LEAVES FROM OUR TREE:
John Daniel, Captain of the Guard
Hillsborough District
North Carolina Militia
Revolutionary War
Written by Diane Carrington Bradford
4th great granddaughter of Major General Allen Daniel
of Madison County, Georgia, and
Webmaster of Leaves From Our Tree
This article was researched and documented in accordance
with the elements of the "Genealogical Proof Standard" [GPS]
developed by the Board for Certification of Genealogists.
The Hillsborough District Militia was an administrative division of the North Carolina militia during the Revolutionary War (1776-1783). The counties of Caswell, Chatham, Granville, Orange, Randolph and Wake comprised the Hillsborough District. [Excerpted from Wikipedia.org.]
In his pension application dated 22 Jan 1833, John DANIEL [hereinafter Capt. John] claimed he was appointed a Captain from day one in the service of the United States for three months in the County of Wake, North Carolina, in Colonel [François de] Malmedy's regiment, and was called out to guard the Assembly of North Carolina then held at Hillsborough, because of the Tories' threats to break up that body. He described three separate tours of duty, which totaled 13 months of service between about Jun 1780 and Oct 1781. Capt. John could remember only the year 1781 for the Battle of Eutaw Springs, the above date span was estimated based on the historical dates of the other two events described in his pension application.
Original Images 
S 31638
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Transcription
S 31638
State of Georgia}
Elbert County }
On the twenty second day of January in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty three, personally appeared in open court before William A. Beck, James Oliver, Dilliard Herndon and Benjamin Smith, Justices of the Inferior Court in and for the County of Elbert and State of Georgia, sitting for said county, John Daniel, a resident of the County of Elbert and State of Georgia, aged seventy one years, 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.
That he was appointed Captain into the service of the United States under Colonel [François de] Malmedy [sic] in the regiment commanded by Colonel Malmedy for three months in the year one thousand seven hundred and [sic], at the time when he entered the service he resided in the County of Wake and State of North Carolina, was called out to guard the Assembly of North Carolina then held at Hillsborough the seat of government for that state on account of the threatening of the Tories to break that body up. Governor Burk [sic]* removed to the Wake Court House where he kept a guard till the Assembly broke up, afterwards guarded the County the ballance [sic] of my three months service and then was discharged after serving three months.
That he entered the service of the United States in the County of Wake and State of North Carolina in the year one thousand seven hundred [sic], and not recollected under Colonel [Thomas] Farmer for five months joined his regiment at Hillsborough and marched from there to near Camden in the State of South Carolina and was in General Gates defeat at that place [Battle of Camden 16 Aug 1780], afterwards rallied at Hillsborough in the State of North Carolina where was discharged after serving five months as a Captain in the revolutionary war.
That he also entered the service of the United States as a Captain under Colonel Farmer in the regiment commanded by the said Farmer on the ____ day of ______ in the year seventeen hundred and eighty one and that he resided in the State of North Carolina and the County of Wake when he entered the service, joined General Green [sic: Nathaniel Greene] at the high Rock ford on Haw River, marched from thence to Salisbury, from Salisbury to a small village near the Catawba River, then to Camden in the State of South Carolina, fro Camden to the High Hill of Santee, where he was stationed until the British marched to the Eutaw Springs then marched down and gave them battle [Battle of Eutaw Springs, SC, 8 Sep 1781], at said battle was taken about five hundred prisoners with that number and about four hundred more which was taken a short time before by Colonel [William] Washington, made something like one thousand was moved back to the high Hills of Santee, from which place General Green sent us with the prisoners to North Carolina with orders to deliver them to General Matthew Cock [Cook? not found in list of officers] near Salisbury where he had a stockade fort begun after the fort was finished marched to Salisbury, his term of service be expired was discharged after serving five months in the service of the United States in the month of September or the October following Lord Cornwallis surrendered his army in Virginia [19 Oct 1781], to the combined American and French army, making in all thirteen months service as a Captain in the service of the United States during the Revolutionary War.
That he has no documentary evidence, and that he knows of no person except Thomas Colbert whose affidavit is hereto annexed whose testimony he can procure, who can testify to his service in the Revolutionary War.
He says that he was born in the County of Wake State of North Carolina on the 23 day of May one thousand seven hundred and sixty two, has no record of his age it being lost or destroyed.
That he lived in the County of Wake in the State of North Carolina when called into service, that he lived after the Revolutionary War in the State of North Carolina about eight years then removed to Elbert County in the State of Georgia where he has lived ever since, and now resides there, says that he was appointed Captain into the service of the U. S. The names of some of the regular officers who were with the troops where he served were Major [Reading] Blount, Col. Litle [sic: Archibald Lytle], Genl. Green & General Gates --- and the Continental and Militia regiments was composed of the Armys [sic] of Genl Green, Gates.
The general circumstances of his services he says he has before stated in this declaration.
Did you ever receive a commission --if so, by whom was it signed, and what has become of it. Says that he received a commission signed by Governor Burk Gov. of North Carolina, which was burnt a short time after the Revolutionary War, together with his discharges. The names of the persons to whom I am known in my present neighborhood, and who can testify to my character for veracity, and their belief of my services as a soldier of the Revolution are, James Harris, Thomas J Heard and William White.
He hereby 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 } John Daniel (signed)
The day and year aforesaid}
P. M. Fortson, Clk
We, James Davis, a Clergyman residing in the County of Elbert and State of Georgia, and James M Harris, residing in the same place, hereby certify that we are acquainted with John Daniel, who has Subscribed and Sworn to the above declaration, that we believe him to be about seventy one years of age, that he is reputed and believed in the neighborhood where he resides to have been [original document ends here]
Transcribed verbatim and annotated by Diane Carrington Bradford 1 Feb 2009
The Documented Facts
Careful study of Capt. John's pension application, along with an equally careful review of North Carolina history and records of the Revolutionary War pertinent to battles mentioned, raised a great many questions regarding Capt. John's detail orientation, his ability to recall dates and/or the sequence of events, or to estimate time periods with any accuracy. He described his tours of duty and depicted his duties in the following order:
Tour #1: 3 months in Colonel Malmedy's regiment guarding the North Carolina General Assembly first at Hillsborough, then at the Wake [county] Court House. Capt. John stated he was appointed a Captain from day one. He also stated that he received a commission signed by Governor Burke, and that Gov. Burke moved the General Assembly meeting from Hillsborough to Wake Court House.
FACTS: The General Assembly met at the Wake Court House for the entire month of June 1781. Thomas Burke was not elected Governor of NC until 25 June 1781, almost at the end of Capt. John's tour of duty. Either his commission was signed by Burke's predecessor, Abner Nash; or Capt. John did not receive a signed commission until after Burke was elected Governor. Also, chronologically, this was actually Capt. John's SECOND tour of duty. Since he was also a "captain" during his first tour, which had nothing to do with the NC Assembly or with Thomas Burke, he was originally appointed "captain" by someone in Colonel Farmer's regiment.
Tour #2: 5 months - Battle of Camden, South Carolina, in Colonel [Thomas] Farmer's regiment.
FACTS: The Battle of Camden took place on 16 Aug 1780, 9-10 months BEFORE the North Carolina General Assembly meeting was held at the Wake Court House in June 1781. Therefore, this was actually Capt. John's FIRST tour of duty.
Tour #3: 5 months under Colonel Farmer - Battle of Eutaw Springs, South Carolina in which he was assigned to guard British troops taken prisoner at this battle and move about 1,000 of them to a stockade near Salisbury, North Carolina, and give them into the care of Gen. Matthew Cock [Cook? not found in list of officers]. He also said he was discharged after 5 months of service in Sep or Oct after Cornwallis had surrendered at Yorktown.
FACTS: The Battle of Eutaw Springs was on 8 Sep 1781; Cornwallis surrendered 19 Oct 1781. Counting back 5 months from October would mean his 3rd tour of duty would have begun about mid-May to mid-June 1781. Based on his statements, That would mean he was in two places at once in June of 1781 because those two tours of duty would have overlapped. All of which probably meant that his final tour of duty was not a full five months long.
Capt. John gave his date of birth as 23 May 1762 and stated he had no record of his age. If Capt. John actually was born in 1762, he would have been only 18-19 years old when he entered the service in 1780, an unlikely age to be appointed to the rank of Captain upon enlistment, even just for guard duty. Many researchers have pointed out that such an appointment would be more feasible for a new recruit of 21 years or older.
Careful reading of the descriptions Capt. John gave of the assignments given to him by his commanding officers in all three of his enlistments showed a young man who was always on guard duty, apparently as the captain of a group of men also assigned to that duty. He and his group of guards might have participated in a light skirmish or two on the edges of the main battlefield at Camden or at Eutaw Springs, but Capt. John never was assigned to lead a fighting unit into battle.
So why was he chosen to be a "captain from day one" of his first enlistment and maintained that rank for each of his tours of duty rather than any older man in his guard unit? The most probable and logical reason was that Capt. John could read and write in an era when relatively few men and even fewer women were so educated. In the eyes of his commanding officers, that would have been an uncommonly helpful skill for a "captain of the guard" to have, and too valuable a skill to waste on just a "private" or a foot soldier. That would have been particularly true for someone to whom General Greene entrusted the duty of moving about 1,000 British prisoners of war from Eutaw Springs, South Carolina all the way back to Salisbury, North Carolina to the stockade there.
What documentation showed his ability to read and write? On page 4 of his pension application, near the bottom of the page (see image above), Capt. John's signature is clear and very legible.
Also the following deed from Elbert County, Georgia, indicated that he personally signed the document:
- Elbert County, Georgia, Deed Book K, p 190, 26 Oct 1805, - John Daniel of Elbert to Jane Childs, $120, 34a on Dry Fork of Vans Creek in Elbert, adjoining Richard Colbert, mouth of Spring Branch, up branch to Thomas Colbert, Benjamin Allen. signed: J. Daniel. wit: Jas Alston Sr, B. Allen. On 16 Dec 1806, wife Elizabeth Daniel relinquished her dower rights. Recorded 21 Jul 1807. [From: Farmer, Michal Martin, transcriber (abstracted and indexed), Elbert County Georgia: Deed Books K-R, 1806-1819, Dallas, TX: Farmer Genealogy Company, 1997, p 33.]
While Capt. John was no hero riding a gallant steed, his sword upraised, as he led his men into battle, his descendants can take pride in knowing that he did perform a necessary and valuable service for his commanders in the Wake County Militia. He certainly did his part to help the Patriots defeat the British and gain the freedom that all Americans still value and guard so fiercely today.
Descendants of Capt. John DANIEL on WorldConnect
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