Pension Application of Henry Morgan: W3709

                        Transcribed and annotated by C. Leon Harris

 

State of Illinois}

White County} On this fourth day of September 1832, personally appeared in open court before the Hon. William Wilson Judge of the White Circuit Court being a court of record now sitting Henry Morgan a resident of said County of White & State of Illinois aged 73 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 7- 1832

            That he entered the service of the United States in the militia under the following named officers and served as herein stated. Colonel John Collier  Lt Col. Thomas Dugen [or Duggan]  Major Anthony Sharpe, Capt. Robert McLane, Lieutenant William York. That he resided in Guilford Co North Carolina and was drafted for five months & mustered into service on the 24th of March 1779. That he marched from Guilford Co. to Charleston in South Carolina  that on his way to Charleston he met with a regiment of Tories at Kings Creek [possibly Kings Creek in Randolph County NC] about 600 as was then supposed, that they were attacked and defeated  that a few prisoners were taken and 3 or 4 killed. That he remained at Charleston until the 24th of August when he was discharged & returned home, his discharge was signed by Captain Robert McLane.

            That under Col. William Campbell  Major John Bryson  Capt. Flower Swift  Lieutenant Alexander Bryson he entered the militia as a volunteer in August 1780. that he then resided in Montgomery County Virginia and marched from there to the Yadkin river near the Shallow ford where there was a battle with the tories [14 Oct 1780]. that 6 or 7 of them were killed and a number taken prisoners  that he was discharged verbally to wait for the orders in one month & returned home

            That under the same Col. Major Alexander and Captain McAdo he entered the service as a volunteer on or about the first of February 1781. & marched to join Gen [Nathanael] Greene then below Guilford Court house. That when the regiment arrived at Whitesills mills on the Reder fork, it was attacked by the enemy and defeated and our Colonel killed  that our regiment was totally dispersed at the time. [See note below.] That he then went to Randolph County and joined Captain Robert McLane volunteer company light horse. that he then volunteered for the whole war. That Col Paelfy [sic: possibly John Peasley or Paisley of Guilford County] was commander of the regiment but not out in service. Major John Nalls was in command. That he was then engaged in dispersing the tories wherever collected. that he was in three battles. one in July 1781. at the mouth of Sandy creek [possibly the Sandy Creek in Randolph County NC] in which we won & Lieutenant William York of our company wounded and three men David Brower, David McMaster & Joel Benje were killed, & in August after or September we had another battle at Linleys mill [sic: Lindley’s Mill on Cane Creek in Alamance County NC, 13 Sep 1781] in which the tories were defeated, Major John Nalls was killed here & four or five others  That after the battle at Linleys mill he was deployed[?] towards Wilmington taking what tories could be found. That he was there engaged in riding through the counties of Randolph, Chatham, Moore Anson and a County on the Pedee [sic: Pee Dee River] name not recollected. That he continued in this service until the following Spring in April when the Captain with whom he had volunteered for the war placed him in the State troops under Major Joel Lewis  Captain Tubb  Lieutenenat Christmas. and that he continued in the same duty until the next October when he received from Captain R. McLane a discharge stating the time he had served &c. That he has no documentary evidence & knows no person whose testimony he can procure to testify to his service.

            That he was born in Rowan or Guilford County in North Carolina on the 7- of December 1758, has no record of his age. Living when first called into service in Guilford Co N.C. when he continued service after that in Montgomery Co. Va. That he resided there 16 years after his discharge, then removed to Granger County Ten. resided there 11 years. then to Warren  Co. Kentucky resided there 4 years, then to Logan County same state resided 5 years & then he removed to this county where he has since resided. That his discharges were burnt about one year after the close of the War while he resided in Virginia. That there were no regular officers

with him except while at Charleston & has no recollection of the names of any or of the regiments stationed there  That F. B. Brockett & Peter Miller jun are persons in his present neighbourhood to whom he is known & can testify as to his character for veracity, and their belief of his services as a soldier of the revolution.

            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.

            Henry hisXmark Morgan

NOTES:

             Morgan appears to have referred to the battle at Wetzel’s Mill on Reedy Fork of Haw River on 6 March 1781, but his description varies from most accounts, which state that it was the Americans who ambushed the British, attempting to impede the advance of Cornwallis’s army. Although the Americans were unsuccessful against the much larger force, their retreat was orderly. Neither William Campbell nor any other colonel was killed there.

            On 3 Oct 1857 in White County IL Susan Morgan, age about 86, applied for a pension as the widow of Henry Morgan, whom she married in 1785 in Montgomery County VA and who died 22 Feb 1849. In the same county Susan Morgan, age 54, cited a family record as evidence that her parents, Henry Morgan and Susanna Poe, were married in September 1785 in Montgomery County VA. A typed summary in the file states that the elder Susan Morgan died 25 Oct 1862.