BIOGRAPHIES - CLAY, Brutus Junius, Bourbon County, Kentucky From: Bob Francis http://www.shawhan.com Date: 07 Feb 2000 The biographies are taken primarily from William Perrin's "The History of Bourbon, Scott, Harrison and Nicholas Counties, Kentucky" and E. Polk Johnson's "The History of Kentucky and Kentuckians," Vol. III. Many Bourbon County, Kentucky, researchers have pointed out mistakes and they are notated. Name: Brutus Junius CLAY _________________________________________ Father: General Green CLAY (1757-1828) Mother: Sally LEWIS (1776-1867) Spouses _________________________________________ 1: Amelia FIELD Birth: November 2, 1812 Death: July 31, 1843 Age: 30 Father: FIELD Marriage: February 10, 1835 Children: Martha (1832-); Christopher Field (1835-); Green (1839-); Ezekiel Field (1840-) _________________________________________ 2: Ann FIELD Birth: February 12, 1822 Death: April 16, 1881 Age: 59 Father: FIELD Marriage: November 8, 1844 Children: Cassius M. Honorable Brutus J. Clay was born July 1, 1808, in Madison County, Kentucky; educated at Centre College, Danville; settled in Bourbon, where he was prominently interested in agriculture and developing choice breeds of stock. In 1840 he was elected to the legislature; later was President of the Bourbon County Agricultural Association for many years, and did much toward making famous the productions and hospitality of the Bluegrass region. Many remember the active interest of Mr. and Mrs. Clay and their accomplished daughter in the various exhibitions. At that time the president, directors, and other wealthy citizens had cottages upon the grounds, and entertained generously and elegantly the strangers and visitors within their gates. Mr. Clay represented the Ashland District in the Thirty-eighth Congress, where, because of his practical experience and fine judgment, he was made Chairman of the Committee of Agriculture. He was also a member of the Committee on Revolutionary Pensions.1 HON. BRUTUS J. CLAY,2 farmer and stockraiser, deceased; P. 0. Paris; was one of the prominent representatives of Bourbon County, and one of its honored citizens. He belongs to a numerous family, who trace their ancestry from Eugland to the Old Dominion, thence to Kentucky, where the younger members of the family have became identified. According to an account carefully written by Green Clay, the father of the above, Sept. 12, 1784, is gleaned the following : The family trace their name to one John Clay, a native of England, who came to America as a British Grenadier, during Bacon’s Rebellion; from him have descended all the different members of the Clay family. In direct line from the above was John, who was born in Virginia, where he married, and was the father of four sons, one of whom went North, one South, the others lived and died in Virginia, to-wit : Henry and Charles Clay, of Amelia County, Va. , In direct line comes Henry, who married Mary Mitchell; by her had four sons and several daughters; the sons were William, Henry, Charles and John, who was the grandfather of Henry Clay, of Ashland. Next in order comes Charles, who was born Jan. 31, 1716. He married Martha Green, who bore him eleven children : Mrs. Mary Locket, Eliza, Charles, Henry, Thomas (who was the grandfather of Senator Thomas T. McCreery), Eliza (Murray), Lucy (Thaxton), Matt (Congressman from Tennessee), Green Priscilla,-Mary (Lewis). Green Clay, next in order of descent, was born Aug. 14, 1757; he married Sallie Lewis; by her had six children, viz: Sidney, Brutus J., Cassius M., Betsey (Smith), Pauline, Rodes and Sallie Johnson. Brutus J. Clay, who is next in descent, was born July 1, 1808, in Madison Countv Ky; he graduated at Center College, and in 1837 settled in Bourbon County, where he en-aged quite extensively in stock-raising, being at one time one of the most extensive fine stockraisers in Central Kentucky; 1840, was elected to the State Legislature, and about the same time was elected President of the Bourbon County Agricultural Society, and in 1853 was elected President of the State Agricultural Society, and was honored with a reelection, serving in this capacity eight years in all, declining to serve longer. In 1860, was elected to the Legislature; was elected to the Thirty-eighth Congress, serving as Chairman on the Committee of Agriculture, and as a member of the Convention on Revolutionary Pensions. He was a successful farmer, his farm being one of the best improved in the county. His wife was Anna M. Field, whose offspring was Cassius M., the present incumbent of the homestead. He was born March 26, 1846 ; he married Sue E. Clay, daughter of Samuel Clay; she died, leaving him four children: Junius B., Samuel H., Annie L. and Sue E. Cassius M. represented his county in the Legislature in 1872, and was re-elected, and like his father, is a model farmer. Sources 1. Smith, Zachary; Clay, Mrs. Mary Rogers. The Clay Family. Filson Club Publication No. 14. Louisville, Kentucky: John P. Morton and Company, 1899, p. 120. 2. Perrin, p. 454, 457 ------------------------------ USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free genealogical information on the Internet, data may be freely used for personal research and by non-commercial entities as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may not be reproduced in any format or presentation by other organizations or persons. 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