Happy Fourth of July, everyone! In honor of our nation's Independence Day, I'd like to share with you part of the widow's pension application of my 6th great grandmother, Mary Scott Bentley. Mary was the wife of Revolutionary War Patriot (and my 6th great grandfather), Jesse Bentley (1748-1836). Jesse was a Private in Captain Gray's Company, 11th Virginia Regiment. He entered the Continental army in about 1767. He was present at the siege of Savannah and Augusta, and served throughout the war. Jesse died on May 23, 1836.
According to Mary's pension application, Jesse and Mary's house burned down in 1805, and everything was lost. They were, however, able to save one incredible genealogical treasure: the family bible.
Mary tore out the family record pages from the bible and sent them in with her pension application. The entire application, along with the bible pages, lives at the National Archives and has been scanned and made available on the internet (I found this file at both Ancestry.com and Footnote.com).
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The top left record on this page shows the birth of
my 5th great grandfather, John T. Bentley |
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The top left record shows the marriage of my 5th great grandparents,
John T. Bentley and Mary "Polly" Maxey (m. October 23, 1807) |
I love discovering documents that detail my family's part in the early history of our nation. It's even more fun when they offer information detailing important family details and relationships. I'm learning a lot about my 6th great grandparents, Jesse and Mary Bentley, and will share more with you all in future posts.
Meanwhile, have a great Fourth of July!
What a thrill for you to find! Sending in actual Bible pages must have been more common than I would ever have imagined. I found some in one of the Civil War pension files I recently examined at the National Archives. Stunned me, but documenting the relationships for the War Department and getting that pension was far more important than keeping it. And it may be the only reason we can still see them.
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