page_title: Samuel D. McDearmon
section_title: Biography
hierarchical_section_title: Samuel D. McDearmon / Biography
caption_attribution_description: English: Appomattox Court House Historical Park
context_page_description: Samuel Daniel McDearmon, also known as Samuel D. McDearmon, was a Confederate army officer during the American Civil War. He held a number of political and government offices, and played a significant role in the development of Appomattox and Appomattox Court House, Virginia.
context_section_description: McDearmon was born in Prince Edward County, Virginia, on November 18, 1815 and died in "Nebraska" (today Appomattox), Virginia, on May 16, 1871. He was the eldest son of the Reverend James McDearmon (1790–1867) and Mary (Daniel) McDearmon (1788–1866). His father was a merchant, miller and county magistrate as well as a Presbyterian (New School) minister, his father's income deriving mostly from the family farm.  James McDearmon owned Mount Evergreen, an estate originating in the land bounty granted to his grandfather for French & Indian War service. By the 1850 Census the Rev. James McDearmon held 22 slaves and real estate valued at $7000. This property was about seven miles (11 km) southeast of Clover Hill (later known as Appomattox Court House village).  In the 1830s Samuel D. McDearmon had received a share of this estate.
  In 1835 at age nineteen McDearmon married Mary Frances Philadelphia Walton (1814–1884), the daughter of Col William Walton (1782–1851) of Buckingham County. She came with a substantial dowry, which would prove fortunate in later years. By 1845 McDearmon owned almost 450 acres (1.8 km²), consisting of part of Mount Evergreen and adjoining lands. He also held in trust a neighbor's estate of some 147 acres (0.59 km²). Near his father's Mount Evergreen property he owned and operated a sawmill ("Evergreen Mills"), which provided a regular income for him. After the formation of the new county of Appomattox in April 1845, he purchased most of the land in and around the Clover Hill Tavern, and in 1846 cut out 30 acres (120,000 m²) for a village of Clover Hill, including 2 acres (8,100 m²) for a courthouse site.
  McDearmon was a Democrat and had been serving in the Virginia House of Delegates from Prince Edward County when the new county was created, and he was a resident of that portion of Prince Edward that became a part of the new Appomattox County. McDearmon was very interested in seeing the development and success of the county seat for the new jurisdiction. He lived just a few hundred yards from the center of the small village in what is known today as the Peers House. In August 1845 he had borrowed over two thousand dollars from his uncle Samuel J. Daniel (1787–1850) to invest in Clover Hill real estate, and thus began to play a critical role in the development of the village of Clover Hill (after 1845 officially Appomattox Court House), where Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865. McDearmon was one of eight trustees of the newly formed village in 1845.  By 1847 his tavern and store lots in town had increased in value to $4100 from the purchase value of $3300.  By 1848 the value of improvements was $5960.  In 1851 McDearmon built the Union Academy and Hall ($1100) on a 1-acre (4,000 m²) lot carved from his Clover Hill tract.
  Samuel McDearmon was the first to be elected the new county's representative to the House of Delegates, serving 1846-1847 and again 1850-1851. Previously in the early 1840s he had been deputy sheriff for Campbell County and Prince Edward County. In 1851 McDearmon was elected to serve in the Virginia State Senate 1852-1854, representing Appomattox, Campbell and Lynchburg City after a tumultuous race. His political success can be at least partially attributed to his inherited money and wealth. At the height of his political and financial career (1849–1851) he built a new residence for his young family, the McDearmon-Tibbs "Clover Hill" house overlooking the Court House village (Appomattox Court House National Historical Park ruins).
  Also during these heady days McDearmon had striven mightily to promote the Southside Railroad (Virginia) as a boon to the new county (and himself).  Disappointed when the railway bypassed Clover Hill for Appomattox Station, he nonetheless bid for and secured the masonry contract for the railroad's spectacular project at Farmville: the High Bridge (Appomattox River).  But McDearmon's over-ambitious plans were dashed: in May 1853 the original 3,100-foot-long (940 m) design was reduced by a third, eliminating a third of McDearmon's pr
caption: Village of Appomattox Court House
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