Public

POC-2017-01 – POC, 2017 Qtr 1, Vol. XIV Issue 1

Document

Record Summary

Evidence Category:

Published Source

Record Type:

Newsletter

Date:

Jan-Mar 2017

Individuals Mentioned:

John Adams, Mary Akers, Gary Albert, Lt. Gen. R. H. Anderson, George William Beale, Mark A. Beliles, Asa Blanchard, Reuben Blankenship, Heather Brabazon, Thomas E. Buckley, Anna Powell Clay, Charles Clay, Rev. Charles Green Clay, Curtis Clay, David Clay, Edward Clay, Rev. Edwin Porter Clay, Rev. Eleazar Clay, Eli Clay, Elizabeth Hudson Clay, Elizabeth Moore Clay, Henry Clay, Sen. Henry Clay, Jerry Clay, Joanne Clay, John Clay, Rev. John Clay Jr. [Sir John], Mary Mitchell Clay, Mary Rogers Clay, Micheal Curtis Clay, Obediah Clay, Rev. Paul Clay, Paulus Augustus Clay, Paulus Aurelius [Paul] Clay, Rev. Porter Clay, Rachel Povall Clay, Rhoda Elizabeth [Shrewbury/Solesbury] Clay, Robert Young Clay, Steven Robert Clay, Thomas Clay, William Clay, William Mitchell Clay, S. Douglas Cline, Connie Collins, Nancy Cook, Lewis Craig, Sue Daniels, Mary Ann Clay Dawson, John Frederick Dorman, Pat Dunford, Capt. William Ellis, Gen. Charles De Gaulle, Martha Cline Harber, David L. Holmes, Ken Hunt, Thomas Jefferson, Karen Krugman, Gen. Robert E. Lee, Rachel Lipowicz, J. B. Lippincott, James Madison, Bishop William Meade, Jonathan Moreland, Jerry Newcombe, Dennis Nofsinger, Robin Clay Oliver, Leontyne Clay Peck, Daniel Perrigan, George W. Ranck, Mary Richardson, Robert Baylor Semple, Zachary F. Smith, Mary Stagnaro, James Barnett Taylor, George Washington, Shirley Wilcox

Repository:

Clay Family Society Digital Archives

Archive Reference:

older 01_Pieces_of_Clay/2007-2025

Summary

Focused on President’s message, The Churchy Clays – S. Douglas Cline, President

Clay Line: Board

Asset

View Public Asset

Source Citation

Pieces of Clay, Clay Family Society, (Winter 2017): 7 pages; CFS Archive ID POC-2017-01.

Historical Context

ervasive Clergyman Roots: Research shows an astounding number of Clays served as religious figures (reverends, pastors, deacons, etc.) who strongly impacted their communities. Early descendants of John Clay, who arrived in Jamestown in 1613, frequently served as clergymen starting around the fourth generation.

Denominational Division: Early “churchy” Clays were prominent in both the Episcopal (Anglican) and Baptist denominations during a period of intense religious transition and conflict in Virginia.

Prominent Individual Findings:
* Obediah Clay (c1739–1815): Served as a Revolutionary War lieutenant and was identified as a vestryman for the Episcopal Cumberland Parish in Lunenburg County.

* Rev. Eleazar Clay (1744–1836): Established the first Baptist church in Chesterfield County, Virginia, originally holding meetings in his barn.

* Rev. Charles Green Clay (1745–c1820): An evangelical Anglican assigned to St. Anne’s Parish who formed a close, lifelong bond with Thomas Jefferson over shared beliefs.

* Rev. John Jr. “Sir John” Clay (c1741–c1781): A Baptist “exhorter” and cousin to Eleazar, he was the father of Senator Henry Clay. He was briefly imprisoned for his preaching before moving to Hanover County.

* Rev. Porter Clay (1779–1850): Younger brother of Senator Henry Clay, he converted from Deism to become an ordained Baptist minister, later living as an itinerant preacher.

African American and DNA Lineages: Member Leontyne (Clay) Peck published research tracking her DNA ancestors (African, European, and American) back to the family of Henry Clay, a free man of color in Madison County, Virginia.

Shared Behavioral Patterns: Many early Clay clergymen shared a distinct pattern of restlessness, rebelliousness, interpersonal conflict, and a strong propensity to migrate.