William Washington (1752 - 1810)

Born 28 Feb 1752 in Stafford County, Virginia

Ancestors

Husband of Jane Riley (Elliott) Washington — married 21 Apr 1782 in Charleston, South Carolina, United States

Descendants

Died 6 Mar 1810 at age 58 in Sandy Hill Plantation, Charleston, South Carolina, United States

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Biography

Lieutenant Colonel William Washington served with 3rd Continental Light Dragoons, Continental Army during the American Revolution.

William Washington is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: P-314222
Rank: Lieutenant Colonel

William Washington is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A122016.

Lieutenant Colonel William Washington was Wounded in Action during the American Revolution.

William was highly educated. His parents hoped he would become a minister.

Information about this person can be found in a three-part article entitled "Descendents of Two John Washingtons" appearing The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 22, pages 211-14, 328-30, and 437-38.

However, with the Colonies in rebellion, he decided to serve in the military. He started in 1775 as a captain in the Stafford County Virginia Minutemen.

In 1776 he transferred to the Third Virginia Regiment.

In the Battle of Harlem Heights he was wounded.

In the Battle of Trenton, where he fought against Hessian troops, he captured cannons and was wounded in the hand.

He transferred to the cavalry in January 1777 and was made a Major with the Fourth Light Dragoons. There was a near massacre of that group in New Jersey in Sept. 1778.

William was promoted to Lt. Colonel and the command of the Third Light Dragoons in Nov. 1778.

He was transferred to the southern colonies and to do battle with the formidable British Lt Colonel Banastre Tarleton and his Green Dragoons in March 1780 in South Carolina.

Through May 1780 it was battle after battle pushing each side. Through December 1780, Washington and Tarleton battled. After a strong victory at Hammond's Hill by Washington and General Morgan, Tarleton was ordered to chase them down at all costs.

The Battle of Cowpens on Jan. 27, 1781 would be major turning point. An attack on Tarleton caused him to retreat but Washington and his forces chased them. A personal hand-to-hand sword battle between Tarleton and Washington occurred. Tarleton's hand was cut and a shot by Tarleton's pistol grazed Washington's knee and wounded his horse.

By March and April 1781 there were a couple of additional defeats of Major Greene and Lt. Colonel Washington. The Sept. 8, 1781 Battle of Eutaw Springs would be William Washington's last. His horse was shot out from under him. While laying under the horse a British soldier bayoneted him.

As a captured Lt. Colonel, he remained a British prisoner for the remainder of the war in Charleston, South Carolina, until about Dec. 1782 when the British left Charleston.

After the war William settled in South Carolina, became a farmer and horse breeder. He and his wife Jane Elliott Washington’s primary plantation was Sandy Hill. This plantation was passed on to Jane after her father, Charles Elliott passed away. It is interesting that Jane’s mother passed away shortly after she was born and several relatives nearby helped to raise her. Their town residence was located on the western corner of State Street and South Battery. The multistory home exists today and is well cared for by the current owner. William served in the state legislature from 1787 to 1804.

Later served on the staff of George Washington in 1798 as a Brigadier General and helped to protect South Carolina and Georgia.

William and his wife, Jane Washington, are buried in a small family cemetery, known as the Elliott Rowand Cemetery located at the end of Waldon Road, off of Highway 17 South next to Rantowles Creek, in the West Ashley area of Charleston, South Carolina. There are twenty one family members interred there and seven of those are children.

Research Notes

• Looks like his middle name is wrong on many sources

see Library of Congress Washington, William, 1752-1810

found: JRShelby website, viewed Mar. 13, 2012 (William Washington was born on February 28, 1752 in Overwharton Parish, Stafford County, Virginia; having no middle name, he is often confused in history with a distant cousin, William Augustine Washington (1757-1810) of Westmoreland County, Virginia. There are numerous instances in historic literature that refers to William Washington (1752-1810) with the erroneous middle name of Augustine or Augustus. His birth is recorded simply as "William Washington" in The Register of Overwharton Parish, Stafford County, Virginia 1723-1758. William Augustine Washington (1757-1810) of Westmoreland County, Virginia, was the nephew of George Washington, whereas William Washington (1752-1810) was only a second cousin of the first President. Both Williams were Colonels in the Revolutionary War and, to further complicate matters, were married to ladies named Jane)

• Death date is different on FindAGrave, WikiTree and WikiData. Picture of the gravestone says 6 mar 1810 and no middle name Augustine

Sälgö-1 23:04, 31 October 2016 (EDT)

Sources

• Sons of the American Revolution Patriot #P-314222-click SAR badge for link
• Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, database online, (http://www.dar.org/ : accessed July 29, 2015), "Record of William Washington", Ancestor # A122015.
• Find A Grave: Memorial #7656570
• DAR Lineage Book (Daughters of the American Revolution, 1898) Vol. 6, Page 146: "In 1779 he joined the Dragoons in the South, and to him Col. Rudgely surrendered without resistant by the stratagem of a "Quaker Gun." For bravery at Cowpens he was presented with a medal by Congress."

See also:

• Library of Congress Washington, William, 1752-1810
• This WikiTree profile is referenced from Wikidata: Item Q2581011, en:Wikipedia