Sister Rain’s Note:
This is the third story in a series about my search for an ancestor who was a Patriot in the American Revolutionary War. To read the previous posts, click on the following:
“Historical Society Of Pennsylvania“
“The Search Heard Round The World“
Once my husband had found a family book at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania showing that one branch of my family arrived in Philadelphia in the 1600’s, you would think the next step would be to simply look for any males of the right age during the timeframe of the war against the British. However, traveling back in time is not easy, the further you go, the more difficult it is to not only locate information, but to prove that any data is confirmed.
Returning trips to the HSP finally paid off. There, in one of the family volumes, the name of my 5x great-grandmother, along with her parents. Her father, my 6x great grandfather was . . . I don’t think I can say it. He was . . . I don’t know how this happened. He was loyal to Britain.
Any difficulty I had in typing that pales in comparison to Mister Rain having to break the news to me. In all the years I had dreamt of an ancestor who played a role in our country’s independence, I honestly never considered that a relative of mine would have been on the other side. I understand why some were Loyalists. They wanted to protect their property. Many were professionals who depended on England for their livelihood. Some had family living in Britain. But still, I was very disappointed. Was this the end of my dream? If her father was with King George, his daughter and her husband must be too. Back then honoring thy father was a creed that was simply not ignored, especially by a woman. But then my husband came across a document stating that her father was opposed to her marriage to my 5x great-grandfather . . .
From “Genealogies of Long Island Families, Volume 2”:
“Having married in a disorderly manner, with a woman not in community with friends and without the consent of her parent.”
. . . because he was a Patriot. He was a Colonel in the Continental Army. The color of his coat was not red, it was blue.
We needed to corroborate the discovery, but I was cautiously optimistic. Maybe this patriotism I have felt in my very being since I was a young girl was not because of all the time I spent visiting historical sites during my childhood. Maybe it was DNA.
To be continued . . .
“This Colonel Is My Truth”
“Family Rarelooms
”Coat Tales”
“Proving My DNA To The DAR”
“Becoming A Daughter In My Fifties”
“My 5x Great-Grandfather Is An Exhibitionist”
“Certifiably Framed”
“Valley Forging Our Bond”
“Over The River And Through The Woods To My 5x Great-Grandfather’s Tavern I Go“
#sisterrain #alittlesightalotofheart #legallyblindwriter #ushistory #genealogy #philadelphiapennsylvania #historicalsocietyofpennsylvania #thesoninlawofliberty
