Berkshire County, Massachusetts GenWeb Project

TOWN OF HANCOCK, BERKSHIRE COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS

DEPOSITION OF THOMAS LYON FOR REVOLUTIONARY WAR PENSION

Transcribed by Valerie Lyons

State of New York

Livingston County

On this eleventh day of August in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty two, (1832) personally appeared before Matthew Warner, one of the Judges of the county court of Common Pleas in and for the county of Livingston in the state of New York, Thomas Lyon a resident of the town of Avon in said county of Livingston aged eighty-two years and upwards, who being first duly sworn according to law, doth, on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefits of the Act of Congress [indecipherable word] June 7th, 1832.

That he entered the service of the United States as a volunteer in the month of December 1776 under Captain William Douglas of the town of Hancock in the county of Berkshire and state of Massachusetts in the regiment commanded by one Colonel Simonds whose christian name he does not recollect - that he marched with the company to Ticonderoga where he joined the regiment, the whole force there assembled was under the command of General Anthony Wayne - that he remained at Ticonderoga until sometime in March 1777, he cannot recollect the day of entering the service, or of his discharge, but says he served out his term of his engagement which was three months when he was discharged - that he did not receive a written discharge, that he was discharged at Ticonderoga - that afterwards, and he thinks in July 1777 he volunteered under on Amariah Babbit as captain of the town of New Ashford in the county of Berkshire aforesaid, and was attached to the regiment commanded by Colonel (Seth) Warner and the brigade commanded by General (John) Stark, that after enlisting he was marched through the following places, towns: New Ashford (MA), Williamstown (MA), Bennington (VT), Shaftsburg (VT), Arlington (VT), and so north to near Lake Champlain, - that they were kept the most of the time on the march to cover and defend the country and watch the enemy's movements until the sixteenth (16th) of August of that year, when deponent was engaged with the enemy at Bennington (VT), the deponent does not remember who commanded the enemy, but thinks that the commander was reputed to have been killed there, he remembered that they had a severe and bloody battle, and were victorious, that the enemy threw two brass field pieces into a mill pond, and that Colonel Warner ordered the waste gates to be opened to let off the water, and placed a sentry for the night, and on the following morning they recovered the pieces from the pond, that he was occasionally at home in New Ashford to see his family, and give directions as to his family business, and after remaining at home sometimes for half a day, at other times one day, and thinks at no time over two days at a time, he then returned and found his company, and his this manner he was engaged in the public service during that year for the space of five months or more, he thinks over five months, but cannot be certain, that he continued in such desultory service until sometime in the fall, and after the surrender of Burgoyne, and says he was discharged he thinks about the first of November of that year, at some place in the neighborhood of Saratoga, the name of which he does not recollect with certainty, be thinks the place was called Stillwater, (NY) - that no written discharges were given to his knowledge and that he did not receive any, and the deposed further states that he cannot at this distance of time, recollect so as to be able to state with any certainty the times and occasion of this afterwards being in public service, but says that he well recollects to have turned out repeatedly during the several years of the war for short terms of duty upon occasion of alarms, upon occasion of requisitions from the Officers of the Continental Army, - he recollects that Major Satterlie frequently made such requisition - that such tours were frequent and lasted sometimes two or three days, sometimes a week or more - that he kept no record of the number of times he was out, or the length of time he was sent out, but he will recollect that he always turned out upon the occasion of alarm as a volunteer (excepting one time when deponent was absent from home) - that he recollects that he served as orderly sergeant a part of the time at Ticonderoga and during a part of the five months service in 1777 - that according to the best of his recollection and judgement he served in all as a volunteer in the militia during the war for a period of or near two years, and is confident that the whole would amount to a period of eighteen months - that he always served as a volunteer - and the deponent in answer to the particular enquires of the said judge saith that he was born in the town of Fairfield in the state of Connecticut on the ninth day of October old style in the year of our Lord 1749, that he is not in possession of any record of age, but says that a record of his age was made and kept in the family bible of his father, which record he supposes is in the family of his deceased brother at Plattsburg in the county of Clinton in this state - that when called into service he lived in the town of New Ashford aforesaid, and continued to live at New Ashford, until about the year 1792 when he removed to the town of Scanesborough in the same county of Berkshire & state of Massachusetts where he resided for about nine years when he removed to the town of Lima in the county of Ontario where he resided nine or ten years, when he removed to Avon, aforesaid in the county of Livingston, where he has resided ever since, being about 20 years past - that he never served otherwise than as a volunteer - that his recollection does not serve him to state the names of the regular officers who were with the troops where he served, more particularily than he has stated - That he was always regularly discharged by his commanding officer, but never received any written discharge - that he is known to Lewis Beecher, Justice of the Peace, Curtis Hawley and Augustus (indecipherable) Post Master, (name indecipherable), District Attorney of Livingston County all resident in said town of Avon and generally to all the principal men in said town and the surrounding towns, to whom he confidently appeals to testify as to his character for veracity and their belief as to his service in the war of the revolution - And the deponent further states that his son-in law-Seth Lyon now residing in Lima aforesaid is aged as he thinks about sixity-two years and was old enought to remember the fact of his going into the public service during the period before stated - said that he resided in New Ashford aforesaid at those several periods, and that he does not know of any other living witness by whom the fact of his service can be proved except the mother of said Seth Lyon who residing in Lima aforesaid, who is very infirm  of mind and body, by reason of her great age - and he hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or anuity except the present, and declares that his name is not in the pension roll of the agency of any state - and the said deponent further states that owning to his advanced age, and a rheumatic complaint with which he is afflicted he cannot attend in open court for the purpose of making the aforesaid declaration without great bodily suffering and pain.

Sworn and subscribed

the eleventh day of

Aug 1832 before

Matthew Warner

 
 
Return to [Berkshire County Home Page]
© Copyrighted from 1995 to present for the benefit of the Massachusetts GenWeb Project.