Morrison's Pensions

Pension Application for Wells or Wills or Willis Henry

W.21313  (Widow: Elizabeth)
State of New York
Otsego County SS.
            On this twenty ninth day of December in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred & thirty eight personally appeared before me the undersigned first, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in & for the aforesaid County of Otsego Elizabeth Henry a resident of the town of Cherry Valley, in the County of Otsego, and State of New York aged seventy nine 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 provisions made by the Act of Congress passed July 7, 1838 entitled “An Act granting half pay and pension to certain widows, that she is the widow of Wells Henry who has been dead thirty three years, August last past, and that, she has remained a widow ever since the death of her said husband, she further declares, that she was married to Wells Henry in the month of September 1780, at the house of Benedict Wescott in the town of Chatham in the County of Columbia that eh said Benedict Wescott died four years ago August last, & that the onely person now living, who, was present at her said marriage is Annis Wescott the widow of the said Benedict Wescott, & that, she does not know of any record of marriage, she further declares, that, Wells Henry, enlisted or was drafted in the service in the war of the revolution, before his marriage & that, he served eleven months as she was informed, by her said husband & that, he was, honourably discharged, that after his discharge, he returned to Cherry Valley, and from that he went the [to] Massachusetts, where he again enlisted as she was informed by her said husband, & served for ten months & that her said husband was in the Battle of Bennington & that from the information she has received her said husband served one year and nine months, that she believes the statements made to her by her said husband to be true.—(Signed with her mark)  Elizabeth Henry
            Sworn & subscribed before me this 29th day of December A.D. 1838 before me. J. D. Hammond, First Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in & fore the County of Otsego & State of New York.

State of New York
Otsego County SS.
            On this nineteenth day of December in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and thirty eight, personally appeared before me the undersigned one of the Justices of the peace for the town of Cherry Valley in the said County of Otsego, Archibald McKillep a resident of the said town of Cherry Valley in the aforesaid County of Otsego, aged eighty three years who being first duly sworn according to law, saith that he was acquainted with Wells Henry in the year one Thousand seven hundred & seventy five & for several years previous, this deponent, further saith, that in June one thousand eight hundred & seventy five, the said Wells Henry enlisted as a private in a company commanded by Captain Christopher P. Yates, in a Regiment commanded by Col. VanSchaick & in the seventh battalion of New York troops & that the Lieutenants in said company was, Andrew Fink & Peter Keyser, that the said Wells Henry enlisted in the Town of Pallatine in the county of Montgomery in the year aforesaid for six months, that after his enlistment  at Pallatine, he was with his company marched to St Johns in Cannada and was at the siege of the Fort at St. Johns until the surrender of the Fort, during all, which time the said Wells Henry [?] with this deponent that the siege of the Fort at St. Johns lasted six weeks & three days as this deponent now recollects that the Fort at St. Johns was commanded by a Major Prescott & the New York Troops were commanded by General Montgomery that after the surrender of the Fort, this deponent & the said Wells Henry with the company to which they belonged went into winter quarters at Chambley.  That after the expiration of the Six months the term for which the said Wells Henry enlisted, had expired, he again enlisted to guard the Fort at Chambley which was in the winter & remained there until sometime in May one thousand eight hundred & seventy six, that the said last enlistment was under Captain Elisha Benedict & that the lieutenants names were Georg Youngs & one Lt. Greene, Christian name not recollected, that this deponent was enlisted at the same time & served at the same time with the said Wells Henry & that the time of service of this deponent & Wells Henry amounted to eleven months this deponent further saith that he has understood that the said Wells Henry has been dead for many years.  (Signed) Arch’d McKillep
            Sworn to & Subscribed on the day and year above written before me.—William F. Thompson Justice of the Peace.

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