Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File S. 7544, for Benjamin Nesmith, New Hampshire
Page 1

SERVICE  N.H.

Nesmith, Benjamin
or Smith, Benjamin N.

NUMBER  S.7544

carded
Page 2

20328
14,397
New York
Benjamin N.# Smith
of Erie in the State of N.York who was a Private in the Company commanded by Captain Reed of the Regt commanded by Col Wait in the Cont*, NH  line for 13 mos. & 24 says
#Benjamin Nesmith
* N.H. Line
Records corrected.

Inscribed on the Roll of N York at the rate of 45 Dollars 97 Cents per annum to commence on the 4th day of March 1831.

Certificate of Pension issued the 23rd day of May1833 and sent to William Hall  Buffalo

Arrears to the 4th of Ma '33 - - - -  - - $91.94
Semi-anl. allowance ending 4 [?] '34 - - 40.00
[total] $114.93

{Revolutionary Claim, Act June 7, 1832.}

Recorded by Geo. C. Stiles, Clerk,
Book E,  Vol.4, Page13.
Page 3

Declaration of a Revolutionary Soldier who served in the MILITIA, to obtain a Pension under the Act of Congress passed June 7, 1832.
State of New York, 
Erie County ss. }  On this 5th day of December 1832 personally appeared in open Court, before the Court of Common Pleas, now sitting at Buffalo, in said County Benjamin N. Smith a resident of Amherst in the County of Erie and State of New York, 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 June 7, 1832. That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers, and served as herein stated  That he was born at Londonderry in the County of Rockingham in the State of Newhampshire on the 17th day of August in the year 1756. That he has no record of his age and knows of none, and he further says that on the 19th day of April in the year 1775 he with several of his [illegible] volunteered and went to Cambridge on the alarm of the Lexington battle, he remained at Cambridge the term of nine days  and then returned home, and on the first of May in the year 1775 enlisted into Captain George Reeds Company in Colonel Starks Regiment of New Hampshire Troops  (he believes they were Militia but is not positive) for eight months That he continued in the service in the same company during the full term of Eight months when he was discharged at Winter Hill near Boston and thinks his discharge was [end of page]
Page 4

in writing, and he further says that Major McClary belonged to the said regiment and was killed after the battle of Bunker hill on Charleston Neck.  And this deponent further says that during the said Eight months he was stationed at Winter Hill and assisted in building the forts at Winter and Prospect Hill's and [illegible] Hill.  
That he recollects well seeing Generals Washington, Warren, Putnam, and Lee, during the time he was in said Service.  
That he was stationed as main guard at the time of the Battle of Bunker Hill. That he served as a private soldier.
And he further states that he again enlisted the first of November in the year 1776 at the Town of Londonderry in Captain McConnells Company, but in Consequence of the Captain's sickness he (the captain) never joined the company & it was commanded by Lieutenant James Hopkins in Col Gilmans regiment of New Hampshire Militia or State Troops dont know which for five months and was in the service in said Company and absent home the full time of five months and a half as a private soldier.
Page 5

and he further says that he was marched to Hartford in the State of Connecticut first, and then to Weathersfield, and then to New Haven and then to Danbury and from there to Peekskill in the State of New York and there remained until about the middle of March and was then marched to Hartford in Connecticut and there remained until the last of March and was then discharged and arrived home about the middle of April in the year 1777.  That during the above terms of service he furnished his own gun and clothing -- General McDugal was in command when he was at Peekskill.  He has lived since the Revolutionary War, in the State of New Hampshire in the County of Rockingham in the Town of Londonderry and in the Town of Rockingham in the County of Windham in the State of Vermont and in the year 1811 he moved into the State of New York in the County of Niagara (then) now Erie in the town of Clarence (then) now Amherst and that he now lives in the said County of Erie in in [sic] the said Town of Amherst in said State.
Page 6

And this deponent further says that in the fall of the year of 1777 he and fifteen more of his neighbours hired a substitute for them by the name of Morrison for Three years and gave him Twenty Two 2 year old Heifers for his services[;] and said Morrison served his time out.
And he further says that he lived at Londonderry in the County of Rockingham aforesaid when he entered the service both the first & last time & both times Entered the service as a Volunteer
[He] Knows of no proof that he can procure to prove his services as above stated.
Genl Henry Darby was a captain in Col Starks Regt in which he served in 1775--The first term of service was no continental officers that he knew [& no ?] continental troops raised in 1775. Lieut Hutchison went as 1st Lieut in Capt Darbys Company when Darby & his company went to Quebec during deponents first eight months service.
During the last few months he knew of two Regts commanded by Genl McDougal - one in which he was & the Col of [end of page]
Page 7

Benjamin N. Smith
Declaration
20328
On Rolls
McConnells Co. & Gilman's  Regt.
admd
13 ms. 24 ds  Pri [private]

3.57
2.64
______
5.97

26
---4
-----
264
Page 8

the other he don't recollect. The Major in Col Gilmans Regt in which deponent served was Coffin.  At the End of his said last mentioned time of service he was verbally dismissed and no written Discharge.  That he is not certain that he rec'd a written
discharge the first term and if he did he did not consider it of sufficient consequence to preserve it any considerable time. That he resides in the town of Amherst very near the Town line of Clarence and that Capt Robert McKellip & Samuel Stevens of said Clarence are his neighbors resident near him who have each been acquainted with him for the last 17 or 18 years and knows him intimately & that they can testify to his character for truth & veracity & their belief of his services as a soldier of the Revolution.  That he cannot procure any Clergyman to appear in Court to make the certificate required by the War [Department] there being no one residing near him

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.
[signed] Benjamin Smith
Sworn and subscribed this 5th day of December 1832 }
[signed]  Noah P. Sprague  Clerk of Crt Common Pleas
Page 9

We, Robert McKelip, residing in the town of Clarence and County of Erie and Samuel Stevens, residing in the same place, hereby certify, that we are well acquainted with Benjamin N. Smith , who has subscribed and sworn to the foregoing declaration; that we believe him to be 76  years of age; that he is reputed and believed, in the neighborhood where he resides, to have been a soldier of the Revolution, and that we concur in that opinion.
[signed] Samuel Stevens [and] Robert McKelip
Subscribed and sworn this 5th day of December 1832 } 
[signed] Noah P. Sprague Clerk of Crt Common Pleas

And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion, after the investigation of the matter, and after putting the interrogatories prescribed by the War Department, that the above named applicant was a Revolutionary Soldier, and served as he states. And the Court further certifies, that it appears to them that Robert McKelip who has signed the preceding certificate is a resident in the town of Clarence and County of Erie and that Samuel Stevens, who has signed the same is a resident in the town of Clarence, and is a credible person, and that their statement is entitled to credit.

I, Noah P. Sprague, Clerk of the said Court of Common Pleas do hereby certify that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said Court, in the matter of the application of Benjamin N. Smith for a pension. 
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of office this 5th day of December 1832
[signed] Noah P. Sprague  Clerk of Cer Common Pleas
Page 10

20328
Benjamin N. Smith
Erie County
New York


Admd

Fillmore & Hall
Buffalo
N. York
Page 11

WAR DEPARTMENT, 
Pension Office, 
 183_ 
Sir: The evidence in support of your claim. under the act of June 7, 1832, has been examined, and the papers are herewith returned. The following is a statement of your case in a tabular form. On comparing these papers with the following rules, and the subjoined notes, you will readily perceive that objections exist, which must be removed, before a pension can be allowed. The notes and the regulations will show what is necessary to be done. These points to which your attention is more particularly directed, you will find marked in the margins with a brace, ( thus: } ). You will, when you return your papers to this Department, send this printed letter with them; and you will, by complying with this request, greatly facilitate the investigation of your claim. 

A Statement, showing the Service of Benjamin N Smith  Cty N.Y.  Age 76

Vol. Aug 1775 - 9 Days - pr [private] -  entered at Londondary - 
May 1775 b- 8 Months - [pri] - Capt Reed - Col Stark - Bunker Hill Battle - marched through N.H. - entered at N. Hampshire
Nov. 1776 - 5 months, 15 days - [pri] - Cap McConnell - Col Gilman - marched through Conn & N. York

Evidence - Traditionary

I am, respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 
J. L. Edwards, 
Commissioner of Pensions.
Page 12

2   REGULATIONS UNDER THE ACT OF JUNE 7, 1832. 
The following regulations have been adopted: 
This law has been construed to extend, as well to the line, as to every branch of the Staff of the Army, and to include under the terms "Continental Line," "State Troops." "militia," and "volunteers," all persons enlisted, drafted, or who volunteered and who were bound to military service, but not those who were occasionally employed with the army upon civil contracts, such as Clerks to Commissaries and to Store Keepers. &c., Teamsters, Boatmen, &c. Persons who served on board of private armed vessels are also excluded from the benefits of the law, as well as persons who turned out as patrols, or were engaged in guarding particular places at night, and were not recognized as being in actual military service.
 Four general classes of cases are embraced in this law
1. The Regular Troops. 
2. The State Troops, Militia, and Volunteers. 
3. Persons employed in the Naval Service.
4. Indian Spies.
 As rolls of the regular troops in the Revolutionary War exist in this Department, all persons claiming the benefit of this law as officers, non-commissioned officers, musicians or privates, will, in the first instance, make application by transmitting the following declaration, which will be made before a Court of Record of the County where such applicant resides. And every Court having by law a seal and Clerk is considered a Court of Record. 

DECLARATION, In order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress of the 7th of June, 1832.
 State, Territory, or District of_____} County of_____ } ss. On this_____day of_____personally appeared (a) before_____A.B. a resident (b) of_____in the county of_____and State, Territory or District of_____aged (c)_____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 provision made by the act of Congress, passed June 7, 1832. That he enlisted in the Army of the United States in the year (d)_____, with _____and served in the _____(e) regiment of the_____line, under the following named officers: 
[in brackets:] Here set forth the names and rank of the Field and Company Officers; the time he left the service; (and if he served under more than one term of enlistment, he must specify the particular period, and rank and names of his officers;) the town or county and State in which he resided when he entered the service; the battles, if any, in which he was engaged, and the country through which he marched. (L.) This form is to be varied so as to apply to the cases of officers and persons who belonged to the militia, volunteers, navy, &c. [end of brackets] 
He hereby relinquishes every claim (f) whatever to a pension or an annuity, except the present, and he declares that his name is not on the Pension Roll of any Agency in any State, or (if any) only on that of the Agency for the State of ______
Sworn to and subscribed the day and year aforesaid. 
[in brackets:] And then will follow the certificate of the Court. 
And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion (g) that the above named applicant was a revolutionary soldier, and served as he states. I_____of the Court of _____do hereby certify (h) that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said Court in the matter of the application of_____for a pension. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of office (i) this _____day of_____&c. 
If, on examination of the proper record, the names of applicants, making such declaration, cannot be found, they will produce such proof as the rule given in note (j) points out. 
Every applicant who claims a pension by virtue of service in the State Troops, Volunteers, or Militia, except those who belonged to the New Hampshire Militia and State Troops of Virginia, will make and subscribe a declaration similar to the foregoing, with the following additions, viz: 
(k) We, A.B., a Clergyman, residing in the _____and C.D. residing in (the same) hereby certify, that we are well acquainted with _____, who has subscribed and sworn to the above declaration; that we believe him to be _____years of age; that he is reputed and believed, in the neighborhood where he resides, to have been a soldier of the Revolution, and that we concur in that opinion.
Sworn to and subscribed the days and year aforesaid. 
[in brackets:] And then will follow the certificate of the Court. 
And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion, after the investigation of the matter, and after putting the interrogatories prescribed by the War Department, that the above named applicant was a Revolutionary Soldier, and served as he states. And the Court further certifies, that it appears to them that A.B. _____who has signed the preceding certificate is a clergyman, resident in the_____and that C.D., who has also signed the same is a resident in the ______and is a credible person, and that their statement is entitled to credit.
I,_____Clerk of the Court of _____do hereby certify that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said Court, in the matter of the application of _____for a pension. 
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of office this _____day of_____&c. 
Every applicant will produce the best proof in his power. This is the original discharge or commission; but if neither of these can be obtained, the party will so state under oath, and will then procure, if possible, the testimony of at least one credible witness, stating in detail his personal knowledge of the services of the applicant, and such circumstances connected therewith, as may have a tendency to throw light upon the transaction. 
If such surviving witness cannot be found, the applicant will so state in his declaration, (l) and he will also, whether he produce such evidence or not, proceed to relate all the material facts, which can be useful in the investigation of his claim, and in the comparison of his narrative with the events of the period of his alleged service, as they are known at the Department. A very full account of the services of each person [end of page]
Page 13

3
will be indispensable to a favorable action upon his case. The facts stated will afford one of the principal means of corroborating the declaration of the applicant, if true, or of detecting the imposition, if one be attempted; and unless, therefore, these are amply and clearly set forth, no favorable decision can be expected. All applicants will appear before some Court of Record in the county in which they reside, and there subscribe and be sworn to, one of the declarations above provided, according to the nature of his case. 
The Court will propound the following (m) interrogatories to all applicants for a pension, on account of service in the Militia, State Troops, or Volunteers, except the Militia of New Hampshire and the State Troops of Virginia. 
1. Where and in what year were you born? 
2. Have you any record of your age, and if so, where is it? 
3. Where were you living when called into service; where have you lived since the Revolutionary War, and where do you now live? 
4. How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute? And if a substitute, for whom? 
5. State the names of some of the Regular Officers, who were with the troops, where you served; such Continental and Militia Regiments as you can recollect, and the general circumstances of your services. 
6. To a Soldier { Did you ever receive a discharge from the service, and if so, by whom was it given, and what has become of it? 
To an Officer { Did you ever receive a commission, and if so, by whom was it signed, and what has become of it? 
7. State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, and who can testify as to your character for veracity, and their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution. 
The Court will see that the answers to these questions are embodied in the declaration, and they are requested to annex their opinions of the truth of the statement of the applicant. 
The applicant will further produce in Court, if the same can be done, in the opinion of the Court, without too much expense and inconvenience to him, two respectable persons---one of whom should be the nearest clergymen, if one lives in the immediate vicinity of such applicant, who can testify, from their acquaintance with him, that they believe he is of the age he represents, and that he is reputed and believed in the neighborhood to have been a Revolutionary soldier, and that they concur in that opinion. If one of these persons is a Clergymen, the Court will so certify, and they will also certify to the character and standing of other persons giving such certificates. 
The traditionary evidence of service is deemed very important, in the absence of any direct proof, except the declaration of the party. And the Courts are requested to be very particular in the inquiry whether the belief is general, and whether any doubts have ever existed upon the subject.
 Applicants unable to appear in Court, by reason of bodily infirmity, may make the declaration before required, and submit to the examination, before a Judge or Justice of the Court of Record of the proper county, and the Judge or Justice will execute the duties, which the Court is herein requested to perform, and will also certify that the applicant cannot, from bodily infirmity, attend the Court. 
Whenever any official act is required to be done by a Judge or Justice of a Court of Record, or by a Justice of the Peace, the certificate of the Secretary of State or Territory, or of the proper Clerk of Court or County, under his seal of office will be annexed, stating that such person is a Judge or Justice of a Court of Record, or a Justice of the Peace, and that the signature annexed is his genuine signature. 
No payments can be made on account of the services of any person, who may have died before the taking effect of the act of June 7, 1832; and in case of death subsequent thereto, and before the declaration herein required is made, the parties interested will transmit such evidence as they can procure, taken and authorized before a Court of Record, showing the services of the deceased, the period of his death, the opinion of the neighborhood respecting such services, the title of the claimant, and the opinion of the Court upon the whole matter. 

(a) The declarant must appear in open Court, unless prevented from doing so by reason of bodily infirmity; in which case the declarant will follow the rule laid down for his guidance. 
(b) The declarant must make his declaration in the county where he resides. If he should fail to do so, he must assign a sufficient reason for not conforming to the rule. 
(c) The age of the claimant must invariably be mentioned. 
(d) The declarant must mention the period or periods of the war when he served. 
(e) Every continental officer or soldier must give the name of the Colonel under whom he served; otherwise a satisfactory examination of the claim cannot be had. Every claimant must state, with precision, the length of his service, and the different grades in which he served, in language so definite as to enable the Department to determine to what amount of pension he is entitled. In a case where the applicant cannot, by reason of the loss of memory, state precisely how long he served, he should amend his declaration by making an affidavit in the following words:
 "Personally appeared before me, the undersigned, a Justice of the Peace, &c. A.B. who, being duly sworn, deposeth and saith, that, by reason of old age, and the consequent loss of memory, he cannot swear positively as to the precise length of his service; but, according to the best of his recollection, he served not less than the periods mentioned below, and in the following grades: - For _____ year _____months, and _____ days, I served as a _____. For _____months, and _____ days, I served as a _____; and for such service I claim a pension." 
It is important in all cases to determine with precision the period for which each applicant served, and the particular rank he held, as the law directs the pension to be paid according to the grade of the pensioner and the length of his service. The use of the phrase [in italics: about three or four months,] in the militia, &c. without specifying the tours, the names of the officers, and other particulars respecting their service. This form of a declaration is highly objectionable. It must, in every case, be clearly shown under what officers the applicant served; the duration of each term of engagement; the particular place or places where the service was performed; that the applicant served with an embodied corps called into service by competent authority; that he was either in the field or in garrison; and for the time during which the service was performed, he was not employed in any civil pursuit. 
(f) The law makes the relinquishment indispensable. 
(g) The opinion of the Court is always required.
(h) The Clerk must give his certificate in every case. 
(i) The Clerk must affix his seal, and if it has no device or inscription by which it can be distinguished from any other seal, or if he has no public seal of office, the certificate of a member of Congress, proving the official character and signature of the certifying officer, should accompany the papers. 

Mode of authenticating papers. 
In every instance where the certificate of the certifying officer who authenticates the papers is not written on the same sheet of paper which contains the affidavit, or other papers authenticated, the certificate must be attached thereto by a piece of tape or narrow ribbon, the ends of which must pass under the seal of office of the certifying officer, so as to prevent any paper from being improperly attached to the certificate. 

Proof of Service. 
(j) In a case where the name of the applicant is not found on the records of the Department, he must prove his service by two credible witnesses who are required to set forth in their affidavits the time of the claimant's entering the service, and the time and manner of his leaving the same, as well as the regiment, company, and line to which he belonged. The magistrate who may administer the oaths must certify to the credibility of the witnesses, and the official character and signature of the magistrate must be certified by the proper officer, under his seal of office. 
[double brackets] The notes from (a) to (i) are all equally applicable to the cases of Militia men, Volunteers, and State Troops. The proof required by rule in note (j) applies to continental troops only. 
(k) This traditionary evidence is indispensable in militia cases. 
(l) If a witness cannot be found, the declarant must state the fact.
(m) The answers to the interrogatories must all be written, and sent to the War Department, with the declaration. 
[signed] Rneunan
Page 14

In reply to your request of [blank] received [blank] for a statement of the military history of Benjamin Nesmith  a soldier of the REVOLUTIONARY WAR, you will find below the desired information as contained in his application for pension on file in this Bureau. 
S.File 7544

Apl. 19, 1775 - 9 days - [Rank, Captain, & Colonel are check marks] - N.H.
May 1, 1775 - 8 mos - Pri[vate] - Captain George Reed - Colonel Stark 
Nov 1, 1776 - 5 1/2 Mos - [pri] - Captain McConnell, Lt. James Hopkins - Colonel Gilman

Battles engaged in, Bunker Hill (see [?] Battle)
Residence of soldier at enlistment, Londonderry, Rockingham Co., N. H. 
Date of application for pension, Dec 5,1832, Alld
Residence at date of application, Amherst, Erie Co., N.Y.
Age at date of application, b Aug 17, 1756 Londonderry,  N.H. 
Remarks:  No family Data 

Respectfully, Commissioner.
Page 15

O W & N 
[stamp]
OLD WAR & NAVY
JUL 18 1905
FILES.

24.E. Bayard St.
Seneca Falls
7 -9 - 1905
Commissioner of Pensions,
Washington, D.C
Dear Sir
Would be very glad to get a copy of the Pension papers of Benjamin Nesmith, a resident of Clarence, Erie Co. New York in 1840. Think he was born at Londonderry, New Hampshire.
If his wife outlived him, and received a pension (Revolutionary) would like that.  It would be a great favor to get this as soon as possible,
Address
Miss) Elizabeth Cowing,
24. E. Bayard St
Seneca Falls,
New York

[stamp]
U. S. PENSION OFFICE.
A
JUL 11 1905
Page 16

Bureau of Pensions
Washington D. C.
Dear Sirs
I find that I made a mistake in the name of my ancestor
Will you please send me a Copy of Benjamin Nesmiths pension papers
and oblige
Mrs Leona Nesmith Woodard
103  4th St
Warren Pen

O. W. & N. Division
Dec. 1. 1911
Page 17

533 Niagara St.
Buffalo  June 2nd 1909
Pension Bureau
Dept of Revolutionary Records
Washington D. C. 
Gentlemen
In order to complete some family records. I wish
to know the Revolutionary War Record of Benjamin N. Smith
He was credited to Erie Co in the Pension List of 1831, but I can find no clue to get his record upon which he obtained his pension.
Any information you can [end of page]
Page 18

give me will be gratefully appreciated

Very truly yours
Bessie F. Haile
(Mrs. Fred C. Haile)

7544

[stamp]
U. S. PENSION OFFICE.
O
JUN 3 1909
Page 19

June 24, 1914
Department of Interior
Bureau of Pensions
Washington, D.C.
Kindly give me the pension record of my ancestor in the Revolutionary war -- 
Benjamin Nesmith
He died in Williamsville New York-
Very truly Yours-
Mrs. F. A. Bugbee
142 South Main St
Putnam, Conn.

[stamp] U. S. PENSION OFFICE
D
JUN 26 1914
Page 20

July 21, 1905 History to Miss Elizabeth
Cowing, Seneca Falls, N.Y.
1909 June 14. Hist to Mr. Fred C. Haile,
1911 Dec. 12. " " Mrs. Leona N. Woodard,
1914. July 3. Hist. to Mrs. T.A. Bugbee

Rev War
7544
INVALID.
File NO. 7544
Benjamin NeSmith
Pri Rev War
Act: June 7th 1832
Index:--Vol. 1st Page 347
[in brackets] Arrangement of 1870.
Benjamin *Nesmith
Records corrected July 29 1905,[?]