Guilford County NcArchives Military Records.....HIlton, James 1832 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 May 23, 2006, 3:57 am Pension Application Of James Hilton Pension Application of James Hilton, Natl Archives Microseries M804, Roll 1282, Application #S30484 James Hilton, a resident of Washington County, KY, aged 76: “That in the year 1778, in the County of Guilford, North Carolina, he joined Captain McAdow’s Light Horse company in the minute service in which service he continued for upwards of four years, during which time he was in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse and six different skirmishes with the Tories and British, as follows: 1st On Deep River we dispersed about 300 Tories and took about a wagonload of arms. 2nd We had a skirmish with the British Light Horse at a place called the New Gardens, when we fired upon the infantry in Guilford County. We lost ten or twelve men and killed a good many of the British. We had to give way and make the best retreat we could. 3rd We had a skirmish in Randolph County when we took five or six prisoners and some arms, and several killed. 4th We had a fight with Tories at the Soapstone Mountains when we dispersed them. 5th And a skirmish with [___] at a place called Tory Town; 6th and the last fight we had with the Tories was at the Rice Swamp [did he mean Raft Swamp?] about one hundred and fifty miles from Guilford, when we lost about one hundred men. Colonel O’Neal was our principal commander. We took about one hundred prisoners and killed about the same number in the fight and hung a good many also.” “During his four years service as a minute man in the Light Horse, for he served in no other capacity than a Light Horseman, he was under the following named officers: Captain McAdow, Captain Moore and Captain CLARK. We were commanded by Colonel Lee in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, where we were badly whipped. We were discharged from the service of the United States after the surrender of Lord Cornwallis. During the four years he was attached to the minute service, he was fully two years in actual service, yes and upwards, for it is a fact not to be contradicted that the Tories were worse in Guilford, Randolph and Orange Counties, than the British. Our principal officers were General Greene, Colonel Lee, Colonel O’Neal and the captains above named. He further states that he was born and raised on Deep River, North Carolina…etc.” The further declaration of James Hilton…now a citizen of Mercer County [KY]: “That in the year 1777 or 8, he cannot now recollect which, he entered the service of the United States in the minute service in Guilford County, North Carolina where his father then lived, in the company commanded by Captain McAdow of Light Horse and remained under him for about eighteen months, during which time he was in actual service in the field at least twelve months.” “He then joined Captain Moore’s company of Light Horse or mounted men, and served with him in actual service about the same length of time, then Moore was promoted in some way, and Captain CLARK took command of us, and he served with him until the end of the war. He is fully convinced that he was with CLARK in actual service upwards of five months. He further states that he belonged to the cavalry and was in the minute service, and he knows that he was out more than half the time, and he served faithfully nearly five years.” “It is impossible for him in his present situation to recollect all the different tours of actual duty, and the different marches and counter-marches they made, but the fact that he now exists is not more certain than his service in the War of the Revolution, and that was upwards of two years.” “He will state one or two additional facts not mentioned in his former declaration. He was wounded in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse with a sword or cutlass across the upper part of the forehead, the scar is plainly to be seen, at the same time his horse was shot down dead, and in extricating himself, he was struck with the butt end of a musket across the right shoulder by one of the enemy and fell, but was quickly relieved by his comrades, and the British soldier shot dead.” “He also states that he received another slight wound in the skirmish the New Gardens, across the right thigh. In this affair, the enemy brought the cannon to bear upon us, and their guns were so directed that the limbs of the black jack, or oak, as they are called, fell thick upon us.” “In the conclusion, he does not now remember the precise time under the command of General Greene and Colonel Lee. He cannot recollect the names of the places where he served, his recollection has greatly failed him, and he refers to his previous declaration in connection with this, and lastly, if any old soldier is entitled to receive the benefit of the act passed for them as soldiers and patriots of the Revolution, his is one of that number…” File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/nc/guilford/military/revwar/pensions/hilton39gmt.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/ncfiles/ File size: 5.4 Kb