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Blair McClenachan

Blair McClenachan
Member of the
U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania
In office
March 4, 1797 – March 3, 1799
Preceded byFrederick Muhlenberg
Succeeded byMichael Leib
Constituency2nd district
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
In office
1790–1795
Personal details
Born1734 (1734)
Kingdom of Ireland
DiedMay 8, 1812(1812-05-08) (aged 77–78)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic-Republican
ProfessionMerchant

Blair McClenachan (1734 – May 8, 1812) was an Irish-born American merchant and politician from Pennsylvania. He served one term in the United States House of Representatives from 1797 to 1799. Previously, he served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

Biography

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McClenachan was born in the Kingdom of Ireland in 1734. He immigrated to the United States at an early age and settled in Philadelphia. He was described by Thomas Jefferson as a trader, banker, and shipowner. During the American Revolutionary War he was one of the founders of and served with the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry. When the Continental Congress sought to raise money for the army in 1780, McClenachan and Robert Morris were the two highest subscribers to the effort.[1][2]

He was a member of the Democratic-Republican Party. From 1790 to 1795, he was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. In 1796, he defeated Robert Waln to win election to the 5th United States Congress from Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district.[3] He served only one term.

After his service in Congress, his businesses failed and a fraudulent transfer of his assets to his children resulted in McClenachan losing much of his fortune and led to his imprisonment for debt. In 1802, he wrote to President Thomas Jefferson, seeking the position of Purveyor of Stores. Jefferson later appointed Tench Coxe to fill the position.[2]

Personal life

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McClenachan had six children. In 1781, his daughter, Deborah, married Colonel Walter Stewart, later Inspector General of the Continental Army and then Major General of the Pennsylvania Militia.

He died May 8, 1812, in Philadelphia; interment was in a vault in St. Paul's Cemetery.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Ruth L. Woodward; Wesley Frank Craven (July 14, 2014). Princetonians, 1784-1790: A Biographical Dictionary. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400861262.
  2. ^ a b The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, Volume 36: 1 December 1801 to 3 March 1802. Princeton University Press. June 5, 2018. ISBN 9781400833726.
  3. ^ Michael J. Dubin (1998). United States Congressional Elections, 1788-1997 (PDF). McFarland, Incorporated, Publishers.
  4. ^ "Blair McClenachan". United States Congress. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
[edit]
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 2nd congressional district
1797–1799 		Succeeded by