "Big Four;" however, I'm becoming less convinced of this being the case.
3. Joseph's 1833 Revolutionary War Pension statement states that he lived in Knox County "until about nine years ago," [i.e. c.1824] whereupon he moved to Monroe County.
4. Mary Cathcart Cross
   1. Joseph's pension paperwork shows that she is a daughter. 
   2. We may have found Mary living with James Denton Vann in 1860 and 1870.
5. Son Allen may be the same Allen listed in the 1820/30/40 census in Warren County.  Although in the center of the state, it may have been considered "some of the western states" by Mary in the mid 1830s as she was completing paperwork regarding her father's pension.
6. 1832 (date of first application) less 85 years = 1747 year of birth
7. I believe that Col. John Winn is the son of Richard Winn—who served as a general during the revolutionary war.  The town of Winnsboro, South Carolina is named after Richard Winn, who settled in the area in about 1777—around which time the settlement was known as "Winnsborough."
8. Lord Cornwallis surrendered on October 19, 1781, ending the siege at Yorktown, Virginia.
9. Alexander Mullins appears in the 1830 census on the same page as David Cathcart.