American Revolution Documents

[Bear]

Here are some American Revolution documents.

thanks,

barry

This document is signed by Jonathan Meigs dated June 28, 1780. Miegs accompanied Benedict Arnold on the Quebec expedition. He also fought at Lexington and Sag Harbor.

'These may certify that Samuel White served in the 6th CT Regiment in the Continental Army before the 1st day of January last. R.J. Meigs, Col., 6th CT Regiment. 28th June, 1780.'

[Bear]

The pay receipt for White's services.

[Bear]

This document is signed by Samuel Webb dated December 13, 1782. Webb fought at Bunker Hill, Long Island, Trenton and Princeton. In 1776 Webb was made aide-de-camp to General Washington.

'This may certify that Sheldon Potter hath served in my Regiment the years 1780 and 1781... Sam'l Webb, Col., West Point, Dec 13, 1782.

[Bear]

This document is signed by Oliver Ellsworth dated August 2, 1775. Ellsworth delegate to the Federal Constitutional Convention, Chief Justiceof the United States and Minister Pleniportentiary to France.

' Pay Col. Charles Webb as Paymaster of the 1st Company in the 7th Regiment now raising in this Colony, Twenty Pounds mony... August 2nd, 1775.'

[Bear]

This document from Hartford is dated January 9, 1778.

"the wages of the company of soldiers now ordered to march under the command of Sd. Cap. Grant to Providence in the State of Rhode Island, there to join & act under the command of Gen. Spencer. The other four hundred pounds to be delivered to Brigadier Gen. John Douglas..."

Edited July 14, 2006 by Bear

[Bear]

This documents is signed by Jerius Willcox dated Febuary 9, 1781. Wilcox served as a captian in the regiment of "Artificers" from 1777 to the end of the war.

This is a receipt to be paid 40 pounds.

[Bear]

This document is a pay receipt to John Lawrence dated May 15, 1778.

[Bear]

This document is about Thomas Alvord who served through the entire war in the Connecticut 3rd Regiment. Alvord is seeking payment for his war service dated September 16, 1783.

[Bear]

This document is a pay receipt to Thomas Alvord signed by John Thomas dated September 17, 1783.

[buellmeister]

Bear,

I must say.. A very impressive historical collection!

Regards,

Joel

[Bear]

This document is to John Chester who led a company in General Israel Putnam's Regiment in the Battle of Bunker Hill dated September 23, 1775.

'Capt. John Chester (by the hand of Mr. Joseph Webb) the sum of one hundred and thirty pounds money in Bills, for the use of the Company in the Conoly Service - and Charge the same to acct of Colony Conn.'

[Chris Boonzaier]

Impressive, they must have taken quite some time to collect !!

[joe campbell]

what a pleasure to see these documents!

my thanks.

joe

[Guest Rick Research]

All that Connecticut and not a cousin in the bunch!!! Have you reseached the lives of White, Potter, Alvord (and many of mine kin are FROM Farmington, so there may yet be hope ) etc?

[Guest Rick Research]

Ha! There IS no escape. Alvord married my 2nd cousin 9 times removed.

I have John Chester (quite the media celebrity in his day), Jerius Willcox, Thomas G. Alvord, and Sheldon Potter data on a first zip through my sources. Thomas Seymour would be SOME sort of kin to me, since ALL Connecticut Seymours of that period were. I just can't figure out which one he was, since they weren't much on original names.

Oliver Ellsworth may be the autograph prize, however:

[attachmentid=46837]

Though the NAME may be more familiar from his ill-starred Civil War namesake, THIS one was

1745-1807. Member of the Continental Congress 1778-83. Chief Justice of the Connecticut Superior Court 1785-89

and co-author of the United States Constitutional Convention "Connecticut Compromise" of 1787 which-- for worse I fear than better-- gave us a bicameral Congress, with House of Representatives and the execrable Senate.

United States Senator 1789-96 and

oh

yeah

CJ SCUS 1796-1800.

Have you got births/marriages/deaths on any of these guys? Interested in same?

[Bear]

Thanks Chris, Joe and Joel...

This document is a pay receipt for Timothy Woodworth dated September 25, 1780.

[Bear]

Hello Rick,

I don't have any information on these soldiers but I did find Farmington.

My family during the American Revolution fought in the Southern Campaign (Kings Mountain, Ramseur's Mill, Musgrove Mill, Cow Pens, Fishing Creek and others). The most famous was Capt. John Barry from South Carolina.

We still have Capt. John Barry's musket that he used during the war. Would you like to see some pictures of it. I would... However it's locked up in a vault so it could take sometime. I'll see what I can do.

Farmington

[Guest Rick Research]

Farmington, Bristol... anyplace between New Haven and Hartford my bunch inhabited for over 250 years. All these town in italics below were places my ancestors lived... yet miraculously escaped breeding with THESE folks!

Thomas G.ould Alvord (and BTW this is the EARLIEST use of a middle initial AS a middle initial that I have ever seen) was born in Durham, CT March 1, 1741/2 (that was their "Old Style" year 1741 but our 1742 since the British stubbornly held onto the Julian calendar which was so out of whack they had New Years on March 25). He died in Homer, NY May 18,1810. Married in Farmington, CT on August 2, 1762 my aforementioned 2nd x9 removed cousin, Keziah Orvis--born August 4, 1743 in Farmington, died September 21, 1795 in Homer. She was a great-granddaughter of my x11 great grandparents George Orvis (died in Farmington April 27, 1664) and Elizabeth Carpenter (d. ditto April 1694). Ooooooo.

Sheldon and often spelled "Selden" Potter was born in Woodbury, CT February 6, 1762 (by which time the British Empire had gone to the modern "New Style" calendar so dates between January 1 and March 25 no longer needed to be doubled). He was the son of Phineas Potter and Dorcas Hinman. I suspect he was dead by the 1790s, since I find OTHER Potters named after him, but no children of his.

Jerius Willcox was born October 19, 1751 in Middletown.

John Chester was born in Wethersfield, CT January 29, 1749. Graduate of Yale 1766, MA from Harvard 1775. Died November 4, 1809. Resigned as Colonel in 1777, later Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives and a county and probate judge. His three page letter home on his experiences in the battle of Bunker Hill was WIDELY reprinted (eerily almost like today's spread of e-news) in newspapers and pamphlets across America, and shows up in the great now forgotten patriotic volumes on the Revolution published into the 19th century. He had, indeed, his "15 minutes of fame."

Assistant Titus Hosmer who signed off in scan 7 was born in West Hartford, CT December 19, 1736 and died there August 4, 1780. I'm fairly sure he's another Inevitable Ricky Cousin on his mama's Graves side, but even I get lost untangling the threads.

Justice of the Peace Solomon Whitman attesting to the personal appearance and signature in scan 6 was EITHER Senior (born April 20, 1710 West Hartford, d. there September 13,1803, married Susannah Cole) OR his son Junior, born Farmington January 2, 1743, d. there December 23,1801.

There is almost certainly a relationship between those Whitmans and Civil War era "Oscar Wilde-ish" poet Walt Whitman, but I can't find Old Leaves Of Grass's Whitman line back beyond his grandfather--and my relationship is on Walt's mom's side. Walt's paternal grandma was a BRUSH, and those, of course gave the world Howlin Howodd Brush Dean III. Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!

Timothy Woodworth was born in Lebanon, CT August 7, 1758 (so you can have a 250th birthday party for him shortly) and died in Royalton, Vermont August 21, 1839. He had lived long enough to have actually claimed a pension. His second wife, whom he married there in 1817, survived him and would have continued receiving his Revolutionary War pension-- until 1858!

The past is not dead. Never dead. It lives on in ways-- and in "ordinary" folks-- unnoticed, undreamed of...

but an unbroken line no less honourable (or bizarre) than that of kings.

[Gene]

A wonderful collection!

[Paul R]

I am speachless...

Where do collectors find such items? I have never heard of Revolutionary Militaria or documents being sold on the open market!

I would love to see the musket, as time permits! Do you have any other items to share?

Regards

Paul

[Bear]

Hello Rick,

Thanks for all the extra information. I seem to be able to find the documents alot easier than I do info about the soldiers.

Hello Paul,

I should be able to get some pictures of the musket next week. It has a great story behind it. At the end of the Civil War my family put the musket up in a tree so that union soldiers wouldn't find it. Everything else was burned. They got the musket and went to Texas to be with other side of the my family.

The documents are out there. You just have to find them.

thanks,

barry

[Bear]

Hello Everyone,

My family has owned this old flint and steel for over 200 years. Descendants used this gun during the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. During the Civil War the gun was hidden in a hollow tree in order to save it from being confiscatated by troops fighting near the family homeplace.

Sorry for the not so clear photos....

[Bear]

pic2 Family member holding gun in bottom picture.

[Guest Rick Research]

Ah, ROOTS. For all my excessively vast ancient local lineages, I have absolutely nothing from all of my myriad ancestral families prior to 1914--

too many generations of Excessively Neat Women!

What wars, weather, and centuries of time could not undo...

overzealous housecleaning accomplished!!!

[Paul R]

Wow... That piece is awesome. The things that musket must have seen! Thank you for posting the pics!

Regards

Paul