Josiah Clapham


Josiah Clapham (also spelled Josias; died 1803) was a colonial merchant, military officer, and politician in Virginia who served as a member of the House of Burgesses and later the Virginia General Assembly, representing Loudoun County.[1][2][3]

Biography

Born in Virginia, Clapham served as a lieutenant in the Virginia militia beginning in the 1750s.[4] Clapham had a variety of business ventures, including a water mill, warehouse, mercantile, and ferry.[5][6]

In 1757, Clapham was approved with a license to operate the Potomac Crossing Ferry. He convinced the government of Virginia to approve a less expensive toll.[7] He was one of the founding trustees of the Town of Leesburg, Virginia in 1758.[8] In 1776, Clapham was a delegate to the Fifth Virginia Convention which established its first constitution and the Virginia Declaration of Rights. In 1778, Clapham's ferry license was discontinued.[9][10] Clapham served as a member of the House of Burgesses from 1771 to 1779 and as a member of the Virginia General Assembly from 1779 to 1788.[11][2][12] During the American Revolutionary War, Clapham served as a colonel and member of the Loudoun County Committee of Safety.[13]

In 1779, Clapham purchased the 200-acre Chestnut Hill estate in Loudoun County, Virginia.[5] In 1790, Clapham was one of the first trustees of Matildaville, Virginia.[14] Clapham died in 1803.[5]

References

  1. ^ "House History". history.house.virginia.gov. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  2. ^ a b "The Carolina Road – Today's Route 15 | History of Loudoun County, Virginia". Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  3. ^ Cynthia Miller Leonard, The Virginia General Assembly 1619-1978 (Richmond: Virginia State Library 1978) pp. 89, 96, 98, 101
  4. ^ Virginia County Records. Genealogical Association. 1905.
  5. ^ a b c "Northern Virginia History Notes". www.novahistory.org. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  6. ^ "Local Lore The History of Camp Potomac Woods". www.camptagalong.org. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  7. ^ "Lock 27, Spinks Ferry – C&O Canal Trust". Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  8. ^ Neill, Edward Duffield (1868). The Fairfaxes of England and America in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, including letters from and to hon. W. Fairfax, and his sons.
  9. ^ Fiedel, Stuart; Bedell, John; LeeDecker, Charles (December 2005). "Cohongorooto: The Potomac Above the Falls" (PDF). National Park Service History eLibrary. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  10. ^ Edwards, David A.; Salmon, John S. (January 31, 1989). "Catoctin Rural Historic District NRHP Nomination" (PDF). Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  11. ^ Cynthia Miller Leonard, The Virginia General Assembly 1619-1978 (Richmond: Virginia State Library 1978) pp. 98, 100, 103, 106
  12. ^ Head, James William (1908). History and Comprehensive Description of Loudoun County, Virginia. Park view Press.
  13. ^ Boogher, William Fletcher (1965). Gleanings of Virginia History: An Historical and Genealogical Collection, Largely from Original Sources. Genealogical Publishing Com. ISBN 978-0-8063-0048-1.
  14. ^ Nan Netherton Netherton, Donald Sweig, Jancie Artemel, Patricia Hickin and Patrick Read, Fairfax County, Virginia: a History (Fairfax: Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, 1978) p. 206
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