Elizabeth Nourse Chapline was born in London, England on January 23, 1765 to James Nourse and Sarah Fouace Nourse. In 1769 Elizabeth moved with her parents and eight siblings from London to the colony of Virginia. The Nourse family owned a plantation called "Piedmont" in what is now Berkeley County, West Virginia.
 
In December 1776 Elizabeth's father was accountable for the expenditures of the Militia of Berkeley and Frederick Counties in Virginia as they were sent to reinforce General Washington. Around 1781 James Nourse was appointed Commissioner to settle the claims of individuals in Maryland against the United States for provisions they provided to the army during the American Revolution. This role required a move to Annapolis, Maryland.
 
When both of her parents died in 1784 she returned to Berkeley County where she lived with her married sister Catharine Burton Nourse Cooke. In her diary Elizabeth said: "I now became acquainted with Mr. Jeremiah Chapline" and on "the 20th of March (1786)…was married at her house, the third day afterward returned to Maryland, where I found a large farm, good house, and everything that heart could wish to make us happy…On this place I lived thirty-three years, experiencing a great mixture of joy and grief, hope and fear."
 
Elizabeth and Jeremiah Chapline lived on a farm about two miles west of Sharpsburg, Maryland. They had six daughters and two sons. Their children were:
 
Sarah F. Chapline Evans (1790-1862)
Catherine B. Chapline Price (1792-1860)
Joseph Chapline (1794-1815)
James Nourse Chapline (1796-1830)
Elizabeth H. Chapline Sisson (1798-1864)
Susan Chapline Wilson (1800-1824)
Mary Ann Chapline Roach (1802-1833)
Ruhama Chapline Cravens (1805-1882)
 
When Jeremiah died in March 1809 Elizabeth was left with seven children still at home between the ages of 4 and 17. Elizabeth was unable to find her husband's will and the property was divided under the direction of the Washington County Commission and ordered to be sold in 1816. The sale of the Chapline property on June 4, 1818 was described as 230 acres including 3/4 mile of river front on the Potomac river. Property included two dwelling houses, barn, stable, corn house, stone milk house, and a "never failing" spring. Many years later Jeremiah's will was found hidden in the fireplace mantle after the house had burned.
 
In 1818 Elizabeth Nourse Chapline moved to Rockingham, Virginia. Then, in 1842 at age 77, she moved with her daughter and son-in-law, Eliza and Jesse Sisson, from Virginia to Missouri. They traveled on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers and arrived at Gregory Landing in Missouri. They settled in Kahoka, Clark County, MO where Elizabeth died in 1846.
 
Because she had outlived her cousin, Michael Hopton Clements of London, by about two weeks Elizabeth, and her living siblings Susanna and Michael inherited a portion of his estate. They each inherited about $14,000*, although the money was not received until 1850 at which point both Elizabeth and Susanna had died. Per Elizabeth's last will and testament one thousand dollars went to each of five of her children, or their heirs. Two of Elizabeth's children had already died without heirs. Daughter Eliza Chapline Sisson inherited the balance with the provision that $500 be used for the building of a Methodist Church for her husband Rev. Jesse Sisson.


In October 1930 the Daughters of the American Revolution added a plaque to Elizabeth Nourse Chapline's grave which says:


ELIZABETH CHAPLINE
DAUGHTER OF A REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIER
ERECTED BY CLARK COUNTY CHAPTER D.A.R.


SOURCES:
James Nourse and His Descendants, Compiled by Maria Catharine Nourse Lyle, 1897
St. Louis Post Dispatch, Oct. 10, 1930
Clark County MO Probate Microfilm Index 1830-1980
Washington County, MD Land Record BB 22 p. 824-832
Hagerstown Weekly Advertiser, May 13, 1818
* $14,000 USD in 1850 was equivalent in purchasing power to about $560K USD in 2024.


Michael I. Chapline
4X Great Grandson