This is an incomplete adaption of an earlier blog post regarding the ancestry of Francis Ballard of Copiah County, Mississippi (1761-1833), who we believe descends from this Edward Ballard of Nash County, North Carolina.  In the future we intend to expand on the later generations.

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The first Ballard to appear in Edgecombe County records, and later in Nash County records, is an Edward Ballard, who acquired 650 acres in Edgecombe County from George Sellars and his wife Fatha Sellors by deed dated 20 February 1763, for £30 Virginia money.  The land was “on the north side of Tar River, just above the Long Branch and near Poplar Branch adjoining an old line made for Arthur Taylor, Jacob Braswell, and the Jacobs Swamp, it being a Granville grant to Jacob Braswell bearing date Dec. 6, 1760.”  Witnesses: Arthur Taylor James Ferguson.

According to Frederick Holmes Cron, Distant Voices as Heard From The Water’s Edge (Wyandotte, OK: Gregarth Publishing Co., 1999), Edward Ballard married Sarah _______ [no source given] and died prior to 11 July 1767.  They had a son, Edward, born before 1755, who died c. 1819.  Edward married Ann _________, who died before 1795.  Ann is believed to have died c. 1795 because of a series of Guardian Bonds in the records.  As Mr. Cron notes,

NASH COUNTY GUARDIAN BONDS AND RETURNS, 1777-1859

Original guardian bonds are not a rarity. A guardian was appointed to the several children in a family when their father had deceased, whose function was to look after the proportionate share of the estate of each child. This did not always happen. Many times in the petitions of Nash County there were references to children of deceased fathers who were without guardians. Also, when the mother died, there were few cases of guardians being appointed for, at that time, the property of a wife became that of her husband. In some cases a father was appointed guardian to his own children, usually because of a legacy from a grandparent or other relative.

Guardian bonds were required by law to be renewed every year. This matter was often overlooked. Also, a return of the account of the property of the orphan was filed every year for court approval. Many guardian returns were not made every year, as the law required, but sometimes covered a period of two or more years. This often happened when the child became an orphan at an early age and the guardianship was extended over a long period of time.

There were many instances of changes of guardians. In the majority of cases, this was caused by the death of the guardian. Another frequent reason was the coming of age of one of the male children, who took over this responsibility for his brothers and sisters.

The importance of this listing is with regard to Edward “Neddie” Ballard the close friend of John “Jack” Bone.

Ballard, Billy, son of Edward Ballard. Bond May 12, 1795 by his father, Edward Ballard, gdn.

Ballard, Edward, son of Edward Ballard. Bond May 12, 1795 by his father, Edward Ballard, gdn.

Ballard, Mourning, daughter of Edward Ballard. Bond May 12, 1795 by her father, Edward Ballard, gdn.

Ballard, Nanny, daughter of Edward Ballard. Bond May 12, 1795 by her father, Edward Ballard, gdn.

Ballard, Polly, daughter of Edward Ballard Bond May 12, 1795 by her father, Edward Ballard, gdn.

Mr. Cron continues with an interesting observation regarding Edward Ballard, the third of the name in Nash County:

I believe Edward Ballard (III) had considered and had chosen to leave North Carolina at least as early as April 10, 1812, for on that date he had obtained $300 in lieu of his intended inheritance of 150 acres from his father, Edward Ballard (II).

This indenture made this the tenth day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twelve between Edward Ballard Sr. of the County of Nash and State of North Carolina of the one part and William Ballard of the County and State aforesaid of the other part witnesseth that the said Edward Ballard for the in consideration of three hundred dollars to his son Edward Ballard in hand paid before the signing sealing or delivering of these presents doth give grant and convey to the foresaid William Ballard the track of land that he intended by a will to give to his son Edward Ballard which gift of land to him and his heirs is forever void and nul and I theafore sd Edward Ballard sn doth give grant and convey to the aforesd William Ballard the same tract and parcel of land lying and being in the county and state aforesaid and bounded as followeth to wit beginning at the Reedy Branch on Jepe Joiners line thence east along sd line to a pine corner in sd Joiners line thence] a south cource to a comer oak Curtis Joiners John Bakers comer thence west to the 4 sd Reedy Branch thence down the manders of said branch to the first begining containing by estemation one hundred and fifty acres be there the same more or less to have and to hold all and singularly the above granted premises to him the sd William Ballard his heirs executor administrators and assigns forever free from all manner of incumberences whatsoever and 1 the 4 sd Edward Ballard Sr. for myself my heirs executors administrators or assigns for ever warrant the write and title of sd land and premeses to him the 4 sd William Ballard his heris and assigns forever in witness where unto I have set my hand and seal the day and year first above written.

Signed and Sealed and Delivered in Presents his of us Edward X Ballard (Seal) (His Mark)

Witnesses: William Lindsey, Pollev X Ballard (Her Mark)

Nash County, February Session 1815.  The foregoing deed was proven in open court by the oath of William Lindsey and on motion ordered to be registered. Wm Hall CCC and is registered.  Recorded Nash Co. N.C. Deed Book 9, p. 171.

Edward Ballard left a will dated 22 October 1819, which is found among a number of unrecorded wills, though account records were entered May Term 1822.  The sale was conducted by his executor Nelson Bone on 9 June 1820.

In the name of God amen I Edward Ballard of Nash County and State of North Carolina being weak in body but of perfect mind and desposing memory blesses be God do this twenty second day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and nineteen make and publish this my last will and testament in form and manner following that is to say I give my soul to almighty God that auther of it and my body to be buried at the discission of my exector hereafter named.

Item – My will and desire is that all my worldly goods should be desposed of in form and manner following

Item -I give to my beloved daughter Charity Lindsey five shillings to her and her heirs for ever

Item -I give and bequeath to my beloved duaghter Patsey Van Landanham five shillings to her and her heris forever.

Item -I give and bequeath to my beloved daughter Nancy Tucker one feather bed and furniture and some money to her and her heirs forever.

Item -I give and bequeath to my beloved daughter Mournin Bone three feather beds and furniture and all the other part of my property that I bring here to Nelson Bones.

Item -I give and bequeath to my beloved grand daughter Pheriba Ballard four hundred dollars which is due me in notes but not to be on interest until after my death to her and her heirs forever lawfully begotton of her body if any and if none it is to return and be equally divided between my lawfull heirs.

Item -I give to my beloved son Edward Ballard five shillings to him and his heirs forever.

Item -I give and bequeath to my two beloved daughters namely Nancy Tucker and Mournin Bone one hundred dollars in money to be equally divided between them and to them and their heirs forever.

And I do hereby constitute and appoint my tru friend Nelson Bone exeter to this my last will and testament in witness where of I have here unto set mv hand and seal the day and year above written.

Signed and Acknowledged his in presents of Edward  Ballard (Seal)

Witnesses: Sen Fischel, Wm Cooper

Edward Ballard and Ann _________ had issue (what follows is information provided by Mr. Cron and not yet corroborated):

Nancy, born c. 1770-1780, died after 1840 in Wilkinson County, Georgia; married Barna Tucker.

Martha (“Patsey”), born 1779, died August 1860n Cairo, Decatur (now Grady Co., Georgia).  Married c. 1793 Peter VanLandingham, who was born April 1765, died 2 January 1832, Decatur (now Grady Co., Georgia).

Mourning, born  1784, died 1823; married  c. 1813 Nelson Bone, who was born c. 1782, died July 1866.

William (“Billy”), born  c. 1784-1790, died 6 January 1815; married 16 January 1813 Chasity “Anna” Babb.

Edward, born  c. 1790-95, married 5 June 1830 in Decatur (now Grady Co., Georgia)  Jinsev W. Bowen.

Charity “Polly”, born c. 1794, died before 27 February 1829; married  William Lindsev, who died 16 February 1817.

Edward’s son William left a will dated 23 September 1814, immediately prior to enlisting in the North Carolina Militia.  William Ballard served in the War of 1812 with Co. B., Capt. Isaac Watkins Company, First Regiment North Carolina detached militia. He enlisted on 24 September 1814 for a period of six months. He was enlisted as a private at the pay of $8/month.

In The Name of God Amen I William Ballard of Nash County in the State of North Carolina being weak in body but of sound and desposing memory do make this my last will and testament in manner and form following viz I recommend by soul into the hands of Almighty God that gave it my body to be buried al the discretion of my executors here after to be appointed.

Item -I gave and bequeath unto my wife Anna Ballard one feather bed and furniture one cow and calf one saddle one chest one wollen wheel all my kitchen furniture and as much pcrvision as will support her and the child one year.

Item – My desire is that the land I bought of my brother be sold and all the remainds of my property and my just debts be paid.

Item -1 give and bequeath unto my daughter Pheraby the money the [w]hole of my property brings after paying my just debts.

I do hereby constitute and appoint my friend Elijah Atkinson executor to this my last will and testament.

Signed Seald(sic) and Acknowledged this the 23 day of September in the year of our Lord God one thousand eight hundred and foreteen.  William Ballard (Seal) (his mark)

In presents of her Fanny X Babb

His son William Edward Ballard is not mentioned in the will, but appears in subsequent guardian records; presumably his wife Anna was with child but not known to him when the will was written.  Anna died c. 1815 (perhaps in childbirth) and William Lindsey, the husband of William’s sister Charity was named guardian in 1817; on Lindsey’s death in 1817, the next guardian was John Babb, Anna Babb Ballard’s brother.

Ballard, Phereba “Fcrrcba” Jane Thomas. Bond 1817 by William Lindsev. gdn Bonds 1824-27, returns 1825-26-27-28-29 by Nelson Bone, gdn Received legacy from estate of Edward Ballard

Ballard, William Edward Bond 1817 by William Lindsey, gdn.

In conformity to an order of Nash County Court Nov term 1817 to us the under signees directed for the purpose of settling the accounts of Richard Holland Esquire, executor of William Lindsey, deceased who was former guardian to Phiriby J. T. Ballard and Wm. E. Ballard, orphans of William Ballard deceased with John Babb present guardian to the said orphans, and on a due examination made we find that the Richard Holland Esquire as executor of Wm. Lindsey deceased ows to the said John Babb the present guardian to the said orphans of William Ballard deceased, the sum of four hundred and sixty-six dollars and sixteen cents given under our hand and seals this 13th day of November AD 1817.

D. W. Ricks (Seal) Jepe Joiner (Seal) Jo Wbell (Seal)

Mr. Cron further notes that William Lindsey became guardian to Phiriby Jane Thomas Ballard as well as her brother William E. Ballard, until Lindsey died prior to 16 February 1817.  John Babb was their guardian on 13 November 1817.

Recall that Pheriba was the devisee of $400 from her grandfather Edward Ballard in his will of 22 October 22 1819. Pheriba was not of legal age, being born after 1813, since her parents William Ballard and Anna Babb were not married until 16 January 1813.

Nelson Bone, husband of Edward’s daughter Mourning, was appointed executor of Edward Ballard’s estate, and later guardian for Phereby in 1825.

Phereby Ballard died prior to 27 February 1829 in Henry County, West Tennessee.  Edward’s will recited that  if she did not have heirs “lawfully begotton of her body if any and if none it is to return and be equally divided between my law full heirs,” which is what occurred.

On 27 February 1829 there was a division ($140.22) between the children of Charity Ballard Lindsey and William Lindsey (deceased): 1. John Wesley Lindsey, born 16 February 1817;  2. Asbury Lindsey;  3. Jerusha Lindsey; 4. John Wesley Lindsey for his brother Edward Buxton Lindsey; 5. Betsey Lindsey; 6. Polly Lindsey,”to Hudson Finch in right of his wife Polly Lindsey and $104.20.”

On 16 November 1829 there was a further division between Peter Van Landenham ($125.78) husband of Martha Ballard, and Barna Tucker ($125.78) husband of Nancy Ballard. Also Nelson Bone the husband of Mourning Ballard received the fifth share.

Francis Ballard of Copiah County, Mississippi (1761-1833).

One would think that all of the men documented among Revolutionary War Pension records would be proudly traced, but in a few cases the male line died out, or perhaps they were overlooked because of confusion arising from something as simple as using a different name.

Apparently that is the case with the pension record of one Francis Ballard, whose pension record states that he was born January 1761 and served three enlistments as a private in the American Revolution, and ultimately removed to Copiah county, Mississippi, in 1803 and died there 30 October 1833. The Pension Application states that when he was a child, he moved to Edgecombe County, North Carolina in that part that later became Nash County. In June 1777 he enlisted and served three months as a substitute for his brother, William Ballard, as a private in Captain Solomon Carpenter’s company, Colonel Axom’s North Carolina regiment

About a year after the termination of this service, he enlisted and served for more than two months, dates and officers’ names not given. He enlisted in March 1781, and served three months under Colonel Linton in the North Carolina troops and was in the battle of Guilford Court House. Some five or six years after the Revolution, he moved to Pensacola, Florida, c. 1788; lived there about ten years, then moved to Adams County, Mississippi and after that to Copiah County, Mississippi, where he had lived for five years when pension was allowed on his application executed June 24, 1833. The Mississippi land had been previously cultivated by Robert Holloway in 1801 .²¹  (The Natchez Court Records 1767-1805, Abstract of Early Records, Vol II.   Mississippi Territory (Adams County) Land Claim #1234 (26 Mar 1804); Mississippi Territory (Adams County) Certificate D-154 issued 16 Dec 1806).  His Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files (Soldier S65533) are preserved in the National Archives, and is transcribed below.

In 2004 researcher DeeDee Debenedetto pointed out that in the 1830 census, a single Ballard resided in Copiah County, Mississippi — Lewis F. Ballard, and reached the conclusion (with which we concur, as have several other researchers) that his middle name was Francis.  The name recurs in later generations, most notably his likely son, Lewis F. Ballard, who in 1850 was living in Smith County, Texas.  In that enumeration we learn that Lewis F. Ballard was born c. 1792 in Florida; his wife Mary, 1813 in South Carolina, and that all of their children were born in Mississippi: Susan C., age 22; Lewis F., age 20; James M., age 16; and Charles C., age 14.  1850 US Federal Census.  This latter Lewis’ birth in Florida c. 1792 dovetails nicely with the pension application, which states “five or six years after the close of the revolution he removed to Pensacola in East Florida where he resided for about 10 years …”  With the American Revolution ending in 1783, this means he arrived in Florida circa 1788, then removed to Mississippi about 1798.

We found records related to Charles C. Ballard, but our interest lies not in bringing these lines to the present, but in pushing them back to their origins in Colonial Virginia.

His pension application states with specificity that he was born 7 miles from Petersburg; this places the family in either Dinwiddie, Prince George or Chesterfield Counties.  Dinwiddie is home to Bath Parish, where the rector was Devereaux Jarratt (1733-1801).  The name Devereaux occurs in the family of William Ballard of Halifax County, North Carolina (c.1710-1775) who named a son Devereaux; its believed the name came into the family from William’s marriage to Elizabeth Clopton, whose mother was Mary Jarratt of New Kent County.  It is not clear what degree of relation exists between Devereaux Jarratt and Elizabeth Clopton, if any.

The pension record also mentions his brother William, and residency in North Carolina in Edgecombe Count from c. 1765 to 1777, when Nash County was cut from the county.  What do the land records show?  Most of these transactions are deeds; exceptions are noted.

Edgecombe County Deed Books

The deed index for Edgecombe County shows the following transactions:

1763 – George Sellers al to Edward Ballard, recorded Book C, p. 61.

1767 – Arthur Taylor to Edward Ballard, recorded Book OO, p. 233.

1767 – Arthur Taylor to Edward Ballard, recorded Book C, p. 447.

1774 – Duncan Lamon to Edward Ballard, recorded Book 2, p. 59.

1788 – Alexander Cromwell’s Heirs to Benjamin and Sarah Ballard (release), recorded Book 4, p. 732.

1799 – Wyatt and Salley Ballard to Michael George, recorded Book 9, p. 278.

1800 – Joseph Morgan to Benjamin Ballard, recorded Book 9, p. 389.

1800 – Wyatt and Salley Ballard to Michael George (acknowledgement), recorded Book 9, p. 441.

1804 – Wyatt and Sallie Ballard to Thomas Wiggins, recorded Book 11, p. 162.

1807 – Bengerman Ballard to William Billips, recorded Book 12, p. 222.

1809 – Benjamin Ballard “Est by Shf” (Estate by Sheriff?) to Gray Little, recorded Book 13, p. 157.

1811 – Kinchen Evertt to John Ballard, recorded Book 14, p. 32.

1815 – John Ballard to Kinchen Everitt, recorded Book 15, p. 312.

Nash County Deed Books

The deed index for Nash County has the following transactions:

Grantor Index:

1787 – William M. Ballard to William Poulan, Book 1, p. 326.

1787 – Christopher Ballard to Jacob Joiner, Book 1, p. 353.

1788 – Christopher Ballard to Joseph Joiner, Book 1, p. 370.

1787 – William Ballard to Allen Baker, Book 1, p. 383.

1785 – William Ballard to William Powlan, Book 3, p. 305.

1791 – Christopher Ballard to William Ballard, Book 5, p. 51.

1792 – William Ballard to Cornelius Joiner, Book 4, p. 128.

1792 – Peter Ballard to Nathan Joiner, Book 4, p. 143.

1798 – William Ballard to Uriah Hatcher, Book 6, p. 300.

1799 – William Ballard to John Bone, Book 6, p. 397.

1799 – Peter Ballard to Amos Hatcher, Book 6, p. 425.

1817 – Edward Ballard to William Lindsey, Book 7, p. 405.

1815 – Edward Ballard, Sr to William Ballard, Book 9, p. 171.

1816 – William Ballard “Est by Exr” to John Vick, Book 9, p 269.

1786 – David Ballard to Henry Barler, Book 3, p. 444.

Grantee Index:

1780 – Joseph Lindsey to David Ballard, Book 1, p. 129.

1785 – William Whiddon to Peter Ballard, Book 1, p. 151.

1785 – Henry Barlow to Peter Ballard, Book 1, p. 156.

1782 – James Baker to Christopher Ballard, Book 1, p. 190.

1782 – Henry Atkins to Christopher Ballard, Book 1, p. 221.

1785 – State of NC to Christopher Ballard, Book 3, p. 134.

1791 – Christopher Ballard to William Ballard, Book 4, p. 51.

1792 – Jacob Brantley to Peter Ballard, Book 4, p. 153.

[no date] – William Sellard to Peter Ballard, Book 5, p. 116.

1815 – Edward Ballard, Sr to William Ballard, Book 9, p. 171.

We find the following abstracts online on a page dedicated to research of the Brantley family:

DB 1-156 – Henry Barlow of Nash Co to Peter Ballard of same, Feb 17 1785, for 6- pds specie a tract of 90 acres on the S side of Saphony Creek adjoining John Brantley. Edward Ballard, and Benjamin Smith. Wit: Wilson Vick and Amos Gandy.

DB 4-153 – Jacob Brantly of Nash Co to Peter Ballard of same, Aug 12, 1791, for 200 pds. two tracts of land: (1) 112 1/2 acres on the south side of Saphony Creek along a dividing line made by John Brantly between his sons, Jacob and Matthew Brantly, it being a tract bequeathed to the said Jacob Brantly by his father; (2) 240 acres adjoining Edward Ballard, Matthew Brantly, Joseph Seley, Wm Sellers, and Peter Ballard, it being a tract granted to said Jacob Brantly by the state on Oct 25, 1782. Wit: William Linsey and Edward Ballard. (Doc on File)

DB 4-114 – State of NC grant to Jacob Brantley by Gov Alex Martin, Oct 25 1782, a tract of 240 acres on Sapony Creek adjoining Edward Ballard, Matthew Brantley, Joseph Seley and Wm Sellers.

DB 6-208 – Asa Brantley of Nash Co. to William Poulan of same. Dec. 31, 1796, for 39 pds. a tract of 150 acres on the north side of Jacobs Swamp adjoining said Brantley and Poulan. Wit William Ballard and Curtis Joyner.

DB 6-316 – Wm Lindsey of Nash Co to Nathan Joyner of same, Sep 29, 1797 fro 50 pds a tract of 200 acres on the north side of tar River adjoining John Brantley, John Bone, Wm Ballard, Christopher Taylor, and Arthur Sellers. Wit: Wm Ballard and Jordan Williams

Nash County Deed Book E, page 355 (34) Christopher Ballard of Nash County, NC to Jacob Joiner of same 16 Sept 1786 for 100 pounds current monety of said State one certain tract of land and plantation on South side of Sapony Creek, begining at Ben Smith’s corner a hickory tree, running along his line West 140 pole to a poplar John Joiner’s Corner, thence Joiner’s line up a small branch South 30 degree East 152 pole to a pine in Thomas Kersey’s line, thence along his line North 38 pole to Simmon tree, thence Kersey’s other line East 115 pole to a pine near Samuel Bottoms’ corner, thence Bottoms’ line 88 pole to a black oak, thence West to the begining, containing 223 acres more or less. Christopher Ballard. Wit: Jesse Joiner, John Joiner.  February Term 1787, Wm Hall, CC

Our Conclusion.

Given that Francis was born January 1761, the most reasonable assumption, given that (1) Francis’ family moved to that part of Edgecombe County what became Nash County when he was a child; and (2) Edward Ballard was the first of the name who purchased land in Edgecombe County in the part of Edgecombe that became Nash County in 1777, it stands to reason that Lewis Francis Ballard who ultimately removed to Copiah, Mississippi was a son of the first Edward Ballard who purchased land in Edgecombe in 1763, and that Edward had two additional sons: William and Edward (and possible unknown daughters).

Which begs the question of the whereabouts of his brother William, for whom he substituted in the war.  Substitutes in the Revolutionary War were usually accepted in place of draftees whose service at home was deemed too valuable for the household to lose; its likely William was the eldest son and was overseeing the family farm after their father’s death, so Lewis Francis entered service in his place.

Until we have access to the early records of Nash County and Edgecombe County, we are limited to making educated guesses about these family relationships.  We’ve enquired of professional genealogists but have not yet found one that works in those counties.

The name “Lewis” also points to possible connections to William Ballard of Orange County, North Carolina (c. 1734-c. 1819), who named a son Lewis, and possibly the Lewis Ballard mentioned in the 19 February 1759 will of William Eaton recorded in Lincoln County, North Carolina; Eaton owned land in Dinwiddie County, where Francis Ballard was probably born. Hopefully an examination of the early records of these two counties will help us tease out the relationships among the Ballards living in Nash County in the last quarter of the Eighteenth Century that appear in the land records cited in the indexes above — namely William, Christopher, Peter, Wyatt and Benjamin.

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Revolutionary War Pension Application of Francis Ballard

S6553 fn17NC, Transcribed by Will Graves

State of Mississippi, Copiah County

On the 24th day of June 1833 personally appeared in open Court before the Probate Court now sitting in and for the County and in the State aforesaid, Francis Ballard aged about 75 years a resident of said County and State, 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 7th 1832.

That he was born in Virginia about 7 miles from Petersburg in January 1761 and removed while a child to North Carolina to the County of Edgecombe and to that part afterwards called Nash County from which place he entered the service of the United States as a substitute for his brother William Ballard who was a drafted militia soldier about June in the year 1777 and marched with his company commanded by Captain Solomon Carpenter up the Cape Fear River, crossed over the Yadkin and proceeded some 20 miles on the other side in pursuit of the enemy without overtaking them, when they returned, recrossed the Yadkin and encamped near its banks until the expiration of his term of service which was three months. During this term of service Col. Axom [sic, Benjamin Exum ?] commanded the Regiment in which he served and there was also a body of troops in company with them he believes from Virginia commanded by one Colonel Sowell [sic, Benjamin Seawell or Sowell of NC?]. He also recollects a Captain Richards who commanded a company in the Regiment to which he belonged, but the names of the other officers and of the particular places through which they marched have gone from his memory and he cannot recall them.

He was drafted as a private soldier about the year after the term of service above specified, for three months and served in the vicinity of Rocky River more than two months but was discharged a short period before his term of service expired but he was in no engagement nor can he recollect the names of the officers with whom he at this time served, or any places in particular through which they marched [several words of text obliterated] feels confident that he was out on service at the least two months.

He was a third time drafted in March of the year 1781 as a private soldier for the term of three months and rendezvoused at Halifax on the Roanoke River, and from thence he marched with the Regiment under the command of Col. Linton and joined the regular Army under the command of General Green [sic, Nathanael Greene] and proceeded to Guilford Court House where an action took place between the American and British Army in which he took a part, but received no injury. After this action he retired with the Army to Hill’s Iron Works [sic, Troublesome Iron Works] with the Army, and was one of the detachment selected by order of General Greene to return home with the supernumerary horses of the militia light horse while the remainder of the Army marched on for Camden at this time he served three months. And he feels very confident that in the whole he served during the war eight months and believes he served longer, but would not state it at more on account of his imperfect recollection of matters that occurred at that distance of time, and his inability to procure any documentary evidence which can cast any light upon the subject.

He believes that he received a written discharge at the expiration of his first term of service which has long since been lost or destroyed and that the other discharges at the expiration of the two other terms were merely oral, but he cannot state positively, nor can he recollect the names of the officers who discharged him on account of the extreme imbecility of his memory occasioned by age and infirmity. He further states that some five or six years after the close of the revolution he removed to Pensacola in East Florida where he resided for about 10 years and from thence to Adams County in this State and came to this County about five years ago where he has resided ever since, that he has no record of his age nor has he any documentary evidence by which he can prove the length of his revolutionary services nor does he know of any living witness who can testify to the same or any part thereof from personal knowledge.

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. Sworn to and subscribed the day and year aforesaid. S/ Francis Ballard [Jesse Scrivner, a clergyman and Benjamin Kennedy gave the standard supporting affidavit.] [veteran died October 30, 1833].