fought for their country

Abraham Bowman b. 1745

/ Kirstin Miller

Abraham Bowman 7th great grandfather on RootsMagic tree

Abraham Bowman was born about 1745 in Lancaster County Pennsylvania.  He married Christina around 1765. On tax lists in 1779 his property included 200 acres of land, 2 horses, 3 cattle. That same year Abraham is on the Pennsylvania, Septennial Census, 1779-1863. a handwritten list of Lancaster County residents. 

Abraham was in the American Revolution, a private in the Lancaster County Militia. He died in January 1786.  On January 17, 1786, “an inventory and appraisal of the goods of Abraham Bowman, lately deceased, amounted to 315 pounds, 4 shillings, including a library of thirteen books in addition to the family Bible”. He left his estate to his widow Christina and children.

Sources

  • Abraham Bowman’s estate, inventory in Notes on the Bowman, Harter and Sauer families by Kenneth Scott at FamilySearch.org
  • Pennsylvania, Tax and Exoneration, 1768-1801 at Ancestry
  • A roster of revolutionary ancestors of the Indiana Daughters of the American Revolution at FamilySearch

Robert Hale b. 1607

/ Kirstin Miller

Robert Hale 10th great grandfather on RootsMagic tree.

Robert Hale came to America in 1630, maybe with the Winthrop Fleets. He married Joanna (maybe last name Cutter) they had children and settled in Charlestown, Massachusetts. Joanna and Robert were founding members of the Charlestown Church of Christ, Robert was a Deacon. He was admitted to the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. History of the military company, volume 1 page 137 at HathiTrust

Hale, Robert 1644 Massachusetts

He wrote his will  on June 26, 1647 and his estate was settled December 27, 1659 with an inventory. He owned books, a big thing in 1659. ”My will is that my sons be brought up in learning and then be put to such trades, my daughters Mary and Joanna the remaining parts, pastor may have next swarm of bees”. Robert’s lands included farms, orchards, meadows, livestock and bees. His son John was the minister at Beverly who first supported then condemned the Salem witch trials. Further down this branch is Nathan Hale the Am. Revolution spy executed by the British.

Robert Hale (1607 – 1659)
Mary Hale (1639 – 1696)
William Wilson (1660 – 1732)
Mary Wilson (1690 – 1759)
Samuel Connable (1717 – 1796)
Elizabeth Connable (1757 – 1821)
Samuel Newcomb (1794 – 1879)
William Newcomb Gaines (1825 – 1907)
Mary Ella Gaines (1855 – 1917)
William Miller (1879 – 1949)
Faber W Miller (1905 – 1957)

Israel Angell b. 1740

/ Kirstin Miller
Israel Angell 4th great grandfather of Elizabeth Speedy b. 1917 who married Stanley Roose, Sr b. 1915
In 1775 Israel was in Prospect Hill outside of Boston after the  Battle of Bunker Hill which followed the Siege of Boston, which is considered the beginning of the American Revolution.  Israel is a major and in the thick of it. This letter concerns 2 things: nails to finish his home for the winter and people arguing with each other about insignificant things instead of standing together for the revolution.
The full letter is here, from a book. (Israel Angell’s handwriting is described as ‘one of the finest specimens of penmanship we have in the Archives of Washington’)
Prospect Hill, December the 1st, 1775.
Dear Brother: I take this opportunity to inform you that I Still Enjoy that Blessing which is my health, GOD be praised; and I hope that You and all yours Receive the Same blessing. I was informed by Our brother Elisha that there were no nails to be had in Providence, but that you thought likely there wore Some in Newport. If there is, pray Brother, send and get them, and See that one Room is finished this winter, otherwise I Shall be very Discontented about my family. Let Me know what Sum of money you Shall want to Carry on the Business and I will Send it as Soon as possible. There are no Nails to be had in this part of the world.
and
Brother I am much alarmed At the News of the Conduct of the people in Providence And the towns Adjacent, to hear that they are likely to Rise in mobs on the account of Salt’s rising and Some other Small Articles. I beg of Every honest and well meant Person, both in town and country, to Exert them Selves to The utmost of their power to Suppress any riotous proceedings Among your Selves, Especially at this time. For God Sake Let us unite all as one in America. If we don’t, but fall at variance among our Selves, of all GOD’s Creation we Shall be the most Miserable.
Israel Angell (1740 – 1832) > Asa Angell (1771 – 1842) > Dexter Angell (1794 – 1854) > Delia Viola Angell (1839 – 1916) > Matilda Elizabeth Flood (1858 – 1940) > Philippa Flood Mockford (1891 – 1979) > Elizabeth Speedy (1917 – 2005) married Stanley Roose (1915 – 2004).

Angell, Israel letter 1775 to brother Hope

/ Kirstin Miller

Brother I am much alarmed At the News of the Conduct of the people in Providence And the towns Adjacent, to hear that they are likely to Rise in mobs on the account of Salt’s rising and Some other Small Articles. I beg of Every honest and well meant Person. both in town and country, to Exert them Selves to The utmost of their power to Suppress any riotous proceedings Among your Selves, Especially at this time. For God Sake Let us unite all as one in America. If we don’t, but fall at variance among our Selves, of all God’s Creation we Shall be the most Miserable.

1775 Dec 1:The war is taking a toll. Israel asks his brother about the status of nails. Their brother Elisha could find no nails in Providence. Israel asks if Hope can find some in Newport. The nails are needed to finish up a room is Israel’s home before winter comes. The British brig Nancy has arrived with 2 Brass Six pounders, Canon Shot and “every war like article that can be mentioned”. Colonel Huntington’s wife Faith Trumball hanged herself months after witnessing the end of battle scene at Bunker Hill.

Israel begins the letter thanking GOD (he always capitalized the word god) for the blessing of health and wishing the same for Hope and his family.

Letter from Israel to Hope, December 1, 1775 from Prospect Hill

Rhode Island Historical Society. Proceedings of the Rhode Island Historical Society. Providence. Volumes and cataloging are a little wonky, this is the 1873-1874 copy, Section 7, then page 45. 

Colonel Huntington and his wife -About May 20, 1775

Wikipedia contributors. “Jedediah Huntington.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 8 Nov. 2016. Web. 26 Jul. 2017

Gettysburg 1863

/ Kirstin Miller

Elizabeth Salome Myers, a teacher, was on summer vacation in 1863. She and everyone in Gettysburg knew the war was close so it was on all their minds. Salome probably wondered what would happen over the summer, how her life may be affected by the war. By July 1  the battles to the west of town hit Gettysburg and General Robert Lee and the Confederate army arrived. Instantly Salome’s summer, her whole life was taken over by the war- she began tending to injured soldiers in make do hospitals: her own home on West High Street and the Catholic church nearby. Salome kept a diary: The ties of the past: the Gettysburg diaries of Salome Myers Stewart 1854-1922.

Henry F and Alexander M Stewart

Salome’s first patient was Sergeant Alexander McFarland Stewart (1st cousin 4x removed, or cousin to Elizabeth Stewart 2nd great grandmother). Alexander was seriously injured and knew he was dying. Salome asked if there was anything she could do, he asked her to read from the Bible, so she did. After Alexander’s death Salome received a visit from Alexander’s mother and brother. Henry, the brother, thanked Salome for her kindness and care of Alexander. Henry (1st cousin 4x removed) and Salome would eventually marry and Henry joined as Corporal in the Civil War. The brothers were written up in a memorial book of the Company D, 149th Pennsylvania Volunteers.  The book has a short biography and a photo of each. (Henry’s bio is on page 87, photo on page 86f. Alexander’s bio is on page  86, photo on page 86c.) Alexander the older brother died at Gettysburg in July 1863, Henry died in 1868 from complications of a war injury.

Elizabeth Salome would return to teaching and received national recognition for her service. She was the treasurer of the National Association of Army Nurses for several years.

Valley Forge 1777

/ Kirstin Miller

Six days away from the anniversary of George Washington’s Continental Army arrival at Valley Forge PA, Wikipedia page. At least two ancestors were at Valley Forge during the December 19, 1777–June 18, 1778 encampment: William Newcomb 5th great grandfather paternal and Colonel Israel Angell 6th great grandfather maternal. The National Parks Service sponsors the Annual March In of the Continental Army Commemoration with guided walks, music from the Colonial Revelers, and more. This event is dependent on the weather.

General Washington was criticized for choosing Valley Forge because it left parts of the country unprotected. The general replied … “furiously”

I can assure those Gentlemen that it is a much easier and less distressing thing to draw remonstrances in a comfortable room by a good fire side than to occupy a cold bleak hill and sleep under frost and Snow without Clothes or Blankets; however, although they seem to have little feeling for the naked, and distressed Soldier, I feel superabundantly for them, and from my Soul pity those miseries, [which], it is neither in my power to relieve or prevent.

Martha Washington supported her husband and the troops. She visited Valley Forge and set up sewing circles for the camp followers, that’s women and children encamped with the soldiers, helping with laundry, uniforms and emotional support.

Elizabeth Salome Myers b. 1842

/ Kirstin Miller

Elizabeth Salome (Sally) Myers married Henry F Stewart, 1st cousin 4 times removed, in about 1867. In the midst of the Civil War, Sally was a teacher in Gettysburg, PA. Most in Gettysburg understood the war could come closer to their homes, the Confederate Army was close by at Antietam. On July 1 of 1863  school was out for the summer and the battles began in Gettysburg. Sally was 21 and instantly became a nurse to the wounded and dying soldiers.

Alexander Stewart of the 109th Pennsylvania Volunteers was Sally’s first patient. She asked the soldier what he needed, he answered nothing. He understood he was going to die. Maybe Sally helped Alexander write a last letter to his family, she did this for many soldiers. Alexander’s family met Sally when they came to Gettysburg to pick up their son’s corpse. The Stewart family thanked Sally for all she had done. Later that summer Sally had a letter form Alexander’s brother Henry. Henry Stewart was a minister, he and Sally kept in touch. Eventually Henry and his mom moved to Gettysburg. Henry and Sally continued their friendship and then married.

Parts of Sally’s story are here at Civil War Sources and here at GettysburgTimes.com. I’ve just ordered Sally’s Gettysburg diary The Ties of the Past, on Ebay, thank you SeattleGoodwillBooks.

Stewart, Salome M, and Sarah S. Rodgers. The Ties of the Past: The Gettysburg Diaries of Salome Myers Stewart, 1854-1922. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1996. Print.

 

Hope Angell 1780 recruiting for the Revolution

/ Kirstin Miller

July 1780 a Revolution in the making:
Be it therefore enacted by this General Assembly, that the persons here-after named be, empowered and directed, to form all male persons sixteen years and upwards, residing within their respective towns (deserters, Indians, mulattoes and negroes excepted), into classes; and each of the said classes is directed to furnish one able-bodied, effective man, by the 12th day of July instant.

And it is further enacted, that the following persons be appointed in the respective towns, for the purpose, afore-said, to wit: Names of Person appointed by the General Assembly for the several Towns to receive Recruits. North Providence Messrs. Eleazer Jenckes, Eleazer Whipple, Hope Angell, Thomas Olney and Christopher Whipple.

In 1780 Hope Angell 7th great uncle was 38, his older brother Israel  6th great grandfather was 40; and in the midst of the American Revolution which lasted, very generally, from 1774-1782. The above is from Records of the colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, in New England : Printed by order of the General assembly at HathiTrust, specifically volume 9 of 10, pages 126-128.

At a previous session the second Monday in June 1780 (page 101), the Assembly voted to ‘raise’ 610 able bodied men for the state’s Continental battalions. By the first Monday in July 1780 assembly meeting, Rhode Island was still short in men, so groups were appointed, in each town to classify and enlist some men as soldiers.

This one assembly gathering goes on for pages, some items included:

  • Captain Stephen Olney, paymaster of Colonel Israel Angell’s battalion taking pairs of overalls and shirts to  men (page 134).
  • Monsieur Lewis Ethis de Corny, of the French Army unable to find a suitable house in Providence (page 120).
  • consequences for able men not doing their duty, money for men doing their duty.

The assembly ends (page 149) with: God save the United States of America, and letters written between William Greene, Governor of Rhode Island and General Washington.

Source

Joshua Tefft b. 1650 treason, maybe

/ Kirstin Miller

Joshua Tefft (10th great uncle) was tried for treason, “The fact that he was known not to have attended church, a considerable offense to the strict Puritan sensibility of the United Colonials, was also used against him at his trial.” The United Colonials were loosely Massachusetts, Plymouth and Connecticut. These Colonials made a plan to take Rhode Island and the Narraganset tribe’s land as their own. Somehow this all gets mixed up in King Philip’s War and Joshua, living on his farm in Rhode Island with his son- his wife dies 2 days after giving birth- attempts to defend his farm, is captured by the fighting Narraganset tribe and held as a slave. That’s one story.

Or Joshua, living peacefully with his family was somehow wronged and left the family and colony to take up with the Indians whether out of spite or pride. He rose in rank to become an advisor to Metacomet, King Philip.

Or, according to some United Colonial Soldiers, Joshua Tefft’s deceased wife was of the Wamponoag tribe and Joshua joined forces with the Narragansets and Wamponoags and fired 20 shots against the colonists.

Definitely Joshua was taken to court. Roger Williams recorded Joshua’s court statements, most court records have been permanently lost. Joshua was definitely convicted of treason, hanged, drawn and quartered. Facts are scarce and it appears the verdict then January 1676 and today is still somewhat undecided. Joshua was the only person executed for treason in New England history. John Tefft (1oth great grandfather) is described as ‘losing his head’ at his son’s execution. John was either beheaded, overwhelmed with grief or could not recover Joshua’s actual head which was supposedly mounted on a stake or used ‘for sport’.

Joshua’s son Peter was about 6 years old when his uncle Samuel (9th great grandfather ) and Jireh Bull were appointed guardians to oversee Peter and his inheritance. Peter lived and grew up with Samuel and Elizabeth Jenckes Tefft. Joshua’s orphan son marries Sarah or Mary Witter they have children and hopefully a happy life.

Sources

Rhode Island Renegade: The Enigma of Joshua Tefft by Calloway, Colin in Rhode Island History. Vol. 43 (November 1984) PDF here pages 136 – 145 image 22 of 38. (This source provides a lot more sources including) 

The Narragansett Historical Register: a Magazine edited by Arnold, James N, Volume 3 pages 164 – 169 at HathiTrust.

 

 

John Adams letter 1800 only honest and wise in this house

/ Kirstin Miller

John Adams is no longer connected through Jeremy Adams and family but I’m keeping this as it compares a place and a time to our modern times.

This is what 2nd President John Adams (4th cousin 9x removed) wrote from the White House about 216 years ago in a letter to his wife Abigail:

screenshot.png

Before I end my letter, I pray Heaven to bestow the best of Blessings on this House and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof.

Letter from John Adams to Abigail Adams, 2 November 1800 [electronic edition]. Adams Family Papers: An Electronic Archive. Massachusetts Historical Society. http://www.masshist.org/digitaladams/

Adams wrote this in November of 1800, just before the election, won by Thomas Jefferson. Today in America October 2016 we’re about 1 month away from electing the 45th President. My ancestors would be horrified.