Morrison's Pensions


Pension Application of Philip Miller

R7220
Declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the Act of Congress passed June 7, 1832.
State of New York
County of Essex
            On this 13th day of January 1835, personally appeared in open court before the Judges of the Common Pleas of said County now sitting Philip Miller a resident of the Town of Elisabethtown, County & State aforesaid aged 70, 10th of last February 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, 1832.
            That he entered the service of the United States under the following named officers & served as herein stated.
            The highest officer in command he knew was Levi Stockwell (1) who called himself Captain Commandent & Stockwell was called Captain from the first of his calling himself such & from his being the highest officer but it was understood that Stockwell was Lieutenant in the Regiment to which he belonged & acting as such at Fort Stanwix this applicant has heard Stockwell (2) say the same himself & that he was a Continental Officer & that he was sent to Command the men at the station at Skenesborough & this applicant has recently been informed that Levi Stockwell’s Colonel was Harper & this information is such that he believes it to be correct.  Lieutenant was Thomas Boggs first Serjeant was John [Undes?] 2d Thomas Miles 3 was Tyrrel (3) Commissary was Gillet, Quarter Master Serjeant was Abraham VanDeusen—no other officers recollected—entered the service on the last of May 1779 & left the same on the first of January following & that he served not less then seven, 7, months as a private—He was then a resident of the town of Granville N.York—he went as a substitute for John VanDeusen who had been drafted & engaged this applicant to take his place & was received by said Stockwell as a substitute for said VanDeusen this applicant went volunteerily  by the consent of his father—he was engaged in no battles, had no marching, stationed with about 100 others at Skenesborough (now Whitehall NY) & quartered in Skeens (4) buildings a [?] stone house & other buildings—Duties were scouting, guarding the frontiers observing the movements of the enemy, keeping guards & giving alarms to the militia by sending expressed to Col [Alexander]Webster (5) who then lived in Hebron N.Y. who would then immediately order the militia to Skenesborough which he as many as 3 times while this applicant was in the service.  The Militia while there performed the same duties as those stationed there.  Some of the militia in scouting would occassionly come to the station & after a short stay left—Stotckwell [blotted] [?] & them were at Skenesborough 4 or 5 miles from the Station which was at the lead of Lake Champlain—This applicant knew no regular officer at the above mentioned—No Continental regements or companies at that place &b knew none except one company which came from Fort Edward & staid there one month.  This applicant has not documentary evidence & knows of no person who can testify to his service except Nathaniel Miller whose affidavit is here with sent this applicant was born at what is now called Mount Washington in the State of Massachusetts born in the year 1764—has no record of his age—lived in Granville, N.Y. when called into the service & since then he came to Skenesborough & moved from there to Ticonderoga N.Y. from there to Shorehans VT & from there to Elisabethtown, NY where he now resides he was called into the service as a substitute for John VanDeusen he knew no regular officer or Continental or militia regiments other than the above stated & recollects no other general circumstances of his service.
            Received no written discharge &b had no commission—William Brown, Thomas Brown I.[?] lives here in his present neighborhood &b well know this applicant &b can certify to his character for truth & veracity & their belief of his service as a soldier of the Revolution—there is no particular reasons for the witness of this application except the difficulty of & trouble of it & the shortness of his term of service & he would [?] of the  [?] to which he would be entitled.
            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.
(Signed) Philip Miller
            Sworn to & subscribed the day & year aforesaid in open Court  before the Judges of the same.
Edw Cuyler, Clerk
State of New York
County of Essex SS
            Manaah Miller of Elizabethtown in said county being duly sworn says that he is directly interested in a claim for some arrears of Pension supposed to have been due to Philip Miller at the time of his death, which event took place in the town of Elizabethtown Essex County NY on the 19th of August 1845—That he left a widow whose name was Dorcas Miller to whom he was married about 59 or 60 years ago and she died on the 19th day of November 1850 leaving the following children VIZ Charles Miller, Susan Goodrich, Manaah Miller, Philip S. Miller, Nathaniel Miller, Nicanar Miller, Stephen Miller.
            This deponent appoints P. Douglas Woodward of Plattsburgh N.Y. to examine all papers in the pension office or elsewhere, relating to said claim, and to act as his Attorney in obtaining a certificate for the amount of pension to which the aforesaid children maybe entitled.  Witness my hand &b seal this 18th day of March 1853.  In presents of O. Kellogg.  Manaah Miller
            Sworn and subscribed and acknowledged before me this 18th day of March 1853 and I certify that Deponent is a credible person & that I have no interest in the result of the claim to which the above affadavits relates nor am I concerned in its prosecution.
M.F Nicholson Justice Peace

End Notes by James F. Morrison

  1. Levi Stockwell was captain in Colonel Henry K. Van Rensselaer’s Regiment of New York State Levies in 1779.
  2. Stockwell was a first Lieutenant in the Third New York Continental Regiment in the Third Company.  He was at Fort Stanwix during its siege in August of 1777 as well as before and after the siege.
  3. There are no known payrolls or muster rolls for this regiment so it is not possible to identify these men.  Only the officers are known.
  4. Loyalist Philip Skene.  Skenesborough was named after him.
  5. The First Regiment of Charlotte County Militia.  In 1784 Charlotte County was changed to Washington County in honor of General George Washington.
  6. There was a payroll for Stockwell from January 1 to January 15, 1780 and Philip’s name is on that list as well.

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