Guilford-Randolph County NcArchives Military Records.....Eirwin, David Revwar - Pension ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/nc/ncfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Nancy Poquette npoq@hotmail.com June 16, 2006, 1:35 am The Pension Application Of David Eirwin, Natl Archives Microseries M804, Roll 907, Application #R3369 DAVID EIRWIN, residing in Hendricks County, Indiana, aged seventy-five years: “That he was drafted into the army of the United States in the summer of the year of the Battle of Camden [1780] and served as a private in the company of North Carolina militia commanded by Captain ROBERT MCLAIN, Lieutenant JAMES CRABTREE, other officers names belonging to the company not now recollected. The declarant, at the time he entered the service, resided in the lower part of Guilford County in the state aforesaid. He was drafted for three months. His company assembled at the time aforesaid near the High Hills of Santee River. They ranged through the country until the Battle of Camden, upon different scouting expeditions.” “That about one week previous to that engagement his company joined the main army commanded by General GATES near their place of rendezvous, at the High Hills of the Santee River, and with his company, incorporated with the main army, moved towards Camden. That the engagement began about 10 o’clock in the night previous to the main engagement. That in the morning his Company was brought to act in the battle [per Heitman, August 16, 1780]. He had 40 cartridges, and fired about 20 rounds before the militia broke ground. That out of his company, one man was killed and two wounded.” “From extreme old age and subsequent lapse of memory, he is unable to remember the names of any other of the regular as well as the militia officers with whom he was acquainted, and being illiterate, has since these events been unable to refresh his memory by reading, and for many years past has been deprived of the opportunity of conversing with those who knew anything of these events that transpired at the times referred to and to which he shall have occasion to mention.” “From the before described engagement, he returned to his father’s in Guilford County, where he stayed a few days, when he received orders to meet with his company at Bell’s Mill, 10 miles from his father’s residence, where they assembled, and in a short time thereafter, he was with the rest of his company, was discharged by his captain, and received a written discharge from him, which has long since lost, having served the term of three months. The day on which the before described battle took place he cannot recollect, but he remembers that on his return home, he subsisted on “ration ears” and that it must have been in August or September.” “That in the last of September or first of October of the same season after the Battle of Camden, the declarant volunteered for three months into a company commanded by Captain WILLIAM YORK, of the North Carolina militia, then residing with his father at the place aforesaid. That he served these three months as a private, except a short time he served as a sergeant, not less than two weeks. The officers he has entirely forgotten. The company assembled at one widow M. or W. ?Gee’s? and then marched to Litteral’s Barracks, where they remained nearly three months, when they took a scout up Deep River, until the three months expired, when he received a written discharge from his captain, which he has long since lost. That during this campaign he was in no engagement, nor met with no regular troops to his recollection.” “That in the summer of the year succeeding the Battle of Camden, the declarant again volunteered into the company commanded by Captain YORK, while residing in the place aforesaid, for three months, to serve as a private in the light horse. The principle object or rather cause of raising this company was to watch a body of disaffected, or Tories, commanded by one Colonel FANNING, and to which a brother of this declarant belonged, by the name of JOHN ERWIN, some years older than declarant and who resided about 20 miles from his father’s residence. The company assembled at Captain YORK’s. He does not recollect any other officer, except one Colonel DOUGAN was occasionally with the company. They were constantly engaged in their scouts or marches. The declarant with the company went down Deep River, up and down Tar River and Cane Creek in pursuit of FANNING. Near the close of the campaign, they came down on one side of Deep River and discovered FANNING’s forces on the opposite bank. There were shots exchanged from each side of the two forces, but owing to the width of the river at that place, no harm or injury resulted to either party. At the close of the expedition, he received a discharge from Captain YORK, which he has lost, certifying his faithful service for three months in this last campaign.” “That shortly after the termination of the last tour of service, Captain YORK informed declarant that he, with others of his company, were about to proceed to the house of declarant’s brother, JOHN, who had been associated with FANNING and to take him a prisoner, and proposed to declarant to go with a body of men and take him, himself, and command the expedition and thereby save his brother’s life and have him sent to Charleston to be exchanged for some prisoner there who was attached to the cause of liberty. Declarant accepted the proposition, and took a body of men and proceed to the residence of his brother, where they arrived in the night, surrounded the house, and declarant entered the house and took him prisoner and he had him delivered to Captain YORK, or to some other officer who had him with others, sent to Charleston for an exchange of prisoners. He served about one or two years. In this last adventure the declarant was not engaged but a day on such a matter…etc.” “…He is well acquainted with JOSHUA HADLEY [a Continental officer], the only living witness who has any actual knowledge of his services as a soldier of the Revolution…” File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/nc/guilford/military/revwar/pensions/eirwin161gmt.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/ncfiles/ File size: 6.4 Kb