Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File S. 17,391, Richard Dove, Md.
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Service
MD

Name
Dove, Richard

Number 
S.17391

carded
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19658
OHIO

Richard Dove
of Licking Co in the state of Ohio
who was a private in the company commanded
by Captain Williams of the Regt commanded
by Col Bell in the Maryland Militia for 2 years

Inscribed on the roll of Ohio at the rate of 80 dollars blank cents per annum to commence on the 4th day of March 1831.

Certificate of Pension issued the 9th day of August 1833 and sent to J D Johnston, Martinsburg, Ohio

Arrears to the 4th of March 1833 $160.00
Semi-anl allowance ending 4 Sept 1833 $40.00
$200.00

{Revolutionary Claim Act June 7, 1832}

Recorded by F S Evans - Clerk
Book E Vol 8 Page 16
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State of Ohio Licking County

On the thirteenth day of March one thousand eight hundred and thirty-three personally appeared before me Samuel Bancroft one of the judges of the court of Common Pleas for said county of Licking and state of Ohio - Richard Dove a resident of Eden Township in the county of Licking and state of Ohio aged eighty-eight 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 7th, 1832 that he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers and served as herein stated to wit - Colonel Bell, Major Thomas Snowden, Capt. Thomas Williams, Lieutenant Colbert Williams, entered the service according to the best of his recollection in the month of April 1776 as a volunteer served three years and left the service he thinks in the spring of 1779 - resided when he entered the service in Prince Georges County in the state of Maryland, marched to Bladensburg then to Annapolis and was employed during the term aforesaid generally in the neighborhood of Annapolis and along the coast, was one employed as a guard to Lady Washington in passing through the state of Maryland, well acquainted with General Washington and left the service in consequent of sickness having taken the camp fever and then the dropsy and lay sick for two years after he left the service - he also states that he has no documentary evidence and that he knows of no person whose testimony he can procure who can testify to his service - he states he was born in Anne Arundel County Maryland in the year 1744 according to the record of his parents he has now no record of his age - he has lived since the revolutionary war in the state of Maryland until
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about four years ago when he moved to Ohio where he now lives - he received a discharge from Captain Williams but has since lost it - he also states that he is known in his present neighborhood to Homewood Merriott and Nathanial Kirkpatrick who can testify as to his character for veracity and their belief of his services as a soldier of the revolution.

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.

Richard Dove
His X Mark

Sworn to and subscribe froe me the day and year aforesaid.

Samuel Bancroft - Associate Judge

We Homewood Merriott and Nathanial Kirkpatrick residing in the county of Licking and state of Ohio hereby certify that we are well acquainted with Richard Dove who has subscribed and sworn to the above declaration - that we believe him to be eighty-eight 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.

Homewood Merriott 
Nathaniel Kirkpatrick

Sworn to and subscribed before me the day and year aforesaid - Samuel Bancroft - Associate Judge

And I the said Samuel Bancroft to hereby declare that my opinion is 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 I do further certify that it appears to me that Homewood Merriott and Nathanial Kirkpatrick
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who signed the preceding certificate are creditable persons and that their statement is entitled to credit.

And I do also certify that the applicant cannot from bodily infirmity attend the court.

Samuel Bancroft - Associate Judge

The State of Ohio
Licking County

I do hereby certify that the above-named Samuel Bancroft Esq before whom the foregoing declaration was made now and was at the time one of the judges for court of common pleas in the county of Licking duly qualified as such and that the signature purporting to be his is genuine.

In Witness where I hereunto set my hand and seal of said county this 19th day of March AD 1833.

A H Coffee - Clerk

SEAL
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State of Ohio, Knox County

Personally appeared before me the undersigned a Justice of the Peace in and for said county Richard Dove 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 period mentioned below from the following grade: for two years and ten months I served as a private and for such service I claim a pension and further that he served with an embodied corps called into service by competent authority and that he was either in the field or in garrison or marching during said term and for the time during which the service was performed he was not employed in any civil pursuit.

Richard Dove
His X Mark

Sworn to and subscribed before me this24th day of May AD 1833

Wm McCreary - Justice of the Peace

Richard Dove
Declaration

The state of Ohio
Knox County

I Alexander Elliott clerk of the court of common pleas for said county to hereby certify that Wm McCreary before whom the above affidavit of Richard Dove was made, was at the time of taking the same & still is an acting Justice of the Peace for said county duly commissioned & sworn & full faith and credit is due to all his official acts as such as well in courts of Justice as thereout.

And I further certify that the above signature purporting to be his is genuine. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of said court at the Clerk's Office in Mount Vernan this 25 day of May 1833.

Alex Elliott - Clerk

SEAL
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24219
Richard Dove
Licking Co Ohio

Adm 2 years

J D Johnston
Martinsburg, Knox County, Ohio
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War Department
Pension Office
27 April 1833

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 margin 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 Richard Dove

Period when the service was rendered:
1776

Duration of the claimant's services in Years, Months and Days:
3 years

Rank of the Claimant:
Private

Name and rank of the Field officers under whom he served:
Capt. Williams and Col Bell

Age at present and place of abode when he entered the service:
88 years - Prince Georges Co MD

Proof by which the declaration is supported:
Traditionary 

I am respectfully
Your obedient Servant

J.L. Edwards,
Commissioner of Pensions
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-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 7th, 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: [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. 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.] 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 in the State of Sworn to and subscribed the day and year aforesaid. A. B. [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 and subscribed the day and year aforesaid. [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 it 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
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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 clergyman, 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 Clergyman, 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 enquiry 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 a 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 the 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 authenticated 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 bis 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 mouths 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 about three or four months, is too indefinite, and all such qualifying expressions are objectionable. Some persons who apply for pensions merely state that they served two years 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 au embodied corps called into service by competent authority that lie 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 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. The notes from [a] to [j] 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.
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Rev & 1812 Wars Section
March 28 1928
H. C. Galbroner
Middleport 
Ohio
Sir
I advise you from the papers in the Revolutionary War
pension claim s 17391 it appears that Richard Dove was
born in 1744 in Ann Arundel County Maryland
While residing in Prince Georges County Maryland he
enlisted in April 1776 and served about three years as pri
vate in Captain Thomas Williams Company Colonel Bell's
Maryland Regiment
He was allowed pension on his application executed 
March 13 1833 while a resident of Eden Township Licking
County Ohio
There are no data as to family
The above noted is the only soldier with surname Dove
found on the Revolutionary War records of this Bureau who
served with the Maryland Troops
Respectfully
Winfield Scott
Commissioner
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Middleport, Ohio
July 16, 1927

Pension Dept.
Washington, D.C.

Dear Sirs:

Will you kindly give me a copy of the records of a man by the name of Dove; surname unknown to me. Served in the revolutionary war, I believe he enlisted from the state of Maryland.

Yours truly,

H C Galbroner
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17391
INVALID
File No. 17,391
Richard Dove
Pri Rev War
Act: June 7" 32
Index: --Vol 1 Page 101
[Arrangement of 1870]

1928 Mch 28 Hist to 
H. C. Galbroner