My 64 ~ Researching My Fourth Great Grandparents : Hugh Cowperthwaite III and Mary "Polly" Newcomb

My fourth great grandfather, Hugh Cowperthwaite, was born in Pittsgrove, in Salem County, New Jersey, in 1776, the second son and the third of 10 children born to Loyalist Hugh Cowperthwaite and Sarah Mead. His parents left New Jersey in January of 1778, when the oath of allegiance was tendered to them. Refusing to sign the oath, they had fled to Philadelphia, and, following the evacuation of that city, ultimately settled in Sunbury County, New Brunswick, Canada.

My fourth great grandmother, Mary "Polly" Newcomb, was born around 1778 in Waterborough (which is present-day Canning), New Brunswick, Canada, the youngest daughter, and ninth of 10 children born to Benjamin Newcomb and Elizabeth Lewis. Benjamin had come with his parents to settle in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, from Connecticut, in 1760.

Hugh and Polly were married on October 17, 1799, in Waterborough, New Brunswick. They settled in Sheffield, in Sunbury County, New Brunswick, and raised a large family. Their children included 5 sons and 4 daughters, all presumably born in Sheffield:

Abraham, b. year unknown

David, b. 1798

Reuben, b. 1801

Rebecca, b. 1804

Henry Nelson, b. 1807

Jane, b. 1808

Margaret, b. 1812

Hugh, b. 1820

and

Eliza Ann, b. 1821

Sheffield United Church in Sheffield NB, built in 1775 and rebuilt in 1840

At some point in their lives, they relocated to Carleton County, New Brunswick, perhaps moving in with one of their children in their later years. It is generally believed to be true that Polly died there, although her death year, as well as her final resting place, are unknown.

There is a record of Hugh's death, however, as October 8, 1853. That record states that he is buried in Methodist Cemetery, in Woodstock, New Brunswick, although the stone may have been removed, toppled or eroded.

Methodist Cemetery, Woodstock, New Brunswick

My line of descent from Hugh and Polly is through their daughter Margaret, who married William Harnett. Their daughter Harriet married John McCain. Their daughter Bertha married my great grandfather, Rev.Wylie Herbert Smith. Their daughter Harriet was my maternal grandmother.

Because of Hugh's Loyalist roots, I am hoping to become a United Empire Loyalist.


Sources:

Ancestry.com. 1851 Census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.

"Benjamin Newcomb," Miner, Mark E., Miner Descent, (https://minerdescent.com/2010/07/08/benjamin-newcomb/ : accessed 26 June 2017).

Find A Grave, database and images (http://findagrave.com : accessed  26 Jun 2017), memorial page for Hugh Cowperthwaite III (1776-1853), Find A Grave Memorial no. 117673561, citing Methodist Cemetery, Woodstock, Carleton County, New Brunswick, Canada.

New Brunswick Cemeteries (PANB).

My 64 ~ Researching My 4th Great Grandparents : William Brackley and Anna Clayton

William Brackley, my 4th great grandfather, was probably born January 7, 1788, probably in Dedham, Massachusetts, since his parents, William Brackley and Sarah Everett, were married there six months later. His father had been born in England and allegedly had fought with Burgoyne in the Revolutionary War.

"Surrender of General Burgoyne" painted by John Trumbull

In April of 1809, William married Anna Clayton in Farmington, Maine. She was the daughter of John Clayton, a British-born former soldier in the 20th Regiment of Foot and 17th Light Dragoons, who became a prison of war following Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga.

There is evidence that William may have fought in the War of 1812, although no information outside this index card is available.

William and Anna lived all their married life in Freeman, in Franklin County, Maine, where they raised six children:

Abel Everett, b. 1811

Betsey, b. 1813

John Clayton, b. 1817

Elias and Eli, twins b. 1822

and

Howard Winslow, b. 1829^*

^*My 3rd great grandfather

When the U.S. Census Mortality Schedule was published for Freeman, Maine, for the year ending June 1, 1870, both William and Anna were listed with their respective "Profession, Occupation, or Trade" as "Gentleman" and "Lady."

William and Anna are buried side by side in North Freeman Cemetery.

William and Anna Brackley Graves, North Freeman Cemetery

Footstones at the Graves of William and Anna Brackley, North Freeman Cemetery

Sources:

1850 US Census; Census Place: Freeman, Franklin, Maine; Roll: M432_253; Page: 229A; Image: 443

1860 US Census; Census Place: Freeman, Franklin, Maine; Roll: M653_435; Page: 852; Image: 267; Family History Library Film: 803435.

Ancestry.com. U.S. Federal Census Mortality Schedules, 1850-1885 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

Massachusetts Vital Records to 1850 (Online Database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001-2016).

Thompson, George A. and F. Janet Thompson. A Genealogical history of Freeman, Maine, 1796-1938, in three volumes. 3 vols. (Bowie, Maryland: Heritage Books, 1996).

Vital Records of Farmington, Maine, 1784-1890 (Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2016).

“War of 1812 Service Record Index,” database and images, Fold3 (www.fold3.com/image157/307523257 : accessed 24 April 2016); service of William Brackley, Jr. (3rd Regiment (Fairbanks’) Massachusetts Militia, War of 1812); citing Index to Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served During the War of 1812, Record Group 94, National Archives, Washington, D.C.

My 64 ~ Researching My 4th Great Grandparents : Taking Sides During the American Revolution

     When you grow up in New England, the American Revolution is all around you. Historic sites appear at left and right, field trips from school include museums and exhibits glorifying the struggles and battles of the war, and school assignments invariably include literature and histories depicting famous soldiers and generals.

     It never entered my consciousness, before I began my genealogical research, that my ancestors included individuals and families who sided with England and its King. My 4th great grandfathers, however, include both Patriots and Loyalists, It was, in fact, a deep and complex dilemma for many, often resulting in the uprooting of families, and their resettlement in distant lands. My 4th great grandfather Thomas Bustin migrated from North Carolina, fought with Burgoyne in New York, and was among those evacuated onto one of many ships bound for Saint John, in Canada. My 4th great grandfather Hugh Cowperthwaite, a Quaker, grew up in New Jersey, and also found himself compelled to move to Canada, in support of the Crown.

     Three of my 4th great grandfathers fought for independence in the Revolutionary War, Allison Libby II (15th Massachusetts Regiment), Benjamin Griswold (Massachusetts Continental Line), and William Prior (Connecticut Continental Line). Two more of my 4th great grandfathers supported the Patriot cause, however, without engaging in actual combat.

     Deacon Thomas Cross, living in Gorham, Maine, was a member of Gorham's Committee to Hire Soldiers.

     Moses Seavey, of Rye, New Hampshire, was a signatory of that colony's Association Test. His father-in-law, my 4th great grandmother Huldah Locke's father, Elijah Locke, signed as well. The Association Test, also known as the Patriot Test, was written by the New Hampshire Committee of Safety. In Rye, it began:

WE, the Subscribers, do hereby solemnly engage, and promise, that we will to the utmost of our Power, at Risque of our Lives and Fortunes, with ARMS, oppose the Hostile Proceedings of the British Fleets, and Armies, against the United American COLONIES.

     The Test referred to a resolution passed by the Continental Congress on March 14, 1776, which called for two actions: the signatures of every adult male who was willing to take arms against the British, and the names of all who refused to sign. Their signature indicated their obligation to oppose the "hostile proceedings" of the British fleets and armies. The returns of such documents (there were others, like Maryland's List of Associators and New York's Signers of the Association) gave the signers of the Declaration of Independence assurance that their acts would be sanctioned and sustained by the citizens of the country. Town officers in New Hampshire were requested to obtain these signatures, who in turn sometimes selected a local "Committee of Safety," to carry out this order. Only white males above 21 years of age ("lunatics, idiots, and negroes excepted") were asked to sign this document. Not everyone qualified to sign agreed to do so, and not all of those who refused to sign were considered "Tories."

     There are numerous signers of Rye's Association Test with the surnames Seavey, Locke, Foss, and Philbrick, which I am sure figure in my family tree somewhere, so this document may lead me forward in my continuing genealogical research.

     Four of my 4th great grandfathers appear in the Daughters of the American Revolution's Genealogical Research System:

4th Great Grandfather     Ancestor Number

Moses Seavey                  A101196

Allison Libby II                  A070199

Thomas Cross                  A028166

Benjamin Griswold           A048653

A fifth 4th great grandfather, William Prior, is not in the DAR's GRS, but his complete Revolutionary War service record and pension file are available at Fold3.com

Sources:

Allen, Francis Olcott, History of Enfield Connecticut, Vol. 2 of 3. (Lancaster, Penn.: Lankersham Printing Co., 1900)

Daughters of the American Revolution. "GRC National Index." Database. DAR Library. (http://services.dar.org/Public/DAR_Research/search_adb/default.cfm)

Genealogy & History of New Hampshire (http://www.nh.searchroots.com/glossary.html)

New Hampshire Revolutionary War Association Test, Town of Rye. (http://www.newhorizonsgenealogicalservices.com/new-hampshire-genealogy/association-test/rye.htm)

Parsons, Langdon B. History of the Town of Rye, New Hampshire, from its discovery and settlement to December 31, 1903. (Concord, New Hampshire: Rumford Printing Co., 1905)

Revolutionary Soldiers. A List of the Names of the Men Who Fought for Independence, and Who Are Buried in Vermont. St Albans Daily Messenger (Saint Albans, Vermont), Saturday, August 19, 1905, p.2, (via Genealogybank.com)    

      

My Canadian Branches ~ Loyalist David Blakeney's Military Career

The year was 1775, David Blakeney (my 6th great grandfather) and his family had lived on the shores of Cane Tail Creek in the Ninety Six District of South Carolina since 1767. Having received a Crown Grant of 100 acres, David had built a house, a barn, stables, and a loom house. His farm had horses, cattle, sheep, and hogs. He harvested wheat, Indian corn, and flax.

As tensions began to boil over in the Southern Campaign of the American Revolution, particularly in the South Carolina backcountry, it often was a struggle of conscience for many settlers, and David may have faced this conflict with mixed allegience. There is evidence to suggest that he initially served in the "rebel militia," probably under Andrew Williamson, "in some degree forced into it." Williamson, the first major double agent in the American colonies, later joined the Loyalist cause, and David possibly followed suit.

By 1780, it became apparent to the British command that more vigilant defenses were essential to retaining the Southern territory. 

"Keeping possession of the backcountry is to utmost importance, indeed the Success of the War in the Southern District depends totally upon it." 

– Lord Cornwallis to Lt. Col. Cruger, August 5, 1780

The eight-pointed Star Fort at Ninety Six was the result. Upon completion the walls stood 14 feet high and it is estimated the walls were 10-15 feet thick. In addition, the defense included abatis (felled trees with sharpened branches), a steep ditch, fraise (sharp stakes protruding from the walls), and sandbags which surrounded the Star redoubt. Approximately 200 soldiers were stationed inside to keep guard.

Fort Ninety Six
[http://www.nps.gov/nisi/learn/photosmultimedia/online-tour-stop-11.htm]

David served as a Private in Colonel John Cotton's regiment of the Stevenson's Creek militia (the 96 Brigade), and narrowly avoided being involved in the King's Mountain conflict on October 7, 1780.

By May of the next year, approximately 1000 Patriot forces under Nathanael Greene were trying to seize the fortified settlement, and failing that, began the Seige of Ninety Six.There is evidence to suggest that David served continually throughout the 28-day seige, from May 21st to June 18th, the longest field siege of the Revolutionary War. As British Lieutenant Colonel Francis Rawdon ("Lord Rawdon") attempted to rescue the Loyalists who were manning the Fort, Greene's forces tried unsuccessfully to breech the enemy defenses on June 19th. but eventually retreated. The Loyalist forces, under Rawdon's influence, decided to abandon the Fort and concentrate their military efforts on the coast. By the time the British left Ninety Six of their own accord, on July 1, 1781, it was the last Loyalist fort in South Carolina.

David and his fellow militiamen proceeded to destroy the wooden structures and fort, and marched to Charleston.  When David left Ninety Six, he did so without his family. Taking only what they could carry, they were eventually sheltered by other Loyalist settlers.

For the remainder of 1781 and through much of 1782, David served in the Loyalist militia on James Island, near Charleston, and apparently saw little action as a non-commissioned officer in Colonel Baily Cheney's regiment. The following is from Clark's Loyalists in the Southern Campaign of the Revolutionary War, Vol. 1, p.339.

In November of 1782, Charleston was finally evacuated. David, along with his family, sailed with the troops on the troop transport ship "Argo" and landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on November 21st.

Notes: 

• I have used here David's surname spelled Blakeney. Be advised, however, that there are many variations through the insuing generations, namely Blakney, Blakeney, Bleakeny, Bleakny, Bleakney, Bleakly, and even Bleachly.
• The Seige of Ninety Six began 224 years ago today.
• I descend from David on this line:

Sources:

1779 Census of Ninety-Six District (http://files.usgwarchives.net/sc/districts/census/1779_96d.txt)

96 Revolutionary (http://www.townofninetysixsc.com/?page_id=70)

Blakney, David, in Loyalist Directory (http://www.uelac.org/Loyalist-Info/detail.php?letter=b&line=348)

Cann, Marvin L. “War in the Backcountry:  The Siege of Ninety Six, May 22- June 19, 1781.”  South Carolina Historical Magazine 72 (1971):  1-14. (http://www.jstor.org/stable/27567019)

Clark, Murtie June, Loyalists in the Southern Campaign of the Revolutionary War, Vol. 1, pp.339-340 (Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co., 1981) (http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=48291)

Moss, Bobby Gilmer. The loyalists in the siege of Fort Ninety Six (Blacksburg, S.C.: Scotia-Hibernia Press, 1999.

Online Tour Stop 11 - Star Fort (http://www.nps.gov/nisi/learn/photosmultimedia/online-tour-stop-11.htm)

Our Loyalist Ancestors, by members of the Halifax-Dartmouth Branch of UELAC in 1983; made available online in 2015 by Brian McConnell, UE, Nova Scotia Branch (http://www.uelac.org/Loyalist-Info/extras/MISC-MULTI/OLA83.pdf)

Patriot siege of Ninety Six, South Carolina, begins (http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/patriot-siege-of-ninety-six-south-carolina-begins)

The Revolutionary War in South Carolina (http://sciway3.net/clark/revolutionarywar/index.html)

South Carolina Townships, 1731-1765, map
(http://www.southern-style.com/Write%20Life/South%20Carolina%20and%20Fort%20Mims.html)

Tarleton, Banastre. A History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Provinces of North America (London: Printed for T. Cadell, in the Strand, 1787) (via Google Books)