Joshua Clyburn

Joshua Clyburn, born around 1758, remains a somewhat elusive figure in terms of his parentage, with several theories circulating about his ancestry. Historian Angela Clyburn proposes that Joshua was a descendant of John Clyburn, who lived in Henrico and Brunswick Counties, Virginia, before relocating to Bladen County, North Carolina.¹ This John Clyburn, born around 1712, married Jean Clarke, daughter of neighbor Robert Clarke, in Brunswick County around 1732. He served as a private in the militia during the French and Indian War in Colonial Granville County, North Carolina, and died on March 7, 1785, in Bladen County.

Angela’s theory rests on the fact that Joshua and John lived in the same general area, with their dates of birth and marriage aligning plausibly. Additionally, John’s father, also named John, had a stepfather named Joshua Stapp, possibly providing the origin of Joshua’s name.² DNA evidence from a study conducted in collaboration with the National Society of the Claiborne Family Descendants supports Angela’s hypothesis, showing a close genetic connection between Joshua’s descendants and Cliburns/Clyburns from Henrico County.

It’s important to distinguish this John Clyburn from another John Cliborn of Dale Parish, Chesterfield County, Virginia, who was also born around 1712 and is often re-ferred to as “John of Dale Parish.”³ Though John of Dale Parish is believed to have fathered seven children, none were named Joshua.⁴ Nevertheless, DNA testing confirms that both John Clyburn and John of Dale Parish were closely related, sharing a common ancestor.

Historian Harriette Threlkeld, later in her career, proposed that Joshua’s origins might trace back to Ireland.⁵ This idea is partly based on family traditions, especially among the Arkansas branch, which held that belief.⁶ Harriette found a 1796 Petition of Naturalization for a “Joshua Clibborn” in Ireland, pre-served in the Philadelphia Department of Records. Although she suspected this might refer to the same Joshua, the evidence is tenuous, as Joshua was known to reside in North Carolina from 1778 to approximately 1799, making it unlikely he would have been naturalized in Philadelphia in 1796. Nonetheless, it is possible that Joshua’s ancestors spent some time in Ireland, even if he descended from the line of John Clyburn.

Assuming Joshua was at least twenty years old when he first received a land grant in North Carolina, he would have been born around 1758. The absence of his name in the 1800 census suggests that he likely died shortly before that year. If he was born in 1738 and died around 1799, he would have been about sixty-one at his death. Joshua’s wife was named Sarah, but her origins—including her parentage, birth date, and birthplace—remain unknown. A later deed indicates that she was still living in Robeson County as late as 1835.

The American Revolution

Joshua Clyburn lived through the American Revolution, reaching military age during this turbulent period. However, no records have surfaced to confirm his participation in the conflict. As discussed in the following section on Joshua’s siblings, one possible brother, Ephraim, may have supported the British loyalist cause. If this is true, Joshua might have shared similar sentiments.

Estimates suggest that loyalists made up between 15% and 20% of the colonial population, while approximately 40% to 45% supported the patriot cause. The rest tended to avoid taking sides.⁷ Loyalist sympathies were particularly strong in the middle colonies, including the Carolinas. Older residents and recent immigrants, especially Scots, often leaned toward the loyalist cause, though such affiliations spanned all demographic and social divides.⁸

For those who remained loyal to the British Crown during and after the war, the consequences were often severe. Loyalists faced the threat of death, imprisonment, confiscation of property, and even tarring and feathering. With the revolutionary forces controlling state governments in the South, loyalists were subjected to significant pressure and suppression.⁹ The destruction of loyalists’ homes and records was commonplace, prompting roughly 46,000 loyalists, including Ephraim and his family, to find asylum in Canada — 34,000 of these settled in Nova Scotia.

Despite this mass migration, most loyalists chose to stay in the United States after the war. If Joshua had indeed harbored loyalist sympathies, he might have followed his brother’s path to Canada. However, Joshua remained in the newly independent nation and even expanded his landholdings after the war’s end.

In the absence of concrete evidence, Joshua’s involvement in the American Revolution remains speculative. Although at least one sibling aligned with the British before fleeing to Canada, Joshua stayed behind and found success in the young republic. His true stance during the Revolution, therefore, remains a mystery.

1790 Census

Joshua Clyburn appears in the first U.S. Census of 1790, recorded in Robeson County, North Carolina (previously part of Bladen County), with the following household composition:¹⁰

1 free white male aged 16 and over (including the head of the family) ¹¹

2 free white males under ¹²

4 free white females (including heads of families) ¹³

No slaves were listed in Joshua’s household. In North Carolina, as in Virginia, social distinctions were evident in land records. The term “Planter” on deeds signified membership in the gentry, typically associated with large landholdings and slave ownership. By contrast, descriptors like “Laborer,” “Saddler,” or “Blacksmith” indicated that a person was not part of the gentry.¹⁴ Neither Joshua nor his possible brother Ephraim were referred to as planters in any deeds found.

Joshua received 500 acres through three grants and purchased an additional 200 acres for his son Ephraim, but there is no record of slaves to work the land. This suggests that Joshua, like many other farmers in Robeson County, likely raised livestock rather than relying on slave labor.

Historians Lefler and Newsom describe the North Carolina farmer as a self-sufficient “jack-of-all-trades,” combining the roles of farmer, engineer, hunter, carpenter, mechanic, and businessman. These small farmers rarely owned more than 200 to 300 acres, and most did not have slaves or bond servants. Historian Connor characterized them as a “strong, fearless, independent race, simple in taste, crude in manners, provincial in outlook, democratic in social relations, tenacious of their personal liberties, and, when interested in religion, earnest, narrow, and dogmatic.” ¹⁵

The era was marked by economic hardship. By 1780, inflation had devalued currency by 800%, and most farmers had to drive their livestock to distant markets, often 50 to 200 miles away, for modest profits. Paying taxes was a constant challenge, and land records suggest that Joshua was not exempt from these struggles.¹⁶

Land Transactions

Land transactions provide valuable insight into a person’s life, and this is certainly true for Joshua Clyburn. His earliest recorded land activity dates back to July 17, 1778, when Archibald McClain described a 100-acre tract on “First Swamp” that included improvements made by “Joshua Cliburn.”¹⁷ Historian Harriette Threlkeld uncovered copies of land grants and surveys documenting Joshua’s ownership of three tracts totaling 500 acres in Bladen County (later Robeson County).¹⁸ Using field descriptions and a map, Harriette pinpointed the general location near the town of Rowland, North Carolina, and close to the South Carolina border, nestled between the Shoesheel Swamp and the Ashpole Swamp.

An “Index to Real Estate Conveyances in Robeson County” guided Harriette to the county’s deed books, where variations in the spelling of the Clyburn name appear frequently. One deed, dated 1794, records the sale of 200 acres near Ashpole Swamp by James Rowland to Joshua for “twenty pounds specie,” reflecting the use of English currency.¹⁹ Notably, the deed names “Ephraim Cliborn” as the purchaser, starting from a post oak on Joshua Clibourn’s corner and transferring land “to Ephraim Cliborn, son of Joshua and Sarah Clibourn.” The inconsistent spelling even within a single document is evident. At the time, Ephraim was only six years old, and the reason behind Joshua purchasing land on his behalf at such a young age remains unclear.²⁰

The 1794 deed, witnessed by William (X) Clibourn and Charles Ingram, does not clarify William’s relationship to Joshua, though it is likely he was a brother. James Rowland, a prominent local landowner, probably lent his name to Rowland, North Carolina.²¹

Joshua’s absence from the 1800 census suggests he may have died shortly before that year. After his death, the family struggled to pay property taxes. A deed dated November 18, 1802, shows that “Joshua Clibourn Heirs,” represented by the county sheriff, sold 339 acres of Joshua’s land for unpaid taxes to Matthew James.²² This sale, advertised in at least three issues of the Raleigh Register, hints at broader eco-nomic difficulties in the region.²³ The land was sold for only two pounds, sixteen shillings, and ten pence (roughly two and a half pounds sterling). Twenty-five acres were not sold, suggesting that taxes had been paid on this parcel, which was likely the family’s homestead.

The final parcel of Joshua’s land was sold by Ephraim in 1811. “Ephraim Clibourn” of Knox County, Tennessee, sold the land deeded to him in 1794 to Matthew Jones for 50 pounds — the same individual who purchased Joshua’s land in 1802 to aid in tax payment.²⁴ This transaction occurred two years after Ephraim’s 1809 marriage in Knox County, indicating that Ephraim had already relocated from North Carolina.

Joshua’s cause of death remains speculative. His departure from this world retains the same aura of mystery as his arrival.

Siblings

There is evidence to suggest that Joshua had at least two brothers, and possibly even three:

William: Since William, John, James and Thomas were popular names in the family, it is very difficult to discern which are connected. Nevertheless, William (X) Claybourn was a witness to a deed for Joshua, suggesting some sort of link as possibly a brother or son.²⁵ DNA evidence closely links the descendants of this William to the descendants of Joshua and his son Ephraim, further suggesting a link. A William Clyburn appears on the 1790 census of Robeson County, apparently in the same part of the county as Joshua.²⁶ This William is listed as having two males over sixteen, counting the head of the family, and two males under sixteen, along with what may be six females. Therefore, with a family that large, it seems more likely that this William would be a brother to Joshua. According to historian Angela Clyburn, once married to one of his descendants, he is believed to have been born in about 1747. Angela also believed that William and Martha had ten children together: William Clyburn Jr., Lewis Sr., Nancy, Charity, Mildred, Sarah, Martha, Stephen, James Sr., and Jesse. Like Joshua, William left a trail of land transactions. The first recorded transaction occurred in 1768 when he paid taxes on land in Bladen County, North Carolina.²⁷ On 10 January 1793, Alexander McDaniel of Georgetown District, South Carolina, sold to William Clibourn, Saddler, “66 acres beginning on the west side of Indian Swamp at a Post Oak on Edward Flowers line near the mouth of the swamp” for 50 pounds.²⁸ On 21 June 1793, Cornelius Wingate sold William Cliburn 100 acres lying on the south side of Drowning Creek (Lumber River) in the fork between Ashpole and Indian Swamp, “fully described in the Patent dated October, 25 1788.”²⁹ Another deed dated 15 July 1793 documents a transaction between William and Charles Ingram,³⁰ and another dated 6 January 1795 describes a sale by William to Noah Pitman.³¹
Ephraim: An Ephraim Clyburn lived from about 1746 to 1823 and in the DNA studies previously discussed, his descendants are closely linked to those of William and Joshua. This Ephraim married a woman named Sophia and is believed to have been a British Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War. Historian Peggy O’Neal-Thurston, a descendant of Ephraim, has spent much of her life researching Epharim’s line. With Peggy’s help Angela Clyburn found a history of the King’s Carolina Rangers where this Ephraim is documented as having been recruited and enlisted with the British forces in the area of Cape Fear, North Carolina (not far from where the Clyburn family is known to have lived). Following the war many British loyalists fled to Canada and this Ephraim appears to have been one of them. He was granted 200 acres of land in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 1784.³² He and Sophia are believed to have had the following children: John, William, Ann Violet Jane, Mary, Esther Hattie, Sarah, Ephraim Simon, Joshua, and Joselina. All but John were born in Canada. A deed dated 26 September 1823 is the last known record for Ephraim in Guysborough County, Nova Scotia. He likely died soon thereafter. Click here for a brief description of Ephraim by Angela Clyburn.
James: Peggy O’Neal-Thurston believed an additional brother, James, belongs in this clan.³³ Her tireless research uncovered that a James Clyburn fought in the same ranks as Ephraim, was garrisoned in the same place of St. Augustine, Florida, and then made the long ship ride to Canada arriving on Christmas Day in 1784 in Country Harbour, Nova Scotia. Peggy indicated that his name is listed on the muster lists of Country Harbour, Nova Scotia for 1784 and 1785, and on one list he appeared with a wife and child/children. In 1784 he is listed but in 1785 at the final muster list he does not sign for his land. Nearly 900 people perished that first winter in Nova Scotia due to lack of food, weather, and poor supplies. James may have been among those who perished. All who died that winter were buried on Mt. Misery, across the harbour from Country Harbour. In her correspondence Peggy noted that Ephraim and Sophia were attributed with having an abnormally large number of children; it is possible that, following the death of James, they raised his remaining children.

Descendants

Although we are certain Ephraim is the son of Joshua and Sarah, other offspring are not so clear. Some research suggests that Joshua and Sarah had as many as five children. Here are sketches on what we know and/or suspect were their children:

James
Sarah (“Sally”) Claybourn Brown (click name for seperate biographical sketch) was born in about 1785 and died in 1853 at the age of 73.³⁴
Rhoda and Elias Atkerson’s tombstones at Blackjack Cemetery near Franklin, Kentucky
Rhoda (or “Roda”) Clyburn was born on 8 March 1785 in Bladen, North Carolina.³⁵ On 23 November 1801 she married Rev. Elias Atkerson, a Methodist minister who was born on 15 December 1781 in Bedford, Virginia. Their wedding occurred in Amelia, Virginia, but eventually the couple moved to Simpson County, Kentucky. Rhoda died on 15 July 1854 and is buried at Blackjack Cemetery near Franklin, Kentucky. Elias followed in death on 5 September 1855 and is buried near Rhoda.³⁶ Rhoda and Elias had at least eight children together, including five sons. Four of those sons fought in the Civil War (two for the Union and two for the Confederacy). None of the four returned after the Civil War to Tennessee or Kentucky. The fifth son, George (born in 1818), moved to live with his father in Simpson County, Kentucky.
Mary “Polly” Clyburn is alleged to have been born in 1787 in Robeson County, North Carolina, and died on 16 May 1876 in Franklin, Virginia.
Ephraim Claybourn (click name for seperate biographical sketch) was born on 7 December 1788 in North Carolina and died on 11 May 1850.

Footnotes

1
Angela Clyburn, Cliburne: The Story of an American Pioneer Family (Clyburn, 2006).
2
Joshua Stapp’s will, which was made on 23 December 1689 and proved on 1 April 1695, indicates that Joshua Stapp’s son-in-law (at that time “son-in-law” had the meaning that we now call stepson), John Clyburn, was born in about 1677.
3
Lolita Hannah Bissell, Cliborn-Claiborne Records (Nashville: Bissell, 1986). See also The Descendants of James Monroe Sills, James Cliburn & Allied Pitman Family by Isom L. Stephens (1972), wherein the author estimates that John of Dale Parish has upward of a million descendants living in the United States in 1972.
4
Sue Cliborn Forbes, “John Cliburn of Old Henrico Co.,” The Claiborne Society Newsletter.
5
Lolita Hannah Bissell, Cliborn-Claiborne Records (Nashville: Bissell, 1986). See also The Descendants of James Monroe Sills, James Cliburn & Allied Pitman Family by Isom L. Stephens (1972), wherein the author estimates that John of Dale Parish has upward of a million descendants living in the United States in 1972.
6
See the entry for John B. Claiborne.
7
Robert M. Calhoon, A Companion to the American Revolution (Blackwell Publishers, 2000), 235.
8
Robert Middlekauff, The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution, 1763-1789 (Oxford University Press, 1985), 550.
9
Calhoon, A Companion to the American Revolution, 235.
10
1790 United States Census, Robeson County, North Carolina, accessed through Ancestry.com.
11
This is a reference to Joshua himself.
12
One of these males was Ephraim, who was born in 1788.
13
One was his wife Sarah and another was their daughter Sarah (Sally).
14
Verner M. Claybourn and Harriette Pinnell Threlkeld, The Claybourn Family (A-1 Business Service, 1959).
15
Hugh T. Lefler and Albert Ray Newsome, North Carolina: The History of a Southern State (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1954).
16
See the section concerning land transactions, where certain transactions indicate land had to be sold to pay taxes.
17
A.B. Pruitt, “Abstracts of Land Entries, Bladen County, North Carolina.”
18
Claybourn, The Claybourn Family, citing the Department of Archives and History of North Carolina in Raleigh.
19
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book E, 25 February 1794, 17.
20
Ibid.
21
James Rowland received a grant of 2100 acres at ten pounds per acre east of Ashpole Swamp in 1790. See Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book A-C, 1786-90. This land adjoined 200 acres he already had and was next to Joshua’s.
22
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book N, 18 November 1802, 3.
23
Here is the text of two such notices, the first from Vol. 2 of The Raleigh Register, 25 August 1801, 97: “Notice of a sheriff’s sale at the Courthouse in Lumberton for a long list of property to be sold for non-payment of taxes on Wednesday, August 10, 1801. For taxes due for the year 1800, they not being sent in for that year: Among them: 150 acres near Ashpole Swamp, the property of the heirs of Joshua Clibourn.” Another notice from The Raleigh Register, 20 July 1802: “Notice of a sheriff’s sale on Saturday 21 day of August next at the Courthouse in Lumberton, the following tracts of lands so much as will pay the taxes and charges for the year 1801. Among them: 27 acres on the south side of Ashpole Swamp near or adjoining Thomas Townsend’s land, supposed to be the property of heirs of Joshua Clibourn; 100 acres near or adjoining the above, the property of the above heirs.”
24
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book P, 23 January 1811, 338.
25
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book E, 25 February 1794, 17.
26
1790 United States Census, Robeson County, North Carolina, accessed through Ancestry.com.
27
Angela Clyburn, Vol. 24 of Clyburn Family News, 8 October 2006.
28
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book C, 10 January 1793, 295. [Deed witnessed by Joshua Barefield and Jesse Jernigan.]
29
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book C, 21 June 1793, 297. [Deed witnessed by John Rowland and George Smith.]
30
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book D, 15 July 1793, 82. [It read “William Clibourn of Robeson” sold to Charles Ingram, for 120 pounds, 100 acres on the form of Ashpole and Indian Swamp (part of what was granted to Joshua Lamb by Patent, 1758) and 33 acres of a tract adjoining the land granted to Alexander McDaniel on the end that lies next to Ashpole divided by a branch and “Agreed as containing 33 acres more or less.” It was signed William (X) Claibourn (note this spelling is different even within the same document). Witnesses were Frances L. Hayes, Ebinezer Ellis and Moab Stevens.]
31
Robeson County, North Carolina Deeds, Book D, 6 January 1795, 139. William Clibourn sold to Noah Pitman, for 100 pounds, a piece of land and plantation of unkown acreage on the west side of Indian Swamp and east of another point (writing indecipherable). The witnesses were Theopholis Griffin and Hardy Pitman. It was signed William (X) Clybourn.
32
A land record is recorded on 4 June 1784 for EPHRAIM CLYBURN and Family for 200 acres at Country Harbor. They landed in Stormont with the North Carolina and South Carolina Regiments, reportedly on Christmas Day. Many of them died that first winter. They are buried at Mount Misery Cemetery.
33
All research concerning James (the alleged brother of Joshua, Ephraim, and William) reported here is the product of Peggy O’Neal-Thurston.
34
1850 United States Census, District 10, Jefferson County, Illinois, accessed through Ancestry.com.
35
Kentucky Birth, Marriage and Death Records – Microfilm (1852-1910), Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, Frankfort, Kentucky, Microfilm rolls #994027-994058.
36
Some information on Elias and Rhoda is derived from their headstones, as well as contributions by their descendants.

Ancestry

Ancient Origins

(1758 - 1799)

Child

Ephraim Claybourn

(1788 - 1850)

Child

Sarah “Sally” Claybourn

(1795 - 1853)