# Alney McLean

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Alney_McLean
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Alney_McLean.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alney_McLean
> Source revision: 1349587613
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{short description|American politician}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix          =
| name                      = Alney McLean
| image                     = Alney McLean c1820.jpg
| honorific_suffix          = 
| state                     = [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky)
| district                  = 5th
| term_start                = March 4, 1819
| term_end                  = March 3, 1821
| preceded                  = [Anthony New](/source/Anthony_New)
| succeeded                 = Anthony New
| term_start2               = March 4, 1815
| term_end2                 = March 3, 1817
| preceded2                 = [Samuel Hopkins](/source/Samuel_Hopkins_(congressman))
| succeeded2                = Anthony New
| office3                   = Member of the [Kentucky House of Representatives](/source/Kentucky_House_of_Representatives)
| term3                     = 1812–1813
| birth_date                = {{Birth date|1779|6|10|mf=yes}}
| birth_place               = [Burke County](/source/Burke_County%2C_North_Carolina), [North Carolina](/source/North_Carolina)
| death_date                = {{Death date and age|1841|12|30|1779|6|10}}
| death_place               = [Greenville](/source/Greenville%2C_Kentucky), [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky)
| resting_place             = Old Caney Station Cemetery
| resting_place_coordinates = 
| party                     = [Democratic-Republican](/source/Democratic-Republican_Party)
| spouse                    = Tabitha Russell Campbell
| occupation                = [Surveyor](/source/Surveying)
| profession                = [Lawyer](/source/Lawyer)
| branch                    = [United States Army](/source/United_States_Army)
| service_years             = 1812–1815
| rank                      = [Captain](/source/Captain_(United_States))
| unit                      = 
| commands                  = 
| battles                   = [War of 1812](/source/War_of_1812)
| awards                    =  
}}

'''Alney McLean''' (June 10, 1779 – December 30, 1841) was a [United States representative](/source/United_States_representative) from [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky). [McLean County, Kentucky](/source/McLean_County%2C_Kentucky), is named in his honor.

==Early life==
Alney McLean was born to Ephraim and Elizabeth (Davidson) McLean in [Burke County, North Carolina](/source/Burke_County%2C_North_Carolina), on June 10, 1779.<ref name=kye>Kleber, p. 599</ref> Alney McLean's father, Ephraim, a descendant of [Clan Maclean](/source/Clan_Maclean) of [Isle of Mull](/source/Isle_of_Mull), served as a captain at the [Battle of Kings Mountain](/source/Battle_of_Kings_Mountain),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/patriots_nc_capt_ephraim_mclean.html|title=The North Carolina Patriots – Capt. Ephraim McLean}}</ref> and received a 600-acre land grant in what is now [East Nashville, Nashville](/source/East_Nashville%2C_Nashville) [Tennessee](/source/Tennessee) in payment for his service.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cumberlandpioneers.com/volume3.html|title=The First Southwest, Vol. III|author=Jack Masters}}</ref>  Along with [Colonel](/source/Colonel) Elijah Robertson, brother of [James Robertson (explorer)](/source/James_Robertson_(explorer)), Ephraim McLean represented what was then Nashville, North Carolina, to the [North Carolina General Assembly](/source/North_Carolina_General_Assembly) in 1784,<ref>Connor, p. 586.</ref> making him one of the earliest officials in what would soon become the state of [Tennessee](/source/Tennessee).

Alney McLean's mother, Elizabeth Davidson, was the first cousin of [Brigadier General](/source/Brigadier_General) [William Lee Davidson](/source/William_Lee_Davidson), who died fighting [Cornwallis](/source/Cornwallis) at the [Battle of Cowan's Ford](/source/Battle_of_Cowan's_Ford).<ref>Ewing, p. 88.</ref>

McLean pursued preparatory studies,<ref name=congbio>Congressional Biography</ref> likely at Davidson Academy (later [Peabody College](/source/Peabody_College)) where Ephraim was a trustee.<ref name=board>Board of Trustees, p. 3</ref>

At age twenty McLean relocated to Kentucky<ref name=rothert72>Rothert, p. 72</ref> where he was appointed surveyor of [Muhlenberg County, Kentucky](/source/Muhlenberg_County%2C_Kentucky).<ref name=kye /> In this capacity, he laid out [Greenville, Kentucky](/source/Greenville%2C_Kentucky), the county seat, and was elected a trustee of that city when it was formed in 1799.<ref name=kye />

On November 16, 1805, McLean married Tabitha Russell Campbell, daughter of [Revolutionary War](/source/American_Revolutionary_War) [general](/source/general) [William Campbell](/source/William_Campbell_(general)); the couple had ten children.<ref name=beok>''Biographical Encyclopedia of Kentucky''</ref> One of McLean's grandsons, William C. McLean, became an Associate Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court.<ref name=rothert72 /> McLean's nephews included [John McLean (Illinois politician)](/source/John_McLean_(Illinois_politician)) and "Kentucky Longrifleman" [Ephraim McLean Brank](/source/Ephraim_McLean_Brank), who served with him under [Lieutenant Colonel](/source/Lieutenant_Colonel) William Mitchusson at the [Battle of New Orleans](/source/Battle_of_New_Orleans).<ref name="smith"/>

Alney McLean's brother in law, [Brigadier General](/source/Brigadier_General) Robert Ewing, was elected Justice of the Davidson County Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions during the period of [Andrew Jackson](/source/Andrew_Jackson)'s service as an attorney in Nashville,<ref name=ely>Ely, p. 369.</ref> served as a delegate to the North Carolina Convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution and became Speaker of the Kentucky State Senate.<ref name=ely />  Surviving correspondence appears to indicate the two had a close relationship.

Other close relatives were [Linn Boyd](/source/Linn_Boyd), 24th [Speaker of the United States House of Representatives](/source/Speaker_of_the_United_States_House_of_Representatives); Rev. [Finis Ewing](/source/Finis_Ewing), one of the founders of the [Cumberland Presbyterian Church](/source/Cumberland_Presbyterian_Church); and [Illinois](/source/Illinois)' fifth [Governor](/source/Governor) [William Lee D. Ewing](/source/William_Lee_D._Ewing).

==Political and military career==
[[File:Alney-McLean---Paducah-sign-for-Wiki.jpg|thumb|Sign in front of the [McCracken, Kentucky](/source/McCracken%2C_Kentucky) Courthouse (in [Paducah, Kentucky](/source/Paducah%2C_Kentucky)) commemorating early members of the [U.S. House of Representatives](/source/United_States_House_of_Representatives) representing [Jackson Purchase (U.S. historical region)](/source/Jackson_Purchase_(U.S._historical_region)).  The "First District" in the title actually changed over time. It refers to the Jackson Purchase, which was in the {{ushr|KY|5|C}} from 1819 to 1823, the {{ushr|KY|12|C}} until 1833, and then the {{ushr|KY|1|C}} until the end of the sign's lineage in 1855.]]
McLean studied law and was [admitted](/source/Admission_to_the_bar_in_the_United_States) to the [bar](/source/Bar_(law)) in 1805 and commenced practice in Greenville.<ref name=kye /> He showed little interest in politics until at least 1808.<ref>Rothert, p. 71</ref> He was first elected to office in 1812, representing Muhlenberg County in the [Kentucky House of Representatives](/source/Kentucky_House_of_Representatives) from 1812 to 1813.<ref name=kye />

At the outset of the [War of 1812](/source/War_of_1812), McLean organized a [company](/source/company_(military)) of volunteers.<ref name=rothert70>Rothert, p. 70</ref> Records show that the company was enlisted September 18, 1812.<ref name=rothert70 /> In 1813, he organized a company ultimately commanded by Lewis Kincheloe, then raised another company that he commanded personally under [General](/source/General) [Samuel Hopkins](/source/Samuel_Hopkins_(congressman)) in his campaigns against the [Indians](/source/Native_Americans_in_the_United_States)<ref name=rothert70 /><ref>''Biographical sketch of the Hon. Lazarus W. Powell''</ref> and again under [Lieutenant Colonel](/source/Lieutenant_Colonel) William Mitchusson at the [Battle of New Orleans](/source/Battle_of_New_Orleans).<ref name=smith>Smith, p. 179.</ref>

McLean, along with [Kentucky](/source/Kentucky) [Senator](/source/United_States_Senate) [John Adair](/source/John_Adair) and others, later took offense to General [Andrew Jackson](/source/Andrew_Jackson)'s charge that Kentuckians "ingloriously fled" from fighting at New Orleans; he remained a political opponent of Jackson's for the remainder of his career.<ref name=rothert70 />

McLean was elected as a Republican to the [Fourteenth Congress](/source/14th_United_States_Congress), serving from March 4, 1815, to March 3, 1817.<ref name=congbio /> He returned to Congress in 1819, serving in the [Sixteenth Congress](/source/Sixteenth_Congress).<ref name=congbio /> After leaving Congress, he was appointed a [circuit judge](/source/Kentucky_Circuit_Courts) of the fourteenth district of Kentucky, a position he held until his death.<ref name=congbio /> As a [presidential elector](/source/presidential_elector) in 1824 and 1832, McLean twice cast his vote for Kentucky's [favorite son](/source/favorite_son), [Henry Clay](/source/Henry_Clay).<ref name=kye />  Some credit McLean with helping Clay, with whom he served in two separate Kentucky Congressional delegations, form the [Whig Party (United States)](/source/Whig_Party_(United_States)) in opposition to Jackson.

==Later life==
Around 1820, McLean and his son William discovered [coal](/source/coal) on the family farm near the now-defunct town of [Paradise](/source/Paradise%2C_Kentucky). However, at the time, wood was more plentiful and convenient, and the discovery was largely overlooked. In 1830, the McLeans mined some of the coal and sent it to [Russellville, Kentucky](/source/Russellville%2C_Kentucky), on ox wagons and via barges down the [Green River](/source/Green_River_(Kentucky)) to [Owensboro, Kentucky](/source/Owensboro%2C_Kentucky), and [Evansville, Indiana](/source/Evansville%2C_Indiana). The McLean mine was one of the first commercial mines in Muhlenberg County and was later valued above other mines in the county because of its transportation facilities.<ref>Rothert, pp. 389&ndash;390</ref>

McLean died of [pneumonia](/source/pneumonia) near Greenville, Kentucky, in 1841 and was buried in Old Caney Station Cemetery, near Greenville, Kentucky.<ref name=congbio /><ref name=rothert72 /> [McLean County, Kentucky](/source/McLean_County%2C_Kentucky), was formed from Muhlenberg and other counties in 1854 and named in honor of Alney McLean.<ref name=kye />

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Bioguide}}
{{CongBio|M000544}}
*{{cite book |title=Biographical sketch of the Hon. Lazarus W. Powell, (of Henderson, Ky.) : governor of the state of Kentucky from 1851-1855 and a senator in Congress from 1859-1865 |others=published by direction of the General Assembly of Kentucky |publisher=Kentucky Yeoman Office |location=[Frankfort, Kentucky](/source/Frankfort%2C_Kentucky) |year=1868 |url=http://kdl.kyvl.org/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=kyetexts;cc=kyetexts;sid=61e57d097009769aae83e57a690ffa7c;idno=b92-63-27078866;view=toc |pages=13 |access-date=2008-06-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050308114924/http://kdl.kyvl.org/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=kyetexts |archive-date=2005-03-08 |url-status=dead }}
*{{cite book |title=The Biographical Encyclopaedia of Kentucky |publisher=J. M. Armstrong & Company |location=Cincinnati, Ohio |year=1878 |url=http://www.tennkin.com/d0/i0000050.htm#i50 |access-date=2008-09-22}}
*{{cite book |title=Laws of North Carolina and Tennessee Relating Thereto: List of Trustees, History |others=Ordered by the Board of Trustees of the University of Nashville |year=1892 |publisher=Marshall and Bruce, Stationers and Printers |location=[Nashville, Tennessee](/source/Nashville%2C_Tennessee)}}
*{{cite book |last=Connor |first=R.D.W., Secretary of the North Carolina Historical Commission |title=A Manual of North Carolina |publisher=E.M. Uzzell and Company State Printers |location=[Raleigh, North Carolina](/source/Raleigh%2C_North_Carolina) |year=1913}}
*{{cite book |last=Ely |first=James W. Jr. and Theodore Brown Jr., editors |title=Legal Papers of [Andrew Jackson](/source/Andrew_Jackson) |year=1987 |publisher=University of Tennessee Press |location=[Knoxville, Tennessee](/source/Knoxville%2C_Tennessee) |isbn=0-87049-355-8}}
*{{cite book |last=Ewing |first=Presley Kittredge and Mary Ellen Williams Ewing |title=The Ewing Genealogy with Cognate Branches: A Survey of the Ewings and Their Kin in America |url=https://archive.org/details/ewinggenealogywi00ewinrich |year=1919 |publisher=Hurcules Printing & Book Company |isbn=978-1103732838}}
*{{cite book |last=Kleber |first=John E. |editor=Kleber, John E. |others=Associate editors: [Thomas D. Clark](/source/Thomas_D._Clark), [Lowell H. Harrison](/source/Lowell_H._Harrison), and James C. Klotter |title=''The Kentucky Encyclopedia'' |year=1992 |publisher=The University Press of Kentucky |location=[Lexington, Kentucky](/source/Lexington%2C_Kentucky) |isbn=0-8131-1772-0}}
*{{cite book |last=Rothert |first=Otto Arthur |title=A History of Muhlenberg County |publisher=J.P. Morton |year=1913 |location=Louisville, Kentucky |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_tHzUYtgbjgEC |access-date=2008-06-14}}
*{{cite book |last=Smith |first=Zachariah Frederick |title=The Battle of New Orleans: Including the Previous Engagements Between the Americans and the British, the Indians, and the Spanish which Led to the Final Conflict on the 8th of January, 1815|url=https://archive.org/details/battleneworleans00smitrich|year=1904|publisher=J. P. Morton|pages=[https://archive.org/details/battleneworleans00smitrich/page/179 179]–}}

==External links==
*[http://politicalgraveyard.com/bio/mclean.html#079.25.97 Alney McLean entry] at [The Political Graveyard](/source/The_Political_Graveyard)
*{{find a Grave|23526326}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-par|us-hs}}
{{US House succession box |state= Kentucky |district= 5 |before= [William P. Duval](/source/William_P._Duval) |after= [Anthony New](/source/Anthony_New) |years= March 4, 1815 &ndash; March 3, 1817}}
{{US House succession box |state= Kentucky |district= 5 |before= [Anthony New](/source/Anthony_New) |after= [Anthony New](/source/Anthony_New) |years= March 4, 1819 &ndash; March 3, 1821}}
{{s-end}}
{{USCongRep-start|congresses= 14th & 16th [United States Congress](/source/United_States_Congress) |state=[Kentucky](/source/Kentucky)}}
{{USCongRep/KY/14}}
{{USCongRep/KY/16}}
{{USCongRep-end}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLean, Alney}}
Category:1779 births
Category:1841 deaths
Category:American surveyors
Category:United States Army personnel of the War of 1812
Category:Deaths from pneumonia in Kentucky
Category:Kentucky lawyers
Category:Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives
Category:People from Burke County, North Carolina
Category:United States Army officers
Category:Democratic-Republican Party United States representatives from Kentucky
Category:People from Greenville, Kentucky
Category:1814 United States House of Representatives elections
Category:1818 United States House of Representatives elections
Category:19th-century American lawyers
Category:19th-century United States representatives
Category:19th-century members of the Kentucky General Assembly

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Alney McLean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alney_McLean) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alney_McLean?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.