Shawhan Family History
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Daniel Shawhan

1738 – 1791

Direct-line ancestor, Generation 3 (Darby & Sarah = Gen 1). Son of Daniel Shawhan and Jennett. Whiskey distiller and farmer; Revolutionary War veteran; led the family's migration from Maryland through Virginia and Pennsylvania to Bourbon County, Kentucky, where the "Shawhan/Bourbon whiskey" family folklore originates (the source itself flags this specific origin claim as probably not literally true, folklore rather than fact).

Life events

  1. 17 Dec 1738Born, Kent Co., Maryland
  2. 1759Per 1999 KC Star Spirit of America Feature, family moved to Hampshire Co., Va. (now WV); Daniel began experimenting with distilling here, before the 1762 marriage
  3. 1762Married Margaret Bell, Hampshire Co., Virginia
  4. Early 1770s / 1771Family relocated near Fort Pitt, Pennsylvania (purchased 640 acres, ~6 miles out, per the 1998 Register source); per the 1999 Star source, specifically near Chartiers Creek, Allegheny Co., Pa., staking 650 acres and beginning production of a whiskey he called "Monongahela Red". See also 1794-1875 Bourbon Origin Legend Documents for a 1794 primary document placing a "Robert Shawhan, a distiller" in this same Allegheny County at this same time — possibly a close relative, not yet identified.
  5. 1784 or 1788Moved the family to Bourbon County, Kentucky. Per the 1998 Register source, took a fleet of flatboats down the Ohio River. Per the 1999 Star source, purchased 130 acres including a limestone spring and reestablished distilling; shipped whiskey down the Ohio and Mississippi to New Orleans, where "Bourbon County" barrel-stamped whiskey became popular — a detail matching/extending the family's own bourbon-origin legend.
  6. 11 May 1791Died, Bourbon County, Kentucky, age 52; per the 1999 Star source, business passed to three sons, John, Daniel (III), and Joseph (see Children above); died intestate, per this source
  7. Apr 1792Estate inventoried (Bourbon County Court Will Book A, pp. 116-117) by appraisers Wm McCune, Jacob Spears, and Joseph Pew — livestock, a still, farm tools, a gun, spinning wheels, and household goods; recorded by John Edwards and A.R. Cure
  8. 1825Per the 1999 Star source, son Daniel (III) sold his interest in the family business to brothers John and Joseph

Sources

  • History and Genealogy of the Shawhan and Related Families
  • The Shawhans by Ron T Shawhan 1983 — earlier (1983), independent secondary source; gives full sibling list and more granular Rev War unit detail than extracted here so far
  • 1999 KC Star Spirit of America Feature
  • Rinehart Family Pedigree Chart — independently corroborates son Daniel (III) via a completely different source (a Rinehart-family descendant's own pedigree chart)
  • 1794-1875 Bourbon Origin Legend Documents — an 1875 newspaper article is the earliest known printed version of this family's bourbon-origin legend; a 1794 primary Whiskey Rebellion document names a "Robert Shawhan" in the same place (Allegheny Co., PA) and era as this man, possibly a close relative not yet identified
  • Zac Shawhan Family History Drafts and the fuller 79-page copy of The Shawhans by Ron T Shawhan 1983 found in FS9