MySource:Quolla6/Pension Statement of John Zinn

Watchers
MySource Pension Statement of John Zinn
Coverage
Year range -
Citation
Pension Statement of John Zinn.

From a post by Kathy Erickson

State of Kentucky, Grant County

On this 12th day of May 1834 personally appeared in open court before the justice of the county court of Grant now sitting, John Zinn a resident of Grant and State of Kentucky aged about seventy one years who being first duly sworn according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration an order to attain the benefits of the Act of Congress, passed June 1832.

That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers, and served as herein stated. That is to say; he arrived in the month of January 1780 at a station called Riddles station which is situated at or near the junction of Hinston(?) and Stover (?) which forms what is called the South fork of Lickin River the place of the station being now in the county of Bourbon and state of Kentucky but then in the district of Kentucky and state of Virginia. And was immediately enrolled as a minute man in the Militia of Captain Isaac Riddle, Lieutenant Casper Casne and an Ensign whose name is not now distinctly recollected but he thinks his name was David Patton. He does not know to what Regiment he belonged nor who was the field officers of the same during his since there was not any field officers at the said station nor was there any other company there save the one to which he belonged but he has understood that Colonel Benjamin Logan was the colonel of the Regiment but he can not say whether he ever understood before his return from captivity.

Some time in the latter part of the month of February 1780, in consequence of a suspicion of being attacked by the Indians the aforesaid Captain Riddle called on this declarant to enter upon military duty and this declarant did immediately in a regular manner enter upon the same and served under the said Riddle with the aforesaid Lieutenant and Ensign in the aforesaid Riddles Station (he at that time remaining (?) in said station) and continued so to serve until as well as this declarant now recollects until the 24th day of June 1780. or near that time his service consisted in guarding the station and hunting for the support of the station say he guarded his turns and hunted his turns there was however some time during the aforesaid period that the guarding was very slack rather a guarding in name than a guarding in fact but this declarant considered himself regularly in the service all of the aforesaid time and actually under the order of his officers. On or about the 11th day of March 1780, as well as this declarant can now recollect the Indians attacked the said station at or near day break and continued to operate against the station until late in the night and succeeded in wounding one man only named Andrew Beard who was shot in the right side of the breast and the ball lodged inside the skin on the back and Captain Riddle cut it out and he recovered.

The Indians although they did not succeed in killing any person in the station did succeed in killing a number of cattle, Sheep and a few dogs and carried off a number of horses.

On or about (as well as this declarant can now recollect) the 24th day of June 1780, Captain Byrd of the British Service accompanied by about 150 or 200 British regulars, two pieces of cannon and near about 500 Indians arrived and attacked the said Riddles Station Beginning the attack about sunrise and ending about three o'clock when the forces in the station surrendered. There was no one in the station either killed or wounded before the surrender but as this declarant was informed by others there was some 3 or 4 who was old and sick killed by the Indians afterward. On the day after the surrender aforesaid the British and a part of the Indians marched for Martin's Station which they succeeded in taking as this declarant afterwards learned from persons who said they were taken in said Martin's Station and also from British soldiers he learned the same fact, at the time that the British set out for Martin's Station (say about fifty or sixty effective men bound to military duty and between one hundred and one hundred and fifty others consisting of old men, women and children) was apportioned out in small parties among the Indians who was to proceed in small parties to Detroit this declarant and one other prisoner (soldier) was given in charge of three Indians who tied us and proceeded down the South Fork of Licking River to the mouth of Ravencreek (by land) when we took bark canoes and descended the River to its mouth and crossed the Ohio River and landed about where Cincinnati Ohio now stands then we passed over by land to Detroit where we arrived near the first. Although we were tied when we first set out we were tied only about five or six days the balance of the way we were guarded without being tied. After this declarant had arrived at Detroit the others which had been taken at Riddle's station continued to come in detached parties for several weeks (this declarant does not think that all ever arrived). When the British Captain (Byrd) and his company (illegible)___ther with some Indians arrived with the prisoners which they had taken at Martin's Station (say about or near the same number which had been taken at Riddle's Station when all was kept guarded in a Ring of a Picketed fort for a considerable time (time not recollected) when some thing like half was sent off to the falls of Niagra and the balance was permitted to go to work for their support but was watched in such a manner as totally to part it out of their power situated as we were to make our escape and if there was any who would not work for their support it was understood that they would be still confined but all who was left did work for their support so far as this declarant was informed we were scattered about amon the inhabitants just in proportion as they could make our labor profitable to themselves.

Thus those of us who was left remained until about May 1781 when there was a considerable number of those who were left last fall taken on board of the shiping [sic] and was or was intended to be conveyed to Quebeck [sic] the balance still remaining as before still working for their support at Detroit and neighborhood but so arranged among the inhabitants as to make it impossible for them to leave and return home so that this declarant and those who remained was kept as prisoners of war until the close of the the [sic] Revolutionary war and until the news of peace reached Detroit which this declarant now thinks was some time in the year 1783, the period of the year not now recollected but when the news of peace did reach Detroit in an official manner this declarant as well as all of the other persons that remained were informed that they were at liberty to return home or remain at their pleasure and many did return so soon as they could obtain the means and some remained

This declarant and seventeen others after having obtained the means and provided themselves in such a manner as they thought they could with safety encounter the wilderness did on the 28th day of June 1784 set out for the United States (the name of all of the seventeen not now recollected) and traveled to the head waters of the Alegany [sic] and then down that same stream until it could be navigated with canoes when we made bark canoes and then decended [sic] in the canoes to Pittsburgh where we separated and went in different directions this declarant and four others decended the Ohio River to a place then called Lime Stone now Maysville and then went by land to Lexington on the 14th day of Auigust 1784, (the four who accomanied him was Richard Rue, Bery Cottingham, Ransome Tinsley and Thomas McQuire)

This declarant may not be considered as having been in actual service all of the time which he remained in the station from the time which he was first called on say from latter part of the month of February 1780 until the 24th day of June same year but he will say that he was regularly called and was actually in the service of the United States not less than two months and was while so in service and acting against the enemies of the United States taken a prisoner of War and detained as such until the close of the War and until the independence of the United States was acknowledged by Great Britain until the news was officially received by the constituted authorities at Detroit so that this declarant will say that he werved the United States as a private soldier in the year 1780, not less than two months and was taken a prisoner while fighting in the service of the United States and detained six months in the year 1780 and in the year 1781 twelve months and in the year 1782 twelve months so that in all he was in the said service two years and eight months leaving out the year 1783. It will be perceived that this declarant cannot give all of the dates but this cannot be expected as many years have passed si9nce andthis declarant not knowing that it would ever be of any advantage to him did not charge his memory with any of these events except such as was of such importance to him as to make a lasting impression on his mind. He has no record evidence of his service having received no discharge from his officers nor does he know of any person now living by whom he can prove all or any of his services except Michael Leonard andElizabeth Franks neither of whom can I with any convenience have at court nor do I know whether (from their age and circumstances) they will be able to recollect the service circumstantially but I will procure their Dispositions at ________ture day. He has no record of his age nor has he any other datta by which he can apertain his age except that his Uncle John Link told him in February 1780 that he was over the age of sixteen therefore he must have been born in the year 1763 but the time of the year was not ever known to this declarant which is the reason that he says that he is about seventy one years.

He was born in the County of Berks and State of Pennsylvania and lived in same county and state with his father until he was about twelve years old when his Uncle John Links took him to the County of Augusta State of Virginia and he has not seen his father since that time. He remained in Augusta Virginia until about September 1779 when he moved with his said Uncle to Riddle Station then in the district of Kentucky State of Virginia now in Bourbon County Kentucky where he arrived in the month of January 1780 and where he entered the service and was taken prisoner as before stated and detained and he arrived at Lexington Kentucky from his captivity as before stated on the 14th day of August 1784 when he remained until March 1785, when he removed to what is now Bourbon County Kentucky where he remained until the month of March or April 1789 when he removed to what was then Pendleton County now Grant County and State of Kentucky. where he has ever since resided and does now reside say forty-five years.

His services was in the militia of Virginia. He never served with any other troops than the company to which he belonged consequently as he was taken prisoner and remained until the war was over he never knew any of the regular officers or continental troops. For the reputation in his neighborhood of his having been a revolutionary soldier he relies to the certificates which follows this declaration of James Howard James Minnans(?) of the County of Grant there being in my neighborhood no clergyman whose attendence he can procure.

He hereby relinquishes his every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present and declares that his name is not on the pension Role of the agency of any state or Territory whatsoever.