REVOLUTIONARY WAR PENSION APPLICATION - SOLOMON & SUSANNAH BECKHAM Contributed by: James Heidlebaugh (heidleba@q-com.com) ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net *********************************************************************** SOLOMON BECKHAM, son of Simon Beckham and Susannah McMillian, was born 1764 in Granville Co, NC and died 25 Mar 1838 in Pike Co, GA. He was married on 20 Sep 1787 in Richmond Co, GA to Susanah Stacy Weathers. She was born 1770 and died 3 Dec 1845 in Pike Co, GA. Solomon Beckham was a Private during the Revolutionary War for Georgia in Captain Samuel Beckham's Company attached to General Elijah Clark Regiment of Rifleman. He was in the Militia Muster Rolls - 1793. ------------------------------------------------------------ The following is a tracnscript of the Revolutionary War Pension files in the National Archieves in Washington, D. C.. Although the application was made by James Beckham the only child of Solomon Beckham I have included it here because of the information it contains. REVOLUTIONARY WAR PENSION RECORDS BECKHAM OR BECKCOM, SOLOMON - No. R 697 - GA BECKHAM OR BECKCOM, SUSANNAH STACY Washington D.C. Mar 22, 1854 Sir; The application of Solomon Beckham under act June 1832, Georgia suspended file, I wish to be understood, it was suspended for want of proof from Milledgeville, Georgia, I wrote to his son Joseph C Beckham (This is the son of James Beckham and grandson of Solomon Beckham) on the subject. He replies as follows: I have repeatidly sent & written to Milledgeville for further evidence of service of Solomon Beckham and they invariable state that the evidence has been forwarded to Washngton City. The muster rolls, certificates, so I have been unable to prove any further testimony. Respectfully John S. Edwards Hon. L. P. Waldo Court of Pensions ------------------------------------------------------------ Declaration of James Beckcom alias Beckham only son and heir at law of Solomon Beckham and Susannah Stacy Beckham, his wife and widow. State of Georgia County of Pike At the Superior Court for said county personally appeared this trial day of May in the year A.D. 1852 James Becksom whose name is sometimes written Beckham a resident of said county aged in his sisty fifth year 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 the 7 Jun 1832 granting pensions to soldiers who served in the war of the Revolution and of the act of the 7 July 1838 extending such pensions to their widows. That he is the only son and heir of the identical Solomon Becham who was as he always understood & verify believed was a soldier in a company commanded by Captain Samuel Beckham attached to Colonel & General Elijah Clark, Regiment of Riflemen in the service of the State of Georgia in the war of the Revolution that his said father as he has understood & believed served in said company as declarant states that he has heard his father say that he enlisted for eighteen months & that he served considerable service after that time but how much service declarant does not know & cannot state the years when such service was rendered but says he thinks it was about the time the British were in proseession of the City of Savannah and was engaged in several skirmishes with the enemy & was at a subsequent time taken prisoner by the Tories. And Declarant further states that his said father was married as he has always understood & believes on the 20th day of September in the year 1787 to his mother Susannah Stacy Weathers & that the said documents of said marriage heretofore transmitted to the pension office & these as he is informed on file was taken from the family Bible and is in his father's own handwriting and is to the best of his knowledge an original & true record thereof and that the last figure of the year of the date of said record was torn off by Declarants wife without any purpose or design what was noting to this his application for a pension and Declarant further says that his said mother Susannah Stacy Beckham's real maiden name before her marriage was Weathers as he has always understood & believes but that his mother soon after the death of her father & whilst she was very young, having intermarried with on Major Spurlock the child was frequently called by his name - and Declarant further says that his said father, Solomon Beckham departed this life in said County of Pike on the 25th day of March 1838 (Note the 8 is hard to make out could be a 2 also) and that his widow & the mother of Declarant also departed this life in said County without having again married on the third day of December 1845 and Declarant further says that he was the only off spring of said marriage having been born of the 8th day of November 1787 & is the only son & heir at law of the said Solomon Beckham & Susannah Stacy Beckham both deceased. Declarant further states that he has heard his father say that he was not old enough to bear arms but was shot at by some Tories at his father's, through emnity to his brother Captain Samuel Beckham & feeling unsafe to remain at home went & joined his brother's company under Colonel or General Elijah Clark & remained in the Company from that time till the close of the war. And that he has often heard his father say that he was the one of the guard who was conducting some Tory prisoneers to Savanah during the session of the Legislature or Assembly as it was perhaps then called when they were met by a Mr Paddy Carr with an order to Captain Samuel Beckham then commanding said guard to deliver up to him (the said Carr) one of the said prisoners whose name he thinks was Josiah Ambrose who had killed a lady (Declarant thinks her name was Mrs. Dooley) while in bed thinking it to be her husband. After knocking off the irons from the prisoner the said Carr hung him up to a tree in presence of the guard. Sworn to & subscribed this day or year aforesaid, James Becksom And the said court to hereby certify that the Declarant James Beckcom is one of the most worth citizens of said county being a man of large family & respectibility & unimpeachable truth & verocity - and the said court do hereby further declare their opinion that this said Solomon Beckham was a Revolutionary Soldier and served as above stated - this done & ordered in open court this 3rd day of May 1852. Jas Springer, Judge Pike Co Benson Roberts, J.H. William Anderson, JJC Wm O. Kircherik, JJC ------------------------------------------------------------ State of Georgia Pike County Wiley E Mangham Clerk of the Superior Court hold in at Zebulon in and for the county aforesaid do hereby certify that dates factury evidence has been exhibited to said court that Susannah Beckham the widow of Solomon Beckham, deceased, a Revolutionary soldier, whose marriage took place on the 20th, Twentieth of September A.D. (1787) Seventeen hundred & eighty-seven according to records in family bible which is hereunto annexed and who was intitled to half pay and service from the United States according to Acts of Congress of the third of March A.D. (1837) Eighteen Hundred Thirty-seven & the (7) Seventh of July (1838) Eighteen hundred & thirty-eight & subsequent acts of Congress extending said half pay and pensions to the widow of deceased soldiers of the Revolutionary War who had served in manner set forth in the Act of Congress of the Seventh day of June A.D. Eighteen hundred & Thirty-two, at the rate of dollars per month. But never applied for service the same was a resident of the county aforesaid on the third day of December A.D. Eighteen Hundred Forty-five that she left a son (and only legal heir of said deceased widow) whose name is James Beckham and who is now a resident of the county & state aforesaid. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set by hand & affixed the seal of my office at Zebulon, this the 5th day of January A.D. 1851. Wiley E Mangham, CIC Pike Co, GA ------------------------------------------------------------ (Part of Bible record contained in file) Solomon Beckcom and his wife then Susannah Stacy Weathers was married Sept 20, 178_. _______________ was born November 4, 1804 Matilda Hull Beckcom was born 23 Aug 1807 Solomon Beckcom, Junior was born October 1809 Thomas Bailey Beckhom ------------------------------------------------------------ Extant Surveyor's Records in Washington Co, GA Beckham, Solomon - Aug 6, 1792 - Adjoining S Beckham Beckham, Solomon - Aug 6, 1792 - Adjoining Coventon, J ------------------------------------------------------------ The following are the Bounty Grants of Georgia for Solomon Beckham: 1783 - 340 acres in Washington Co, GA - Grant Book QQQ, Pg 708. 1787 - 200 acres in Washington Co, GA - Grant Book OOO, Pg 529. 1787 - 287 1/2 acres in Washington Co, GA - Grant Book OOO, Pg 530. 1790 - 300 acres in Washington Co, GA - Grant Book UUU, Pg 150. 1793 - 50000 acres in Washington Co, GA - Grant Book YYY, Pg 406-455. ------------------------------------------------------------ The following article came from Washington County, GA Land Warrants, 1784-1787: Solomon Beckham, 200 acres Bounty Warrant Renewed ------------------------------------------------------------