Josiah Clapham Explained

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] [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. In 1790, Clapham was one of the first trustees of Matildaville, Virginia.[14] Clapham died in 1803.

Notes and References

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