Rufus Putnam (1738 - 1824)

Born 9 Apr 1738 in Sutton, Worcester, Province of Massachusetts Bay

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Ayres) Putnam — married 6 Apr 1761 (to 1761) in Brookfield, Worcester, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Husband of Persis (Rice) Putnam — married 10 Jan 1765 in Westborough, Worcester, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died 4 May 1824 at age 86 in Marietta, Washington, Ohio, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Matt Pryber [send private message], Melissa Heinig [send private message], Doyle Rice [send private message], and David Mackey [send private message]

Biography

Rufus Putnam is Notable.

Rufus Putnam is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A092745.

Brigadier General Rufus Putnam served with 5th Massachusetts Regiment (1777), Continental Army during the American Revolution.

A brief outline of the life of General Rufus Putnam, a soldier of the old French War, the engineer of the works which compelled the British Army to evacuate Boston and the fortifications of West Point, and the Founder and Father of Ohio. In 1796, he was appointed the first Surveyor General of the United States.

The following quotes are from the Memoirs of Rufus Putnam: ^[1]

"I am the youngest Son of Elisha Putnam, who was the third Son of Edward, grandson of John Putnam, who Settled at Salem in 1634 . . . My Mothers Maiden name was Susanna Fuller, daughter of Jonathan Fuller of Danvers."

"I was born the 9th of April 1738, at Sutton in Massachusetts, in 1745 at the age of Seven years and two months, I became an orphan by the death of my Father, from his death to September 1747 I lived with my grandfather Fuller. to this time I was keept at School as much as Children usually were at that day, and could read pritty well in the bible" {In 1745, his mother Susannah Putnam was appointed guardian to Rufus, aged about 7 years.^[2]}

"In Sept 1747 I went to live with my Step Father, Capt John Sadler and continued with him untill his death"

"during the six year I lived with Capt Sadler, I never Saw the inside of a School house, except about three weeks. he was very illiterate himself, and took no care for the education of his family . . . Oh! my Children beware you neglect not the education of any under your care as I was neglected."

"In March 1754 I was bound apprentice to Daniel Mathews of Brokfield, to the Millwights trade"

"March 15th 1757. The war between England and France which commeced in 1754 Still continuing I engaged in the provential Service"

1760 Commissioned Ensign, Massachusetts.

"1761 in March I comminced the Millwrite business which I pursued as my chief imployment for Seven or eight years, and after that untill the revolutionary war comminced in 1775 my busines was pritty much confined to farming snd Surveying and I also studied Navagation"

"April 6th I was maried to Elisabeth Ayres daughter of Wm Ayres Esquie of Brookfield"

"November 16th it pleased god to remove my wife by death, leaving me an infent Son to take care of. my fealings on that ocation may be easier concived then described. however if I did not decive my self I bore this trial without murmering against the providence of God"

"1762 September 29th God was pleased in his holy providence to remove my little Son by death. thus was I in less then a year deprived of Mother and Child, and in them as I then thought of all earthly comfort"

"January 10th 1765 I was maried to Persis Rice daughter of Mr Zebulon Rice of Westborough, who is through the goodness of God Still living, and for our Children &c I refer you to the family record in our Quarto Bible" [Rufus Putnam died May 4, 1824. His second wife Persis Rice, who was born in 1737, died September 6, 1820. Their children were -- Elizabeth, b. 1765; d. 1830. Persis, b. 1767; m. Perly Howe; d. 1822. Susanna, b. 1768; m. Christopher Burlingame; d. 1840. Abigail, b. 1770; m. William Browning; d. 1805. William Rufus, b. 1771; m. Jerusha Guitteau; d. 1855. Franklin, b. 1774; d. 1776. Edwin, b. 1776; m. Eliza Davis; d. 1843. Martha, b. 1777; m. Benjamin Tupper; d. 1842. Catharine, b. 1780; m. Ebenezer Buckingham; d. 1808.]

1773 Commissioned Deputy Surveyor, West Florida.

1774 Commissioned Captain Lieutenant of Grenadiers, Massachusetts.

"The Revolutionary War with Great Brittain Comminced the 19th of April 1775, By the British troops firing on Some Militia at Lexeton, Concord &c which was followed by raising an army for the defence of the country. I entered the Service in the capacity of Lt Col in a Regement commanded by Col David Brewer, and continued in Service to the close of the war"

1775 Commissioned Lieutenant Colonel of the 9th Regiment in the Army of the United Colonies.

1776 Appointed Military Engineer [Responsible for fortifications at Sewall's Point, Providence, New Port, Dorchester Heights, Long Island and West Point.

1776 Commissioned Colonel of the 5th Massachusetts Regiment in the Army of the United States.

1783 Commissioned Brigadier General in the Army of the United States. 1785 Appointed Superintendent of the Survey of Eastern Lands, Massachusetts.^[3]

1785 Appointed Member of the Committee for the Sale of Eastern Lands, Massachusetts.

1785 Appointed Surveyor of Western Lands under the Ordinance of 1785.

"January 10th 1786 issued public information to all officers, & Soldiers & other good citizens disposed to become adveturers in the Ohio country, inviting those residing in Massachusetts to meet at Boston on the first day of March, for the purpos of forming an association by the name of the Ohio Company"

1786 Delegates including Rufus Putnam, Benjamin Tupper, Samuel Holden Parsons and Manasseh Cutler meeting at the Bunch-of-Grapes tavern formed the Ohio Company of Associates.

1786 Appointed Commissioner to the Penobscot Indians, Massachusetts.

1787 Appointed Justice of the Peace, Massachusetts.

1787 Elected Member of the General Assembly of Massachusetts.

"November 23d 1787 the Director of the ohio company this day appointed me Superintendent of all the business, relateing to the comincment of a Settlement of there Lands in the territory Northwest of the river Ohio the people to go forward in the company employ under my direction . . ."

"Major Haffield White conducted the first party which Started from Danvers, First of December the other party were appointed to randevoz at Hartford where I ment them on the first day of January 1788. From Hartford I was under the necessity of going by New york, and this party moved forward, conducted by Col Sproat"

"January 24th I joined the party at Lincolns Inn . . ."

"April 1st 1788 having compleated our Boats, and Lade in Stores we left Sumrells Ferry on the yahioany for the mouth Muskingum river and arrived there on the Seventh. Landing on the upper point where we pitched our Camp among the trees, and in a few days comminced the Survey of the Town of Marietta as well as the eight acre Lots, nor was a preparation for a place of Defence neglected . . . I was fully persuaided that the Indians would not be peacible very Long, hence the propriety of imediately erecting a cover for the Emigrents who were Soon expected."

1788 Commissioned Justice of the Peace and of the Quorum, Washington County, Northwest Territory.

1788 Commissioned Judge of Probate, Washington County, Northwest Territory.

"I left Marietta in July 1789, intending not to return again untill I brought on my family, but in the winter of 1790 I was with Docter Cutler detained in Newe york on the Companys business . . . . . . I again left the Settlement in the month of June, and returned with my family the fifth of November"

1790 Commissioned Judge of the General Court of the Northwest Territory.

1792 Commissioned Brigadier General in the Army of the United States.

"5th of May 1792 I was appointed Brigadier in the army . . . . In a few days after I recived this appointment I recived my instructions from the Secretary of war the first object of which was "to attempt to be present at the General Council of the hostile Indians about to be held on the Miami river of Lake Erie in order to convince the Said Indians of the humain dispositions of the United States, and there by to make a truce or peace with them"."

1796 Commissioned the first Surveyor General of the United States, serving from October 1, 1796 to 1803.

"But the Last & best gift I recived from President Washington was anounced in a Letter from Mr Secretary Pickering enclosing a Commission of Surveyor General of the United States, bearing date the First day of october 1796"

1800 Master the American Union Lodge No. 1 Free and Accepted Masons.

1801 Appointed Trustee of Ohio University.

1802 Elected Member of the First Ohio Constitutional Convention.

1804 Master the American Union Lodge No. 1 Free and Accepted Masons.

1805 Master the American Union Lodge No. 1 Free and Accepted Masons.

Brigadier General Rufus Putnam is buried in Mound Cemetery, Marietta, Ohio. The inscription of his original marble gravestone now housed at Campus Martius Museum reads: GEN RUFUS PUTNAM Died May 4 1824 In the 87 Year of his Age. The inscription of the mid-1880's granite Putnam Family Moument reads: GEN RUFUS PUTNAM A Revolutionary Officer And The Leader Of The Colony Which Made The First Settlement In The Territory Of The Northwest At Marietta April 7, 1788. Born April 9, 1738 Died May 4, 1824.

He was the son of Elisha Putnam and Susanna Fuller.

His published biography, sourced, explains many genealogy points that will help when trying to understand all the Putnam connections. This famous Revolutionary Soldier, later General was additionally labeled " Founder of Ohio" First married Elizabeth Ayers of Brookfield in April 1761. Unfortunately she passed away in 1762. Rufus Putnam married second Persis Rice on 10 Jan 1765.

Sources

1. ↑ MEMOIRS OF RUFUS PUTNAM.
2. ↑ "Probate records v. 101-105 1737-1758" database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9YY-S1HF : 29 February 2024), Film# 007704228, Worcester, Massachusetts, image 270, Vol 101, Page 159.
3. ↑ See Dudley, John, A Story of the Washington County [Maine] Unorganized Territories, Mar 2017, p. 9.

• Wikipedia: Rufus Putnam
• Colonel 1778 - https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/03-16-02-0472
• find a grave

• Source: S00023 Title: U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 Publication: Name: Ancestry.com. U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.; Repository: #R00001 NOTE U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 (Ancestry.com. U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.), Source Medium: (null) CONT _APID: 1,2204::0 CONT .

• Repository: R00001 Name: Ancestry.com Address: E-Mail Address: Phone Number:

Also an interesting read: https://archive.org/stream/historyofnorthbr00temp#page/398/mode/2up/search/rice

See also:

• David McCullough, The Pioneers, Simon & Schuster, New York, 2019.

• Drake, Francis Samuel. Memorials of the Massachusetts Society of the Cincinnati (The Society, Massachusetts, 1873); p. 404

• Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War (Wright & Potter Printing Co., Boston, 1896); Vol. 12, p. 875-6
• Encyclopedia of Massachusetts, Encyclopedia of Biography, vol 1, Page 32-34. Archive.org (on-line) https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofma01cutt/page/32/mode/1up?view=theater.

• Rice Family. 1858. Ward. -1427.1, p. 107.