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REVOLUTIONARY WAR APPLICATION - JOHN ZINN
Contributed by:  Beulah Franks

State of Kentucky, County of Grant

On this 12th day of May 1834 personally appeared in open court before the 
Justices of the County Court of Grant, now setting John Zinn, a resident of the 
County of Grant and State of Kentucky, aged about 71 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 Act of Congress passed June 1832. That he entered 
the service of the United States under the following named officers and served 
as herein stated, that is to say, he arrived in the month of January 1780 at a 
Station called Riddle's Station [Ruddle's Station], which is situated at or near 
the junction of Hinkston and Stoner which forms what is called the south fork of 
Licking River; the place of the station being now in the county of Bourbon and 
State of Kentucky, but then in the District of Kentucky, and State of Virginia, 
and was immediately called as a minute man in the Militia of the State of 
Virginia, under the command of Captain Isaac Riddle, Lieutenant Casper Casner 
and an Ensign whose name is not now distinctly recollected, but he thinks his 
name was David Patton. He does not know to what regiment he belonged or who was 
the field officer at the time, since there was not any field officers at the 
said station, nor was there any other company there save the one to which he 
belonged, but he had understood that Colonel Benjamin Logan was the Colonel of 
the regiment, but he cannot say whether he ever understood so before his return 
from captivity. Sometime in the latter part of the month of February 1780, in 
consequence of a suspicion of being attacked by the Indians, the aforesaid 
Captain Riddle called on this declarant to enter upon military duty, and this 
declarant did immediately in a regular manner enter upon the same and served 
under the said Riddle with the aforesaid Lieutenant and Ensign in the aforesaid 
Riddle's Station, and continued to serve until, as well as this declarant now 
recollects, the 24th day of June 1780 or near that time, his service consisted 
in guarding the station and hunting for the support of the station, say he 
guarded his turns and hunted his turns; there was however some times during the 
aforesaid period that the guarding was very slack, rather a guarding in manner 
than a guarding in fact, but this declarant considered himself as regularly in 
the service all of the aforesaid time and actually under the orders of his 
officers. On or about the 11th day of March 1780, as well as this declarant can 
now recollect, the Indians attacked the said Station and continued to operate 
against the Station until late in the night and succeeded in wounding one man 
only named Andrew Beard. He was shot in the right side of the breast and the 
ball lodged inside the skin on the back and Captain Riddle cut it out and he 
recovered. The Indians, although they did not succeed in killing any person in 
the Station, did succeed in killing a number of cattle, sheep and a few dogs and 
carried off a number of horses. On or about (as well as this declarant can now 
recollect) the 24th of June 1780, Captain Bryd of the British, accompanied by 
about 150 or 200 British regulars, also ? pieces of cannon, and near about 500 
Indiana arrived and attacked the said Riddle's Station; beginning the attack 
about ? and ending about three o'clock when the forces in the Station 
surrendered. There was no one in the Station either killed or wounded before the 
surrender, but as this declarant was informed by others, there was some 3 or 4 
who was old and sick killed by the Indians afterward on the day after the 
surrender aforesaid. The British and a part of the Indians marched for Martin's 
Station which they succeeded in taking as this declarant afterward learned from 
persons who said they were taken at said Martin's Station, and also from British 
soldiers he learned the same fact. At the time that the British set out for 
Martin's Station, the prisoners taken at Riddle's Station (say about fifty or 
sixty effective men bound to military duty and between one hundred and one 
hundred and fifty others consisting of old men, women and children) was 
apportioned out in small parties among the Indians who was to proceed in small 
parties to Detroit. This declarant and one other prisoner (soldier) was given in 
charge of three Indians who tied us and proceeded down the South Fork of the 
Licking River to the mouth of Raven Creek (by land), where we took bark canoes 
and descended the river at its mouth and crossed the Ohio River and landed about 
where Cincinnati, Ohio now stands, then we passed over by land to Detroit where 
we arrived near the first. Although we were tied when we first set out, we were 
tied only about five or six days, the balance of the time we were guarded 
without being tied. After this declarant had arrived at Detroit, the others 
which had been taken at Riddle's Station continued to come in detached parties 
for several weeks (this declarant does not think that all ever arrived) when the 
British Captain (Byrd) and his company, together with some Indians arrived with 
the prisoners which they had taken at Martin's Station (say about or near the 
same number which had been taken at Riddle's Station when all was kept guarded 
in a ring of a picketed fort for a considerable time (time not recollected)when 
something like half was sent off to the Falls of Niagara and the balance was 
permitted to go to work for their support, but was watched in such a manner as 
totally to put it out of their power situated as we were to make our escape, and 
if there was any who would not work for their support it was understood that 
they would be still confined, but all who was left did work for their support so 
far as this declarant was informed. We were scattered about among the 
inhabitants just in proportion as they could make our labor profitable to 
themselves. Thus those of us who was left remained until about May 1781 when 
there was a considerable number of those who were left last fall taken on board 
of the ? and was or was intended to be conveyed to Quebeck, the balance still 
remaining as before their working for their support at Detroit and neighborhood, 
but so arranged among the whole ? as to make it impossible for them to leave and 
return home, so that this declarant and those who remained was kept as prisoners 
of war until the close of the Revolutionary War and until the news of peace 
reach Detroit, which this declarant now thinks was sometime in the year of 1785, 
the period of the year not now recollected, but when the news of peace did reach 
Detroit in an official manner, this declarant, as well as all of the other 
prisoners that remained, were informed that they were at liberty to return home 
or remain at their pleasure and many did return so soon as they could obtain the 
means, and some remained. This declarant and seventeen others after having 
obtained the means and provided themselves in such a manner as they thought they 
could with safety encounter the wilderness, did on the 28th day of June 1784 set 
out for the United States (the names of all of the seventeen not now 
recollected) and traveled to the head waters of the Allegheny and then down that 
stream until it could be navigated with canoes, when we made bark canoes and 
then descended in the canoes to Pittsburgh where we separated and went in 
different directions. This declarant and four others descended the Ohio River to 
a place then called Limestone, now Maysville, and then went by land to 
Lexington, State of Kentucky, where we arrived on the 14th day of August 1784 
(the four who accompanied him was Richard Rue, Benj. Cottinkon, Ranson Tinsley 
and Thomas McGurire). This declarant may not be considered as having been in 
actual service all of the time which he remained in the Station from the time 
when he was first called on, say from latter part of the month of February 1780 
until the 24th day of June, same year, but he will say that he was regularly 
called and was actually in the service of the United States not less than two 
months and was while so in service and acting against the enemies of the Unites 
States taken a prisoner of War and detained as such until the close of the war 
and until the independence of the United States was acknowledged by Great 
Britain. When the news was officially received by the constituted authorities at 
Detroit so this declarant will say that he served the United States as a private 
soldier in the year 1780, not less than two months and was taken a prisoner 
while fighting in the service of the United States and detained six months in 
the year 1780 and in the year 1781 twelve months and in the year 1782 twelve 
months, so that in all he was with said service two years and eight months, 
leaving out the year 1783. It will be received that this declarant cannot give 
all of the dates, but this cannot be expected as many years have lapsed. He has 
no record evidence of his services, having received no discharge from his 
officers, nor does he know of an person now living of who he can prove all or 
any of his services except Michael Leonard and Elizabeth Franks, neither of whom 
can I with any convenience have at count nor do I know whether (from their age 
and circumstances) they will be able to recollect the service circumstantially, 
but I will procure their deposition at a future day. He has no record of his 
age, nor has he any other ? by which he can ascertain his age, except that his 
uncle, John Link, told him in February 1780 that he was over the age of 16, 
therefore he must have been born in the year 1763, but the time of the year was 
not ever known to this declarant, which is the reason that he says that he is 
about 71 years. He was born in the County of Berks in the State of Pennsylvania 
and was in the county and state when his uncle, John Links, took him to the 
County of Augusta, State of Virginia, and he has not seen his father since that 
time. He remained in Augusta, Virginia until about September 1779 when he moved 
with his said uncle to Riddle's Station, then in the District of Kentucky, State 
of Virginia, now in Bourbon County, Ky., where he arrived in the month of 
January 1780, and where he entered the service and was taken prisoner as before 
stated. He arrived at Lexington, Ky. from his captivity as before stated on the 
14th day of August 1784 where he remained until March 1785, when he removed to 
what is now Bourbon County, Kentucky, where he remained until the month of March 
or April 1789, when he removed to what was then Pendleton County, now Grant 
County, and State of Kentucky, where is has ever since resided and does now 
resided, say 45 years. His service was in the militia of Virginia. He never 
served with any other troops than the company to which he belonged, as he was 
taken prisoner and remained until the war was over. He never knew any of the 
regular officers or continental troops. For the reputation in his neighborhood 
of his having been a Revolutionary soldier he refers to the certificates which 
follows this declaration of James Howard, James Winnans of the County of Grant; 
their being in my neighborhood, no clergyman whose attendance he can procure. He 
hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the 
present and declares that his name is no on the pension role of the agency of 
any state or territory whatsoever. Sworn to and subscribed the day and year 
aforesaid. John Zinn

We, the undersigned, having heard the declaration of John Zinn, of Grant County, 
Ky., on the 12th day of May 1834, do hereby certify that we are well acquainted 
with said John Zinn and was so acquainted at the time Riddle's Station was 
taken, and do distinctly recollect that said Zinn was a soldier as he has 
stated, and that while he was a soldier he was taken a prisoner of war as he has 
stated in his declaration and obtained until the close of the Revolutionary War. 
Given under our hand this 27th day of May 1834.
Michael (X) Leonard, Elizabeth (X) Franks.

We, James Howard and James Winnans, resident in the County of Grant and State of 
Kentucky, hereby certify that we are well acquainted with John Zinn, who had 
subscribed and swoon to the above declaration; that we believe him to be about 
71 years of age; that he is respected and believed in the neighborhood where he 
resides to have been a soldier in the Revolution and that we concur in that 
opinion. Sworn and subscribed the day and year aforesaid. James (X) Howard, James (X) Winnans