The McPheeters family traced its origins from Scotland through Ireland and Pennsylvania before establishing a substantial household in the Bethel settlement of Augusta County. Its best-documented descendant was Rev. William McPheeters, D.D., whose career connected Virginia’s Presbyterian churches and schools with Kentucky and North Carolina.
The following account brings together the McPheeters family references scattered throughout William Henry Foote’s Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical, Second Series, arranging them by generation and family relationship.
Scottish and Irish Origins
Foote traces the family to a Scottish ancestor who moved to Ireland during the time of Oliver Cromwell. The family belonged to the Scottish Covenanter tradition before later generations became associated with the Presbyterian Church in America.
William McPheeters, grandfather of the minister, married while still young in Ireland. He emigrated with his family to Pennsylvania and eventually settled in Augusta County, Virginia. His household included his wife and eight children, some already married and heading families of their own when the group reached Virginia.
William McPheeters and Rachel Moore
The immigrant’s son William McPheeters was born in Pennsylvania in 1729. He became a farmer, civil magistrate, and ruling elder in the Bethel congregation during the pastorate of Rev. Archibald Scott.
William married Rachel Moore, who was born in 1736. Rachel’s mother belonged to the Walker family of Wigton, Scotland, and family tradition traced that line to the Scottish theologian Samuel Rutherford.
Rachel was remembered for her devout religious character. At about thirty years of age, she underwent a profound spiritual experience during a communion Sabbath that shaped her faith for the remainder of her life.
Rachel Moore McPheeters died on January 30, 1826, in her ninetieth year. At her request, her funeral sermon was preached from Amos 4:12: “Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.”
William and Rachel raised a large family. Foote identifies two of their sons by name: Rev. William McPheeters, D.D., and Dr. James McPheeters.
Rev. William McPheeters, D.D.
William McPheeters was born on September 28, 1778, in the Bethel settlement near North Mountain on the waters of Middle River in Augusta County.
He attended classical schools in Staunton and continued his education at Liberty Hall Academy under William Graham. In October 1797, he traveled to Kentucky and began studying medicine under his brother, Dr. James McPheeters.
During his time in Kentucky, William professed his Christian faith and determined to enter the ministry rather than medicine. After returning to Virginia, he studied theology under Rev. Samuel Brown of New Providence.
Licensure and Early Ministry
McPheeters came under the care of Lexington Presbytery and completed his ministerial trials. He was licensed to preach at New Providence on April 19, 1802.
In June 1803, he took charge of the Presbyterian church at Danville, Kentucky, and taught school to supplement his income. He also visited Chillicothe in 1804.
After returning to Virginia, McPheeters preached in Greenbrier and Monroe counties and served communities at Windy Cove and New Lebanon. In December 1805, he took charge of Bethel, his native congregation.
McPheeters was ordained to the full work of the ministry at Bethel on April 22, 1806. He remained pastor there until accepting a call to North Carolina.
First Marriage to Elizabeth McDowell
In September 1804, William McPheeters married Elizabeth McDowell, daughter of John McDowell, who lived near Lexington, Kentucky.
Elizabeth and the couple’s infant child died in December 1806. They were buried beside one another in the Bethel churchyard and were the first occupants of the cemetery described by Foote.
Second Marriage
McPheeters married a second time, but Foote does not identify his wife. She died in 1810 and left one young daughter. The daughter’s name and later history are not supplied in the account.
Third Marriage to Margaret McDaniel
In March 1812, McPheeters married Margaret A. C. McDaniel of Washington, North Carolina. She survived him.
William and Margaret had twelve children, seven of whom survived their father. Foote does not provide a complete list but relates the lives of their daughter Margaret Ann and their son David Brainerd.
Margaret Ann McPheeters
Margaret Ann McPheeters experienced a religious conversion at the age of fourteen. She later married John Wilson of Milton, North Carolina.
Margaret Ann died approximately one year after her marriage. Foote preserved one of her letters as evidence of the faith that sustained her during her brief adult life.
David Brainerd McPheeters
David Brainerd McPheeters died in October 1836 during his seventh year. Foote remembered him for unusually serious religious feeling from early childhood.
Shortly before his death, David asked that the fifty cents in his purse be used to “send the gospel to the heathen.” His request reflected the missionary example of David Brainerd, for whom he had been named.
Raleigh Academy and the Presbyterian Church
In June 1810, McPheeters accepted an invitation to become principal of the academy in Raleigh, North Carolina, and to preach to the town’s Presbyterian congregation. He combined educational and ministerial responsibilities during the following years.
The First Presbyterian Church of Raleigh was formally organized on January 21, 1816, with McPheeters as its first minister. A permanent church building opened two years later.
McPheeters resigned the pastoral office in March 1824 so that he could concentrate on the academy, although he continued preaching for a time while the congregation sought a successor.
Later Work and Death
From February 1836 until July 1837, McPheeters administered and taught at a female school in Fayetteville. He later served as an agent of the Presbyterian General Assembly’s Board of Missions.
In 1840, he declined an invitation to become president of Davidson College because of failing health. His final illness involved the severe pain associated with calculus.
William McPheeters died in Raleigh on November 7, 1842. His funeral was held in the Presbyterian church on November 9 before a large congregation, and Raleigh businesses closed in recognition of his death.
The Scott-McPheeters Connection
After Rev. Archibald Scott and his wife died, their eldest daughter prevented her five younger siblings from being divided among different households. She managed the family, oversaw the children’s education, and postponed marriage until they were established.
Foote states that this daughter eventually married a Mr. McPheeters. He does not identify the husband or explain his relationship to William and Rachel Moore McPheeters. The marriage therefore indicates a connection between the surnames but cannot be placed confidently within the McPheeters lineage from this source alone.
Genealogical Notes
The spellings M’Pheeters and M’Daniel appear in Foote’s nineteenth-century text. The modern surname forms McPheeters and McDaniel have been used throughout this account for consistency.
The spelling M’Dowell appears frequently in Foote’s nineteenth-century text. The modern surname form McDowell has been used throughout this account for consistency.
Foote prints William McPheeters’s birth year as 1788. That date is incompatible with his medical studies beginning in 1797 and his licensure in 1802. North Carolina biographical records give his birth as September 28, 1778, which has been used here.
Foote places the organization of the Raleigh church in June 1816. North Carolina historical records date its formal organization to January 21, 1816. The January date has been used here.
Foote describes McPheeters’s funeral on Wednesday, November 9, 1842, in a way that can be mistaken for his death date. Contemporary North Carolina references give his death as November 7, 1842, followed by the funeral on November 9.
The name of McPheeters’s second wife is not supplied, nor does Foote name the daughter who survived her. These women should not be identified from unsourced family trees without confirmation from marriage, Bible, probate, cemetery, or church records.
Foote states that William and Margaret McDaniel McPheeters had twelve children but names only Margaret Ann and David Brainerd in the passages gathered here. A complete reconstruction of their household will require records beyond Foote’s account.
The McPheeters man who married Rev. Archibald Scott’s eldest daughter is not identified. No specific place in the family should be assigned to him solely from the shared surname.
Source
This family genealogy was compiled from references appearing throughout William Henry Foote’s Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical. Foote’s scattered biographical, family, church, and settlement references have been brought together here and arranged by generation to make the genealogical relationships easier to follow.
Foote, William Henry. Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical. Second Series. Second edition, revised. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1856. Available online at AccessGenealogy, Sketches of Virginia: Historical and Biographical. Accessed 11 August 2026.