James Munnerlyn
Sr.
( ca. 1710 - ca. 1800 )
The first Munnerlyn on record, so far as has been determined, was named James. One historian said that he was Irish. A genealogist has suggested that he was Welsh. According to records in the state archives of South Carolina James Munnerlyn was given a Royal Grant of 350 acres of land by King George the Third on September 27, 1769. This land as described in the Grant, was on the southwest side of the Little Pee Dee River. It was near the spot where the battle of Blue Savannah in the American Revolution was fought. Also, another record in the Archives is a surveyor's plat showing a block of 350 acres which was first surveyed for Thomas Keene but later transferred to James Munnerlyn on September 5, 1769. This plat described land on the east side of the Little Pee Dee. It is not clear as to whether these two pieces of land were different ones or the same piece but the locations 'southwest' and 'east' were clerical errors.
The land in the Grant was mostly wooded. There was some swamp land either in or adjacent to it. It appears that there were no settlers close by as the Grant says that the property was "bounded on all sides by vacant land." It was a part of what became known as Brittons Neck.
It is believed that James Munnerlyn was the father of six sons who were quite active in the American Revolution. Historical records tend to verify this belief. The six brothers were John, Benjamin, James, Loftis Redlee, William, and Francis. The census report of 1790 indicates that there were three white females in James' family but it is not clear whether any of them were daughters.
If James was the father of the six brothers then he lived in Craven County, later known as Marion County, as early as 1753 when Loftis Redlee was born. Records indicate that Loftis was born in that county in that year.
In taking over the land James and his family assumed a gigantic responsibility. The Grant specified that each year three acres of land per hundred acres and fraction thereof (a total of 10 1/2 acres) must be cleared and cultivated. In addition, there was to be a payment of 10 1/2 shillings, sterling, or 14 shillings 'proclamation' each year. All rights were granted with the land except white pine timber and 1/10 of all silver and gold mined which were reserved for the Crown.
The tasks that confronted James Munnerlyn and his family were clearing land, planting crops, building living quarters, constructing roads and river docks to facilitate transportation, and cooperating with other settlers in maintaining some form of local law and order, and protecting life and property from Indians and plunderers.
One historian wrote that the Munnerlyns were farmers and stock raisers, and their principal crops were indigo, rice, cotton, wheat and tobacco. They also had orchards and made beet cider. A boat dock on the Little Pee Dee belonging to the Munnerlyns made boat travel and freight moving to and from the plantation to Georgetown, on the coast, a distinct asset. An old account book in Georgetown lists two James Munnerlyns and a William Munnerlyn as having accounts there. The dates were 1785 and 1786.
One product of the Munnerlyn plantation was in great demand and at a high price. It was indigo. Synthetic indigo was not developed so the vegetable product was in wide spread use in Europe and elsewhere. The process of refining indigo was hard but quite remunerative. So much so that refined indigo could be traded pound for pound for human flesh in the form of black slaves. We do not know if the Munnerlyns engaged in this sort of traffic. The census records for 1790 show that three Munnerlyns owned slaves as follows: James, 5; John, 4; and Loftis Redlee, 3. Another James, presumably the older man, had no slaves. However, these statistics may be deceiving and it may have been the older James who had the five slaves.
James and the six brothers lived in a very critical and likewise a formative period in the life of the colony and of the infant United States. It was a time of shaking off not only the political and economic domination of England, but also many of the traditions, customs, practices and even the monetary system that accompanied the early settlers. The Munnerlyns lived through days when there were deep conflicts between the colonies. Those with vested interests were for the most part loyal to England in all matters while those who were independent and struggling to make a living and to acquire property, self respect, and social status had only nominal loyalty to England; and that loyalty grew less and less as time went on. The Munnerlyns were among the latter.
As time passed and forces were moving the country into the Revolution, partisan conflict between the two groups grew worse. Before and during the Revolution the antagonisms grew into violence, desecration and distruction of property, murder, and armed conflict. The historian Simms said that the violence between the Whigs and the Tories made the upper district of South Carolina - to speak mildly - a hell. The Brittons Neck area was in the midst of all of this, and the Munnerlyn land and household had its share. The Munnerlyn brothers were fighting with General Francis Marion. The Tories and the British knew this and at one time visited the home of their father and mother, damaged the house, carried off possessions, including the family Bible, ripped open the feather beds and scattered the feathers, then took the ticking. They captured the old couple. The wife may have been released immediately but the father was made prisoner. He was rescued by his sons with the help of some of General Marion's men.
James Munnerlyn was among the substantial citizens of the Brittons Neck area, evidently a successful planter and a man involved in the basic affairs of his day. He did business in Georgetown. He served in the office of constable when he was 86 years old and made a trip of fifty miles to serve a process and returned in three days. He is mentioned in the diary of General Peter Horry as one with whom the General conferred concerning the war. In the South Carolina Historical and Genealogical Magazine, Volume 43, 1942, page 248 there is the following: " Citation granted James Munlen of Prince George's Parish, planter to administer the Estate and Effects of William Case late of the Parish, aforesaid planter as nearest kin of his wife, to be read in Parish Church aforesaid and returned certified. Granted 3d of September, 1770." It is quite reasonable to assume that this was James Munnerlyn as names were spelled phonetically many times and old documents have several spellings of the name Munnerlyn. Earlier, he was a witness to a will drawn up in 1734.
James Munnerlyn lived to a ripe old age. Ramsey in his history of South Carolina has this to say about him and some of his neighbors: "There have been many instances of longevity in the county (Marion) between the Little Pee Dee and Catfish Creek. One of them, James Ford, died in the year 1804 at the age of 100 years. The others are James Munnerlyn, Moses Martin, Buckingham Keene, Michael Mixon, and William Watson who all died upwards of 80 years of age." One historical reference to James Munnerlyn says that he lived to 1800.
We do not know about James' religious affiliations but do know that his family and descendants were Methodists. From his day until now there have been one or more ministers in each of seven succeeding generations. At least one descendant of a Munnerlyn slave became a prominent Methodist minister. The first record of the ministerial ordination of a Munnerlyn was that of Loftis Redlee who was ordained as a local preacher by Bishop Francis Asbury.
While history records seven male Munnerlyns at the time of the American Revolution the first U. S. Census which was taken in 1790 lists only five in all the new nation. The two who did not live to be included in that first census were Francis who was killed in the war and William who died leaving a wife and young son.
The Six Munnerlyn Brothers
In addition to James Munnerlyn, who lived until about 1800, there were six Munnerlyn brothers. They were all in the South Carolina Militia. Records show that five of them served under General Francis Marion. The sixth brother, Francis, was killed during the Revolution but the military unit in which he served is not known. The father of these six brothers was living during the Revolution. It is assumed that he was James but a conclusive record has not been found. The old account book in Georgetown contained the names of James Munnerlyn and James MunnerIyn, Jr., but that is not evidence that they were father and son. However, it appears that they were, and if so, James was the father of the six brothers. The names of the brothers together with their rank were: Captain James, Captain John, Captain Benjamin, Sergeant Loftis Redlee,and Privates William and Francis.
The Munnerlyn family supported the Revolution with all that they had. The six brothers and the father were not only involved but suffered much. The father and mother were captured, mistreated, and had their home ravished. One of the brothers, Francis, was killed. Several were wounded and two of them suffered through life from the wounds; Benjamin died in 1800 and William died early leaving a young widow and child. Without question the Munnerlyns paid dearly for their participation in the Revolution and can surely be included among the loyal, sacrificial American patriots.
Note: This article was written about 1980 by Dr. Horace W. Williams, a Methodist Minister, and Munnerlyn descendant. For 16 years Dr. Williams served as Executive Secretary of the Interboard Committee on Missionary Education of the Methodist Church. At the time of his retirement he was president of the Council of Secretaries, an organization of top executives of Methodist general boards and agencies. Among other important positions he held, he was a member of the Planning Committee which in 1950 worked out the structure of the National Council of Churches and afterwards served that body as a member of its General Assembly. Upon his retirement he set about to write a book on the Munnerlyn family. He had a great love of family and had been fascinated by the stories his grandmother, Catherine Williams, related that she had learned sitting on her grandfather’s lap. Her grandfather was Loftis Redlee Munnerlyn and she was the daughter of Thomas Mixon Munnerlyn. Regretfully, Dr. Williams passed away before the book was completed, but we do have a few pages that he shared with me.
I felt very privileged to have met and visited with him on several occasions. We worked together on the project for a number of years before his death.
---Francine Munnerlyn Jones
Descendant Relation:
?>James MUNNERLYN
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