Kathy Wait Myers Genealogy» What: Military Service

James Waits Pension Application for the War of Independence

Kathy Wait Myers — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 03:36:00 +0000

This is the pension application for my 5th Great Grandfather James Waits (Waites) (1760-1855). His birth date in this deposition is stated as 1762, but his tombstone says 1760. His brother Charles birth year is listed in the documents that I’ve found as 1762, though, so I’m not really sure when he was born. I’ve also seen his birth town listed as Berkeley County Virginia, but that’s not what this looks like to me.

I’ve transcribed this document below, but you can click the image if you want to view a larger image and read it for yourself. The handwriting is difficult in places, especially when it comes to people and places, unfortunately. If you have a better guess of what it says in places, leave me a comment and let me know. Thanks!

Happy Independence Day!!

The State of Ohio Brown County Court of Common Pleas April Term 1833

On this 29th day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty three personally appeared before the honorable the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas in and for said county James Waits as resident of the count and state aforesaid aged seventy one 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 7th 1882 that in the month of May 1777 he entered into the service of the United States and served as herein stated – he served six months in the militia of Washington County Pennsylvania under Colonel Springer, deponent while serving in the militia was engaged in several skirmishes with the indians at Garrets Fort and on the waters of Whitely he was engaged the whole of the above tour against the indians. In March 1778 deponent enlisted in Fayett County Pennsylvania for nine months the whole of which time he served out under Captain Stoakley of Colonel Lauhery’s Regiment and General Broadhead’s Bridage or command. He was marched under the above named officers to Uniontown Hannah’stown Smiths Station and to wall’s station thence to Pittsburgh where he joined the main forces under General Broadhead, he was then marched up the Allegheny River to Catamon station where he apisted to build a fort Colonel Byard took command of the forces that marched up the river – deponent remained at this fort three months scouting against the indians. Deponent was then marched by General Broadhead higher up the river to Murrey town where the whites had a sharp skirmish with the indians, he was then marched to Pittsburgh thence to Hannahstown where he was discharged by Captain Stoakley who gave

________________________________________________________________________________page 2

Deponent a written discharge which he has long since lost.

In 1782 deponent states that he was out as a volunteer under Colonel Crawford against the indians at Sanduskey where Crawford was defeated. on this tour he was out six weeks. Deponent states that he has a written record of his age, that he was born in (Bertley?) County Virginia in March 1762 at the time he first entered the service of his country he lived in Fayett County Pennsylvania but served in Washington County as before stated. He never received but one written discharge which as stated has long been lost. Deponent knew Captains (Jacob?), Stoakley, and Springer, Colonels Lauherty and Byard, and General Broadhead. There is no clergyman living in the neighbor hood of deponent – he is well known to William Boyle Martin Bishop and others residents of Brown County by whom he can as he believes prove as good character for truth and veracity and that he is believed and represented in his neighbor hood to have been a soldier of the revolution – Deponent has procured the depositions of Philip Smith and Agnes Smith residents of Wayne County Ohio by whom he can prove part of his services which depositions accompany this declaration – he knows of no other living witnesses by whom he can prove his services – he has lived at his present residence in Brown County Ohio for the space of twenty eight years previous to which (??) he lived in Kentucky. Deponent has never received a pension he hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present and declares that his name is not on the pension roll of the agency of any state.

Sworn and subscribed the day and year foresaid in open Court. G. W. King Clerk

his

James X Waits

mark

We Charles D Mc Manaman and James Moorhead residing in the County of Brown and State of Ohio do hereby certify that we are well acquainted with James Waits who has subscribed and sworn to the foregoing declaration that we believe him to be seventy one years of age, that he sustains a good character for truth and veracity, that he is reputed and believed in the neighborhood where he resides to have been a soldier of the revolution and that we concur in that opinion sworn and subscribed the day and year aforesaid in open Court. G. W. King Clerk

C. D. McManamen

James Moorhead

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Obituary – William Henry WAITS (1845-1927)

Kathy Wait Myers — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:47:01 +0000

WILLIAM HENRY WAITS

William Henry Waits was born in Clermont County Ohio, September 29, 1845. He departed this life at his home in Ruby, Nebraska, January 30, 1927. Age 81 years, 4 months, and one day.

He was united in marriag with Mrs. Elvie Pitt, January 24, 1875. To this union seven children were born, four sons and three daughters. He came to Nebraska in 1873 and Homesteaded in Hamilton County. He later moved to Seward County, and has made Seward County his place of residence until his death.

In 1861 at the opening of the civil war he was in the struggles at Harper’s Ferry; he enlisted in Company H, 53rd regiment Ohio Volunteers and also served in Co. “F” 195th Ohio Regiment.

Mr Waits was a stonemason by trade laying the foundations of the Tishue Block, the Windsor Hotel, and was instrumental in building the Congregational church in Seward, Nebraska.

In 1893 he was converted, acknowledging Jesus Christ as his Saviour, and united with the Methodist Episcopal church at Ruby, Nebraska. He remained a faithful member of that great branch of the Christian faith until his departure.

He leaves to remember him as a faithful husband and father, with the hope if Christ of a meeting beyond this life the following: his faithful wife and helpmeet; four sons; Frederick of Seward, Simeon, Thomas and Edwin, all of Seward County, Nebraska. Three daughters, Mrs Lovina Lunney of Valley county, Mrs Rhoda Davis of Ruby, Nebraska; Mrs Lizzie Davis of Seward County. There are twenty-nine grandchildren, one great grandchild, two brothers, James and Thomas of Western Nebraska, with large company of friends and acquaintances.

The funeral services were held from his home in Ruby, Nebr., on February 1st, conducted by Rev. D. A. McCullough, pastor of the Seward Methodist church. Burial was in Ruby cemetery.

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Tombstone Tuesday – James WAITS 1760-1855

Kathy Wait Myers — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:47:43 +0000

James WAITS is my 5th great grandfather. In other words, he’s my grandfather’s grandfather’s great grandfather!

James was born in Berkeley County, Virginia (which is now West Virginia). His tombstone says he was born in 1760, but a deposition that I read in his Revolutionary War Pension file says that he was born in March of 1762.

In May 1777 when James was 17, he joined the American Revolution. He enlisted in the militia of Washington County, Pennsylvania and served six months under the command of Colonel Springer. During this time, he was “engaged in several skirmishes with the Indians at Garrets Fort and on the waters of Whitely.” He served again in 1778 out of Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

James applied for his pension in April 1833 and was eventually awarded a pension in March 1834 in the amount of $54.65 per year for his service in the War of Independence.

In 1781, he married Margaret Livengood in Washington County, Pennsylvania. She was born 3 Sep 1763 in Greene County, Pennsylvania. I don’t yet know who her parents were. James and Margaret raised eleven children and were married for 74 years. Neither knew how to read or write and signed papers with an X, known as their “marks.” Although they didn’t write out their names, their marks are definitely unique. James wrote his as an “and” sign like I use. Margaret used an X with swirly tips.

James WAITS signature, aka: "his mark"

Margaret Waits signature (aka: "her mark")

In 1782, James volunteered for military service again. This time, he fought in Sandusky.

In 1799, James and Margaret moved to Clermont County, Ohio along with his brother Charles who was also in the Revolutionary War. According to an article in the Clermont Courier, (July 1, 1885), James lived in Williamsburg and was always out for the Fourth of July celebrations.

In 1838, he is listed as owning 118 acres in Sterling Township, Brown County, Ohio. Nearby, were his brother Charles as well as James’ sons Charles (my 4th great grandfather) and Jacob.

James and Margaret lived in Sterling, Brown, Ohio for the remainder of their lives. James died on March 2, 1855 at the age of 95. He is buried at Taylor Chapel Cemetery in Sterling, Brown, Ohio. Section 1, Row 5, Grave 9.

After the death of her husband, Margaret filed for her widow’s pension at the age of 92. She died the following year on July 14, 1856. I’m not sure where she is buried.

I’d like to take a trip to Ohio soon, so I can visit his grave and find hers. Also, there is a book at the Batavia library in Clermont County that apparently has a wealth of information about James and his brother Charles as well as their families.

I’d also like to thank Footnote.com for blessing me with 58 pages of his pension file! Without them, who knows how long it would have taken me to see his X. It’s a remarkable experience to see an image that he touched so many years ago. Thank you!

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Clues on John W PITT

Kathy Wait Myers — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 23:10:40 +0000

I thought I’d check out Footnote.com today for something different. Within 5 minutes, I located Civil War pension cards for several of my ancestors!

My 2nd great grandfather William H WAITS’ card was especially interesting because it mentioned his wife Elve’s first husband John PITT.

All I’ve been able to find on John PITT so far, was that he was married to Elve and was the father of Samuel M PITT. No census information, no date of birth, death, or burial information. And yet here he is mentioned on WH’s pension card! Apparently, he served during the Civil War in Co K 58th Indiana Infantry.

Naturally, I immediately looked his card up to see what other information they had on him!

Here it is! But… I don’t get it. It looks to me like he died Feb 1, 1928. Could that be right? I guess I’ve always assumed that she was a widow when she met William. But if he was still living, then why would William be listed on his card? There’s nothing filled in about his widow, and I’m not sure what the 1st line of remarks means, other than 718192 matches William’s certificate number. It looks like he filed for benefits on Dec 7, 1885 five years before William did.

Can anyone shed some light on this? I don’t get it.

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Tombstone Tuesday – William Christopher WAITS – Civil War casualty

Kathy Wait Myers — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:04:07 +0000

Yesterday, I was drawn to my WAITS ancestors in Ohio and thought I would look through all of the records in www.findagrave.com that listed WAITS in Brown County, Ohio. It sorts them according to the name of the cemetery and I was almost immediately rewarded with a hit in the Batavia Cemetery. Here is a picture of the headstone of my g-g-g-uncle William C Waits and his wife Elizabeth L Leopold, courtesy of Kevin Guy; Civil War enthusiast and Find A Grave volunteer.

You may remember William C WAITS from this post [Photo Find! James G WAITS]. I told you about how they both fought in the Civil War. My g-g-g-grandfather James survived, his brother William did not. Previous information led me to believe that William died in an Army Hospital in Winchester VA, so the inscription “burried on battlefield” came as a surprise to me! So I decided to do a little digging and see if I could uncover the truth about his death.

According to this letter, William C was last heard from 4 Jul 1862 when he wrote his wife from the hospital at Winchester VA. I wonder what the letter to his wife said… what are the chances that it’s still around?

This is an excerpt from a letter written "December the 15th, 1862" from William and James' father Charles Waits to their brother Reason Waits. I don't know where the original is. This was given to me by my cousin, and is on page 5 of 24. Almost all letters are written to Reason Waits. I would love to see originals and/or the responses to these letters so we can paint a clearer picture of the discussions.

According to this book, he was reported absent after being sick in Cumberland MD.

The main source for this roster is the: Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1866. Vol. V., 54th-69th Regiments - Infantry. Akron, Ohio: The Werner Ptg. and Mfg. Co., 1887.

Yet another search on Ancestry.com uncovered this listing:

Name:	William Waits
Enlistment Date:	27 Dec 1861
Side Served:	Union
State Served:	Ohio
Service Record:	Enlisted as a Private on 27 December 1861 at the age of 33. Enlisted in Company B, 60th Infantry Regiment Ohio on 27 Dec 1861. Died of disease Company B, 60th Infantry Regiment Ohio on 8 Jul 1862 at Cumberland, MD.
Sources:	17,501Source Information: Historical Data Systems, comp.. American Civil War Soldiers [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 1999. Original data: Data compiled by Historical Data Systems of Kingston, MA form the following list of works.

So I guess I don’t really know why his headstone says that he was buried on the battlefield since he apparently died of disease in Cumberland MD. From what I’ve read about the conditions the soldiers of the 60th Ohio Infantry had to endure… forced marches… low supplies… that could have something to do with it. I also read that some succumbed to childhood diseases that they hadn’t been exposed to when they were younger. Either I read about someone having the mumps or I dreamed about it last night… foggy now. Hm.

Where did they bury people who died in an Army hospital back then? I searched on the internet for a couple of hours before deciding that I better just post this.

The Clarysville Inn near Cumberland was used as a military hospital during the time that William was hospitalized. They had a nearby graveyard, but those graves were moved to The Antietam Cemetery. But The Antietam Cemetery has their records online and he isn’t listed there. Hm. Maybe a helpful reader or long lost relative will help me figure that one out.

What I do know is that he left behind a family who loved him; a wife and at least three young children, along with his elderly father and 11 brothers and sisters.

Thank you for your service, William Christopher Waits. Rest in Peace, wherever you are.

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