PATRICK MAGEE
Born: ca 1756 County, Antrim, Ireland
Married: ca 1779 Georgia
Died: 11 Feb 1816 Missouri Territory
Wife: ROSANNA MCCULLAR
Born: ca 1760 County Antrim, Ireland
Died: after 1823 McNairy County, Tennessee
Buried: Bethel Springs Cemetery, McNairy County
Children:
Francis B:ca 1780 Georgia D:1844 MS or AL M:1. Annie
McAlpine 2. Martha Ray
John B:ca 1783 Georgia
Felix B:ca 1784 Georgia D:1817 Washington Co, MO
M:Elizabeth Walls
Mary B:ca 1787 Georgia D:Robert Wilson
Samuel B:ca 1789 Georgia D:20 Jan 1845 Yalobusha Co, MS
M:Elizabeth
Margaret B:ca 1790 Georgia D:1811 M:John McCullar
Katherine B:ca 1793 Taliferro, Georgia M:John McCullar
Sarah B:ca 1796 Taliferro, Georgia M:John W. Crow
Mehalley B:ca 1798 Taliferro, Georgia M:Mr. Clement
Martha B:ca 1801 Taliferro, Georgia D:8 Jan 1859 McNairy Co,
TN M:Jonathan Rowsey
James B:5 Apr 1802 Taliferro, Georgia D:28 Feb 1864 Panola
Co, MS M:Edna Dawson
References:
“Genealogy of Patrick Magee and Rosanna McCullar” C.E. Moore
“Families of Samuel Dawson and Polly Ann Rogers”, J.D.
Blackwell
Clark’s Chapel Cemetery, Caldwell County, Texas
1850-1860 Census of Panola County, Mississippi
1870 Census of Wilkerson County, Texas
1880 Census of San Saba County, Texas
1900-1910 Censuses of Caldwell County, Texas
The earliest information on the Magee family is from 1724. Dennis
or Patrick Magee was born in about 1724 at Island Magee located
about 20 miles northeast of Belfast in what is now Northern Ireland.
It is not known whether his name was Dennis or Patrick. He
married Bridget O'Conner in about 1750. The map below shows
the location of Island Magee.
They had at least four children, all born at Island Magee:
* Patrick was born 1750-1753 and died 11 Feb 1816 in Missouri
Territory.
* John was born about 1755 and died unknown.
* Felix was born about 1757 and died unknown.
* Esther was born about 1770 and died unknown.
===
PATRICK MAGEE AND ROSANNA McCULLAR
Members of the Magee and McCullar families emigrated from
County Antrim in what is now Northern Ireland in about 1770 on
the ship Hopewell out of Belfast, Ireland to Savannah, Georgia
Colony. The Magee's came from Island Magee, but it is not known
where the McCullar's were from or if they knew each other in
Ireland. The Magee family included Patrick (age about 17 or 18),
his sister Esther (an infant), and probably their parents or someone
to take care of Esther. The McCullar family included the father,
Alexander (age about 14), his sister Rosanna (age about 12) and
probably other members of the family. John and Felix Magee, two
brothers of Patrick Magee, came to Georgia on the ship Brittania in
about 1772.
At a later time Patrick Magee would marry Rosanna McCullar and
Alexander McCullar would marry Esther Magee, and the two
families would be neighbors for over forty years.
The Magee and McCullar ancestors wandered over a large part of
this country. The Magee and McCullar families moved many times
and over great distances.
A tract of land had been set aside for Irish emigrants to the Georgia
Colony at a place called Queensboro Township on or near the River
Great Ogechee (now called Ogeechee River) in St. George Parish.
On February 6, 1770 the inhabitants of this land petitioned the
Colony to lay out a road from Queensboro to the road already laid
out from
Savannah to Jonathan Bryan's cowpen on the River Great Ogechee.
Apparently there was no road all the way from Savannah to
Queensboro.
After the two families arrived in Savannah, their first move was to
Queensboro northwest of Savannah, a distance of about 100 miles.
This trip could have taken from about one week to several weeks
depending on the "road" conditions.
In January 1771 Patrick Magee petitioned for a grant of 100 acres
of land and one town lot in the Queensboro Township. He did not
complete the petition in a timely manner, so he had to resubmit the
petition in April 1772. He was granted 100 acres of land and his
brother, John McGee (Magee) was granted 250 acres of land in
1774.
Shortly after arriving in Queensboro the McCullar family moved to
Augusta, Georgia Colony, a distance of about 40 miles. While in
Augusta the American Revolutionary War started and Alexander
McCullar enlisted in the colonial army for six months and served in
Florida. After Alexander got out of the army the McCullar's
returned to Queensboro and Alexander enlisted in the army for
another three months.
In 1777, St. George Parish became Burke County. Patrick Magee
and Rosanna McCullar were married in about 1778 in Burke
County. They would have eleven children. Up to four of their
children were born in Burke County, the remainder were born in the
Powelton area in Greene County, Georgia (this area would become
Taliferro County in 1825).
In about 1788, the Magee and McCullar families moved from Burke
County to Greene County, a distance of about 40 miles. Starting
with this move the Magee and McCullar families would continue to
move as new lands were opened for settlement.
Alexander McCullar and Esther Magee were married in about 1789
in Greene County. They would have eight children, all born in
Greene County. This marriage was the first known intermarriage in
the Magee and McCullar families, but many more would follow and
there would be such a mess that nobody would ever be able to
untangle it.
The two families stayed in Greene County until about 1806. They
drew land in Clarke County, Georgia in the Georgia Land Lottery
and moved to Clarke County, a distance of only about 40 miles.
Patrick Magee with his brothers and Alexander McCullar Sr. with
his brothers were involved in many land purchases, sales, and the
Georgia Land Lottery while they lived in Clarke County and
acquired a lot of land.
Patrick and Rosanna's third child Felix McGee (Magee) and
Elizabeth Walls were married on January 15, 1807 in Clarke
County. They would have three children, two born in Georgia and
one born in the Missouri Territory.
The Magee and McCullar families stayed in Clarke County until
about 1813. By this time the United States had completed the
Louisiana Purchase and Lewis and Clark had explored much of the
area and made many glowing reports about what they found in the
new territory. The Missouri Territory had been opened for
settlement.
In about 1813 the two families pulled up stakes in Clarke County
and moved to Franklin County, TN (a distance of about 175 miles).
Either before the move to Franklin County or soon afterward
Patrick Magee had decided that he wanted to go to the newly
created Missouri Territory. Apparently Alexander McCullar did not
agree with him and decided to stay in Franklin County. After over
40 years of being neighbors, the two families decided to split up in
about 1814.
Patrick Magee probably started planning his trip to the Missouri
Territory before or soon after arriving in Franklin County, TN. To
get to the Missouri Territory from Franklin County the Patrick
Magee party had to go north across Tennessee into Kentucky
because the Cherokee Indians used the part of Tennessee west of
Franklin County for their hunting grounds, and it was not
considered safe to enter. Kentucky was considered to be relatively
safe. The party would have traveled west and a little north across
Kentucky to an area about 30 miles south of St. Louis in the
Missouri Territory (a distance of over 350 miles). This area is near
the present day Hillsboro, Jefferson County, Missouri. Since there
were many hills, rivers and streams to cross, this trip would have
taken at least four to six weeks.
Information about the Missouri Territory is hard to find because
most Courthouses, Churches, and Masonic Lodges were destroyed
during the Civil War by the Union Army.
Felix McGee (Magee), third child of Patrick and Rosanna Magee
wrote his will on 2 Feb 1817 and died soon afterward near present
day Hillsboro, Missouri. The will was probated 24 Jun 1817.
Court records show that the will was probated in St. Louis County,
Missouri Territory. His will gave disposition of his property
including slaves. One item in the settlement of Felix's estate was a
bill to pay for lumber to build a coffin dated February 11, 1816
signed by William Crow who was the administrator of Patrick
Magee’s estate. William Crow was also the husband of Sarah
(Sally) Magee, eighth child of Patrick and Rosanna. Because of this
item it is assumed that Patrick died on or about February 11, 1816
in the Missouri Territory. Patrick's will has not been found. Patrick
and Felix are both probably buried near Hillsboro, MO.
Toward the mid-1820's most of the Magee and McCullar families
that lived in Missouri moved to McNairy County, Tennessee and
some stayed in Missouri. The people that left could have traveled
down the Mississippi River to Memphis, TN, and then overland to
McNairy County, an overland distance of about 90 miles. If they
traveled overland all the way, the distance would have been about
240 miles.
Several Magee and McCullar families and some new families
bought land in McNairy County in 1824 through 1827, with much
of the land adjoining. The families buying land were:
*Rosanna (McCullar) Magee,
*John Rowsey, husband of Martha (Patsy) Magee, 10th child of
Patrick and Rosanna
*John McCullar, 1st child of Alexander Sr. and Esther Magee and
husband of Katherine (Katy) Magee, 7th child of Patrick and
Rosanna
*James Magee, 11th child of Patrick and Rosanna
*Samuel Magee, 5th child of Patrick and Rosanna Alexander
McCullar Sr.
In the years immediately preceding the Civil War the Magee and
McCullar families in Mississippi were all doing well, with large
families, good farms and houses, with slaves to work their farms,
and living happily. The war came and changed things, most of the
men were in the Confederate Army for the duration of the War.
Some did not return and those that did come home found
everything desolate. Three of the grand-sons of Felix McGee, 3rd
child of Patrick and Rosanna, were in the Union Army. Samuel
McGee served all through the war. James McGee was killed at the
Battle of Vicksburg and William McGee served with the Union
Army for a while but finally deserted and joined the Confederate
Army. Soon after the Civil War, most of the Magee's and
McCullar's left Mississippi and moved to Texas. Many went
overland by wagon train, and some probably went by ship from a
Louisiana or Mississippi port to the port of Galveston or Indianola,
Texas. These families settled in many parts of Texas and became
farmers, ranchers or business people. Some didn't like Texas and
returned to Mississippi.
The McCullar party that stayed in Franklin County, TN left in about
1818 for Alabama and Mississippi. The Francis Magee family had
two additions in Franklin County. The Francis Magee family first
settled near Greensboro, Hale County, AC, a distance of about 200
miles from Franklin County. They later moved to Marshall County,
MS, a distance of about 175 miles.
We do not know where the Alexander McCullar Sr., family settled
in Mississippi. All we know is that he lived at Pearl River,
Mississippi for nine years. The Pearl River flows from about 60
miles northeast of present Jackson, Mississippi to the Gulf of
Mexico at the Louisiana-Mississippi state line. There are two towns
named Pearl in the Jackson area, and there is a Pearl River County
in southern Mississippi. The distance from mid-Franklin County to
Jackson, MS is about 270 miles and to mid-Pearl River County is
about 330 miles. In about 1827 the Alexander McCullar Sr. family
moved to the area around present day Selmer in McNairy County,
TN. The distance from Jackson, MS to Selmer, TN is about 200
miles.
The McCullar Party and the Magee Party must have been in contact
with each other to end up in the same place near the mid-point
between the two groups that were about 450 to 500 miles apart.
Alexander McCullar Sr. started buying land in McNairy County in
1827. By 1848, when he died, he owned all the land where the
present town of Selmer is located, a town with a present population
of about 4000. In '1846 and 1847 Alexander McCullar Sr. started
giving his slaves to his wife, children, and grand-children. It is not
known where Alexander is buried, but his wife, Esther Magee, is
buried in the cemetery at Bethel Springs, a few miles north of
Selmer.
Shortly after arriving in Queensboro the McCullar family moved to
Augusta, Georgia Colony, a distance of about 40 miles. While in
Augusta the American Revolutionary War started and Alexander
McCullar enlisted in the colonial army for six months and served in
Florida. After Alexander got out of the army the McCullar's
returned to Queensboro and Alexander enlisted in the army for
another three months.
Alexander McCullar and Esther Magee were married in about 1789
in Greene County. They would have eight children, all born in
Greene County. This marriage was the first known intermarriage in
the Magee and McCullar families, but many more would follow and
there would be such a mess that nobody would ever be able to
untangle it.
The eight children of Alexander Sr. and Esther (Magee) McCullar
are:
John B: 1790
David B:1792
Alexander B:1795
Margaret (Peggy) B:1797
Isaac B:1799
Mary (Polly) B:1801
William B:1803
Jennie (Jane) B:1805
While in Augusta the American Revolutionary War started and
Alexander McCullar enlisted in the colonial army for six months and
served in Florida. After Alexander got out of the army the
McCullar's returned to Queensboro and Alexander enlisted in the
army for another three months. Patrick Magee is believed to have
been a veteran but died in 1816, therefore, he was not eligible for a
pension.
In 1832 the U.S. Congress passed a law giving veterans of the
American Revolution a pension, but the veterans had to apply for it
while still alive. Alexander McCullar was a veteran and applied for
his pension on September 23, 1833 in McNairy County, TN. In his
application he states the following:
1. Name: Alexander McCullar, age 75, resident of McNairy
County, TN
2. Born in County Antrim, Ireland on December 22, 1758
3. When I was 14 years of age my father, self, and family migrated
from Ireland and landed at Savannah
4. Moved to Burke County, Georgia.
