Pension Application of Thomas Paxton: S30636
Transcribed and annotated by C. Leon Harris
State of Kentucky}
Franklin County viz}
On this 17th day of January in the year of our Lord 1842 personally appeared in open court (being a court of Record) for the said County of Franklin Thomas Paxton aged eighty years, and being first duly sworn according to law doth on his oath declare that served in the Revolutionary war as follows Viz that in the month of October 1780 he joined the company of Capt Samuel Wallace of Rockbridge County state of Virginia in the Regiment commanded by Col John Boyer [sic: Bowyer] of the Virginia Militia & state troops and immediately marched passing Richmond to near Portsmouth in the state of Virginia which was then occupied by the British who kept besieged in s’d place and had several skirmishes with them. I continued in service the full tour of three months, and was honorably discharged from said service, and during the latter part of the summer 1781 when Lord Cornwallis was about marching upon little York, Gen’l Washington called upon the militia of Virginia to march to his aid when I hastily joined the Company commanded by Capt [Charles] Campbell & marching again to Richmond & from thence to the Siege of York against Cornwallis when we arrived and aided in all the operations which eventuated in his surrender [19 Oct 1781] being called suddenly upon this tour of duty our company did not join any Regiment until after our arrival at York when we were attatched to one of the Regiments on duty there of the Virginia Militia & I am unable to name its commander as in the active duties we were called upon to discharge the names escaped my recollection, but I faithfully served out my tour of duty of another three months & was honorable discharged from Capt Campbell company making in all six months service during the Revolutionary war. I further state that I have long since lost or mislaid my discharges, and since my arrival to Kentucky many years since I have not been able to find them. That I am not a pensioner at this time, and have neglected to apply for my pension because of the difficulty of procuring evidence and the smallness of the amount, but being now old and infirm I need all the assistance I am justly entitled to, that I do not know of any other person now alive by whom I can prove my services except Mr Alexander McClure [pension application S30575] which evidence I herewith forward. Witness my hand this 17th day of January 1842. [Thos. Paxton]
State of Kentucky} The additional declaration of Thomas Paxton
Franklin County} This day made in open court, being first sworn as the law requires, he further states that he was he was born in the county of Rockbridge [formed from Augusta and Botetourt in 1778] in the state of Virginia on the 15 day of November in the year of our Lord 1761 a record of which he has in his big Bible that he lived in the State of Virginia until the year 1792 at which time he removed in the state of Kentucky where has lived ever since and now lives, in the county of Franklin, and being interrogated he says he was discharged by the captains under whom he served his tours, which s’d discharges have been long since lost. That he is not a pensioner of the united states or of any state and he hereby relinquishes every claim to a pension or annuity except the present and that his name is on no pension roll or agency in any state, and that he knows of no other evidence now alive by whom he can prove his services except Alexander McClure who served with him. Given under my hand this 21 day of March 1842 [signed] Thos. Paxton