Calhoun County AlArchives Biographies.....McCain, Robert December 13 1812 - 
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Ann Anderson alabammygrammy@aol.com May 15, 2004, 12:51 pm

Author: Brant & Fuller (1893)
    ROBERT MCCAIN, one of the pioneers of Calhoun county, Ala., was born in
Mecklenburg, N. C., December 13, 1812, a son of Joseph N. and Jennett (Moore)
McCain, both natives of North Carolina. The father was a son of Hugh and Mary
McCain, the grandfather was a native of Pennsylvania and was one of the first
settlers in North Carolina. During the Revolutionary war he ran a tannery in
North Carolina, and at one time Cornwallis came to take his leather, but hearing
of his coming, Mr. McCain got some men to help him, dug a hole in the bottom of
the creek-sank the leather and covered it over with sand. When Cornwallis made
his demand for the leather, he accompanied it with a threat that if Mr. McCain
did not disclose its hiding place he would have him hanged, and, failing to get
the information, ordered him taken to a tree, which the men hanged him until
almost dead, then they let him down, and on his recovering, still refusing to
disclose the hiding place, they again swung him up. This cruel treatment was
repeated three times before they stopped, but the British never received the
information sought and never found the leather. The grandfather was too old for
the war, but his son was not, and at the time Cornwallis's men were trying to
find this leather one of his men stepped up to Mr. McCain's wife and took a
large hat she was wearing off her head, and the next day this same man and his
comrades were captured and Mr. McCain's son, Hugh, was in the party that
captured them, being a lieutenant; when he saw the hat asked his general if it
was any harm to cut his mother's hat, and the general replied no-then Hugh went
to hunt the wearer, and on finding him, made a stroke with his sword at the
man's head, but the Britisher threw up his arm, which received the blow and had
the flesh cut off from the wrist to the elbow. Mrs. Jennett McCain was a
daughter of James and Margaret Moore, both natives of North Carolina. They had a
son, James, who was with Gen. Jackson at New Orleans. Robert McCain was five
years of age when his father removed to South Carolina and settled on the
Indians' lands near York court house, where he attended the common schools
between crop time and fodder pulling time. In 1835 the family removed from South
Carolina to Chattooga county, Ga., where they remained ten years. On October 19,
1837, Robert married Mary E. Hallum, daughter of Richard and Elizabeth (Whitney)
Hallum. This union was blessed with three boys-one living-Richard H.; those dead
were named Joseph, and John B. The mother was born in Pickens district, S. C.,
in 1810, and died July 18, 1868, a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. In
1845 Mr. McCain came to Alabama and settled on the farm where he now lives. On
December 22, 1869, he married Sarah E. Scott, daughter of William Scott. She was
a member of the Presbyterian church and died in February, 1889, and on November
21, 1889, he married Mary H. Cowan, daughter of Hiram and Margaret (Harris)
Cowan. She is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, while he is a member
of the old school Presbyterian church. Mr. McCain served as justice of the
peace, in beat 8, nine years; he was commissioner of Calhoun county ten years,
and was captain of a company of militia while in Georgia. When he first landed
in Alabama he had only $10, and bought his land on credit, but he is a man that
has made a success of farming, having never engaged in any other occupation. He
now owns 560 acres of fine land, most of which is tillable. He is one of the
substantial citizens of the county.



Additional Comments:
from "Memorial Record of Alabama", Vol. I, p. 602-603

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