Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Application File S. 18,566, for Jeduthan Rice, Massachusetts

SERVICE
NUMBER
Mass.
Rice, Jeduthan
S. 18566
Carded
CONTENTS
Twelve horizontal dotted lines for writing entries.
Twelve horizontal dotted lines for writing entries.

11.4.13
Jonathan Rice
Map
PO Photo of Munks
at $20.00
E. A. Clary Esq. Present
Jas W. Crook

BRIEF in the case of  Jeduthon Rice  Country of Hampshire  in the State of  Mass  (Act 7th June, 1832.)
 1. Was the declaration made before a Court or a Judge? Court  2. If before a Judge, does it appear that the applicant is disabled by bodily infirmity?  3. How old is he? 92 years  4. State his service, as directed in the form annexed. 
   Period. Duration of Service. Rank. Names of General and Field Officers under whom he served.   Years, Months, Days.     Enlisted as a volunteer In 1779 Oct. 1. 3 private Gen. Capt Holton on Haughton   3 " " Col Rand Capt Stearns   July 1 1782 1 " " Capt Holton on Houghton   Nov 1 1775 " " Capt Holton on Houghton  
 5. In what battles was he engaged?  6. Where did he reside when he entered the service? Hubbardston Mass  7. Is his statement supported by living witnesses, by documentary proof, by traditional evidence, by incidental evidence, or by the rolls? Traditional evidence  8. Are the papers defective as to form or authentication? and if so, in what respect? Correct 
I Certify that the foregoing statement and the answers agree with the evidence in the case above mentioned.
Jno Linton  Examining Clerk.  28th feby 1833

6908
Massachusetts Jeduthan Rice
of Franklin in the State of Mass who was a Private in the company commanded by Captain  of the  commanded by Col. Bane in the  time for 7  
Inscribed on the Roll of Spars at the rate of 23 Dollars 33 Cents per annum, to commence on the 4th day of March, 1831.
Certificate of Pension issued the 9 th day of Mar 1833 and Act 2 A Clare Present
Arrears to the 4th of Mar 1833 $26.66 Semi-ant. allowance ending   11.66 $58.32
{ Revolutionary Claim, { Act June 7, 1832.
Recorded by J. H. Blair Clerk. Book D Vol. 2 nd Page 96

Declaration, in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress, passed June 7. th 1832 - State of Massachusetts } Hampden County } ss. On the twenty seventh
A.D. 1832, personally appeared in open Court before Oliver B. Morris Esquire Judge of the Court of Probate within & for said County of Hampden, now sitting, at Springfield within & for said County of Hampden Sedgwick Rice, a resident of Springfield in the County of Hampden & State of Massachusetts aged Seventy two 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. th 1832.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers, & served as herein stated.
He was born in Sedbury, Middlesex County, State of Massachusetts on the 6. th January 1760; has no record of his age except upon the Records of said Town of Sedbury, where he lived till he enlisted in the service of the United States, for three months; he enlisted at Hubbardston, Ms. October 1. 1779, in the Company of Capt. Norton or Houghton of Petersham Ms. his Lieutenants were John Stone and — Tobey; among those who enlisted with him, were Daniel Woodward, Levi Mead, John Blanchard & Thomas Durant, from the same town & enlisted at the same time, but it is believed that none of them are now living. He entered the service soon after the destruction of Schoharrie by the Indians & his Company & others went for the protection of the inhabitants in that part of the Country. The Company was raised by voluntary enlistment in Hubbardston & other towns in Worcester County Ms. and marched through Northampton, Great Barrington H. Ms. to Albany N.Y. and encamped on Albany Flats, so called for two or three weeks. Said Rice then marched with his company up the Hudson river and encamped on the North side of the Mohawk river, near its mouth, at a place then called Miskeena, and remained there several weeks, waiting the movements of the Indians, but had no engagement with them. — from there he returned to Albany Flats & remained there with his company a few weeks performing camp duty, fatigue &c. after which they moved over the Hudson to Troy & joined the Regiment to which the Company belonged, believed to be the First Regt. of Infantry, Soon after joining the Regiment, his company was dismissed, having served out the time of enlistment & returned to Hubbardston.

He did not see his Field officers except when the Regiment was formed at Goy, upon which it was immediately dismissed; and does not remember the names of his General or Field Officers.
He enlisted again for three months, at said Hubbardston, July 1. 1780 in the Company of Capt. Ephraim Stearns of Petersham Worcester Co. Ms. and Lieutenant - Townsend, in the Regiment of Col. - Rand of Westminster Ms. He, with his Company joined their Regiment at West Point, N.Y. In his Company were Timothy Hale, Elias Prince, Ezra Pond, David Nug, Nathan Ball Samuel Metcalf & Benj. Clark who enlisted at the same time & belonged to Hubbardston; but but believes that none of them are now living. His Company was raised in Hubbardston, Templeton, Royalston, Petersham, Barre, Rutland & Westminster in said County of Worcester County. Marched from said Hubbardston directly for West Point & arrived there some time in the same month of July, but cannot remember the precise day; in his march passed through Northampton & G. Barrington to Fishkill. He, with a detachment from his & several other Companies, was ordered down the river to Kingsfury, about 15 miles below West Point; was at Kingsfury when Maj. Andre was arrested and remembers the circumstances of his arrest, trial & execution. Saw Genl. Arnold when he took his barge to on board the British ship lying in the river below; was constantly on duty till the expiration of his term of three months, when he was honorably discharged & returned home to Hubbardston his place of residence after his first enlistment till the close of his revolutionary services - was in no engagement during this campaign; was several times on scouting parties in different directions from the Point, up and down the river, to White Plains, Newburgh & other places; was often on fatigue duty & worked a number of days on Fort Putnam, and on a Redoubt, not far distant from the Point in a Westerly direction.
He enlisted also in the month of November 1778, at said Hubbardston, being his first enlistment & which should have been first stated in his Declaration, but was inadvertently omitted. This enlistment was for service to guard the British prisoners, in the Company of Capt. Holton or Houghton

and Lieut. Metcalf. He was in the service at this time one month. The Prisoners were taken in charge by his company at Nuttland & marched through Oakham, Brookfield, Palmer, Milford, Longmeadow to to Enfield Ct. where another party of troops from Connecticut seized the Prisoners & our company returned home, & were dismissed having been in the service one month. The Prisoners were a part of Genl. Burgoyne's men, most of whom passed through this State.
The said Rice cannot ascertain that any who were with him during either of his campaigns or terms of enlistment are still living, or if living, whose testimony he can procure as to his service; and he has no documentary evidence of enlistment or discharge; he was, in every instance discharged as he believes the Militia were generally, by an order read at the head of the Regiment. He served, during every period of his enlistment before mentioned, in the Militia or Massachusetts Troops.
In the year 1781 he removed to Sunderland, Franklin Co. Mass. where he lived about six years, & then removed to Montague, a town adjoining, where he lived till the year 1814 when he removed to Ludlow in this County where he lived till the year 1826 when he removed to Springfield, his present place of residence.
He is known to Col. Roswell Lee, Superintendent of Mass. Chapels Howard, Paymaster, U. S. Army, Springfield — Joseph Weatherhead, Master Armorer & Jacob Perkins an Inspector in said Armory — also to the Rev. Benj. Putnam a Clergyman residing in said Springfield, and the Rev. Nicholas Branch a Clergyman residing in the same town.
He hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present & declares that his name is not on the Pension roll of the Agency of any State or Territory.
Edw. Rice
Sworn to and subscribed the day & year aforesaid.

We Nicholas Branch a Clergyman residing in Springfield aforesaid and Charles Howard & Jacob Perkins residing in said Springfield hereby certify that we are well acquainted with Leduthon Rice who has subscribed & sworn to the above declaration; that we believe him to be seventy two years of age; that he is reputed and believed in the neighbourhood where he resides to have been a Soldier of the Revolution & that we concur in that opinion.
Nicholas Branch Charles Howard.
Sworn to and subscribed the day & year aforesaid. Jacob Perkins
And the said Court do hereby declare their opinion, after the investigation of the matter & after putting the interrogatories prescribed by the War Department, that the above-named applicant was a revolutionary soldier & served as he states. And the Court further certifies that it appears to them that Nicholas Branch who has signed the preceding certificate, is a clergyman residing in said town of Springfield and that Charles Howard & Jacob Perkins who have also signed the same are residents in said Springfield & are credible persons & that their statement is entitled to credit.
I Justin Willard, Register & Clerk of the Court of Probate aforesaid do hereby certify that the foregoing contains the original proceedings of the said Court in the matter of the application of Leduthon Rice for a Pension. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal of office this 27 th day of August A.D. 1832.
Justin Willard Register &c

P
18566
INVALID.
File No. 18566
Jonathan Rice
Rev New War
Act: June 7 th 29
Index:—Vol. / , Page 442
[Arrangement of 1870.]

BRIEF objections to the admission of Pension Claims, of which those answered in the negative, in red ink, will apply to the claim of Jeduthon Rice which require further proof or explanation.
I. Does the declaration show where the applicant resides? yes II. Did the declarant make the declaration in the county where he resides? yes III. If the applicant did not make the declaration in the county where he resides, is there any reason assigned for his not doing so? IV. Has the declarant mentioned the period or periods of the war when he served? yes V. * Has he mentioned 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? yes VI. Has he given the names of the officers under whom he served, in conformity with the regulations? yes VII. Has he made a relinquishment of every claim to any other pension than the one under the Act of June 7, 1832? yes VIII. Has the Court given their opinion? yes IX. Has the Clerk given his certificate? yes X. Is the Clerk's seal affixed? And if so, has it a device or inscription by which it can be distinguished from any other seal? yes

XI. Has the applicant obtained the evidence of a clergyman and another respectable citizen as to their belief respecting his age and the general belief in his neighborhood relative to his revolutionary service? yes XII. If the clergyman's affidavit has not been produced, is there any reason assigned for not obtaining it? XIII. If the applicant has no documentary evidence, and has not obtained the testimony of at least one living witness, has he stated in his declaration that such proof cannot be had? yes XIV. † If the applicant's name is not found on the rolls of military service, has he produced a witness or witnesses as to his service? If he has produced direct proof as to service, has the magistrate who administered the oath, certified to the credibility of the witness or witnesses? Has the proper officer certified to the official character and signature of the magistrate as the regulations direct? XV. Does it appear from any of the papers that the witness was in such a situation, or of such an age, as to have a personal knowledge of the applicant's service? XVI. ‡ Are the papers authenticated as the regulations direct? yes XVII. Are the seven interrogatories prescribed by the War Department answered satisfactorily? And, if not, which of them is not so answered? yes
 EXPLANATORY NOTES.
* QUERE V. 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 about three or four months is too indefinite, and all such qualifying expressions are objectionable. Some persons who apply for pensions merely state 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 shewn 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.
† QUERE XIV.  Proof of Service.
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 claimants 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.
‡ QUERE XVI.  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 paper 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.
¶ In every case where the clerk of the court, or other certifying officer, 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.