America 250

-

 


Dear Reader,

I've been deep in the weeds writing the Conner family book, and sometimes the time is just perfect. As I traced my husband's Martin line back I found he has a Patriot ancestor, and what better time to share such a find than the week of the 4th of July. 

Meet Richard Martin Sr. He's my husband's 5th great-grandfather — and he's a Revolutionary War patriot.

Richard was born January 3, 1749, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Before the Revolution, his family had made their way south to North Carolina. I know he was already there by February 28, 1775, because a land grant record in Dobbs County puts him squarely in the colony while the political crisis with Britain was still building to a head. He was already an established landowner before a single shot was fired.

When the Revolution came, he didn't wait around.

On May 7, 1776 — less than two months before the Declaration of Independence was signed — Richard enrolled in the First North Carolina Regiment, one of the very first Continental Line regiments raised in the state. His service record card sits in the National Archives. By September 8, 1778, he's on the muster roll of Captain John Sumner's Company, 1st NC Battalion, commanded by Colonel Thomas Clark. Still there. Still serving. And then on June 12, 1782 — nearly the full arc of the war — a surviving pay voucher from the North Carolina State Archives records him receiving payment for his service.

Three separate military records. Three different stages of the war.

His gravestone gives his rank as Corporal. He's also listed by name in A History of Cabarrus County in the Wars, page 424, on the Revolutionary War roster. That marker still stands today at Poplar Tent Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Concord, Cabarrus County, NC — weathered and cracked, but still there. Find A Grave memorial #21366047 if you want to go look.

Richard died September 19, 1810, at age 61. He and his wife Mary Cowden had a son named Samuel Cowden Martin, born in 1776 — the same year Richard first picked up a musket. Samuel Cowden Martin would go on to become the first presiding justice of Greene County, Missouri in 1833, but that's a story for the book.

The chain from Richard to grandma Estelle Connor runs six generations. Six generations from a Corporal in the Continental Line to a woman I sat down with and interviewed about her life.

I'll be honest — I've been chasing this family for years and I didn't know he was there. It took a deep dive into the Martin line research for the book to finally surface him. That's the thing about this work. You think you know a line pretty well, and then you turn over one more rock.

What is also striking to me is that my husband and me both have deep roots in North Carolina and even Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. In a few years when he retires we will visit these places and I'll share those stories too.


America 250 Challenge

Fading Light

Many of you historical fiction readers are challenging yourselves in the Facebook groups to read America 250 books. This one would satisfy that challenge as this is about Captain Edward Beeson, but more importantly it's about the women who supported and loved him through it all.

Until next time,

Stock up on America 250

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

52 Ancestors: The Bridge Between Two Worlds--William Vaughn Cook

-
Image
  The Bridge Between Two Worlds: William Vaughn Cook's Journey from Missouri Pioneer to Chickasaw Citizen In the dusty archives of the National Archives and the faded pages of century-old census records, there lives a story that speaks to the heart of America's frontier experience—a tale of love, adaptation, and the courage to cross cultural boundaries. It's the story of William Vaughn Cook, a man who became a bridge between two worlds. A Mystery That Began in Kentucky Picture this: somewhere in the rolling hills of Kentucky, a family named Cook made a decision that would echo through generations. Ananian (or Ananias, as records sometimes spelled it) and Mary Cook packed their belongings and joined the great westward migration that defined 19th-century America. Like thousands of other families, they sought opportunity in the expanding frontier, carrying with them little more than hope and determination. But here's where their story becomes a genealogist's riddle...
Read more

52 Ancestors: Earliest Ancestor - Edward Beeson (1659-1712)

-
Image
  When I think about how far back I can trace my family tree with confidence, Edward Beeson stands as my earliest researched ancestor. While WikiTree may show lines stretching further into the past, Edward represents the furthest point where I've personally validated the research and feel confident in the documentation. He's my 7th great-grandfather, and his story spans two continents and three marriages during the tumultuous early years of colonial America. From Leicestershire to the New World Edward Beeson was born on February 24, 1659, in Thrussington, Leicestershire, England, to Thomas Beeson and Ann (Pecke) Beeson. He was christened the following year, on February 24, 1660, in the same parish where his family had deep roots. This was during the reign of Charles II, a time of religious upheaval in England when nonconformists like the Quakers faced persecution for their beliefs. Edward's early adult life was marked by both tragedy and new beginnings. Around 1681, at ...
Read more

Newsletter: His Greatest Regret

-
Image
"It started like a spark — hot, irresistible, impossible to ignore. But sparks burn out fast… and the ashes leave scars." When I wrote  His Greatest Regret , I wanted to explore what happens when grief and longing push two people together — not because they’re ready, but because they’re lonely, human, and aching to feel alive again. Richard and Charlotte’s love was never meant to last. It began as a spark: a widow and a widower, each carrying their own grief, finding an unexpected comfort in one another. What started as warmth grew into a fire that neither of them could control — and that fire left behind ashes that scarred everyone it touched. Most of all, it scarred William — the child born of that spark — who would carry the weight of Richard’s choices for the rest of his life. (William’s story comes next month — but you’ll need to catch up on what came before.) 🔥 Excerpt: Charlotte stood before the shop, her arms wrapped around an enormous flour sack that threatened to s...
Read more