A Patriotic Family

Thomas Freeland, my 6X great-grandfather, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Responding to the alarm at Lexington on April 19, 1775, Thomas and all seven of his sons joined the Patriot cause. Thomas Freeland served as a private in Col. Jonathan Ward's regiment. His sons' service records are listed below:

• Dr. James Freeland served as a surgeon in the United States army. He is listed with the regiments of Col. Ebenezer Learned and Col. Jonathan Holman. 
• John Freeland served as a private in Col. Samuel Bullard's regiment and later in Capt. James Mellen's company, Col. Jonathan Ward's regiment (the same regiment as his father). Later he took part in the expedition to capture Fort Ticondergoa and Crown Point in the company of Capt. Thomas Marshall Baker, regiment of Col. James Denny. He and his wife later moved with other Hopkinton families to Clavarack and formed the settlement of Mellenville, New York. 
• William Freeland served as a Lieutenant in the Revolutionary War.
• Joseph Freeland enlisted in 1775 and served as a Sargent in the regiment of Col. Jonathan Ward (with his father and brothers, John and Thomas). 
• Thomas Freeland, Jr. served as a private in the regiment of Col. Jonathan Ward. 
• Abraham & Asa Freeland are also said to have served in the Revolutionary War.

James and John have lineages approved by the Daughters of the American Revolution. Since neither Abraham or Asa is supposed to have married it makes sense that they are not included in the DAR index. 

Children of Thomas & Mary (Nutt) Freeland:

1. James was born in Hopkinton in December 1743. He was baptized on Christmas Day, 1743. He became a doctor and married Mehitable "Hetty" Mellen of Hopkinton on October 31, 1770. She was the daughter of Capt. Thomas & Elizabeth (Wood) Mellen. 
2. Elizabeth was baptized on March 24, 1745 in Hopkinton. The History of Sutton says she married a man named Graves. The Sutton Freelands says that she married Nathan Hall and lived in Sutton. This may be a confusion with her sister who did marry a Nathaniel Graves. 
3. John was baptized in Hopkinton on September 28, 1746. He married Mary Mellen, widow of _____ Gibbs. They settled in Claverack, near Hudson, New York. 
4. William was baptized in Hopkinton on September 18, 1748 and married Lucy Claflin. They lived in Hopkinton. 
5. Joseph was baptized in Hopkinton on July 18, 1750 and married Judith Gibson. He was a merchant in Hopkinton.
6. Mary was baptized in Hopkinton on September 24, 1750 and married John Holland, Jr. on April 6, 1775. He was from Sutton. They moved to Dixfield, Maine. 
7. Anna was born in Hopkinton on January 20, 1754 and Nathaniel Graves on November 4, 1774, according to The Sutton Freelands. However, The History of Sutton says she married a Mr. Hall. 
8. Thomas, Jr. was baptized in Hopkinton on June 13, 1756 and married Anna Barrett. They lived in Hopkinton. 
9. Sarah was baptized in Hopkinton on November 26, 1759 and married Joshua Park of Sutton on June 9, 1779. They lived in Hopkinton and later in Milford.  
10. Abraham was baptized in Hopkinton on October 19, 1760 and never married. He lived in Hopkinton. 
11. Asa was born and lived in Hopkinton. Neither the History of Sutton or The Sutton Freelands lists any marriage information for him. 

Thomas Mellen died at the home of his son, Dr. James Freeland. 

History of the Town of Sutton, Massachusetts

The Sutton Freelands: Legends and Letters

Prisoner Exchange - Samuel Denning

Samuel Dennen/Denning served on a privateer in the Revolutionary War. He had the misfortune to be taken prisoner and sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, my search for additional information has not yielded much. The best information comes from a listing that tells of his return in a prisoner exchange on September 30, 1778.  The Revolutionary War, by Charles Patrick Neimeyer, notes that privateers who were captured by the British posed a real dilemma. Normally, pirates were sent to the gallows, but these enemy combatants were different. Many were pressured to join the British navy and doing so would increase the chance of surviving the war. The British were reluctant to consider them prisoners-of-war because that would be admitting that the United States was an independent nation. However, executing all those captured on the land and at sea was not practical either. It would greatly inflame the passions of the already highly motivated Patriots. In the end, several hundred American sailors were taken to Halifax, Nova Scotia and kept in a sugar house. I have no idea what happened to Samuel from his return until the end of the war. Did he continue his activities? 

Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors, Vol. 4

A descendant applied for a veteran's gravestone and seems to have struggled to prove his service. It does appear that both the Sons & Daughters of the American Revolution have awarded membership to his descendants. His grave can be viewed on Findagrave.com here. 

Samuel Dennen married Keziah Bray on March 14, 1754 in Gloucester, Massachusetts and at some point they moved to Maine. Thier children were: 

1. Judith born in 1754
2. Abigail born in 1756
3. Job born in 1760
4. Mary born in 1762
5. George born in 1767
6. Simeon born in 1771

Samuel Dennen

Judith (Dennen) Morgan

Martha (Morgan) Yates

Moses Yates

Gilbert W. Yates

Estes G. Yates

Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother

Sources:
DunhamWilcox

Celebrating Independence Day!

In honor of Independence Day, I'd like to honor my ancestors who supported the Revolution. Some supported independence by signing anti-British documents or serving in early government positions, others provided supplies, and others actually fought in battles. The following names have been primarily identified from the rolls of the DAR. I need to do a lot more research on most of these men but if you have the names and vital dates for your ancestors who were born between 1700-1763, the DAR database is a good place to start your search.



Edward Abbott (1730-1801) - 5th great-grandfather - Signed the Association Test in New Hampshire. This document was written in April before the Declaration of Independence. It called for the signatures of every adult male willing to take up arms against the British AND lists the names of those who refused to sign. 

George Abbott (abt 1708-1785) - 6th great-grandfather - Signed the NH Association Test.

Jonathan Abbott (1740-1821) - served as a Sergeant in Capt. Henry Abbott's militia and responded to the Lexington Alarm.

Samuel Ackley (1763-1861) - 5th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Jackson's Company, Col. Crane's Regt.

Asa Barrows (1751-1830) - 5th great-grandfather - private in multiple companies: Capt. Shaw, Capt. Benson, Capt. Hammond.

Benjamin Blake (1731-1824) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Joseph Chandler's Company, Col. Wyman's Regt. He also paid a labor tax to support the war.

David Blake (1762-1843) - 5th great-grandfather - private in Col. Richardson's Company

Eleazer Cole (1747-1833) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Josiah Hayden's Company, Col. John Bailey's Regt. Massachusetts Line.

Samuel Connor (1704-1778) - 7th great-grandfather - signed the NH Association Test

William Cotton (1751-1814) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Edward Everett's Company, Col. Timothy Bedel's Regt.

Samuel Dennen/Denning (1733-1798) - 6th great-grandfather - served as a seaman and was taken prisoner.

John Dunham (1726-1814) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Shaw's Company, Col. Warren's Regt. - responded to the Lexington alarm. Also served under Capts. Curtis and Sampson, Cols. Jacobs and Cotton.

Gibbins Edgecomb (1743-1817) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Crocker's Company, Col. Mitchell's Regt.

Dr. James Freeland (1743-1796) - 5th great-grandfather - physician or surgeon

John Garland (1719-aft 1790) - 7th great-grandfather - signed the NH Association Test

Samuel Haskell (1749-1825) - 6th great-grandfather - served in as a private, later promoted to Sergeant in Capt. Joseph Elliott's Company, Col. Wm. Turner's Regt. and later in Capt. Hezekiah Whitney's Company, Col. Josiah Whitney's Regt.

Hezekiah Hayes (1719-1791) - 7th great-grandfather - signed the NH Association Test

Elisha Houghton (1746-1810) - 6th great-grandfather - minuteman in Capt. Benjamin Houghton's
Company, John Whitcomb's Regt.

Snow Keene (1734-aft 1811) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Turner's Company, Col. Thomas' Regt. and responded to the Lexington alarm. He later served under Capts. Chamberlain and Turner, Col. Brooks.

Moses Lyford (abt 1728-1788) - 7th great-grandfather - signed the NH Association Test

Oliver Smith Lyford (1753-1788) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Col. Stark's Regt.


Thomas Mellen (1713-1782) - 6th great-grandfather - served as a member of the Massachusetts First Provincial Congress in 1774 & 1775. They met after Parliament annulled the charter of Massachusetts and declared that representatives would no longer be elected; they would be appointed by the King. John Hancock was the president (governor) and the Provincial Congress collected taxes, bought supplies, and raised the militia. In 1775, the Provincial Congress sent delegate, Paul Revere, to the First Continental Congress with the message that they had set up an autonomous government, free of British influence.

Daniel Messer (1735-1815) - 6th great-grandfather - served as a private in 1775 and also provided civil service to the new government.

William Moody (1740-1828) - 6th great-grandfather - served as a private and later as Sergeant with Capt. Bradish, Capt. Pride, Col. Phinney.

Samuel Morgan (1748-aft 1796) - 5th great-grandfather - possible but initial documentation has not been updated since the early days of the DAR and he must be treated as a new ancestor for future applicants.

Reuben Packard (1737-1820) 6th great-grandfather - served as a Sergeant in Capt. Josiah Hayden's Company, Col. Bailey's militia. Marched to Lexington at the news of the alarm. Served nearly 8 months total but in short responses as a Minuteman.

Dimon Perry (abt 1742-aft Jan 1819) - 6th great-grandfather - private in Capt. William Weston's Company. 

Elisha Prescott (1754-1813) - 6th great-grandfather - This is another line that needs work as earlier documentation shows a problem in some areas. However other parts of the application are correct. The problem seems to be with a second wife and not the wife I have in my database. He served as an ensign under Capt. William Harper, Col. Wyman's Regt; also, served as a Sergeant in Capt. Cutting Cilley's Company; and a private in Capt. Winthrop Rowe's Company, Col. Poor's Regt. 

Jeremiah Prescott (1718-1780) - 7th great-grandfather - signed the NH Association Test

Lazarus Rand (1755-1816) - 5th great-grandfather - private in Capt. Abraham Tyler's Company, Col. Edmund Phinney's Regt. and Capt. Alexander McLellan's Company, Col. Jonathan Mitchell's Regt. 

John Safford (1709-1782) - 7th great-grandfather - responded to the Lexington alarm, served with Capt. Whitney, and Capt. Dodge.

Patten Simpson (1737-1807) - 7th great-grandfather - private under Col. Stark

Dominicus Smith (? -1821) - 5th great-grandfather - I have his pension but he is not in the DAR database. He served as a private in Capt. Noble's Company, Col. Patten's Regt. Massachusetts Line. 

Enoch Spurr (1761-1843) - 4th great-grandfather - served as a Quartermaster Sergeant. A quartermaster would supervise, store, and distribute supplies and provisions. From the Quartermaster Creed: "...My forges burned at Valley Forge. Down frozen, rutted roads my oxen hauled the meager foods a bankrupt Congress sent me...Scant rations for the cold and starving troops, gunpowder, salt, and lead..." 

Joseph Spurr (1731-1805) - 5th great-grandfather - served as a matross. A matross was someone who assisted the gunners in loading, firing, and sponging guns. They were armed and guarded the store-wagons that transported the gunpowder and ammunition. 

Aaron Stevens (1710-1796) - 6th great-grandfather - signed the NH Asssociation Test

Dr. Joseph Wight, Sr. (1729-1804) - 5th great-grandfather - served as a ship's surgeon

Here are a few links to the stories of my direct ancestors who fought in the Revolution. I definitely have a lot more research to do based on the long list above.

Samuel Ackley

Asa Barrows - From Bill West at West in New England

Dr. James Freeland

Elisha Houghton

Dominicus Smith 

Enoch Spurr





Ancestors of Thomas Richard Carter (1914-2005): Edward Abbott, George Abbott, Samuel Ackley, Dr. James Freeland, Thomas Mellen, William Moody, Enoch Spurr, Joseph Spurr, Aaron Stevens, Joseph Wight

Ancestors of Fern Lyndell Cotton (1922-2002): Jonathan Abbott, Asa Barrows, William Cotton, John Dunham, Gibbins Edgecomb, Samuel Haskell, Elisha Houghton, Snow Keene, Moses Lyford, Oliver Smith Lyford, Reuben Packard, Elisha Prescott, Jeremiah Prescott, Lazarus Rand, John Safford, Patten Simpson

Ancestors of Clayton Leonard Blake (1904-1979): Benjamin Blake, David Blake, Samuel Connor, Daniel Messer

Ancestors of Linona Alice Yates (1920-present): Eleazer Cole, Samuel Dennen/DenningJohn Garland, Hezekiah Hayes, Samuel Morgan, Diman Perry, Dominicus Smith