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To anyone who has researched the Mundell family, the story of our immigrant ancestor is all too familiar, but for those who
are new to this, it is a story that is as ingrained in American culture as immigration itself.
James Mundell was born in Ireland circa 1720 to James Mundell and Mary Burns. When James Jr. was about 15 years old, he and
his father left the country to come to America, arriving in the general area near Philadelphia, PA, where James Sr. soon found
work as a wheelwright, building wooden gear wheels for water-powered mills. He found work to be so promising that he soon
obtained an apprenticeship for his son as a caskmaker, making barrels, tubs, buckets, etc. from wood. The apprenticeship
was with John Garrett, who owned a series of mills in the area then-known as Christiana Hundred in New Castle County, Delaware.
After some time, having decided that his family would be better suited in America, James Sr. left his son in the care of Garrett,
and returned to Ireland to retrieve the rest of his family and his belongings. James Jr., in the meantime, continued his
apprenticeship with Garrett. Before long, Garrett received a letter from James Sr. stating that he and his family were to
leave Londonderry in a few days and would be back in Philadelphia in a few months (typical time for an ocean crossing). Unfortunately,
no word was ever heard from him again, and it has long-since been presumed that the entire family was lost at sea.
"James, the lone Mundell in America, finished his apprenticeship at the age of 21. He was offered a horse, saddle, and a
suit of clothes, or the sum of $100.00 and his craftsman papers, as was the custom. He took the latter, and later went to
Chester, Pa. where he joined a group of young men going west. They hit the Monongahela River, near Pittsburgh and came up
that river to the south of Little Whitely Creek. Some staked claims. James Mundell staked one square mile, or nearly 600
acres on the west side of the river in the vicinity of Whitely Creek, Ceylon, and Turkey Knob in Monongahela Township, Greene
County [then Washington], Pa. and named it "Mundell's Choice". This tract of land was warrantd to James Mundell by the Givernment
[Commonwealth of Pennsylvania], 19 Jan. 1785. (Record in Greene Co. Court House.) To this day, [portions of] this land is
owned by Mundell heirs." (4)
After staking his claim, James returned to the New Castle County, Delaware, area. On 12 July 1751, at Old Swede's Church
(now Holy Trinity Church) in Wilmington, James married Margaret Garrett, the step-daughter (see The Strange Case of Margaret
(Scott) Garrett for more information) of John Garrett, whom he had apprenticed for.
"James and Margaret (Garrett) Mundell lived in Delaware for several years following their marriage. On Feb. 13, 1753, James
bought land from John Garrett, his father-in-law, in Christiana and Mill Creek Hundreds, New Castle Co., Dela. (Deed Book
x3:611). In August 1764, James was baptised and received into membership of the Brandywine Baptist Church, near Chadds Ford.
(Church records, p. 27. Manuscript copy 1715-1848, Pa. Genealogical Society, Phila., Pa.) On 8 Apr. 1765, James Mundel sold
his land in New Castle Co., Dela. to William Cloud. (DB x3:611) On August 4, 1769, James and Margaret Mundel were both received
into membership in the Welsh Tract Baptist Church at Pencader Hundred, New Castle Co., Dela. "by virtue of ltters from the
church at Brandywine". (Welsh Tract Baptist Meeting Records, Book 2:11 & Book 1:11) On 26 Jan 1776, "James Mundel and Margaret
his wife were received into membership of the Goshen Baptist Church (Washington Co., Pa.) by letter of transfer." (Min. of
the Goshen Baptist Curch.) We can believe that James and Margaret Mundell and their family moved from New Castle Co., Dela.
to Washington Co., Pa. (now a part of Greene Co.) between the dates of 4 Aug 1769 and 26 Jan 1776." (5)
Once they arrived in Washington County, James and Margaret settled upon the land he had staked out several years prior, and
built a cabin where they resided for the remainder of their days. James Mundell wrote his will on 27 Aug 1805 and it was
probated on 12 Nov 1805, but no one is certain of his actual death date, nor does anyone know Margaret's death, other than
it was approximately in 1810. Both are buried in the Mundell Pioneer Cemetery.
To read James Mundell's Last Will & Testament, click here.
There are some discrepencies over how many children James and Margaret had. Research has shown that they definitely had eleven
children, though there is probable cause that they had a twelfth child, Anna. To see each child's family, click on the links
below. For more detailed descendancy reports, go to the Downloads page.
John Jefferson Mundell (1752-1806)
Jonathan Mundell (1752-1835)
Abner M. Mundell (1758-1845)
Andrew Mundell (1759-1817)
Margaret Mundell (1760-1831)
Eleanor Mundell (1765-1816)
James Mundell, III (1767-1862)
Eli Mundell (1769- )
Levi Mundell (1771-1862)
Joseph Mundell (1773- )
Sarah Mundell (1778-1842)
Anna B. Mundell (1779-1858)
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