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About Col Benjamin Chambers
Founder of Chambersburg
Col. Benjamin Chambers was born in Lake Lough Neogh, Antrim, Ireland. He was the first White settler in Franklin Co., PA, and built a log cabin, grist, and saw mills at the conflux of the Conococheague and Falling Spring Creeks. He built Fort Chambers in 1756 surrounded by a 300 x 90 stockade as part of the town of Chambers. He gave land for the Falling Spring Presbyterian Church and also granted land in the town square for a Courthouse in 1774. The Courthouse was burned during the Civil War on orders of Confederate General Jubal Early by General John McCausland when the town would not pay ransom. Col. Chambers lobbied for Chambers Town to become the County seat of Franklin County and was named the County seat in 1784. Col. Chambers believed in religious freedom and rented land to Lutheran, Presbyterian, and Church of Christ churches. The annual rent was a single rose from each church. The ceremony of rose rent continues today.
- Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Oct 10 2020, 4:05:50 UTC
- Reference: WikiTree Genealogy - SmartCopy: Aug 5 2018, 6:50:08 UTC
Written in Juanita Hughes family history:
Born in Ireland, near Antrim, he had four brothers. They had ample means and acquired a large tract of land. William Penn granted to Benjamin 1000 acres and to his brother John Chambers 500 acres.
Benjamin Chambers moved to the junction of Falling Springs with the Conococheague and was the first white settler there. Benjamin Chambers was made a Colonel in the British Service under the provincial law. In 1730 he build a log house, saw mill and grist mill, and other buildings and that was the beginning of Chambersburg, now Franklin County, Pa.
Col. Benjamin Chambers executed the duries of magistrate and also practiced medicine in that new country. Col. Benjamine Chambers went to England during the controversy between Lord Baltimore and Penns. His evidence was valuable. He grant granted him was given to him, but through neglect he lost title to it. He visited his native country, Antrim Ireland, and brought to America a number of colonist, paying the passage himself. He was a friend to the Indians and he spoke the tongue of the Delawares quite well.
In 1753, the French urged the Indians into a war. When they became dangerous Col. Chambers and other appealed in vain to James Hamilton for help. Col. Chambers took matters into his own hands. He built a large two story stone house, roofed with lead, thick walls with narrow windows for loops holes. One corner of the house was over a brook to furnish water. It was surrounded by a deep moat. That house and the mill were enclosed with a stockade. He was armed with two 4 pound cannons and many small arms. This private fort was considered dangerous by the government and Col Chambers was ordered to surrender it and his guns which he refused and successfully resisted the troops sent against him. He kept possession of the fort during the eight years of the Indian war.
Seventy-three years afterwards one of his cannons was used in celebrating Independence Day.
Chambersburg was surveyed in 1764. In 1768 Benjamin Chambers gave land for a school house, a church and a cemetery. He died in 1788 and lies buried in Chambersburg. He was too old and infirm to take part in the Revolutionary War.
Benjamin Chambers, a Scots-Irish immigrant, settled "Falling Spring" in 1730, building a grist mill and saw mill by a then-26-foot-high (7.9 m) waterfall where Falling Spring Creek joined Conococheague Creek.[11][12] The creek provided power for the mills, and soon a settlement grew and became known as "Falling Spring."
On March 30, 1734, Chambers received a "Blunston license" for 400 acres (160 ha), from a representative of the Penn family, but European settlement in the area remained of questionable legality until the treaty ending the French and Indian War, because not all Indian tribes with land claims had signed treaties.[11][13] The Penn family encouraged settlement in the area in order to strengthen its case in a border dispute with the Maryland Colony, which had resulted in hostilities known as Cresap's War. This dispute was not settled until 1767, with the border survey which gave rise to the Mason-Dixon line. Chambers traveled to England to testify in support of Penn's claims.[14] To maintain peace with the Indians, European settlers were sometimes removed from nearby areas. In May 1750, Benjamin Chambers helped remove settlers from the nearby Burnt Cabins, named after an incident.[15][16]
In 1748 a local militia was formed for protection against Indians, with Benjamin Chambers named as its colonel.
Benjamin Chambers owned a black female slave sometime before the French and Indian War and twenty slaves were recorded as taxable property in 1786.[25][26]
Wikipedia Quoted Verbatim From: HISTORY OF FRANKLIN COUNTY PENNSYLVANIACHICAGO: WARNER, BEERS & CO., 1887Chicago: JOHN MORRIS COMPANY, PRINTERS118 and 120 Monroe Street
The first settlement, in what is now Franklin County, PA, was made in 1730,at Falling Spring, (now Chambersburg) - the confluence of the two streams,Falling Spring and Conococheague - by Col. Benjamin Chambers and his olderbrother, Joseph. Between 1726 and 1730, four brothers, James, Robert,Joseph and Benjamin Chambers, emigrated from the country of Antrim, Ireland,to the province of Pennsylvania. They settled and built a mill shortlyafter their arrival, at the mouth of Fishing Creek, in what is now DauphinCounty, where they occupied a tract of fine land. These brothers were amongthe first to explore and settle the valley. James made a settlement at thehead of Great Spring, near Newville; Robert, at the head of Middle Spring,near Shippensburg, and Joseph and Benjamin at Falling Spring, whereChambersburg now stands.
By an arrangement among the brothers, Joseph returned to supervise theirproperty at the mouth of Fishing Creek, and Benjamin remained to develop thesettlement at Falling Spring. He built a one-storied hewed-log house whichhe covered with lapped cedar shingles secured by nails-an innovation uponthe prevailing style of architecture, which consisted of round log structurecovered with a roof of clapboards, held in position by beams and woodenpins. Having completed this, the finest residence in the settlement, headdressed himself to clearing land, erecting necessary buildings andplanning the future growth of the colony. Some time after this, Benjaminhad occasion to visit his former homestead at Fishing Creek. Returning, hefound his house had been burned by some avaricious person for the "sake ofthe nails," which were a rarity in those days.
Subsequently Mr. Chambers received what was then the only authority for thetaking up and occupying of land. The following is a copy of the interestinginstrument, which was a narrow strip of common writing paper, thechirography on which would not stand the crucial test of modern straightlines, ovals and right and left curves. PENNSYLVANIA. SS
By order of the Proprietary. These are to License and allow BenjaminChambers to take and settle and Improve of four hundred acres of Land at thefalling spring's mouth and on both sides of the Conegochege Creek for theconveniency of a Grist Mill and plantation. To be hereafter surveyed to thesaid Benjamin on the common terms other Lands in those parts are sold.Given under my hand this thirtieth day of March 1734.
LANCASTER COUNTY SAMUEL BLUNSTON A mill-wright by occupation, he at once erected a saw-mill and subsequentlya flouring-mill. These were both indispensable to the comfort and growth ofthe settlement, and were evidently heralded as strong inducements for othersto cast in their lot with this growing colony. The saw-mill stood on whatis known as the "Island," a few rods northwest of where the woolen-mill nowstands; the flouring-mill, constructed mainly of logs, stood near theresidence of its owner. It was shortly destroyed by fire, but its place wasoccupied by a new one, whose walls were made of stone.
BENJAMIN CHAMBERS was upward of twenty one years of age when he settled atFalling Spring. His death occurring February 17, 1788, in his eightiethyear, he must have been born about 1708 or 1709. Shortly after (1741), hemarried a Miss Patterson, residing near Lancaster, who was the mother of hiseldest son, James. She lived but a few years. In 1748, he married a secondtime, his choice being a Miss Williams, the daughter of a Welsh clergymanliving in Virginia. She bore seven children, viz: RUHAMAH, married to DR.CALHOUN; WILLIAM; BENJAMIN; JANE, married to ADAM ROSS; JOSEPH, GEORGE and HETTY, married to WM. M. BROWN, ESQ.
He used his influence with his acquaintances to settle in his neighborhood,directing their attention to desirable locations for farms. He was earlycommissioned a justice of the peace, and later a colonel of the militiaorganized. He served as a daysman to adjust many controversies between hisneighbors, and thus became a general counselor in the community. During thecontroversy between LORD BALTIMORE and the PENNS, concerning the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland, he went to England to assist, by his evidence and advice, in the adjustment of the difficulties involved. FromEngland he went to Ireland, his native soil, where he induced manyacquaintances with their families to remove to his new settlement. In 1764 COL. CHAMBERS laid out the town of Chambersburg, whose history issketched elsewhere in this volume. The history of this sturdy early settleris the history of the country and of the commonwealth for more than half acentury. From the time he landed at the Falling Spring till his declininghealth rendered further activity impossible, he was the acknowledged leaderof the people in all civil, military, and religious movements."
Benjamin, and his eldest son James, was mentioned in his mother-in-law's will in 1753:
"Item I give to my Son in Law Benjamin Chambers The Sum of Ten Pounds. Item I give to my Grandson James Chambers Son of ye said Benjamin Chambers The Sum of Ten Pounds. Item I give & bequeath to my Daughter Rebecca Polson half ye Interest Money of ye Two Hundred Pounds that I have out at Interest in ye hands of John Caigey Till my Grandson James Chambers attains his Age of Twenty One Years, Till which time I give to ye said James Chambers ye other half of ye said Interest Money. And if the said James Chambers should die before he attains to ye sd Age my Will then is That the said Two Hundred Pounds be paid to my Daughter Rebecca Polson & her Heirs."
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Col Benjamin Chambers's Timeline
| 1708 |
1708
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Ireland, Antrim, Antrim, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Family Data Collection - Births
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| 1726 |
1726
Age 18
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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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| 1731 |
1731
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Somerset County, Pennsylvania, Colonial America
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| 1743 |
June 5, 1743
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Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States
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| 1750 |
1750
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Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, USA
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| 1755 |
1755
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Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States
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| 1756 |
1756
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Chambersburg, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, United States
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| 1762 |
1762
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Chambersburg, Franklin, Pennsylvania, United States
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