Mary (Colley) Stephenson (abt. 1756 - 1838)

Wife of James Stephenson — married about 1776 in Cumberland Co NJ

Descendants

Died 4 Feb 1838 at about age 82 in Boone County, Kentucky

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This person was created through the import of Shortened files.ged on 30 December 2010.

Biography

DEPOSITION OF MARY "POLLY" STEPHENSON

The deposition of affidavit of Polly Stephenson, aged seventy seven years, a resident of Boone County, Kentucky, taken before me the subscriber a justice of the peace in and for said County of Boone. The said Polly Stephenson being first duly sworn deposeth and saith that she is the wife of James Stephenson who is aged between seventy eight and seventy nine years and who has within a few years past lost in a great measure his memory and recollection and who by our son William Stephenson as his next friend is making an application to the United States for a pension for his services performed as a militia man during the American revolution. This applicant would state that she intermarried with the said James Stephenson in the year 1776 and has lived with him ever since as his wife. At the time of their marriage they lived in the county of Cumberland and state of New Jersey and she will recollect that her said husband did volunteer and join the army early in time of the American revolution as a private militia man and that he did go into the army and serve various tours at different times and in different years. The number of tours, the years, or particular times he went on said tours or the precise length of the tours she cannot precisely recollect, but among the many tours and the different officers he served under a Capt . McGlaughlin and too under Capt.Townsend. For said Capts lived in the same neighborhood and she was acquainted with them, but she does know and recollect that her said husband did go out frequently and served other tours and under other officers and she does know that he was much from home in the services in times of the revolution and she can without hesitation say that her husband was out in the service and serving tours of duty at the time of the following battles took place and engaged in the battles of Brandywine, Trenton, Haddonfield, Elizabethtown, and at a place called Mud Fort Island and about Philadelphia. At one time he was taken prisoner and taken to a prison ship on sea and by a dangerous exploit he and six or seven others made their escape and got to land and went to General Washington and gave him information concerning their escape and about the other prisoners left in the British prison ship and General Washington gave them under his own hand a writing approbating of their conduct and permitted them to go home. Her said husband brought his said writing home with him and she often saw it and it was noticed by many soldiers and officers and highly regarded and was pronounced to be General Washington's own handwriting. She will recollect that her husband had his discharge which stated that he had honorably discharged his duty as a soldier and that he carefully kept it until the time they removed to the western country when his trunk or drawer which the discharge and other papers were in was knocked off the boat and into the Ohio River and sank and the discharge and all his papers was lost and never regained. She the affiant would state that the same James her said husband must have served as a private soldier in the different tours he served at least four years in the service of the United States in the time of the American revolution and for which he claims a pension by and through his said son Wm. Stephenson as his next friend. The two tours under Capt. McGlaughlin and the two tours under Capt. Townsend were all for three months each and the time he was taken prisoner in the prison ship he was gone six months on the same.

In witness thereof the said Polly Stephenson hereto lets her hand and seal this 22 of March 1833. Polly Stephenson

Sworn before me, Robt. B. Vickers

(Note: the above is a typed copy of a deposition taken in Boone County, KY. in 1833. The original handwritten document is in the possession of the National Archives, Washington D.C.)

Sources

UNKNOWN-277882 was created by Eowyn Langholf through the import of Aaron David Fisher Tree.ged on Apr 21, 2015.