The McClanahan family has held a position of prominence among the earliest settlers of Virginia. Pinpointing exact dates is difficult, as researchers vary by as much as fifty years when estimating dates of birth. Further complicating the record, many McClanahan families reused the same given names across generations, and marriages between cousins were not uncommon.
None of the known McClanahan ancestors appear as named passengers on ships arriving in the colonies during the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. It is possible that some received passage as super-cargoes, potentially connected with Captain John McClanahan, who appears in Jamestown and Norfolk records.
The settlement at Jamestown began in 1607 with approximately one hundred men. By 1618, the population had grown from four hundred souls to one thousand. Between 1624 and 1625, an additional four thousand colonists arrived; however, by 1625 the population had fallen to only twelve hundred. While some settlers returned to England, many others—poorly fed, clothed, and housed—became ill and died.
In 1622, conflict with Native Americans resulted in the deaths of 347 colonists. During this period, tobacco prices were high, and while fortunes were made through its production, many newcomers were ruthlessly exploited.