Pension application of Jacob Stephens S17703 f18VA
Transcribed by Will Graves 4/20/12
State of Missouri County of Madison: SS
On this 14th day of August A.D. 1832, personally appeared before Thomas Cooper, William Anthony & Anthony Clubb Justices of the County Court of Madison County and State of Missouri aforesaid, and now sitting, Jacob Stephens a resident of Caston Township, in the County of Madison and State of Missouri, aged seventy-three, who being first duly sworn according to law, doth, on his oath, make the following declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress passed June 7th 1832.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers and served as herein stated: In the month of June 1776 or 7 said applicant lived in Frederick County Virginia, eight miles South of Winchester, at a town called Stephensburgh, and was called into
the Militia Service, and served a tour of duty against the Tories in Hampshire under the command of General Morgan. Also another tour of duty under Captain John Catlitt [John Catlett]: one tour of duty under Major Gilkison [possibly Samuel Gilkerson], against the Indians, being ordered to Fort Pitt – but called back. One tour under Colonel Joseph Holmes, of Winchester; to guard Pemberton, of Philadelphia, who was arrested at Philadelphia and sent to Winchester and placed under guard. Said applicant further states that he was drafted in the said state of Virginia Shenandoah County for 15 months tour, and hired a substitute, that the said tour was served under the command of Colonel Joseph Holmes, whose certificate of service the said applicant procured, but has since lost it. That the said applicant moved from the State of Virginia into the State of Kentucky, and there served several tours of duty against the Indians since the treaty of peace in 1783 for which he has never received any pay. Applicant states that at this time he has no written evidence of his service; and that he does not know of any person, whose testimony he can procure, to testify to his service.
He hereby are relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present, and declares that his name is not on the pension roll of the agency of any state.
Sworn to and subscribed, the day and year aforesaid
S/ Jacob Stephens
[William McMurtrey, a clergyman, and Joseph Bennett gave the standard supporting affidavit.]
State of Missouri Madison County: In the County Court of the County of Madison in the State of
Missouri, Term of August 1833
On this 27th day of August, in the year 1833, personally appeared in open Court, before the Justices thereof in the aforesaid County court now sitting Jacob Stephens, and makes the following declaration to amend his original declaration to obtain a pension –
That he was born in the State of Virginia and raised in the County of Frederick, that at about the age of 16, in the year 1776 or 1777, he was drafted as a private, to supply a draft or call for a draft made on the militia of that County for three months, and was first mustered into service at Stephensburgh in the company commanded by Captain __ Moyers [perhaps a mistaken
reference to Capt. Jacob Myers], in the Battalion under the command of Colonel Joseph Holmes,
& the General officer commanding in that department or part of the Country at that time was
General Morgan. I marched with the company & Battalion from Stephensburg to Hampshire to suppress the disaffected, Tories etc. In our march we captured Colonel Brake (as called by the
Tories) who lived on the South branch of the Potomac [River] about twelve miles from Rumley,
Brake was carried by a guard to Winchester & confined in jail – Applicant was discharged at Rumley for his tour of three months, and returned home to Frederick: does not recollect whether
the discharge was written or verbal –
soon after, and in 1777, as well as recollected, for the purpose of supplying another call for a draft made on the militia of said County of Bedford for three months, said applicant was again drafted, and was mustered into service as a private at Stephensburgh, in a company commanded by Captain John Catlett, and marched from Stephensburgh to Winchester and was employed in guarding and suppressing the Tories, at the end of the tour I was discharged by Captain Catlett:
[paper compromised and part of the text missing] my discharge I was again drafted and mustered [paper compromised and part of the text missing] Winchester under Captain John Gilkison and were immediately ordered to march against the Indians contiguous to Fort Pitt, but marched no further than the big spring gap in the Allegheny mountains, and thence returned from the extreme cold and the company being then ordered back at our return Captain Gilkinson was promoted to the office of Major and on our return I was discharged by Gilkinson:
Said applicant further states that in addition to the above tours of duty he served a tour of duty but for what length of time he cannot recollect. Said duty consisted in guarding Pemberton,
as in original declaration stated –
In the year 1780, in Shenandoah County State of Virginia, said applicant was drafted to supply a draft or call for a draft made on the militia of that County for fifteen months, and hired a substitute, whom I paid $100, the company was paraded and said substitute was first mustered into service at Millers town in the company commanded by Captain John Richardson: Said substitute served out said term of fifteen months and was discharged: Applicant procured himself
the written discharge of Colonel Joseph Homes, but has since lost it believing that said discharge would be of no consequence to him –
Said applicant removed to this County in the year 1817, and from the great distance he now lives from the place of his services, he does not know of any person by whom he can prove them – that he cannot prove his service by any person living, and that he has no documentary evidence to establish the facts of his revolutionary services. His relinquishment is in the original declaration –
And to the interrogatories prescribed by the War Department and put by the court, the said Joseph Stephens answers and says as follows:
1st. I was born in Frederick County State of Virginia, in the year 1759 –
2nd. I have my age put down in my family Bible, has registered by myself from my Father's
Bible.
4th. I belonged to the militia which was drafted and when there was a call for a draft to be made out of the class to which I belonged I was drafted, and I served the three different tours of three months each, also the tour, the precise time of which I do not recollect, and also hired a substitute to supply my place was drafted for a tour of fifteen months.
5th. I was acquainted with Captain Moy…, Catlett, Captain John Gilkinson, and Captain John Richardson also with Colonel Joseph Holmes, and Colonel Benjamin Tipton & also General Morgan. I am now well acquainted with William Anthony and Thomas Cooper Justices of this Court, William M. Newberry Clerk of this Court and the Circuit Court, Micajah Stone Sheriff, John Mathews Senior Senator to the State Legislation [sic], Theodore F Long Member of the House of Representatives and Caleb Cox Justice of the Peace Sworn to and subscribed in open court the day and year aforesaid
Test: S/ W. M. Newberry, Clk.
S/ Jacob Stephens
[Veteran was pensioned at the rate of $30 per annum commencing March 4th, 1831, for service
as a private for 9 months in the Virginia militia].
https://revwarapps.org/s17703.pdf
