The Origins of the Gwinn Family

         

The following is analysis of the ancestral origins of the Gwinn family and its progenitor Robert Gwin, Sr. who lived on the Great Calfpasture River, Augusta County, Virginia in the mid-1700s.  For convenience, I will use the spelling Gwinn to represent all of the variations in the spelling of the name except where it appears in quotations or unless otherwise noted.

The Family Tradition

Two brothers, Samuel and David Gwinn left Ireland together, were shipwrecked and Samuel drowned.  David was picked up by a sailing vessel and brought to America.  He married an English woman, settled in Augusta County, Virginia and reared a large family. Two of David’s sons, James and Samuel came to the vicinity of Lowell, West Virginia from [the] Calf Pasture River, Virginia, about the year 1780.

The statement above appears in an undated one-page manuscript typed by my grandfather, Basil Gwinn, probably around 1970. In the manuscript, he credits his source as the records of Wade Gwinn of Green Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.  There are at least two errors in this version of the family tradition. It names the two brothers on the voyage as David and Samuel, with Samuel drowning before reaching Virginia. It also states that David is the founding father in Augusta County; with James and Samuel as his sons.   However, the first Gwinn settler on the Calfpasture River, was Robert Gwin, Sr. who was the father of David, Joseph, Robert, James and Samuel.

Despite these errors, the family tradition does clearly point to Ireland as the place of origin and Augusta County as the destination of the Gwinn family.  Also, the story of a shipwreck, or at least a very bad storm, is an enduring legend in the Gwinn family and may have a basis in historical fact.

 

Two views of the Calfpasture River Valley: autumn & summer

The Published Sources

There are several published sources concerning the origin of the Gwinns on the Calfpasture.  The earliest ones say that the Gwinns came from Ireland; the later ones say Wales.  The first appears in History of the Graham Family, by David Graham, published in 1899:

"Samuel and James Guinn, two brothers, settled and made their home near that of Graham. Before the Lowell settlement the Grahams and Guinns were neighbors on the Calf Pasture River and had even both sailed over the blue waters from Ireland." 

Mr. Graham's history is compelling, primarily because David Graham personally knew the Gwinn family and stated he remembered Samuel Gwinn, Sr. as an old man when Graham was a boy.  Consistent with the Gwinn family tradition, he states that both families came from Ireland.  He doesn't say it explicitly, but he implies that the two families may have been neighbors in Ireland and may have sailed to America together.  There is further evidence for this in another source; the History of Rockbridge County by Oren F. Morton, says that "John Graham and his family experienced a great storm during their voyage from Ulster" again echoing the Gwinn family legend.

The History of Summers County from the Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, by James H. Miller, was published in 1908.  Miller states that "Samuel Gwinn, Sr. was the first person of that name to settle in this county, and the evidence seems to show that he, with the Gwinns and Grahams, came together from the same section in Ireland to this country, and first located in the same neighborhood, on the Calf Pasture River in Virginia ...."   Miller later concludes that "the Gwinn ancestor was evidently Irish."

Fifty years later, George W. Cleek, in  Early Western Augusta Pioneers, published in 1957, comes to a different conclusion:

"The Gwin Family is of ancient Welsh origin and the name in Welsh means “white” or “candid” … Robert Gwin, the progenitor of this branch of the Gwin Family came to Virginia before 1744. He was born in Orange County, Wales." 

This is the first known published reference to a Welsh origin for the family.  Cleek correctly identifies Robert Gwin as the progenitor of the family and correctly places him in Virginia before 1744. However, there are two errors in the above quote. The first is minor; the word gwyn is Welsh for "white" but does not mean "candid."  The second mistake is both obvious and more serious; there is no such place as Orange County, Wales.  It is possible that Cleek meant to say that Robert was born in Wales and came to Orange County, Virginia.  Augusta County was organized out of Orange County in 1738.

Lastly, there is History of the Gwin Family, by Jesse Blaine Gwin, published in 1961, which states that:

"Robert Gwinn and his family from Orange County, Wales came to America, settling in North Carolina sometime early in 1700 or at least sometime before 1745." 

Here, Jesse Blaine Gwin repeats and expands on the mistake of Cleek.  This time it is Robert Gwin and his family coming from Orange County, Wales.  But as an added element, Robert comes to Virginia only after first settling in North Carolina in the early 1700s or before 1745.  However, Mr. Gwin provides no evidence, documentation or reference source for these statements. In general, the History of Gwin Family is a compilation of various material greatly varying in accuracy and reliability. However, on page 65 there is an interesting memoir from 1898, published for the first time in 1961, and entitled Sketch of the Gwinn Generation.

Sketch of the Gwinn Generation

The Sketch of the Gwinn Generation was written down by A.  R. Gwinn [Note: Addison Robert Gwinn, 1827-1909] at the request of J. C. Gwinn, son of August Gwinn.  The Sketch can be dated to around 1898 because it says that Andrew “Long Andy” Gwinn is now about 77 years old.”  The Sketch is partially based on an oral history of the Gwinn family as reported to A. R. Gwinn in 1848 by Mrs. Isabella Gwin Hogshead, daughter of Captain David Gwin, and the grand-daughter of Robert Gwin, Sr.  Mrs. Hogshead was over 80 years old in 1848.
The Sketch is a valuable document although there are some concerns due to the fact that Mrs. Hogshead's recounting was apparently not written down by A. R. Gwinn until 51 years later.  The Sketch also mixes together Mrs. Hogshead’s story with A. R. Gwinn’s information.  Therefore, it is sometimes difficult to tell in the Sketch what is Mrs. Hogshead's remembrances and what information is added by A. R. Gwinn. Because of this, it is also difficult to tell whether the factual errors in the Sketch are due to Mrs. Hogshead's faulty memory at the age of 80 or A. R. Gwinn's hazy recollection after a passage of 51 years.  I am inclined to believe that it was the latter and that any mistakes in Mrs. Hogshead's tale are due to the passage of time before it was written down.

The main problem with the Sketch is that it says that Samuel and James Gwinn were the sons of Captain David Gwinn.  That would make them Mrs. Hogshead's brothers; but later in the Sketch, James is referred to as “Uncle Jimmy. “ What I believe happened is that Mrs. Hogshead told A. R. Gwinn that Samuel and James were her uncles, but A. R. Gwinn in 1898 mistakenly records that Samuel and James are Mrs. Hogshead's brothers. This is the only way that The Sketch can be fully reconciled with historical facts.

The Sketch appears to be the original source material for the manuscript written down by my grandfather and may have been among the records belonging to Wade Gwinn of Green Sulphur Springs.  It recounts the tale of two Scotch-Irish brothers, Samuel and David, who leave Ireland for America with Samuel drowning. It is speculation, but what if A. R. Gwinn made a mistake here as well.  What if Mrs. Hogshead recounted the tale of two brothers, Robert and David, or Robert and Samuel, who came to America from Ireland with David/Samuel drowning on the voyage?  The survivor, Robert, settles in the Augusta County, and has several sons among whom are David and Samuel.  This admittedly speculative interpretation reconciles the traditional story with the historical record relating to the arrival of Robert Gwin in Augusta County, Virginia.

Robert Gwin Appears in the Historical Record

The first known historical document relating to Robert Gwin is a 1744 map of the Calfpasture settlements in Augusta County, Virginia that was made for Col. James Patton. The map is entitled “A PLAN OF 10500 ACRES OF LAND LYING ON THE GREAT OR WEST RIVER OF THE CALFPASTURE.” The map shows a series of surveyed lots numbered 1 through 22 which list the names of the purchasers for those lots.  The area surveyed runs from just north of present day Goshen, Virginia to just south of present day Deerfield, Virginia. Lot #16 consists of 544 acres and is assigned to Robert Gwin.  To the north is lot #17 assigned to John Preston.  To the south are lots #15 assigned to John Graham and lot #14 assigned to James Lockridge. The original map is in the Lyman Draper Collection at the Wisconsin Historical Society.

The next historical record involving Robert Gwin is a land transaction in Augusta County, Virginia. At a court held for Orange County on Thursday, July 20, 1745, an indenture was acknowledged and ordered to be recorded between James Patton and John Lewis of Beverly Manor, Augusta County and Robert Gwin of the Calfpasture, Augusta County. The indenture was for the sale of 544 acres on the Great Calf Pasture River to Robert Gwin for five shillings.  The indenture was signed by Patton and Lewis and sealed and delivered before witnesses David Kinkead, Robert Bratton and Loftis Pullen/Pullin on July 16, 1745.

This transaction was not an isolated business deal. On the same day, July 16, 1745, Patton and Lewis also sold tracts on the Great Calfpasture to Robert Bratton, John Dunlap, Loftis Pullin, John Wilson, John Kinkead, and John Miller.  These purchases, as well as others which took place in the spring and summer of 1745, were a result of a joint venture between Patton, Lewis and William Beverley to obtain title to 30,000 acres of land on the Virginia frontier. To understand the significance of these transactions, one must look back at how the land came into the hands of Lewis, Beverley and Patton.

The Joint Venture

On May 5, 1737, the Council of Virginia granted to Edward Barradall, Esq., and John Lewis, Gentleman, 30,000 acres of uncultivated land in Orange County lying west of the land of William Beverley including a "certain place called the Calf Pasture" upon condition of settling one family for each 1,000 acres within two years.   This is probably the Edward Barradall who was mayor of Williamsburg in 1736 and 1737 and who died around 1743.

Captain James Patton first became involved in the venture in August 1737. In that month, William Beverley wrote to Patton about the 30,000 acres and said he was "willing you should hold one quarter part of it being at 1/4 pt of all ye charges & doing your upmost endeavor to procure families to come in and settle it."  In another letter, Beverley said "I should be very glad if you could import families enough to take the whole off our hands at a reasonable price and though the order [from the Council of Virginia] mentions families from Pensilvania, yet families from Ireland will do as well."  Beverley and Lewis needed Patton, an experienced sea captain with business connections on both sides of the Atlantic, to pull off the deal.

At that time, Patton was working for a prosperous Irish Presbyterian merchant by the name of Walter Lutwidge. Based out of Whitehaven, England, and trading in tobacco from Maryland and Virginia, Lutwidge owned several ships including the Cockermouth and the Walpole or Walpoole.  Using Lutwidge's ships and resources for his own purposes, Patton planned to abandon his life as a sea captain and make his fortune in Virginia.

On April 18, 1738, the following advertisement appeared in George Faulkner's Dublin Journal: 

The Ship Cockermouth of Whitehaven, Burthen 250 Tons, newly rebuilt, and well fitted, manned and victualed, mounted with great Guns, and a sufficient Quantity of small Arms, Captain James Patton Commander, will be in Dublin the latter end of April, or Beginning of May in order to take in Passengers for Virginia, Maryland, or Pennsylvania: (those for Pennsylvania to be landed at the Head of Chessypeak Bay, either at Bohemia Landing or Elk River.) Whoever is inclined to go in the said Ship from Dublin, may apply to Mr. Matthew Houghton, Mr. John Hornby, Mr. Campbell Merchants there, or to the said Captain at Mr. Heath’s at the Flag on Temple Bar, or on the Custom House Key, and on the Change at Change House, who will article with them.

The said ship, when victualled and fitted, will sail directly from Dublin to Loughswilly in the County of Donnegal. Whoever is inclined to go with her from thence as Passengers, to any of the aforesaid Places, may apply to Mr. Collin Campbell, Mr. John Preston in Derry, Mr. Daniel M’Farland near Burn Cranoughy, to Mr. John Hutchinson of Glenvain, to Mr. Robert Smith of Rathmullen, and to Mr. David Thompson of Rathmalton. Those from Limerick must apply to Mr. Isaac Patton, or to Mr. Charles Linde at Coleraine, and at Monaghan to Mr. William Jeeb.

Those from the Counties of Tyrone and Armagh may apply to Messrs. James and Thomas Sommervill in Dungannon, who goes with the Ship with their Families.

All the aforesaid Gentlemen will enter into Articles with passengers according to Custom; The Ship being five foot one half between Decks, which is very commodious for Passengers, and may assure themselves not to be crowded, but in all respects civilly used.

N. B. Any Tradesmen or others that have a Mind to go as Servants, may apply to the Captain or Gentlemen aforesaid.”

By the time the advertisement was published, the Walpoole had been substituted for the Cockermouth (which appears to have run aground with a load of goods) and was likely already docked in Dublin.

The Voyage of the Walpoole

Patton sailed from Whitehaven, England in Walter Lutwidge's ship Walpoole on March 16, 1737/8.  The ship lay some weeks at Dublin, taking on passengers and indentured servants.  One of those indentured servants was Peter Burns who signed an indenture paper with Patton in Dublin on April 28, 1738.

Sometime after April 28, the Walpoole set sail for Lough Swilly on the northern coast.  Meanwhile, John Preston, Patton's brother-in-law and agent in Derry was signing up passengers to go as settlers to Virginia.  It is probably here in the heartland of the Patton and Preston families that most of the emigrants came on board.  Although a passenger list does not exist, it is very likely that one of those on board was Robert Gwin.

As yet, I have been unable to determine when the Walpoole left Lough Swilly and from what port.  Sometime in late May or June 1738 would be a good guess.  There are several ports that could be candidates including Buncrana, Rathmullen or Rathmalton.

The Walpoole arrived in Virginia around August 23-26, 1738.  Peter Burn's indenture papers has a notation that the ship arrived on August 23, 1738.  This may have been the date that the ship entered into the Chesapeake Bay. An article in the Augusta Historical Bulletin states that the Walpoole was entered into the records of the Custom House at Belle Haven (present day Alexandria, Virginia) on August 25, 1738. According to other sources, the shipping returns for the South Potomac and Accomack District record that the ship Walpole, James Patton, Master, arrived in Virginia on August 26, 1738.

Although the official records point to Belle Haven [Alexandria] as the first landing site, this may not be the case. Some published recollections of Patton descendants state that the Walpoole landed at Hobbe's Hole, current day Tappahannock, Virginia on the Rappahannock River.

What is certain is that the passage was not all smooth sailing.  August would have been the beginning of hurricane season along the Atlantic coast.  The Walpoole appears to have encountered a tropical storm or worse. Like the Grahams and Gwinns, the Preston family later recounted a great storm that washed their possessions overboard and left them nearly empty-handed when they arrived in America.   This "great storm" during the voyage of the Walpoole may be the genesis of the Gwinn shipwreck story.

 

The Calfpasture Settlers in Virginia

"All here are Irish – all are Presbyterians."  A description of the people of Augusta County, from a letter written by a Presbyterian minister

Whether the new settlers arrived at Belle Haven or Hobbe's Hole, they must have soon moved on towards their final destination: the Calfpasture tract.  The settlers may have spent the winter of 1738-39 on the Beverley estate but probably not at the expense of Beverley or Patton.  Instead, Patton appears to have supported the settlers with William Lutwidge's credit.

By September 1739, Lutwidge began to realize what had happened after going over Patton's accounts.  When the Walpoole returned to Whitehaven in October 1739, Lutwidge replaced Patton with another captain.  In a December 1739 letter to James Johnson in Virginia, Lutwidge wrote,

"I must own that I have met with both knaves and fools in plenty, but of all ye Knaves I ever met, Patton has outdone them all. James Concannon can tell you of his viloney which I dare not repeat; he charged no less than 6,000 lbs of fresh Beefe in Virginia, 40 barrels Indian corn and everything else in proportion, took 15 servants to himself at a clap. In short, Hell itself can't outdo him."

On April 27, 1742, the Council of Virginia recognized that James Patton, a partner in the venture, had "at his great expense transported Several Families from the North of Ireland in Order to Comply with the Condition of the said Order." The Council noted that 36 families were transported and settled on the lands.

In 1745, seven years after the arrival of the Walpoole in Virginia, Patton along with Lewis and Beverley sell the Calfpasture tracts to the settlers.  It is worth noting that the contract of indenture of Peter Burns was for a period of seven years beginning on the date of his arrival in Virginia, August 23, 1738.  The other settlers may have also had a seven-year contract.

 

DNA Testing: The Next Step

After years of genealogical research, I found that the historical record could only take me so far. In the spring of 2008, I had reached the point where I was ready to test my Y-chromosome DNA sequence through one of the established genealogical testing services.  Since the Y-chromosome is only passed through the male line from father to son, it is a valuable tool for genealogical research because surnames are also passed (usually) from the paternal line.

For those not familiar with Y-DNA testing, I will give a simplistic explanation of how it is used in genealogy. First, I will discuss Short Tandem Repeats (STRs). Geneticists have identified specific locations or loci on the Y-chromosome. These specific locations have been given identifiable names expressed as DNA Y-chromosome sequence (DYS) numbers.  At each of these locations, there are repeating sequences of nucleotides.  These repeating sequences are expressed as allele values.  These allele values vary from person to person, but rarely vary among closely related persons due to a slow mutation rate. The resulting combination of alleles, called a haplotype, is grouped by geneticists with similar haplotypes into specific genetic haplogroups. Currently, these haplogroups are labeled A through T and define the entirety of humanity.

To better illustrate the above explanation, here are the results of my 12-marker test.  

Locus	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
DYS#	393	390	19	391	385a	385b	426	388	439	389-1	392	389-2
Alleles	13	25	14	11	11	13	12	12	12	13	14	29

Most Western or Atlantic Europeans and their descendants fall within a subgroup of haplogroup R called R1b.  R1b is particularly high in Wales where it is estimated to reach 89% of the population. So, initially believing my ancestry to be Welsh, I was not surprised when my results arrived and confirmed that my haplotype belonged to haplogroup R1b.  However, my results went far beyond what I expected; my specific markers were an exact match with the Irish Modal Haplotype. 

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin associated the IMH (or Northwest Irish Modal Haplotype as it later became known) with the Ui Neill dynasties, descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages, when they noticed that men with traditional Ui Neill surnames matched this haplotype subgroup.  You may read more about this study here. A Y-Chromosome Signature of Hegemony in Gaelic Ireland

According to the International Society of Genetic Genealogy “with the established patrilineal transmission of Y-DNA with surnames in Ireland, researchers for some time sought to find sets of short tandem repeat (STR) marker values that might identify the great ancient families of Ireland. The distinctive STR signature of one Haplogroup R1b cluster was identified (Wilson, D 2004, and separately and formally Moore et al 2006) as the Irish Modal Haplotype (IMH). Wilson also showed the connection of IMH with the, kings of medieval Ireland, and specifically descendants of the semi-legendary 5th Century king, Niall of the Nine Hostages. It was later found that this cluster is derived for the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) M222 (McEwan, 2006).”

As indicated in the map below, the largest percentage of men in Ireland with this genetic signature hail from Ulster (30 percent) and Connacht (29 percent) with a smaller percentage in Leinster (18 percent) SW Scotland (12 percent) and Munster (5 percent).  Also of note is that +M222 is almost non-existent in Wales.

To date, 14 direct male line descendants of Robert Gwin, Sr. have participated in Y-DNA STR testing and are members of the Guin/Gwin/Guyn/Gwyn DNA Project.  The paper trail has confirmed that seven (7) are descended through Robert’s son Samuel; four (4) are descended through Robert’s son James; two (2) are descended through Robert’s son Joseph; and one (1) is descended from Robert Jr.  [Note: No male line descendants of Capt. David Gwin have tested to date.]  As expected, all 14 member results are close matches indicating a near recent common ancestor.  Further, the above members’ Y-DNA STR results match the Irish Modal Haplotype first identified by David Wilson in 2004.

The R-M222 branch of the Y-DNA tree is defined by a SNP called M222. This diagnostic marker is associated with many individuals whose roots lie in the counties of Northwest Ireland, Ulster and Lowland Scotland.   However, M222 is not confined to these areas and is present throughout Ireland albeit in somewhat lower percentages. Five of the 13 Gwinn males have taken a specific SNP test for this marker.  All of the five tested positive for M222.  Three (3) Robert Gwin Sr descendants have taken advanced tests showing positive results for the SNP FGC23742.

Looking to the Traditional Irish Genealogies

The M222 mutation occurred many generations before Niall, the High King, but it was likely propagated through his line and by the lines of his older half-brothers, particularly Brion and Fiachra Foltsnathach (Fiachra of the Flowing Hair) who were successively Kings of Connacht. Through positive social selection, powerful men, especially kings, were more likely to have many offspring. Therefore, all of the direct male line descendants of the Ui Neill and the Connachta are +M222. But could the Gwinns actually be descended from one of these men? There may be an answer to the Gwinn family origin in the traditional Irish genealogies of the Ui Fiachach (the descendants of Fiachra) tribe.

Three (3) Robert Gwin Sr descendants have taken advanced tests showing positive results for the SNP FGC24327. What is noteworthy about this mutation is that it can be linked to men with these traditional Ui Fiachrach names:

Dowd (Ó Dubhda) - Arrington/Harrington  (Ó hArrachtáin) - Carney (Ó Cearnaigh) - Clerk (Ó Cléirigh) - Crean (Ó Créacháin) Fay/Fahy - (Ó Fathaigh) - Flannagan (Ó Flannágain) - Hynes (Ó hEidhin) - Moore (Ó Móráin) - Morrison (Ó Muirgheasa)  - Morrow/Murray  (Ó Muireadhaigh) - Shaughnessy (Ó Seachnasach)

Under the O'Dowd Kings of the Northern Ui Fiachrach, there are at least three O' Cuinn septs that could be the ancestors of our Gwinns.  These three septs are the O'Cuinn of Clann Chuain near Castlebar, County Mayo; the O'Cuinns of Doon Feeny along the northern coast of the Barony of Tirawley; and the O'Cuinns in the Barony of Tireagh who from the Irish topographical poems appear to be associated with O'Morain chieftains at Ardnaree.  It is also possible that there is a connection with the McGuinns of County Sligo.

Conclusion

Occam's Razor is as applicable in genealogy as it is in science; when all theories are otherwise equal, the simplest explanation is usually the correct one.  The history of the Calfpasture settlement, and the Gwinn family traditions, point to Ireland as the place of origin of Robert Gwin of the Calfpasture. When combined with the unambiguous Y-DNA results of his descendants, which indicate an even older presence in Connacht and Ulster, it appears most likely that the Gwinns and their paternal ancestors had always been in Ireland.  In short, our Gwinns are of Irish origin, not Welsh.

Admittedly, a descent from an O'Cuinn or McGuinn sept is only one possible explanation of the origin of the Gwinn family surname. Additional DNA testing, including males from Ireland, will be needed to provide further data that will either confirm or refute the theory that the Gwinns of the Calfpasture are descended from an O'Cuinn sept of the Ui Fiachrach.