Yesterday's Weapons Forums

Wifey was on a cupboard cleaning mission this afternoon and by chance found some genealogy papers I'd put away.

Of particular interest was a document I'd scanned from microfilm at the National Archives branch office in Denver. Stephen Woodrum got a lawyer to help him claim his Revolutionary War pension and 100 acres of "bounty land" in Virginia.

During the war, soldiers in the Continental Army served for a fixed duration after which they could simply go home. General Washington told the Continental Congress the pension and bounty land was needed to keep veterans in the fight. Congress said, "You bet!"

So Poor Old Steve duly appeared to get his just pension and land. This is a transcription - the copy is nearly unreadable because of spelling at the time - like that appears to be 'congrefs' for congress. And the different shape of various letters. Notice the transcript shows, "his mark". Steve was illiterate.

It was closing time, but I whined around until I could see if "I" got "my" 100 acres in Va. A volunteer got a book and quickly flipped to the right page. Steve Woodrum indeed got $26 and change initial pension payment - which was a considerable sum in those days - and his 100 acres of land.

Unfortunately, Steve passed away 2 weeks later. The land went to his daughter and SiL.

Steve was a genuine patriot - I am DAMN proud of him and damn proud to be related! SW

IMG_0368 (3).JPG [ 105.94 KiB | Viewed 4500 times ]

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Slava Ukraini!!

my Patriot Ancestor served 3 times,
once on Long Island (in Tenn)
Long Island is a long island in the river where Indian tribes would meet, trade, etc etc,

he did another tour in a Fort near what is now Pearisburg in VA, on the New River

and a 3rd tour where he went to meet up with the Continental Army on the way to Yorktown,
he got sick, and had another relative come take his place (that was allowed, ) for the duration of his enlistment,

3 month tours

he walked from Pittsylvania County to each and back,

he was on my Mothers side, and got us in the SAR,

we have found a pile of my Fathers side from the CW as well as the AR, but have not linked them all together to add to the SAR paperwork

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?

meant to add,

do you know where the acreage is in VA?

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?

Not for sure - there was a big tract of unsettled land that was set aside for vets, but I didn't see where it was in the copies I made in Denver. SW

ETA: Battle of Yorktown was called "Siege of York" back then. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

Okay - I read through the papers, and it looks like the bounty land was near Roanoke. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

On my fathers side ... fought at bennington and Saratoga... was captured in some unnamed skirmishe in 1780 and was paroled and returned to Brunswick as a major ... he was killed in 1806 at Jena at the ripe old age of 63.. fighting the french ...our family national enemy... until 1942 when it became the ussr... lol ..

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Never get off the tank ... say I delta 66 actual

used to go to the Roanoke area to visit an Aunt, several times removed, she live just outside of Vinton ( Roanoke, Vinton and Salem are all side by side)

got some cousin and kin in the area, I think,

David Huddleston , as in Santa Clause and the Big Lebowski, is from that area, and a cousin,
we used to stop to see his mom (an Aunt several times removed) and make peach ice cream in the summer when I was a kid,
she ran an Antiques store in an old school house she lived in, and her other son was into horses and such, he taught riding etc etc,

lots of Hughes, Newby's and Huddlestons in the area all related

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?

Had a grandfather who was in Captain Prestons Virginia Militia. Another who was in the Virginia line.

2 of my daughters are in the DAR - but they used my wife's side as there were 4 different lines going back there & they piggybacked on one of those lines.

my family wasnt here at that point in time , we came here just after the turn of the 19th century [actually canada firs then migrated south ] so ill not find any of those notations ,

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?

Tried to post some pictures in this field and was unsuccessful. One was 381 x 600.
Another 350 x 263. The third is 457x572.

One grandfather (Some what removed)

Another Grandfather (somewhat removed)

Possible 3rd one. But there are a few Browning lines.

From GENEALOGY OF THE BROWNINGS IN AMERICA From 1621 to 1908. By Edward Franklin Browning and published by
JournalPrint, Newburgh, NY.
"Caleb Browning, son of Francis Browning, Sr. and Elizabeth Lloyd was born about 17334 in Culpepper Co. Va. Married Alcy
Grigsby about 1767. They had six children namely: Elijah born about 1768, Taliferro or Toliver born about 1770, Jane born about
1774,Henry born about 1772, Lucy born about 1776, Mildred born about 1778. He died in Fauquier county about 1787 aged 53
years. Mr. Caleb Browning served inthe Revolutionary War. Afterward, while hunting, a limb fell on him and killed him. His
estate was administered in 1787. Nothing is known of his children except Taliferro

Charlie, I don't read the old style handwriting too well - is the name on the top post Grigsby? My wife had ancestors of that name in the Revolution. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

Her ancestor was Aaron Grigsby who was a "Marine Soldier" in the Continental Navy. They got up in the rigging and sniped Brit officers when ships closed for battle. His ship was a 23 gun frigate that encountered HMS Dolphin - a 90 gun ship of the line.

They ran up the white flag. Crew was interred in Bermuda until the war was over. Brits opened the gate and left them get home the best way they could.

His name appears in the National Archives from his application for his Revolution pension and 100 acres of bounty land in Va. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

I never checked the National Archives from his application for a Revolution pension. Actually I did not know that such could be done.

I don't think you can access that online. I was in the NA branch office in Denver doing other genealogy research and happened on my name by chance.

But they have rolls and rolls of microfilm just on that topic alone + hard bound books. If you enjoy history and family history, looking through the old records can get addicting. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

More info as to John Miller:

Birth: Nov. 9, 1733 Skippack Montgomery County Pennsylvania, USA Death: May 23, 1826 Greenville (Monroe County) Monroe County West Virginia, USA
John was born to Jacob and Margaret Miller from Hesse, Germany in Falkner's Swamp north of Philadelphia and christened at the Tulpehocken Lutheran
Church in Berks County on November 23, 1733. His family probably moved to Linville Creek in the Shenandoah Valley about 1750, about the same time the
Lincolns and Boones also moved from Berks County to Linville Creek. John then married Barbara Mauzy of Fauquier County here about 1765. They then
moved their family to Indian Creek near Greenville in what was then Botetourt County, Virginia, probably after his father Jacob had died in 1772 and maybe
with Valentine Cook of Linville Creek in 1773. John helped build Cook's Fort 1/4 mile west of Greenville, where some of their 10 children were born. Cook's
Fort was also used to muster the Botetourt County Militia for the Point Pleasant Battle in 1774 and was a refuge from the Indians whenever they attacked.

Their farm grew to 983 acres in what became Monroe County in 1799 and their Miller-Pence Farm and Miller-Halstead Cemetery were added to the National
Register of Historic Places in 2006. Oren Frederick Morton's 1916 book "A History of Monroe County" says John once thought he could see a plumed head
from a distance as he heard a turkey gobbling noise. Thinking an Indian was trying to lure him from his house, he went out the back door with his rifle, took a
circuit of nearly a mile, then came up behind the still gobbling Indian and shot and scalped him. Morton also said Panther Hollow on Indian Creek was named
when John heard a piece of bark fall from a tree and looked up to see a panther ready to spring, so he quickly fired and killed it.

In 1777, John served in the Revolutionary War with Captain John Preston in the Montgomery County Militia and is #A208591 in the DAR Register, which has his birthdate as ca1735. In 1780, he also served as a Greenbrier County juror after it was formed in 1777. John was then buried as J. M. Miller in the Miller-Halstead Cemetery, when he died in 1826 at the age of 93.

Family links: Parents: Jacob (John) Miller (1697 - 1772) Spouse: Barbara Mauzy Miller (1744 - 1819)* Children: Michael Miller (1770 - 1834)* *Calculated relationship Inscription: J. M. Miller Burial: Miller-Halstead Cemetery Monroe County West Virginia, USA Maintained by: ernie miller
Originally Created by: Matthew Broyles Record added: Apr 12, 2001 Find A Grave Memorial# 5358432

Monroe County, WV
Headstone Details
Cemetery name Miller-Halstead Cemetery
Name on headstone John Miller
Birth 1733 - Skippack, Montgomery, Virginia
Death 1826 - Greenville, Monroe, Virginia