Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File R. 5674, for Benjamin Johnson, Virginia
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VA. Johnson, Benjamin (R. 5674)
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State of Virginia, Kanawha County to wit on this 13th day of August 1833 personally appeared in open court, before the Justices of the County Court of said County, now sitting. Benjamin Johnson a resident of said County in the state aforesaid, aged seventy seven years and two months 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 after stated - the first service which this applicant performed was in collecting cattle jointly with one George Richardson, for the use of the soldiers and guard then stationed at New London, in the County of Campbell Virginia under the command he thinks of Captain Ebace-- he was at this time a resident of the adjoining county of Bedford, and was detached and appointed to this service by Capt. Christopher Ervine who had charge of the provisions and supplies for the [unreadable], at New London - The applicant served in this capacity, for two summers, those of the year 1779 and 1780 during which time he was constantly employed from about
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the 1st June untill late in the fall of each of those years served about four & half, or five months in case of said year, and using his own horse all that time      
In February 1781 the said applicant enter the service as a volunteer in a rifle company commanded by Capt Boon Price of New London and attached to a regiment of Riflemen commanded by Col. Charles Lynch of Campbell County, and Major John Calloway of the same County about the same time Col. Campbell marched a regiment of Riflemen from the County of Botetourt and Rockbridge -  each regiment was intended for service in the Battle, and were marched immediately or this completing to join the southern army commanded by Gen. Green  -  on their arrival near Guilford N.C. the regiment to which the applicant belonged was allotted to Col. Wm Washington troops of [unreadable]  he was with his regiment, in the battle of Guilford Court House on the 15th of March 1781 – his regiment with Washington’s horse were station on the right wing, and Col. Campbells regiment, with Lees have occupied the left. The battle was bought or early in the morning, by Washington’s troops who advanced upon the enemies line, supported by the regiment to which the applicant belonged and by about two hundred regulars of the Infantry
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At a Court continued and held for Kanawha County the 13th day of August 1833 Benjamin Johnson who is desirous of availing himself of the benefit of the act of Congress passed June 7th 1832, entitled "An act supplementary to the act for the relief of certain surviving officers and Soldiers of the Revolution "This day produced in Court his declaration of services as a soldier, which was sworn to and subscribed in open Court by said Johnson and Andrew Donnally and George W. Summers, also filed, subscribed and sworn to affidavits annexed to and in support of said declaration, and thereupon the court certified the said declaration in the manner prescribed by the war department, and subscribed their names thereto, all which is ordered to be certified to the said department

being the action, the applicant and his regiment was in the heat of the engagement the British retained the field and the American forces were under the majority 2 [unreadable] from the conflict, an event which the applicant attributes to the flight of about two thousand of the N. Carolina Militia, at the onset, who had been man to occupy the center of the line  - after braving the fire, the American troops were march about 18 miles to the "Iron Works”, where they remained about two days, as sentry -  by these person the British army to “Deep River” the main guard of there army being in sight of the opposite bank when the American army arrived the applicant and his Regiment remained at Deep River two days, when the same was disbanded and the soldiers discharged - the applicant was in this service seven weeks and two days, during all which time he was a private, and for the most part, enjoined in some marches occupying much of the night as well as day after his return from Deep River, the applicant remained at home in the County of Bedford, untill the late  part of the month of September of that year when he was drafted into a company commanded by Capt Edmund Tate, designed to unite with the American forces to repel the invasion of Cornwallis – He was marched with his company, forty miles to
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Falling River in the County of Campbell, where other company had collected, and where it was intended to form a Regiment – He and his company remained at Falls River two days, when intelligence arrived of the surrender of Conwallis his Army at York Town.  The Companies were then discharged and sent home.
The applicant, when discharged at Deep River, was furnished with a written discharge, which he has lost.   Upon the other two occasions he had no discharge in writing.  He has no other documentary evidence of his service, and he knows of no one in this quarter by whom he could prove his said service-
He has relinquished every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present, and declares that his name is not on the pension roll of any the agency of any state.
Sworn to and subscribed the day and year first aforesaid 
in open Court
Ben Johnson
Test A. W. Quarier Clk
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Rev. and 1812 
Wars Section 
R. 5674 
MCS/HMM 

July 10, 1929. 

Mrs. J.M. Johnson 
4614 Lake Park Avenue, Chicago Illinois. 

Dear Madam: 

I advise you that in the papers in the Revolutionary War pension claim R. 5674. it was stated that Benjamin Johnson, while a resident of Bedford County, Virginia, served as follows: 

During the summers of 1779 and 1780 he served about four and one half or five months and was engaged, under Captain Christopher Ervine, in collecting cattle: that he enlisted in February 1781 and served seven weeks and two days as private in Captain Boen Price's Company, in Colonels Charles Lynch's and William Washington's Virginia Regiments, and was in the battle of Guilford Court House: that late in September 1781 he enlisted in Captain Edmund Tate's Virginia Company and was discharged soon after the surrender of Cornwallis. 

He applied for pension August 13, 1833, at which time he was a resident of Kanawha County, Virginia, and was aged seventy-seven years and two months. His claim was not allowed as he did not render six months military service which was the requirement of the pension law.
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There are no data relative to his family. 

The above noted is the history of the only soldier from Bedford County, Virginia, by the name of Benjamin Johnson, that is found on the Revolutionary War records of this Burean. 

The Revolutionary War records of this bureau fail to afford any information in regard to Valentine Cox.  

Respectfully, 
Earl D. Church 
Commissioner.
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1979. July 10. hist to Mrs. J.W. Johnson. va CS 

5674 

P.O. Benjamin Johnson 
Service: 

Enlisted: Rejected [stamped] , 18 
Discharged:  , 18 

Application filed:  , 18 

List of 182 request of reason for rejection: collecting grievances for army- not considered military service  

Alleges: 
Re-enlisted:  

Attorney: 
P.O.:  

Recognized.       Contract. 
Cert. of Dis.        Searched for  , 18.
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Benjamin Johnston 
Va 

Rejected, See let 3 Sept 1833 
to: 
A.W. Quarrier 
Kanawha C.H. Va 
Act of June 1832
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Va 26.374 

Benj, Johnson  
5674 

Reg 1st serv in ad
2 lat reas not reft

Rejected 

A.W. Quarrier  

Kanawha C.H. 
Va 

5 Sept.
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We Andrew Connally and Geo. W. Summers residing in the County of Kanawha in the Commonwealth of Virginia, hereby certify that we are well acquainted with Benjamin Johnson who has subscribed and sworn to the above declaration; that we believe him to be seventy seven years of age; and that he is
believed and reputed in the neighborhood where he resides to have been a soldier of the Revolution, and that we concur in that opinion.
A Donnally
Geo W Summers
Sworn & subscribed the day and year aforesaid
in open Court
Teste A.W. Quarrier Clk
and the said Court do hereby declare their opinion after the investigation of the matter and after putting the interrogatories prescribed by War Department that the above named applicant was a Revolutionary soldier and served as he states: And the Court further certifies, that there is no clergyman or minister of the gospel, residing in the neighborhood of the applicant, and that Andrew Donnally George W. Summers who have signed the forgoing certificates are each residents of Kanawha County and are gentlemen [illegible] of the fullest credit, and that their statement is entitled to entire confidence.
In witness of all of which the Justices forming the said Court
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have hereunto set their hands in other Court the 13th day of August 1833 

David Ruffison
Louis Ruffison
James Yipon 
William Sullivan 

Virginia Kanawha County to wit: 
I Alexander W. Duavier, Clerk of the County Court of said County to hereby certify that the foregoing contains the original procuding of the said Court, in the matter of the application of Benjamin Johnson for a pension.

In testimony where of I have here unto set my hand and seal of office this 16th day of August 1833, and in the 58th year of the Commonwealth 

A.W. Duavier CLK
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A.W. Duavier 

2 Sept 1833 

AC 

Revol. 10 [last number smudged] 
DA 107
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Department of War
Pension Office
Apr 5 1833
Sir,
The declaration of Benj A Johnston [Johnson] has been examined and rejected upon the following grounds.
That his alleged service in collecting Beeves of the Army is not considered military service and of course, inadmissible-and secondly that he [illegible] named tours as not both amount to six months.
His papers are placed upon the files of this Office
James
A W Quarrier Esq
Clk C. Kanawha Co
Virginia
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4614 Lake Park Ave.
Chicago Ills.
March 5 1929
Com. of Pensions
Washington, D.C.
Dear Sir
Your letters of the 2" inst. giving records of Mills Wilks and Samuel Wilks are received and I thank you sincerely. They are beautifully done and very satisfactory
I am sending on seperate sheet all available information regarding Benjamin Johnson
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Benjamin Johnson
We can only guess at the date of his birth. When Lemuel gave his father the power of attorney just before entering the war in 1814, Lemuel was 32 yrs of age. He married Lucy Cox in 1806 age 24. If his father married at or about that age  (which was the average) he was probably born about 1758. Lemuel was born 1782. There is no way of finding the name of Benj. Johnson's wife. We have not been able to find any record of his death in Bedford Co. so far, but you will notice he is not mentioned after 1815 while the others are.
Possibly there may be a record
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of Valentine Cox that will help.  Some times Benjamin's land reached into Campbell Co. and he may have died there.  If, as is claimed, he was a Rev. soldier he must have enlisted from Virginia and
probably from Bedford Co
Sincerely
Mrs J. M. Eugenia J. Johnson