Semiquincentennial - - Revolutionary War - - Richard Dillon

 - A series of  posts about our family's Revolutionary War soldiers -

250 Years; 1776 - 2026

Our Family was there, from the Beginning

Our family had many branches living in the American Colonies, before the United States were formed. In Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina my great grandfathers & great uncles left their farms and their families to break away from British rule. They were soldiers in the Revolutionary War. We can proudly know that our family was there in those early days to help ensure our independence. 

Richard Dillon

7 Oct 1745 Norfolk, Virginia - 7 Oct 1833 Mississippi

Son of James Theopilous Dillon & Mary; Husband of Anne Lawrence

My 5x great grandfather

Soldier in North Carolina Militia; served onboard privateer ‘Greyhound’ & Prisoner of War

Richard Dillon, Revolutionary War soldier, was born 7 October 1745 in Norfolk in the Virginia Colony[i] and became an apprentice to a cooper when he was 12 years old. He was bound to Christopher Harrison until he turned 21 as he was taught the business of being a cooper.[ii] The prevalent theory is Richard’s father died and therefore he was bound as an apprentice to learn a trade and support himself.

            Richard moved on to Bertie County, North Carolina where he witnessed a will in May 1777.[iii] By the time Richard lived in the county it already had a long history.

 

By the start of the American Revolution, Bertie County had undergone two centuries of change. It had evolved from the tranquil home of the Meherrin and Tuscarora to a thriving English colony with large prosperous tobacco plantations worked by thousands of African, Native Americans, and mixed-blood slaves. It had developed lucrative trading ties with its neighbors Virginia and South Carolina, as well as intercolonial and international trade with New England, Britain, and the British Caribbean. By 1774, Bertie County was one of the most prosperous counties in North Carolina. It had benefited greatly from being adjacent to Edenton, the colonial capital, and from serving as home for five colonial governors who guided the colony through difficult times.[iv]

 

            Richard may have become an ancestor whose life’s story faded with time as has happened with many men of that era. However, an important document survives which details his life, especially his military service. His pension application survives.

            On 26 August 1776 the Continental Congress enacted the first pension law which gave benefits to any officer, soldier or sailor who had lost a limb in battle or who was so disabled in service that rendered him unable to earn a living. At that time the Congress actually had no money and relied on the states to give money to the veterans. Over the years pension benefits were expanded to include more veterans. On 7 June 1832 Congress extended those benefits more widely than previously. This act provided for full pay for life for all officers and enlisted men who served at least 2 years in the Continental Line, the state troops or militia, the navy or marines. Men who served less than 2 years but at least 6 months were granted pensions of less than full pay. Almost 28,000 veterans claimed pensions under this 1832 act. One of the veterans who traveled to his local courthouse to apply for a pension was 87-year-old Richard Dillon. Veterans or their widows were required to file applications detailing their military service and other information about themselves and their families. Most of the early documents were destroyed by fire in Washington, D. C. Later documents survive and are protected at the National Archives.[v] Richard Dillon’s original application with his signature is preserved there for the future and the digital image is available for anyone to view.

Richard Dillon married Anne Lawrence, daughter of Humphrey Lawrence and Ann Ashley. Their children were: Joanna (Dillon) Smith, Nancy Ann (Dillon) Stallings, Lawrence Dillon, Clarkston Dillon, Willis D. Dillon, Mary (Dillon) Morris, Theopilous Dillon, Clarissa Clara (Dillon) Smith and Sarah (Dillon) Graves.[vi]

Richard’s pension application clearly shows his early residence in Bertie County, North Carolina. Court records also give evidence of his life there. In August 1785 Richard and Anne sold a tract of land in Bertie County to Benjamin Terlinton.[vii] In February 1787 William Billips, William Cook and Richard Dillon were appointed “searchers in Capt. Ashburn’s District.”[viii] In the same month Frederick James was bound to Richard “to learn the trade of a Cooper.”[ix]In November 1789 Richard and Anne sold another piece of land. They sold this land to Andrew Stanton.[x]

The family next lived in the Barnwell District of South Carolina, moving there about 1790.[xi] The 1800 census report shows Richard in Barnwell District with six family members and six slaves.[xii]

 

By 1810 Dillon was a resident of Amite County (listed in the 1810 Census for that year). In that same year he obtained a land g rant in Marion County in a portion of the county that later became Pike County. This was probably the land that became known as ‘Dillon’s Bridge’.[xiii]

 

At the time of the War of 1812 they were in Mississippi. Richard’s sons, Clarkston, Theopilous and Willis D., enlisted in the Mississippi Territory Militia on 3 January 1815 and served until April of the same year.[xiv] The 1820 census showed Richard with several family members and 13 slaves. His sons, Lawrence Dillon, Clarkston Dillon and Willis D. Dillon lived close by.[xv]

Richard Dillon died 7 October 1833 and is buried in the Smith Cemetery in Dillontown, Mississippi.[xvi] After his death his sons, Lawrence and Willis settled his estate as evidenced by a newspaper notice.

Letters testamentary having been granted to the undersigned last Nov’r. term of the Probate Court of Pike County, on the estate of Richard Dillon, late of said county deceased – Notice is herby given to all those having claims against said estate, to present them, duly authenticated, to the undersigned, within the time prescribed by law, or they will be barred. Willis Dillon, Lawrence Dillon.[xvii]

 

Revolutionary War Series:

#1  William Stark Kelly, Private in the North Carolina Militia

#2 Captain John Kennington, Camden District Regiment, South Carolina Militia 

#3 Sergeant John Brumfield, Patriot & Spy South Carolina Militia 

#4 Charles Brumfield, Gave Patriotic Service

#5 Captain Johannes Ritter, Sr., Northampton Co., PA Militia  

#6 Lt. Moses Hollis, Lieutenant in the South Carolina Militia

#7 Pvt. Jeremiah Smith

Read more about our family's pioneers & patriots.

This is my newest book, published in late 2024. It includes chapters on these families:

Alford, Ashely, Brown, Brumfield,

Fortenberry, Hollis, Kelly, Kennington,

Lawrence, Ott, Smith & Spurlock

Buy from me: Price: $95.00 + $10 shipping & packaging. No credit cards.

OR: use credit card & purchase through Troy Book Makers.

---

[i] Revolutionary War Pensions and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA, Pension #R2959, Fold3 (fold3.com:accessed November 2017) Richard Dillon.

[ii] Haun, Weynette Parks, Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1740 thru 1743; 1758 thru 1762. Book II (North Carolina: 1977). 

[iii] Almasy, Sandra L. Bertie County, North Carolina Wills 1761 – 1780 (Joliet, Illinois: Kensington Glen Publishing, 1990) 124. 

[iv] Smallwood, Arwin D., Bertie County: An Eastern Carolina History (Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2002) 67.

[v] Graves, Will. An Overview of Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Legislation and the Southern Campaigns Pension Transcription Project; digital image (revwarapps.org: accessed November 2017).

[vi] Conerly, Luke War, Source Records from Pike County, Mississippi, 1798 – 1910 (SC: Southern Historical Press, 1989) 117-119.

[vii] Haun, Weynette Parks. Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1781 thru 1787. Book V (Durham, North Carolina: 1982) 81.  

[viii] Haun, Weynette Parks. Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1781 thru 1787. Book V (Durham, North Carolina: 1982) 123.  

[ix] Haun, Weynette Parks. Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1781 thru 1787. Book V (Durham, North Carolina: 1982) 126.  

[x] Haun, Weynette Parks. Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1788 thru 1792. Book VI (Durham, North Carolina: 1982) 46.  

[xi] Revolutionary War Pensions and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA, Pension #R2959, Fold3 (fold3.com:accessed November 2017) Richard Dillon.

[xii] 1800 US Census, SC, Barnwell District; digital image, Ancestry (ancestr.com: accessed November 2017) Richard Dillon.

[xiii] Conerly, Luke Ward and E. Russ Williams Jr., Source Records of Pike/Walthall Counties Mississippi, 1798-1910 (Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, 1989) 117.

[xiv] Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Soldiers Who Served During the War of 1812 in Organizations from the Territory of Mississippi; NARA; Fold3 (fold3.com:accessed Aug 2017).

[xv] 1820 US Census, MS, Pike; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed November 2017) Richard, Lawrence, Clarkston and Willis Dillon.

[xvi] US Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1925-1963; March 1957; Old Smith Cemetery, Dillontown, MS; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed November 2017) Richard Dillon.

[xvii] Notice. (Jackson, MS: The Weekly Mississippian, 31 Jan. 1834) 4; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed January 2018.

 

 Revolutionary War Pension Application of Richard Dillon

 

State of Mississippi, Pike County. On the 22nd day of April 1833 personally appeared in open Court before the Honorable Robert Love, Judge of the Probate Court now sitting.  Richard Dillon a resident of Pike County, State of Mississippi, aged 87 years six months and some days who being duly sworn according to the law doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress passed June the 7th, 1832, states that he was drafted under Captain John Faulk in Bertie County, North Carolina, marched from thence to Northwest River Bridge in the month of March, next to headquarters and placed under Colonel Bluntin Maginnis, but has no recollection of the names of any of the subaltern officers nor their places of residence, was also commanded by General Gregory Cloissiant himself, resided when drafted near Edenton Sound Bertie County, North Carolina, claimant entered the service in the year 1781 served in one battle under Gregory at the North West River Bridge and served one three months tour under him, received his discharge and returned home,  Afterwards in the summer of 1781. Enlisted on Board of Privateer Greyhound commanded by Captain Saml Butler and remained on Board until he was taken prisoner by Frigate Baloosa bearing 36 guns and commanded by Captain Kennedy a Scotsman, and has no particular recollection of the length of time he was a Prisoner of War but as well as he recollects nine months, and that parolled upon honor, can't recollect of any man living who can prove the services here referred to, has no documentary evidence at all, and herby relinquishes any claim whatsoever to a pension of annuity except the present, and declares that my name is not on the pension roll of any agency in the state.

 

Question:  Where and what year were you born? A: In the State of Virginia, Norfolk County, on the 7th day of October 1745 as appears from the record of my father and the information of my mother.

Question: Have you any record of your age and where is it? A: In my Bible at home a copy from my father's record, as informed of my mother.

Question: Where were you living when called into service? A: In Bertie County, North Carolina on Edenton Sound.

Question: Where have you lived since, and where do you live now? A: I moved from North Carolina in the year 1790 from Bertie County, North Carolina to Barnesville District in South Carolina and remained there until the 20th of March 1807 and moved from there to Mississippi in Amite County, where I remained about three years, then I moved into Marion County, now Pike County, Mississippi, and have been there ever since.

Question: How were you called into the service?  Were you drafted? A: I was drafted as above stated.

Question: Did you receive a discharge from the service?  If so, by whom was it issued?  What became of it?

A: I received an honorable and written discharge from General Gregery, kept for a number of years, but it has long since been lost.  I can refer to my neighbors Reverend Willis Magee and J. W. Y. McNables Esg., Peter Quin, and to many others who can and will certify to my character, veracity, properly sworn to and subscribed to in open court the 22nd day of April 1833.  

(Signed) Richard Dillon   Jno. Y. McNabb, Clerk

Revolutionary War Pensions and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA, Pension #R2959, Fold3 (fold3.com:accessed November 2017) Richard Dillon.

 

Semiquincentennial - - Revolutionary War - - Jeremiah Smith

 - #7 in a series of  posts about our family's Revolutionary War soldiers -

250 Years; 1776 - 2026

Our Family was there, from the Beginning

 

Jeremiah Smith

Born circa 1755 – after 1800

Husband of Jemimah Hollis

My 5x great grandfather

Jeremiah Smith was the first of the Smith family to be found in historical records. He was born in South Carolina circa 1755 but the names of his parents and their country of origin is still to be discovered.[i] The oldest reference to Jeremiah is in 1770 in Craven County on Lynches Creek, sometimes referred to as Great Lynches Creek or, later, as Lynches River. His name is shown as owning land adjacent to John Kirkley. Most of the land surrounding the property of these two was men was described as ‘vacant land’.[ii] In 1773 Jeremiah’s land on Lynches Creek was again referenced in land records, this time as adjoining the property of James Minzies.[iii]

            Lynches River originates in North Carolina, crosses into South Carolina where it flows for 175 miles and empties into the Pee Dee River. “In the late 1700s the Lynches attracted entrepreneurs who set up saw mills, harvested the long leaf pine, and shipped the lumber downstream to Georgetown.”[iv]

            Jeremiah Smith served in the South Carolina Militia during the Revolutionary War. He served as a private in Colonel Benton’s Regiment for 29 days in March 1782 and 36 days in October 1782. In 1785 he went to the Justice of the Peace in Cheraws District to apply for compensation for his service. He also claimed 109 days service for Richard, Charles and John Smith. Were these other Smiths his brothers? This service amounted to a claim for 87 pounds. He received an additional 16 pounds sterling for beef he gave “for public use” during the war.[v]

 

Beyond the terror and pain of occasional battles, perhaps the most striking aspects of the Revolution were the unrelenting brutal conditions that soldiers were forced to endure. For the Continental Army, food, clothing, blankets, and other necessities were always in short supply, as were guns, ammunition, wagons, and horses needed to face the enemy. … Even foraging parties came up with little; the surrounding countryside had long since been looted of livestock, grain, and firewood. … On top of it all, military pay was low and unreliable; for months at a time, men were not paid at all. … Nevertheless, loyalty to the army grew.[vi]

 

Signature of Jeremiah Smith, 9 April 1790

From: South Carolina Department of Archives and History

Account Audited (File No. 7131) Of Claims Growing Out Of The American Revolution

            On 24 June 1784 Jeremiah married Jemimah Hollis, daughter of Moses Hollis and Rosannah (Hagan) Hollis.[vii]The Hollis family had been in the area for some years. Moses Hollis owned 300 acres on the Wateree River in 1768.[viii]Both Lynches Creek/River and Wateree River carve wandering lines across South Carolina but they run roughly parallel to each other.[ix] Various events, such as visiting the courthouse, could have brought the Smith and Hollis families together. 

            Moses Hollis also served in the South Carolina Militia during Revolutionary War. He served for 30 days in 1780 under General Sumpton.[x] More land records show Moses’ continued residence in the area as well as many other Hollis family members. 

            In October 1785 Jeremiah Smith had 100 acres of land on Rickey Creek in the Cheraws District.[xi] In 1788 he owned 400 acres in the Lynches Creek and Rocky Creek area.[xii]  He was in Greenville, South Carolina in 1790 when the first United States Census was taken[xiii] and in 1800 for the second census.[xiv]

            When researching the death date and location for Jeremiah Smith, I found a wide assortment of dates from 1810 to 1827, from the Carolinas to Mississippi. Because of the abundance of Jeremiah Smiths it cannot yet be determined which date and place relate to this man. 

Revolutionary War Series:

#1  William Stark Kelly, Private in the North Carolina Militia

#2 Captain John Kennington, Camden District Regiment, South Carolina Militia 

#3 Sergeant John Brumfield, Patriot & Spy South Carolina Militia 

#4 Charles Brumfield, Gave Patriotic Service

#5 Captain Johannes Ritter, Sr., Northampton Co., PA Militia  

#6 Lt. Moses Hollis, Lieutenant in the South Carolina Militia

 

Read more about our family's pioneers & patriots.

This is my newest book, published in late 2024. It includes chapters on these families:

Alford, Ashely, Brown, Brumfield,

Fortenberry, Hollis, Kelly, Kennington,

Lawrence, Ott, Smith & Spurlock

Buy from me: Price: $95.00 + $10 shipping & packaging. No credit cards.

OR: use credit card & purchase through Troy Book Makers.

---

[i] Gurr, Cindy Brock and Dennis Ray Gurr. The Ties That Bind US Together, Volume 5 (Privatley Printed, 2006) Genealogy Gophers (gengophers.com: accessed March 2019) 131-212.

[ii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Plat Books; Series S213184, Volume 17, Page 500, Item 2; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) John Kirkley adj. Jeremiah Smith, 1770.

[iii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Plat Books; Series S213184, Volume 18, Page 445, Item 2; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) James Minzies adj. Jeremiah Smith, Great Lynches Creek, 1773.

[iv] Stevens, Robert. Lynches River; digital image, South Carolina Encyclopedia (scencylopedia.org: accessed March 2019).

[v] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Account Audited Of Claims Growing out of the American Revolution; Series S108092, Reel 136, Frame 422; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) Jeremiah Smith. 

[vi] Daily Life in Colonial America (Pleasantville, NY: Reader’s Digest Association, INc., 1993) 6128.

[vii] Gurr, Cindy Brock and Dennis Ray Gurr. The Ties That Bind US Together, Volume 5 (Privately Printed, 2006) Genealogy Gophers (gengophers.com: accessed March 2019) 131-212.

[viii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Land Grants; Series S213019, Volume 16, Page 367; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) Moses Hollis, 1768.

[ix] Pruitt, A. B. Creeks and Rivers in South Carolina (Privately Printed, 2001) 14.

[x] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Account Audited of Claims Growing Out of the American Revolution; Series S108092, Reel 72, Frame 596; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) Moses Hollis, 1780.

[xi] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. State Plat Books; Series S213190, Volume 8, Page 267, Item 1; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) Jeremiah Smith, 1785.

[xii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. State Plat Books; Series S213190, Volume 22, Page 873, Item 2; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed March 2019) Jeremiah Smith, 1788, Cheraws District.

[xiii] 1790 US Census, SC, Greenville; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed October 2019) Jeremiah Smith. 

[xiv] 1800 US Census, SC, Greenville; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed October 2019) Jeremiah Smith.

June Ancestor Anniversaries

June is my favorite month for weddings because my husband and I got married 

on June 10, 1978.

 

2 June 1870. Ohio. William Mark, 1844 OH – 1904 OH (son of Abraham Mark & Mary Isabella Heffelfinger) married Emma Abeline Flory. They had two children. The marriage did not last.

2 June 1923. Ohio.  Charles Forest Mark, 1892 OH – 1967 OH, (son of William Mark & Elidia Rebecca Ritter) married Bertha Flickinger, 1904 OH – 2000 OH (daughter of Andrew & Emma Flickinger). They had four children. They were married 44 years.

 

3 June 1880. Ohio. Allen G. Messmore married Barbary Ann Ritter, 1857 OH – 1928 (daughter of Isaac Ritter & Isabell Fisher). They were the parents of six children. 

 

8 June 1841. Marion, Mississippi. Warren Jackson Alford, 1819 MS – 1899 MS (son of Edwin Barksdale Alford & Martha P. Smith) married Celia Ann Lewis.  They were the parents of 12 children.

 

8 June 1949. Mississippi. Fay Seward Smith, 1921 MS – 1998 MS, (son of Denny Herbert Smith & Mavis Marie Brown) married Patricia Brock, 1932 MS – 2020 MS (daughter of Leslie William Brock & Dollie Lura Smith).  They were married 49 years. When I visited they were kind and welcoming. Both of them helped my family history in many ways. 

 

11 June 1830, Marion, Mississippi.  Jesse Kelly Brumfield, 1807 SC – 1884 MS (Son of John Brumfield & Margaret Kelly) married Hannah Youngblood, 1808 GA – 1885 MS (Daughter of Benjamin Youngblood & Susannah Collins). They had ten children. They were married 54 years.

 

11 June 1882. Pennsylvania. Francis Jonas Wolf, 1860 PA – 1945 KS (son of John Jonas Wolf & Sarah Ann Chronister) married Ida Virginia Spangler. They were the parents of eight children. 

 

12 June 1912. John Rickert Shaw married Mary Jeanette Mark, 1886 OH – 1940 OH (daughter of William Mark & Elidia Rebecca Ritter). 

 

15 June 1870. Ohio. Henry C. Miller married Mary Ritter, 1853 OH – 1938, (daughter of Isaac Ritter & Isabell Fisher). They were the parents of 12 children. 

16 June 1851. Mississippi. Isaac Nelson Brumfield, 1823 LA - 1909 MS; son of Willis & Nancy Virginia (Holmes) Brumfield, married Sarah Jane Smith, 1836 MS - 1929 MS; daughter of Elias V. & Ann (Crews) Smith. Parents of 10 children

20 June 1804. Pennsylvania. Johan Abraham Keck, 1781 PA - 1854 PA; son of Georg & Elanora Catherine (Schaut) Keck, married Magdalena Klingensmith. 

24 June 1772. South Carolina. Jeremiah Smith Sr., b. 1755, married Jemimah Hollis; daughter of Moses Hollis. They were my 5th great grandparents. Parents of 4 children.

26 June 1877. Ohio. Franklin P. Mark, 1853 OH - 1936 OH; son of Abraham & Mary Isabella (Heffelfinger) Mark, married Laura M. Miller. Parents of 8 children. 

 

 

Semiquincentennial - - Revolutionary War - - Moses Hollis

 - #6 in a series of posts about our family's Revolutionary War soldiers -

250 Years; 1776 - 2026

Our Family was there, from the Beginning

Moses' sons, Elijah, John & William also served in the South Carolina Militia.

Moses Hollis

1728 Fairfax, VA – c 1794 South Carolina

Son of John & Esther (Canterbury) Hollis; Husband of Rosannah Berry Hagan

My 6th great grandfather

 

Lieutenant in the South Carolina Militia

Moses Hollis lived in the American colonies. Both Moses and his wife, Rosannah (Hagan) Hollis,[i] were born in Fairfax County, Virginia. He was born in 1728[ii]^,[iii] and she was born in 1735.[iv]

On 26 March 1751 Moses witnessed an indenture between Henry Fitzhugh and John Gray. Moses’ father, John Hollis, was a tenant of Henry Fitzhugh.[v] John Hollis grew tobacco and operated a tavern in Fairfax County.[vi]

Moses and Rosannah moved to South Carolina where they could obtain land of their own. Land records prove Moses’ residence in Craven County, South Carolina. On 29 April 1768 Moses Hollis received a Colonial Land Grant of 300 acres on the Wateree River (also seen as Wateree Creek).[vii] In February 1771 he purchased an additional 200 acres on Wateree Creek. His land was described as “bounded on all sides by vacant land.”[viii] In 1772 another 200 acres were granted to Moses in Craven County.[ix]

While their property expanded their family grew. They had at least four children: Jemimah (Hollis) Smith, John Hollis, Elijah Hollis, Nancy (Hollis) Gladden and Berry Hollis.[x] Families were the “social foundations” for life in the Colonial South.[xi]

 

Because formal institutions were often weak in the colonial South, family and kin assumed many more responsibilities than families do today including subsistence, education, vocational training, social welfare, religious instruction, and elderly care. Family life both shaped and was altered by colonialism.[xii]

 

Colonial southerners spent their days laboring to feed, house and clothe themselves. They also wanted to produce goods for exchange. After 1700 “rice became Carolina’s gold.” It is likely Moses grew rice, wheat, indigo or tobacco to sell to Europe.[xiii] “He was a “typical successful farmer.”[xiv]

In August 1767 Moses was in the newspaper. The paper printed a list of men whose horses were missing, either stolen or strays.

 

By Moses Hollis, a bay mare, 13 hands high, a natural pacer, branded on each buttock, judged to be 8 years old.[xv]

 

The Revolutionary War began. Moses served as a Lieutenant for 30 days in 1780 in the Cheraws District Regiment of the South Carolina Militia. He later requested compensation for a “Gun [that] was Taken.” Moses served again in late 1782 – 1783 in the Turkey Creek Regiment under Captain Charles Lewis.[xvi]

The oldest sons of Moses and Rosannah served in the South Carolina Militia, with John and Elijah as Captains and William as a Private. In an affidavit, Elijah said he was too young to serve initially but towards the end of the war he served with his brother, John, both under Colonel Lacey in two tours of duty.[xvii]

In 1780 Moses served on a Grand Jury.[xviii] In 1790 his name appears in the records of the first United States census in Fairfield, South Carolina.[xix] The 1790 US Census for Fairfield included these Hollis names: Elijah, James, John, Moses and William.[xx] Moses Hollis wrote his will on 9 April 1793. It is from this document we have the name of his wife and some of his children. He died circa 1794.[xxi]

 

1789 Signature of Moses Hollis

From Accounts Audited of Claims Growing Out of the Revolution, SC Dept. of Archives & History

<https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov>

Revolutionary War Series:

#1  William Stark Kelly, Private in the North Carolina Militia

#2 Captain John Kennington, Camden District Regiment, South Carolina Militia 

#3 Sergeant John Brumfield, Patriot & Spy South Carolina Militia 

#4 Charles Brumfield, Gave Patriotic Service

#5 Captain Johannes Ritter, Sr., Northampton Co., PA Militia  

 

 

Read more about our family's pioneers & patriots.

This is my newest book, published in late 2024. It includes chapters on these families:

Alford, Ashely, Brown, Brumfield,

Fortenberry, Hollis, Kelly, Kennington,

Lawrence, Ott, Smith & Spurlock

Buy from me: Price: $95.00 + $10 shipping & packaging. No credit cards.

OR: use credit card & purchase through Troy Book Makers.

 

 

---

[i] US and International Marriage Records, 1560 – 1900; digital record, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020)

Moses Hollis & Rosanna.

[ii] Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor Record, Ancestor #A206608, Moses Hollis; digital record (dar.org:

accessed Sept. 2020).

[iii] Gurr, Cindy Brock and Dennis Ray Gurr. The Ties That Bind US Together, Volume 5 (privately printed, 2006)

Genealogy Gophers (gengophers.com: accessed Sept. 2020) 230 – 249.

[iv] Gurr, Cindy Brock and Dennis Ray Gurr. The Ties That Bind US Together, Volume 5 (privately printed, 2006)

Genealogy Gophers (gengophers.com: accessed Sept. 2020) 230 – 249.

[v] Sparacio, Ruth and Sam, Fairfax County, Virginia Orders, 1768 – 1769 (VA: Antient Press) 111.

[vi] Mitchell, Beth, Fairfax County, Virginia in 1760 an Interpretive Historical Map (Fairfax Co., VA: Office of Comprehensive Planning, 1987) 99.

[vii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Land Grant, Series S213019, Volume 16, Page 367; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed Sept. 2020) Moses Hollis, 1768, on Wataree River.

[viii] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Plat Books, Series S213184, Volume 17, Page 39, Item

2; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed Sept. 2020) Moses Hollis, 1771, Craven County.

[ix] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. Colonial Land Grant, Series S213019, Volume 27, Page 455; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed Sept. 2020) Moses Hollis, Craven County.

[x] South Carolina Department of Archives and History. South Carolina Will Transcripts, Series S108093, Reel 11, Frame

100; digital image (scdah.sc.gov: accessed Sept. 2020) Moses Hollis, Fairfield Co

[xi] Schlotterbeck, John T. Daily Life in the Colonial South (Athens, GA: The University of Georgia Press, 2020) 85.

[xii] Schlotterbeck, John T. Daily Life in the Colonial South (Athens, GA: The University of Georgia Press, 2020) 85.

[xiii] Schlotterbeck, John T. Daily Life in the Colonial South (Athens, GA: The University of Georgia Press, 2020) 37 – 38.

[xiv] Tidwell, W. A. A History of the Tidwell Family; Genealogy Gophers (gengophers.com: accessed Sept. 2020) 98 – 99.

[xv] Strays (Charleston, SC: The South Carolina and American General Gazette, 7 August 1767) 4; digital image, Newspapers.com: accessed Sept. 2020.

[xvi] Graves, Willia. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Rosters; ,revwarapps.org; accessed March 2026) Moses Hollis.

[xvii] Graves, Willia. Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Rosters; ,revwarapps.org; accessed March 2026) John Hollis.

[xviii] US Census Reconstructed Records, 1660 – 1829, SC, Camden District; digital record, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept 2020) Moses Hollis, 1780.

[xix] 1790 US Census, SC, Fairfield; digital image, Ancestry (ancestry.com: accessed Sept. 2020) Moses Hollis.

[xx] Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790; South Carolina (Baltimore, MD:

Clearfield Co., Inc., 2004) 19 – 20.

[xxi] Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor Record, Ancestor #A206608, Moses Hollis; digital record (dar.org:

accessed Sept. 2020).