The Portland daily press., 1896-05-23
REVOLUTIONARY PATRIOTS.

Capt. Coombs and His Company-North
Yarmouth Militia Drafted in 1776-Sol-
diers From the Eastern Part of Cumber-
land County.
Capt. Peter Coombs, with company of
thirty two men from Brunswick, marched
to Harpswell, Oct. Is. 1775, with two other
companies, because of an alarm that it was
expectedithat the British cruisers were to
visit that town. That was the same day
that Capt. Mowat burned Falmouth, and he
had been cruising to the eastw ard before
he came here. The soldiers remained at
Harpswell five days, and the next year the
selectmen of the town petitioned the Gen
eral Court for funds to pay the men for their
services, saying that the town was not able
to assume.the expense, and giving as a rea-
son that the multitude of grasshoppers had
destroyed their English grain and they
would hardly raise enough for seed for the
next year.
In 177S Capt. Coombs is said to have served
nine months in Washington's army at Fish
kill, n. Y.
| In 1850 Capt. Coombs raised a company for
Col. Joseph Primes regiment and served I'M
der Gen. Peleg Wadsworth either at Thorn
aston, Camden or NIachias. Capt. Isaac
Parsons company was at Thomaston, and
their service was published in the PRESS
March 80, 1926. Five companies of the regi
ment were stationed here at Falmouth Neck,
and their service was published in the
PRESS, March %, 1896
The following roll of Capt. Coombs's COM
pany has been preserved in the Mass. AT
chives, VOL 80, Page 253, but as there were
three or four men at Brunswick named Pc
ter Coombs, at that time,we cannot identify
the man, but will leave that to some one
familiar with Brunswick history.
GA Pay Roll of Capt. Peter Coombs's Com
pany of 1t. Col. Primes Regt. under the
command of Brig. Gen. Wadsworth, A. D.
1850 and 17S1.'
| Capt-Peter Coombs.
1st Lieut.-Enos Chandler.
| End Iieut.-Jeremiah Colburn.
| Sergts.-James Sherman, Fields Coomber,
Nathl. Weeks, Peter Wyer.
Corps.-Michael Doyle, VIM. Baston, Asa
Miller.
Drummer-Jacob Brown.
Ffer-Benjm. Brown.
| Privates-Andrew Hooper, Joshua Bran,
Joshua Lake, Joseph Mann, Joseph Toulbot,
John Sawyer, Josiah Wyman, William Ring,
Joseph Shaw, Ammi Prince, Nathan Prince,
John Dr1nkwatep, David Woodward, Slavery
| Wilson, Paul Allen, Joseph Penley, Daniel
| Weber, Timothy Bester, EphIaim Small,
| Samuel Small, John Freeze, Jose ph Ross,
| Comfort Vieets John Ball, Ephraim Stimson,
Richard Stimson, John March, VIM. Col
burn, jeremiah Colburn, Jr., John Mitchell
Moses Brown, John Harris, Daniel Eaton.
Beginning of service May %, 1880, served
eight months and the wages of the privates
was two pounds per month. These men
probably enlisted from the towns in the
eastern part of Cumberland county
NORTH YARMOUTH MILITIA IN 1776.
On Nov. ID, 1776, the General Court passed
an Act providing for reinforcements for the
Continental army, which called for one
quarter part of the militia of the various
counties, "to serve for the term of three
months at New York OF Rhode Island"
A soldier at Falmouth Neck wrote in his
diary under date of Nov. Of, DRAFTING
militia to go to New York" Parson Smith
wrote in his journal few days later, Dec.
4, "Every fourth man is drafted for the az
N.Y.
This was troublesome time with the pa
triots of 17T6. The Americans had been de-
feated in the battle of Long Island in Au-
gust, driven through New York city, fought
the battle of White Plains Oct. IS, and were
defeated; Fort Washington was captured b V
the British Nov. 16, and the army then re-
treated to Peekskill after which our army
crossed the Hudson river and fed through
New Jersey, pursued by the British. Many
men We're leaving our army discouraged at
the prospect, until the last of November,
when there were scarcely three thousand
men left except detachment left at White
Plains. This was the condition of affair
when this draft was ordered.
The following may not have been the men
drafted, but list of men who were enrolled
| in the Second Militia company of North
| Yarmouth, as it seems hardly probable that
that town should have SO many men able to
do military duty at that time; but we will
leave that to be investigated by others and
publish the list as it appears in the Mass,
Archives, Vol. 80, Page 1O7
"The following is list of the Quarter
Part of the Second Company of Militia in
North Yarmouth in the County of Cumber-
land, Apportioned by Lot to serve in Re
enforcement to the American Army Agree
able to a Late Act of the General Court"
Lieut.-John Soule.
Col.-Jonathan Mitchell.
Corps.-William Sweetsir, Onesiphorns
Fisher.
Sergts.-Thomas Rose, BENZ. Humphrey,
Fifer-Seth Blanchard.
Corp.-Isacher Winslow.
Seth Griffin, William Rogers Paul
Prince, Jr., Solomon Williams, Gilbert Wi n.
slow, Jr., Ambrose Talboat, Jr. John Loach
Jr., Daniel Carter, Jr., lothian Mitchell |
Amos Sylvester, Jr., Thomas Prime, Johr
Bartoll, John Hamilton, Ichabod Soul
Jasper Marston, Joseph Brewer, Thomas
Dinsmore, Rheuben Brown, william Weeks
Peter West, Jr., Amos Clough, Abner Den.
nison, Jr., Amos Prime, Thomas Curtis
Jr., Benjamin Stubs, John Larrabee, iona.
than Soul. James Curtis, Thomas Pratt
David Harvey, Joseph Titcomb, Benjamin
Fogg, Samuel Drinkwater, Ephrim Brown
Saml. Scales, Abner Merrill, Joshua John
son, Jno. Cover Croker, Daniel Drink
water William Todd, Stephen Moulton, Saml
Fellows. Solomon Lorine. ,Ir Johr