James Weir Builds a Mercantile Empire
James Weir: 1777-1845 (Third Great-Granduncle)
Hard work is certainly a requirement for success in
business, but I believe some people have that extra something that enables them
to succeed at a higher level than the average businessman. James Weir had a big
helping of that something extra. He left South Carolina in the 1790s as a
typical pioneer, moving to Kentucky with nothing but grit and ambition. He
became one of the original pioneers of Greenville where he built a veritable
mercantile empire that crossed state borders.
James Weir was the third son of William Weir and Susannah
Miller Weir (fourth great-grandparents) of Fishing Creek, South Carolina. He
was born in 1777, and was about ten or eleven when his father died. William’s
will provided that James, along with his sisters, receive equal parts of his
plantation, livestock and household furniture. James’ two older brothers,
William and Samuel, were named executors of the estate.
James left South Carolina as a young man, heading west into
Tennessee and eventually into Kentucky. He kept a journal during the eight months
of his journey. His observations about the people, land and towns he passed
through are interesting. I was surprised by how straightlaced he was, complaining
and aghast at the swearing and immorality he found in Knoxville, for example.
He supported himself along the way as a schoolmaster.
Weir originally arrived in Kentucky in 1798 as a surveyor,
and eventually decided to settle in Greenville. When he first passed through the
Greenville area, he noted in his journal that “Green River is navigable all
seasons of the year for large boats, which may pass to and from Illinois and
from thence to the Atlantic Ocean. It is thought that it will be a place of
great trade in time to come.” He helped his prediction come to fruition.
 |
| Jarrels Creek area in modern times |
Weir started a mercantile in Greenville in 1799, and
received a land grant of 352 acres along the Jarrels Creek in 1802, which he
probably used for farming. Slaves contributed to Weir’s wealth. The 1810 census
shows he had seven slaves, and by 1820 he had eleven enslaved people in his household.
However, by 1830 he had only two female slaves and a free “colored” male in his
household—probably the man mentioned in a history of the county as his “body servant
Titus”. Selling off his slaves probably reflected the shift in his business focus
from farming to his mercantile and trading business, which required little
slave labor.
Rothert county history, cited below, examined a ledger owned
by James’ great-grandson Harry Weir that recorded the transactions at Weir’s
Greenville store over the period from 1813-1815. From this ledger, Weir’s
business practices become clear. Rothert wrote: “Much of the merchandise
brought from the East by old James Weir was exchanged for wild pork, rawhides,
produce and tobacco. These he shipped to New Orleans on flatboats, where he
sold them for cash, with which he bought more goods in Philadelphia.” This
triangular trade practice built Weir’s wealth: raw goods and produce shipped
from Kentucky and Illinois to New Orleans for sale, and then the proceeds used
to buy manufactured goods in Philadelphia that Weir’s customers needed or
craved.
Once he purchased goods in Philadelphia, he would ship them
by wagon to Pittsburgh, and then send them by boat down the Ohio River. From
there the Muhlenberg County goods were put on a boat up the Green River to
Lewisburg, and then sent on by wagon. James Weir must have been quite the logistician
to make this multi-step shipping system work.
The trips could be hazardous. Weir’s journal entries from
his 1803 trading trip down the river to the New Orleans area were reprinted in
an appendix to Rothert’s History. The journal recounts how Weir was arrested at
the Spanish garrison in Baton Rouge for selling hams without the proper
permission from the garrison commander. He was fortunate to be released after a
few days and allowed to continue south. After selling his remaining goods in
New Orleans, he travelled by sea to Philiadelphia. His ship ran into a severe
storm, nearly forcing everyone to abandon ship.
Weir’s original Greenville store was a log cabin located on
the west side of Main Street. He next built a brick store on the east side of
Main a little further north. This building became known as Weir Corner. A photo
of the brick building is below.
In 1816 he built a brick home for his family south of the store. He was also involved in local banking and insurance businesses.
 |
| Weir house in background of this photo from 1800s |
Over time, he expanded his mercantile business to several other towns, with stores in Lewisburg, Henderson, Hopkinsville, Morganfield, Madisonville and Russellville, Kentucky, with one additional store in Shawneetown, Illinois.
James Weir had three wives. His first wife was Anna Cowman Rumsey, whose family was a powerful one in that era. He had five children with Anna, sons Edward Rumsey Weir and James Weir, and daughters Emily, Anna and Susan Mary Weir.
Wife Anna died in 1838, and he remarried the following year to
Jane Short. Sadly, Jane also died, and James took his third wife, Ruth Beach of
St. Louis, on September 29, 1844.
Eleven months later on August 9, 1845, James died at the age
of 68. He left his survivors, including an unborn daughter Ruth, handsomely
provided for.
James Weir was a true “tradesman”—he learned to barter goods
in various far-flung parts of the United States, and he learned to make deals
with all sorts of people from all walks of life. He was a true original and a
consummate businessman.
Sources:
A History of
Muhlenberg County by Otto A Rothert. “The Weirs.” Pg. 56-62. Pg. 116-121. Publisher,
J.P. Morton, 1913. https://books.google.com/books/about/A_History_of_Muhlenberg_County.html?id=e1UnTbWjk2kC
Kentucky, U.S., Land Grants, 1782-1924. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/18690:2073?tid=81812584&pid=262518455113&hid=1037937987049
Muhlenberg County KyArchives History - Books .....VI The
Weirs 1913.
No comments:
Post a Comment