Biography of Samuel Culbertson
- Descended from a prominent group of Scots-Irish who immigrated to the Thirteen Colonies (specifically Southeastern PA) in the early 18th century
- grandchild of William Culbertson (b. 1660 in Ayrshire, Great Britain) who was a captain in the army of William III; came to Chester County, PA in about 1720; lived near Brandywine Manor Presbyterian Church
- Son of John Culbertson, a Captain during the French and Indian War; married Eliza Rogers of Welsh descent in 1731; he died Nov. 11 1767; both buried in the Brandywine Manor Presbyterian Church
- Married Margaret Cloyd; Cloyd is a common Ulster name derived from the Scottish clan Stuart of Bute
- employed by Dr. Samuel Kennedy as tavernkeeper of Historic Yellow Springs
- Petitioned for a tavern in 1775; possibly 4 other times
- Captain in the Flying Camp
- Captured at Fort Washington on Nov. 16, 1776
- Endured 4 years of British imprisonment
- Was a prisoner with certain bounds on Long Island until August 16, 1779. when he was ordered into the city prisons of New York
- Lewis Pintard and Col. Palfrey supplied him in 1776 and 1777 with money
- exchanged on Nov. 2, 1780 in Elizabethtown, New Jersey and made his way 100 miles to his place of abode, Yellow Springs
- said to have possessed “fine literary abilities and military talents.”
- Treated at Yellow Springs Military Hospital but never recovered
- Died sometime before January 8, 1782
- Only had 2 children: James and Elizabeth
- during their minority, children under guardianship of John Culbertson, most likely the one who married Sarah Denny
- His wife Margaret died in 1811 in West Nantmeal, Pa
- As most Lowland Scots, Culbertsons were Presbyterians
- Daughter Elizabeth married Isaac Van Leer, the nephew of “Mad” Anthony Wayne through his mother, Hannah Wayne
- Van Leer family was a prominent German family that settled in PA in the 17th Century; acquired their fortune through ironworks business
- https://www.vanleerplus.org/culbertsonwill.htm
- https://vanleerarchives.org/culbertsons-affiliated-family/
Further research ongoing!
See our reconstruction of Samuel Culbertson’s family tree on Ancestry.com here!