HISTORY OF CHRISTIAN COUNTY KENTUCKY
by
charles
m. meacham
1930
CHAPTER VII
MILITARY HISTORY
The Revolutionary Soldiers; The Col. John Green Chapter, D. A. R.; The TVar of 1812.
One of the brilliant chapters in the history of Christian County is its succession of soldiers in the six wars, to say nothing of Indian troubles and conflicts, in which the country has taken part. As elsewhere alluded to, the pioneer settlers of Christian County, as originally created, included many Revolutionary soldiers who came West to receive land grants from a grateful country in the new state. An effort has been made to secure a complete list of such veterans as came to the 21 western counties of Kentucky, but without success. Hon. David H. Kincheloe, representative in Congress from the Second District of Kentucky, exhausted his efforts to secure the information and the reasons are contained in the following report from Adj. Gen. G. H. Bridges:
“I have your letters with which you enclosed a copy of one from Hon. Charles M. Meacham, Hopkinsville, Kentucky, who requests to be furnished with certain information from the records of the War Department for use in preparing a history of Christian County, Ky.
“No list is kept in the War Department of the names by county and state of the men who enlist in the military service of the United States, nor has any attempt ever been made to classify the persons who have served in the U. S. Army (or the Confederate States Army), during any period according to county and state; and owing to the limited clerical force allowed by law to my office; the pressure of other important current public business and the lack of appropriation, it would be impracticable to undertake to compile a list of the men from any particular section of the country, necessitating as it would the examination of thousands of muster rolls, papers, and other records, including the record of every individual who served in the United States Regular Army, in order to determine the place of residence at the time he entered the service.
“Moreover, if an effort should be made to compile such a list of persons from what is now known as Christian County, Kentucky, covering the period of the Revolutionary War, and other early wars, it is doubtful if the list would be complete, inasmuch as Virginia during the period of the Revolutionary War embraced the territory now known as Kentucky and Illinois, and such records as are on file covering the period of those wars are very limited as to information showing the place of enlistment and place of residence at the time of enlistment. Also the collection of Revolutionary War records in this Department is far from complete. It is suggested as a possibility that some information relative to persons in that war from what is now known as Kentucky may be obtained from the Librarian, Virginia State Library, Richmond, Virginia.”
It was impracticable to attempt to secure the names in this way, for the reason that many of the soldiers came from states other than Virginia. I have, therefore, relied largely upon the known facts of local history and the family records of the descendants of soldiers to secure as many names as possible. The lists are by no means complete, but they contain enough to show the martial and heroic origin of many of the families of the county and of other counties created from its original territory.
Collins’ History of Kentucky, Perrin’s History of Christian County (1884) and Rothert’s History of Muhlenberg County (1913) have all been useful and credit is given to all of them. The local chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Hopkinsville and Henderson have been particularly helpful in giving access to their rosters and records.
ACTUAL SETTLERS
The following veterans are known to have lived in the present bounds of Christian County and many of them are buried in its soil. The names of the first thirty-nine appear upon two bronze tablets at the entrance to Riverside Cemetery, in Hopkinsville, placed there by the D.A.R. The lettering follows:
ERECTED BY COL. JOHN GREEN CHAPTER, N. S. D. A. R.
October, 1912.
As A MEMORIAL TO THE REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIERS BURIED IN CHRISTIAN
COUNTY, KENTUCKY.
Capt. Harry Wood, Lieut. Jonathan Clark, Sergt. James Gilmore, Sergt.
Charles Thomas, Sergt. Samuel Younglove, Sergt. Thomas Waggoner, Private
John Anderson, Private George Barnes, Private Henry Brewer, Private Jerry
Brewer, Private Francis W. Buckner, Private John Cain, Private John Carter,
Private Joseph Casky, Private John Conner, Private Henry Davis, Private
William Dupuy. Private Thomas Dimkinson (should be Dunkerson), Private
Absalom Franklin, Private William Gray, Private John Harlow, Private William
Henry (colonel in 1812), Private Dalmath Johnson (or Dilmus), Private Samuel
Johnson, Private Samuel Jones, Private John Knight, Private Knight Knight
(appears as Night Knight), Private Joseph Meacham. Private Absalom Nixon,
Private Isaac Palmer, Private Matthew Patton, Private John Phelps, Private
James Stewart, Private Isaac Stroud, Private James Sullenger, Private Robert
Warner, Private William Warren, Private Thomas Woosley (appears
as Woolsey). Cain and Sullenger were pensioners in 1840.
The names do not appear alphabetically on the tablets, but are rearranged.
There is believed to be good authority for adding the following names of soldiers who lived or visited in the county and some of whom may not be buried in the county:
James Anderson, Joseph Cavendar, James Davis (died March 27. 1797), Ambrose Dudley, John Montgomery (killed by Indians), Col. Benjamin Moore, Capt. Jack Hawkins, Andrew McKenzie, William McKenzie. Joel Nance, Capt. Benjamin Radford, James Robinson, Sr. (came in 1786). Thomas Sharp, Laban Shipp.
The following list compiled from the personal biographies in Perrin’s History, embraces soldiers whose descendants settled in the county and in most instances their later descendants are still in the county:
Elisha Atkinson, grandfather of Mrs. Sarah Atkinson Tandy; Capt. John Bell, grandfather of Dr. John F. Bell; Col. William Christian, grandfather of Esquire Walter E. Warfield; Thomas Cobb, father of Mrs. Robert H. Smith (Nancy Cobb); William Davie, father of Maj. Ambrose Davie; Francis Foard, grandfather of John W. Foard; Isaac Garrott, grandfather of M. A. Garrott; Joseph Griffin, grandfather of E. C. Griffin; Col. John Green, grandfather of Thomas Green, Sr.; Stephen Hanna, Sr., father of Stephen Hanna; Private Lard, grandfather of Col. Geo. 0. Poindexter; John Lackey, grandfather of Dr. Geo. W. Lackey; Gabriel Long, grandfather of Judge A. V. Long; David Mason, grandfather of David S. Mason; William Mason, father of John B Mason John Metcalfe, grandfather of V. M. Metcalfé, killed in battle; William Shaw, grandfather of Thomas H. Shaw; Samuel Starling, grandfather of Col. S. M. Starling; Col. John Slaughter, maternal grandfather of Judge A. V. Long; John Strode, father of Mrs. William Lander, Sr., mother of Stephen S. and James H. Lander (Lettitia Strode) ; William Terrell, grandfather of Thomas J. and John W. Terrell; Maj. Walter Warfield, grandfather of Esq. Walter E. Warfield.
The following names are on a monument in Henderson County, which was
a part of Christian until 1798:
Edward Davis Bennett, Col. John Cannon, Capt. John Fuma Cannon, Col.
Wynn Dixon, Joel Gibson, Col. Gabriel Green, Maj. John Holloway, Gen. Samuel
Hopkins, John Martin, Col. William Marshall, Col. Nathaniel Powell. Isham
Sellars.
MORE REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIERS
Among the Revolutionary soldiers who came to Christian County and settled in what is now Trigg, was Thomas Wadlington, a soldier under Gen. Nathaniel Greene, who arrived in 1792. James Thomas, also with Gen. Greene, was another, who lived until 1832. Capt. Thomas Humphries, of Virginia, and his brother Absalom, were two of five Humphries brothers in the patriot army. The Captain became a Methodist preacher. John Grasty was with Gen. Marion, in South Carolina. Thomas Owsley applied for a pension in 1820, and the names of James Barnum, Miles Hallowell, John Mayberry and Balaam Ezell, a Baptist preacher, have been preserved as soldiers.
SOME OF THE SOLDIERS
Jonathan Clark was born May 20, 1759, in Virginia, but removed to Stokes County, N. C., in 1773. He volunteered in 1776, and was elected lieutenant in Capt. James Shepherd’s company of militia and was put in Col. Armstrong’s regiment. He was in the campaign against Tories in North Carolina and afterwards was with the troops operating against Cornwallis. He was engaged in local campaigns until the close of the war in 1782. He came to Christian County in 1803 and was Justice of the Peace and later Sheriff. He died March 12, 1851, in his 92nd year.
Though recorded on the tablet as a private, Perrin says Wm. Gray was an officer. He lived in the Dulin neighborhood of North Christian until he was quite an old man.
William Dupuy was born in 1765 and saw some service as a boy late in the war. He came to this county in the early settlement and died here September 11, 1851, and was buried by his neighbors with military honors, near Hopkinsville.
Samuel Younglove was a prominent figure in the early history of the
county and his descendants are still here.
Robert Warner fought under Gen. Nathaniel Greene. His captain was killed
in the battle of Guilford. He served without pay and was granted a pension
in this county in 1822. Other pensioners were John Knight, Knight Knight,
Samuel Johnson and Joseph Meacham. The latter, born in Caroline County,
Virginia, in 1759, was living in Chatham County, N. C., in 1781, and served
in Col. Morgan’s command for six months. He came to the county in the latter
decade of the eighteenth century, settling upon a tract of land on a fork
of Pond river upon which some of his descendants still live. He had six
sons and a daughter, who came with him. The youngest, Wyatt, born in 1798,
was the grandfather of this writer; Joseph Meacham died in 1838, aged 79
years. James Robinson, Sr., located a claim in this county in 1786, ten
years in advance of its formation, and moved his family here in 1788, settling
in the northeastern part of the county. His three sons came with him, James,
Abner and Green. The latter was killed in the Black Hawk Indian War. James
was a colonel in the War of 1812. Abner Robinson reared a family in the
district. One of his daughters, Ellen Robinson, married Wyatt Meacham in
1817, and their first child was named Abner Winchester for his grandfather
and Gen. Winchester, one of the leaders in the beginning of the War of
1812. Col. James Robinson was with Jackson at New Orleans in 1815.
COL. JOHN GREEN CHAPTER, N.S.D.A.R., HOPKINSVILLE,
KENTUCKY
In October, 1904, twelve Hopkinsville women had obtained complete ancestry
records, and being in sympathy with the objects of the National Society
Daughters of the American Revolution, of perpetuating the memory and spirit
of the men and women who achieved American Independence, they decided to
organize a Chapter. The State Regent appointed Mrs. Mary Green Edmunds
organizing regent, who called a meeting on November 5, 1904, at the residence
of Mrs. Charles M. Meacham, when the Chapter was permanently organized.
Following is the roster of charter members:
Mrs. Julian Adoue.
Mrs. Mary Edmunds Bronaugh.
Mrs. A. J. Casey.
Mrs. Irene Childers Callahan.
Miss Harriette Dietrich.
Mrs. S. Ashby Edmunds.
Mrs. John R. Green.
Mrs. William R. Howell.
Mrs. James K. Hooser.
Mrs. Charles M. Meacham.
Miss Mary Peyton Moore.
Mrs. Robert L. Woodard.
At this first meeting a committee was appointed to locate the graves
of Revolutionary soldiers buried in Christian County. Twenty-three new
members were invited to join the chapter. The organization continued to
grow in numbers and the programs were historical and patriotic. The chapter
was named in honor of Colonel John Green, who commanded a regiment of the
Virginia line during the Revolutionary War and who was the ancestor of
many of the new members. A gavel was presented to the chapter by Mrs. Mary
Green Edmunds, which was made of wood from a dogwood tree at the grave
of Col. John Green, in Culpeper, Va., where he was first buried. His remains
and his wife’s have since been removed to Arlington Cemetery. The chapter
engaged in much patriotic work, giving to the mountain schools, offering
prizes for historical essays, and presenting pictures of George Washington,
also flags to the public schools. Books were given to the school libraries.
Boxes of clothing, books, etc., were sent to the mountain schools and to
Ellis Island. In 1907, at the suggestion of Miss Nannie K. Starling who
had been locating and verifying the graves of Revolutionary soldiers buried
in Christian County, a fund was started with which to erect a memorial
to these old soldiers. This fund was completed in 1912, and two bronze
tablets containing thirty-nine names were placed on the stone gateposts
at Riverside Cemetery.
In 1915, two exhibits of relics and antiques were held. The chapter has exchanged visits with the Capt. Wm. Edmiston Chapter, of Clarksyule, Tenn.
During the World War the regent, Mrs. W. S. Davison, led the chapter in splendid work for the Red Cross, Belgian relief and the support of six French orphans. Individual members bought Liberty Loan Bonds. The chapter has contributed to the building fund of both Memorial Continental Hall and the new Constitution Hall, in Washington, D. C., and to the many activities of the National Society.
Some of the members have served on State and National Committees and thus kept in touch with the National Society and its objects, “To cherish, maintain and extend the institution of American freedom, to foster true patriotism and love of country, to aid in securing for mankind all the blessings of liberty.”
ROSTER OF COL. JOHN GREEN CHAPTER D. A. R. 1904-1930
Mrs.. Julian Adoue, ‘Mrs. James H. Anderson, Mrs. George C. Abbitt,
Mrs. Quint C. Atkinson, Mrs. C. W. Anglin, Mrs. May C. Beasley, Mrs. Mary
Edmunds Bronaugh, Miss Mary Bronaugh, Mrs. Frank Beaumont,
Mrs. William Cowan, Mrs. E. A. Chatten, Mrs. A. J. Casey, Miss Bettie
Campbell, Mrs. George Boddie, Mrs. Gertrude H. B. Brannon, Mrs. Lottie
Bleistein, Mrs. Johnnie Mills Campbell, Mrs. Irene Childress Callahan,
Mrs. Kenneth 0. Cayce, Mrs. J. W. Downer, Mrs. W. S. Davison, Miss
Ruth Dietrich, Mrs. Frances Fairleigh, Mrs. Emma C. Green (Mrs. John R.),
Miss E. Westwood Green, Mrs. John Goff, Miss Isabel Goff, Mrs. Mary C.
Howell (Mrs. W. R.), Mrs. Hobart Hutchinson, Mrs. J. K. Hooser, Mrs.
Jouett Henry, Miss Bettie Hopper, Mrs. Carrie D. Jefferson, Mrs. Belle
Henry King, Mrs. Grace L. B. Kevil, Mrs. Lula C. Locker, Miss Viva
Locker, Mrs. Herbert L. McPherson, Mrs. Lizzie Tandy Meacham (Mrs.
Chas. M.), Miss Mary Peyton Moore, Miss Lizzie Tyler Moore, Mrs. Bettie
Norris, Mrs. B. Gordon Nelson, Miss Fannie Phelps, Miss Frances Peay,
Mrs. Herschel Porter, Mrs. Annie Lewis Quarles, Mrs. Lucy Locker Quarles,
Mrs. Katie Manson Radford, Mrs. Frances Keen Roach, Mrs. Martha Roach (R.
B.), Mrs. R. H. Rives, Miss Sophie Reeder, Mrs. H. G. Saunders, Mrs. Hattie
Dietrich Seward, Mrs. Theodore Troendle, Mrs. Elizabeth Tandy Taylor (Ross
L.), Mrs. Sallie Lindsay Taliaferro, Miss Susie Tate, Mrs. Fannie Peyton
Venable, Miss Charlotte Ward, Mrs. Bailey Wailer,
Mrs. R. L. Woodard, Mrs. Margaret Henry Wormald. Total, 64.
THE WAR OF 1812
The War of 1812 was an outgrowth of the wars in which England was engaged in Europe, growing out of the searching of American vessels to impress British subjects. In the first clash of arms, the British gained a decisive victory in the surrender of Gen. Hull, at Detroit, with his entire army. This opened the way for warlike Indians to be turned loose to overrun the entire Northwest. The call for volunteers was made and Kentucky was quick to respond. Virginia and her militant daughter supplied, it is said, two-thirds of the volunteers.
Gen. Samuel Hopkins mobilized an army at Louisville and 1,500 Kentuckians were called for to hold the Indians in check, while Gen. Harrison, Governor of the territory, assumed command. Things were happening in the meanwhile on the lakes. Perry, with his hastily formed fleet, soon gave the British the surprise of their lives. A call was made for 150 Kentucky fighting men to help man this fleet and at least three are known to have responded, and doubtless there were many others. John Anderson, Washington Dunkerson and Ezra Younglove, all bearing the names of Revolutionary ancestors, were assigned to the ship Niagara. Col. Geo. 0. Poindexter, who was an old man when I knew him in 1880, related that one of this trio, probably Wash Dunkerson, when the colors of his ship had been shot away, climbed into the rigging and nailed them to the mast under fierce fire, but by a miracle escaped death. The victory of Lake Erie almost had a local coloring, for after the war members of the Perry family located in Hopkinsville and several of them are buried here. Miss Emily B. Perry, the last to die, was for many years a great leader in civic affairs and was universally beloved, by the young people especially. She coached them in the home shows, she arranged all public receptions to honor visiting notables and no patriotic occasion was complete without “Miss Em’s” help and intelligent direction.
The infant republic waged a defensive warfare for two years, but was not idle. When it was ready to strike it struck a decisive blow.
Col. Posey, an officer of the regular army, came to Christian County in 1814 and was joined by a battalion of Christian County troops under Major Reuben Harrison. As mentioned previously, the War Department could not furnish the roster of Christian County troops so earnestly desired and this list must of necessity be incomplete. The following are known from family records to have been soldiers from the county:
Capt. Thomas Allsbury, Josiah Anderson, John Anderson, John M. Beard,
Thomas Brown, George Campbell, James Carneal, Austin Cason, John Chilton,
James Clark, Sr., Maj. Ambrose Davie, Thomas Duerson,
Washington Dunkerson, Capt. Marshall N. Dinguid, Samuel C. Forgy, Jesse
Giles, John W. Grissom, Vincent Guthrie, Gen. William Henry, Samuel Hopkins
(related to Gen. Hopkins), John Mason, Dr. John McCarroll,
Col. Arthur McGaughey, Gideon Overshiner, Daniel W. Parrish, Robert
Y. Pendleton, Thomas Pepper, Capt. Allen P’Pool, Peter P’Pool, Nicholas
Pyle, Col. Garrett M. Quarles, Hezekiah Ricketts, Col. James Robinson,
Owen Smith, William Steele, Col. Fidelio Sharp, Rev. William Tandy,
Roger Thompson, Samuel Withers, Ezra Younglove.
The following additional list may include some who were not local recruits,
whose local descendants have supplied the information:
Banks Anthony, great-grandfather of John C. Thurmond; Jeremiah Batts, Sr., grandfather of John T. Batts; Cornelius Crenshaw, grandfather of R. C. Crenshaw; Jesse P. Cullom, father of Dr. E. R. Cullom; Private Epperson, father of Mrs. John Chilton (Elizabeth Epperson); Henry A. Farnsworth, grandfather of H. A. Farnsworth; Capt. Jas. H. Fuqua, father of A. J. F. Fuqua; John Hiser, father of B.’ F. Hiser; Richard Holland, grandfather of John C. Willis; Andrew McKee, father of Chas. McKee, Sr.; Capt. Reuben Radford, father of M. G. Radford; Philip Redd, maternal grandfather of John D. Tyler; William Smith, father of Robert H. Smith; John W. Terrell, father of John W. and Thos. J. Terrell; Josiah B. Wilson, father of Dr. E. A. Wilson.
Among the volunteers who responded to the call to join Gen. Hopkins,
at Louisville, where Lieut. Hampton Wade, James Baradill, Jonas Mitchell,
Stephen Boren, Wm. Campbell and Asa Reddick. They took part in the campaign
against the Indians in Illinois. Others entered later and were in the Southern
campaign and were with Gen. Jackson, at New Orleans. Among them were James
Wade, George Newton, James Satzgiven, John Jones, James Thomas, who died
of wounds, T. W. Hammond, Barnes and Henry Jones, Jerry Saunders, Jack
Cotton, Winborn Futrell, Wm. Rainey, David Calhoun, Warren Clark, Wm. Pitts,
Robert Coleman, Henry Vinson, Christopher Brandon and Wm. Rushing. Sergt.
Lunsford Lindsay went from Virginia and afterwards came to the county.
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