Pension Application of Thomas and Nelly Wilkerson Markham: W7389
Transcribed and annotated by C. Leon Harris
State of Virginia}
Bedford County} SS.
On this 22nd day of July 1833. personally appeared before me Thomas Sale, a Justice of the County Court of Bedford in my county aforesaid, Thomas Markham Sr. a resident of Russell parish in the county & state aforesaid aged 76 years, 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 the 7th of June 1832. That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers and served as herein stated. That the last of March or first of April – the day of the month he cannot recollect – in the year of 1776 he volunteered into the service of the United States, in a minute company of Riflemen, in the County of Prince Edward, Virginia. His company officers, who were all from the County of Prince Edward, were Charles Allen, Captain, Joseph Parks Lieutenant, and James Allen Ensign. His company rendezvoused at Prince Edward Court House and marched from thence thro’ Cumberland County by Powhatan Old Courthouse, and thro’ Chesterfield County to the town of Manchester on the south side of James River opposite Richmond. His company were stationed at Manchester about a week: in which time they were joined by two other companies of volunteers, one from the County of Amherst, commanded by Captain Nicholas Cabell, and the other from the County of Cumberland, commanded by Captain Joseph Carrington. Col. Meredith joined us in Manchester, and ordered the companies to march to Hampton – and they accordingly marched from thence across James River at Richmond thro’ Hanover by Bottoms Bridge [on Chickahominy River] to Williamsburg. From Williamsburg they marched by Springfield and Yorktown to Hampton. When the companies marched from Manchester, Col. Meredith went with us a part of a day & then separated from us, and did not join us any more until we reached Hampton. At Hampton, we found several other companies of volunteer minute men, one of which was commanded by Captain James Dabney. The Captains of the other companies, he does not now recollect the names of. At Hampton the Regiment was organized wholly of volunteer minute companies, under the command of Colonel Samuel Meredith and Major Richard James. his Lieutenant Colonel’s name he cannot recollect. His regiment was stationed at Hampton something like four months to protect the country and prevent the British from landing. Guards or Scouting parties were detached and left out on the beach, during all the time they were at Hampton, and on one occasion when the scouting party to which this declarant was attached was stationed near the light House the British made their appearance in the Bay & were fired on by the Americans. While his regiment was at Hampton, there were no regular or militia officers or troops at that place, except those of his own regiment, of whom none were regular according to his recollection. After his regiment had remained at Hampton about four months, they were ordered to Portsmouth Virginia to supply the place of some regulars who were stationed at that place to protect it against the incursion of the British fleet. They accordingly crossed James River to Portsmouth about three weeks before the regulars left there for the North. Of the officers who were with the regulars at Portsmouth when he arrived there he recollects the names of Gen’l. [Robert] Lawson, Capt. [John] Morton and Lieut. [John] Holcombe. When the regulars left Portsmouth, there were no other troops at that place but his regiment. While at Portsmouth the men were engaged sometime in building a fort at the windmill on Elizabeth River between Portsmouth and the mouth of Elizabeth. At this place the British had landed before his regiment arrived there – they had however left the River before his regiment reached Portsmouth. He was stationed at Portsmouth at least four months guarding the town and the surrounding country. His impression was that he was stationed at Portsmouth a little more than four months, but as he perceives from the affidavit of John Watkins that he states the tour to be eight months, he will state the time at Portsmouth to be at least four months. About the time of his volunteering, volunteer companies were formed in various counties of Virginia to be ready to march at a minute’s warning to any place where their services might be necessary – and and to remain in service as long as might be thought necessary for the defence of the country. This tour he knows to have been at least eight months. They marched into service the first of April or the last of March 1776 and were discharged at Portsmouth not more than ten days before Christmas in the same year. They were discharged by Col. Meredith, but he received no written Discharge. He recollects no regular officers or troops except those at Portsmouth above stated – nor any militia officers or troops with him during this tour of eight months. He has no documentary evidence of his services. He refers to the affidavit of John Watkins of Rockbridge County to prove his services. They heard of the Declaration of Independence while they were at Hampton, on which a general order was issued commanding the men of the Regiments to parade and fire thirteen rounds in honor of the event.
In answer to Interrogatories he states:
1. He was born in Prince Edward County Virg’a, the 15th day of July 1757.
2. He has no record of his age.
3. He lived in Prince Edward when called into service – since the revolution he has lived in Prince Edward until the year of 1785, when he removed to Bedford, where he has resided ever since & now resides.
4. He volunteered into the service.
5th & 6th. He has answered to the best of his recollection in the foregoing part of this declaration.
7 George Lambert and Ezekial Tolley – are persons to whom he is known in his present neighborhood who can testify as to his character for veracity and their belief of his services as a soldier of the revolution.
He has not procured the certificate of a clergyman, because there are none living in his neighborhood & he does not know one elsewhere who can testify as to the belief in his neighborhood of his revolutionary services.
He has made this declaration before a Justice of the peace because from bodily infirmity he is unable to attend court.
He hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity and declares that his name is not on the pension roll of the agency of any state Thomas hisTmark Markham Sen’r.
NOTE: On 18 June 1844 Nelly Markham, age “about eighty — years” and a resident of Botetourt County, applied for a pension stating that she married Thomas Markham 58 or 59 years previously in Bedford County, as deduced from the fact that her oldest child, then deceased, would have been 57. She declared that her husband had died in Botetourt County on 4 May 1840. With her application was a copy of a request from Joseph Wilkerson dated 3 Dec 1785 that the clerk of Bedford County grant a license for the marriage of his daughter, Nelly Wilkerson, to “Thomas Marcum.” There is also a copy of a bond signed by Thomas Markham and Ranson[?] Wikerson dated 2 Dec 1785 for the marriage of Markham to Nelly Wilkerson.