James Matthews (1739–1825), son of James Matthew Sr. and his wife Mary (McGill)
Matthews was born in Pennsylvania on 12 August 1739. After the death of his father he
became "Sr.," and that is on his tombstone in the Matthews Cemetery in Maury County,
Tennessee. James purchased 500 acres of land near John Hanna and raised his family on
Stewart Creek, Surrey County, North Carolina. He participated in the Battle of Alamance as
a "Regulator." After the outbreak of the Revolutionary War he enlisted as a private in the
North Carolina Line as a resident of Guilford County. He served as a private in Blount's
Company, North Carolina troops, for eighteen months, beginning 17 December 1779. Next,
he enlisted on 14 June 1781 for a twelve-month term in CPT Thomas Donoho's Company,
4th Regiment North Carolina Continental Line. About 1810 he moved his family from
Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, with the family of Samuel Scott other members of the
Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church to Maury County, Tennessee, settling in the
Campbellsville Pike area. James was a co-founder of the Hopewell A.R.P. Church. He died on
15 March 1825, and was buried in the Matthews Cemetery in Maury County. In his last will
and testament, which he executed on 4 June 1819, he mentioned his surveying
instruments.
James married Miss Mary Doak on 5/6 February 1766 in Rowan County (which later became
Guilford County), North Carolina. She was born in Lunenburg County, Virginia, on 30 June
1749, and died in Maury County, Tennessee, on 7 March 1833, aged "near 84 years." James
and Mary (Doak) Matthews had six sons and six daughters, and at least three of them
moved to Maury County with their parents.
Information provided by Earl
One of the founders of the Hopewell A.R.P. Church
Family links:
Spouse:
Mary Doak Matthews (1749 - 1833)
Children:
John Matthews (1768 - 1839)*
Martha Matthews Hanna (1770 - 1835)*
*Calculated relationship
Burial:
Matthews Cemetery
Southport
Maury County
Tennessee, USA