On October 7, 1780, the foundation that would forever change the world was established. Fewer than one thousand American Heroes, through skill, luck, and the leadership of cunning strategists, defeated Patrick Ferguson, a brilliant star of the British military might. David Allen was one of those Heroes.
His participation in the Battle of King's Mountain was documented by his Application for Revolutionary War Pension, S16601. Will Graves transcribed the application.
(Parenthetically, historians, genealogists, and descendants owe thanks to Will Graves for his hours spent transcribing the pension applications of American Revolution veterans. These papers were fragile and difficult to read, so this was a most difficult task, but so many people benefit from his efforts. Thank you, Will Graves.)
Southern Campaigns American Revolution
Pension Statements & Rosters
Pension application of David Allen
S16601 f28NC
Transcribed by Will Graves
6/17/06 rev'd 7/18/14
[Methodology: Spelling, punctuation and/or grammar have been corrected in some instances for ease of reading and to facilitate searches of the database. Where the meaning is not compromised by adhering to the spelling, punctuation or grammar, no change has been made. Corrections or additional notes have been inserted within brackets or footnotes. Blanks appearing in the transcripts reflect blanks in the original. A bracketed question mark indicates that the word or words preceding it represent(s) a guess by me. The word 'illegible' or 'indecipherable' appearing in brackets indicates that at the time I made the transcription, I was unable to decipher the word or phrase in question. Only materials pertinent to the military service of the veteran and to contemporary events have been transcribed. Affidavits that provide additional information on these events are included and genealogical information is abstracted, while standard, 'boilerplate' affidavits and attestations related solely to the application, and later nineteenth and twentieth century research requests for information have been omitted. I use speech recognition software to make all my transcriptions. Such software misinterprets my southern accent with unfortunate regularity and my poor proofreading skills fail to catch all misinterpretations. Also, dates or numbers which the software treats as numerals rather than words are not corrected: for example, the software transcribes "the eighth of June one thousand eighty six" as "the 8th of June 1786." Please call material errors or omissions to my attention.]
State of Alabama,
Franklin County
County Court of said County
Dec. Term 1832
On this Fifth day of December Eighteen hundred & thirty two—personally appeared in Open Court of the County of Franklin & State of Alabama, now sitting David Allen a resident of said State of Alabama residing in the Chickasaw nation & near the county line, aged about seventy three years (being now in his seventy third first year), who being first duly sworn in open court according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of congress passed June seventh Eighteen hundred & thirty two.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following officers & served as herein stated. That is he entered the service as [a] volunteer under Colonel Martin Armstrong in Surry County State of North Carolina, as well as he can definitely now state it was in the year Seventeen Hundred & Seventy Seven, & latter part—but what month he cannot say, but it was warm weather—at that time I think the company was commanded by a Lieutenant by the name of Adniram Allen [also spelled Adonirum Allen and Adnirum Allen]1 (who was brother to applicant). From that county we marched under Col. Martin Armstrong, to Moore's Bridge on Black River or creek—where we had an encounter with some Tories & defeated them [Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, February 27, 1776].
We then marched to Cross Creek, where all the prisoners we had taken were discharged on parole— we were thence remarched to Surry County, North Carolina.—Some short time after we were under General Butler [John Butler] called to South Carolina where Colonel Joel Lewis acted under General Butler—where near Charleston we joined General Lincoln [Benjamin Lincoln]. When with him, General Pulaski called for volunteers as light infantry, to strengthen the forces under Col. Malmedy [Francis de Malmedy, Marquis of Bretagne] who as under Genl. Pulaski. Here I think a man by the name of ___ Moore was Major.
I volunteered under Malmedy, we were marched thence to Georgia, crossing Savannah River just below Augusta, we marched down said river on the Georgia side to a place called Sunbury [perhaps a mistaken attempt to identify the Battle of Brier Creek, March 3, 1779], where we had an encounter with the British who were in the act of crossing the river, & their rear was in part taken prisoners—here we recrossed the river to the state of South Carolina, & moved on until we rejoined General Lincoln's forces, thence we marched under Lincoln to meet the enemy who were landed at Johns Island & we met them at Stono [June 20, 1779], where we found the enemy aided with a strong breastwork, we were ordered to storm the enemy's works & to rely solely on the bayonet--& as we were marching to do so we were met by two Brigades, or companies of Hessians and as we were in about sixty yards of the works against orders a firing commenced, the Hessians were vanquished, & we charged on to the enemies breastworks but they were reinforced from the island, we failed in storming their works and a general firing took place, after which we were ordered to retreat at which time I assisted in taking our Major from the ground, he was wounded in the thigh with a ball, canister or grape shot, & he died in a few days afterwards—I think his name was Moore.
We marched about in that part of the states for some time & at about two months thereafter I was discharged. I went home to my father's in Surry County North Carolina having been on service from the time I first entered about Eighteen months, part of the time I was on furlough, being what was called a minute man & always in readiness or in service-- -At Stono I rec'd a flesh wound in the left arm, which wound was inflicted with the enemies' bayonet.
In two or three months after all this I again volunteered under Colonel Benjamin Cleveland, who was raised in North Carolina. After the forces then collected to march were ready, one Arthur Campbell,(I think his name war Arthur) [probably a mistaken attempt to identify Colonel William Campbell] —took command as well as I recollect by election— our forces were divided into three parts, one under Shelby [Isaac Shelby], one under Cleveland(of whom I was one)--and one other party under Col. Williams [James Williams] (who was killed at King's Mountain). When thus arranged we all together marched to King's Mountain near the South Carolina line, there we had to fight [October 7, 1780], & vanquished the enemy completely killing Ferguson [Patrick Ferguson] the British Commander. We thence marched to Moravian town in North Carolina—there we disposed of the prisoners taken on parole.
We were then permitted to return home after some few months we were called on again & I was under the command of Major Micajah Lewis, under Col. Micajah Lewis we were scouring through the country in various directions, and Major Lewis was killed by a ball during the night. We were not again attached to any large body of forces. I was in a variety of skirmishes with the enemy & with Tories, after all of which I was regularly discharged, but I am not able to produce any documentary evidence of my discharge owing to the same having been burnt by a fire which consumed my father's dwelling shortly after my return home to Surry County, North Carolina. I cannot recollect Regiments or names of officers otherwise than as above stated. Lincoln, Pulaski, & Malmedy I think were the only regular officers under whom I acted at anytime during the revolution. I was in the service for more than two years & remained in the service until Cornwallis was taken--I was always a volunteer, some times under militia officers & sometimes under regular officers as above stated.
Sworn to & subscribed by applicant in open court 5 day of December 1832
S/ David Allen
The Court above, Gregory D. Stone, Presiding Judge, put the following interrogatories to the declarant David Allen, who seeks to obtain a pension as above mentioned.
Question by the Court:
1st Where & in what year were you born? Answer—I was born in New Jersey, I think as I have been told in Elizabethtown--I was a child when I left there. I think I was born in Seventeen hundred & Sixty One.
2 Question: Have you any record of your age, & if so where is it? I have a record in my bible at home some Eighteen miles distant.
3 Question: Where were you living when called into service? I was living in Surry County, North Carolina. Part of 3 Question: Where have you lived since the Revolutionary War, & where do you now live. I moved from North Carolina to Georgia, from there to Tennessee (Davidson County), and from there to Franklin County, Alabama, & I now reside just across the line between said county & the Chickasaw nation of Indians, where I live by permission from the Indian Chiefs of said nation-& I have lived at said places ever since the revolutionary war respectively as above stated.
4 Question: How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute, & if a substitute for whom? 4 Answer: I was a volunteer.
Question 5: State the names of some of the regular officers who were with the troops when you served; Such Continental & Militia regiments as you can recollect, & the general circumstances of your services. (Here the applicant answered in substance as he has stated in him foregoing petition)
6 [Question]: Did you ever receive a discharge from the service; & if so by whom was it given, & what has become of it? Ans. to 6: I received a discharge from Col. Malmedy which was burnt as above stated with my father's house.
7 Question: State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, & who can testify as to your Character for veracity, & their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution. Ans. to 7th Question: Applicant states that there is Hugh Pettit, sheriff of this county, & General James Davis, Michael Dickson, clerk of this court, & the presiding judge thereof John J. Winston, (General John Coffee of Lauderdale County Alabama) and many others, indeed almost all the multitude in the court — and also his Excellency, the President of the U.S., Andrew Jackson of Washington City &c.
This declarant David Allen hereby relinquishes every claim to a pension or annuity except to the present & declares that his name in not on the pension roll of the agency of any state, or any other pension roll whatever.
Sworn to & subscribed by the affiant
this 5th day of December 1832 in open court.
S/ David Allen
[Platt Stout, a clergyman, and Hugh Pettit gave the standard supporting affidavit.]
Of the State of Alabama Franklin County:
Know ye to whom these letters shall Concern whereas I David Allen living near the Chickasaw Indian line on the Indian side & near the boundary of the above named County, have applied at the late December term of the County Court of this County and made my declaration &c to get a pension as a revolutionary Soldier under the late acts of Congress – And do hereby authorize my son John L Allen (who is the Subagent of said nation) to demand receive & receipt for the same in my name as fully as I myself could do were I present in Washington.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 10th day of December 1832.
S/ David Allen
[Veteran was pensioned at the rate of $60 per annum commencing March 4th, 1831, for service as a private for 18 months in the North Carolina service.]
David was the son of David and Sarah Baker Allen. He married Ann McConnell and had at least three children: Thomas, John, and Sarah. Sarah married Thomas Lightfoot. The Daughters of the American Revolution designated David Allen as DAR Ancestor Number A212026, so his descendants are eligible to join the appropriate organization.
The burial site of David Allen has been lost to history. We have placed a Memorial Stone in his honor in the Cantrell Gilliand Memorial Garden. May this memorial serve as an expression of the gratitude we owe him for risking his life and braving the unknown to help build a new country: our America.
His participation in the Battle of King's Mountain was documented by his Application for Revolutionary War Pension, S16601. Will Graves transcribed the application.
(Parenthetically, historians, genealogists, and descendants owe thanks to Will Graves for his hours spent transcribing the pension applications of American Revolution veterans. These papers were fragile and difficult to read, so this was a most difficult task, but so many people benefit from his efforts. Thank you, Will Graves.)
Southern Campaigns American Revolution
Pension Statements & Rosters
Pension application of David Allen
S16601 f28NC
Transcribed by Will Graves
6/17/06 rev'd 7/18/14
[Methodology: Spelling, punctuation and/or grammar have been corrected in some instances for ease of reading and to facilitate searches of the database. Where the meaning is not compromised by adhering to the spelling, punctuation or grammar, no change has been made. Corrections or additional notes have been inserted within brackets or footnotes. Blanks appearing in the transcripts reflect blanks in the original. A bracketed question mark indicates that the word or words preceding it represent(s) a guess by me. The word 'illegible' or 'indecipherable' appearing in brackets indicates that at the time I made the transcription, I was unable to decipher the word or phrase in question. Only materials pertinent to the military service of the veteran and to contemporary events have been transcribed. Affidavits that provide additional information on these events are included and genealogical information is abstracted, while standard, 'boilerplate' affidavits and attestations related solely to the application, and later nineteenth and twentieth century research requests for information have been omitted. I use speech recognition software to make all my transcriptions. Such software misinterprets my southern accent with unfortunate regularity and my poor proofreading skills fail to catch all misinterpretations. Also, dates or numbers which the software treats as numerals rather than words are not corrected: for example, the software transcribes "the eighth of June one thousand eighty six" as "the 8th of June 1786." Please call material errors or omissions to my attention.]
State of Alabama,
Franklin County
County Court of said County
Dec. Term 1832
On this Fifth day of December Eighteen hundred & thirty two—personally appeared in Open Court of the County of Franklin & State of Alabama, now sitting David Allen a resident of said State of Alabama residing in the Chickasaw nation & near the county line, aged about seventy three years (being now in his seventy third first year), who being first duly sworn in open court according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of congress passed June seventh Eighteen hundred & thirty two.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following officers & served as herein stated. That is he entered the service as [a] volunteer under Colonel Martin Armstrong in Surry County State of North Carolina, as well as he can definitely now state it was in the year Seventeen Hundred & Seventy Seven, & latter part—but what month he cannot say, but it was warm weather—at that time I think the company was commanded by a Lieutenant by the name of Adniram Allen [also spelled Adonirum Allen and Adnirum Allen]1 (who was brother to applicant). From that county we marched under Col. Martin Armstrong, to Moore's Bridge on Black River or creek—where we had an encounter with some Tories & defeated them [Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, February 27, 1776].
We then marched to Cross Creek, where all the prisoners we had taken were discharged on parole— we were thence remarched to Surry County, North Carolina.—Some short time after we were under General Butler [John Butler] called to South Carolina where Colonel Joel Lewis acted under General Butler—where near Charleston we joined General Lincoln [Benjamin Lincoln]. When with him, General Pulaski called for volunteers as light infantry, to strengthen the forces under Col. Malmedy [Francis de Malmedy, Marquis of Bretagne] who as under Genl. Pulaski. Here I think a man by the name of ___ Moore was Major.
I volunteered under Malmedy, we were marched thence to Georgia, crossing Savannah River just below Augusta, we marched down said river on the Georgia side to a place called Sunbury [perhaps a mistaken attempt to identify the Battle of Brier Creek, March 3, 1779], where we had an encounter with the British who were in the act of crossing the river, & their rear was in part taken prisoners—here we recrossed the river to the state of South Carolina, & moved on until we rejoined General Lincoln's forces, thence we marched under Lincoln to meet the enemy who were landed at Johns Island & we met them at Stono [June 20, 1779], where we found the enemy aided with a strong breastwork, we were ordered to storm the enemy's works & to rely solely on the bayonet--& as we were marching to do so we were met by two Brigades, or companies of Hessians and as we were in about sixty yards of the works against orders a firing commenced, the Hessians were vanquished, & we charged on to the enemies breastworks but they were reinforced from the island, we failed in storming their works and a general firing took place, after which we were ordered to retreat at which time I assisted in taking our Major from the ground, he was wounded in the thigh with a ball, canister or grape shot, & he died in a few days afterwards—I think his name was Moore.
We marched about in that part of the states for some time & at about two months thereafter I was discharged. I went home to my father's in Surry County North Carolina having been on service from the time I first entered about Eighteen months, part of the time I was on furlough, being what was called a minute man & always in readiness or in service-- -At Stono I rec'd a flesh wound in the left arm, which wound was inflicted with the enemies' bayonet.
In two or three months after all this I again volunteered under Colonel Benjamin Cleveland, who was raised in North Carolina. After the forces then collected to march were ready, one Arthur Campbell,(I think his name war Arthur) [probably a mistaken attempt to identify Colonel William Campbell] —took command as well as I recollect by election— our forces were divided into three parts, one under Shelby [Isaac Shelby], one under Cleveland(of whom I was one)--and one other party under Col. Williams [James Williams] (who was killed at King's Mountain). When thus arranged we all together marched to King's Mountain near the South Carolina line, there we had to fight [October 7, 1780], & vanquished the enemy completely killing Ferguson [Patrick Ferguson] the British Commander. We thence marched to Moravian town in North Carolina—there we disposed of the prisoners taken on parole.
We were then permitted to return home after some few months we were called on again & I was under the command of Major Micajah Lewis, under Col. Micajah Lewis we were scouring through the country in various directions, and Major Lewis was killed by a ball during the night. We were not again attached to any large body of forces. I was in a variety of skirmishes with the enemy & with Tories, after all of which I was regularly discharged, but I am not able to produce any documentary evidence of my discharge owing to the same having been burnt by a fire which consumed my father's dwelling shortly after my return home to Surry County, North Carolina. I cannot recollect Regiments or names of officers otherwise than as above stated. Lincoln, Pulaski, & Malmedy I think were the only regular officers under whom I acted at anytime during the revolution. I was in the service for more than two years & remained in the service until Cornwallis was taken--I was always a volunteer, some times under militia officers & sometimes under regular officers as above stated.
Sworn to & subscribed by applicant in open court 5 day of December 1832
S/ David Allen
The Court above, Gregory D. Stone, Presiding Judge, put the following interrogatories to the declarant David Allen, who seeks to obtain a pension as above mentioned.
Question by the Court:
1st Where & in what year were you born? Answer—I was born in New Jersey, I think as I have been told in Elizabethtown--I was a child when I left there. I think I was born in Seventeen hundred & Sixty One.
2 Question: Have you any record of your age, & if so where is it? I have a record in my bible at home some Eighteen miles distant.
3 Question: Where were you living when called into service? I was living in Surry County, North Carolina. Part of 3 Question: Where have you lived since the Revolutionary War, & where do you now live. I moved from North Carolina to Georgia, from there to Tennessee (Davidson County), and from there to Franklin County, Alabama, & I now reside just across the line between said county & the Chickasaw nation of Indians, where I live by permission from the Indian Chiefs of said nation-& I have lived at said places ever since the revolutionary war respectively as above stated.
4 Question: How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute, & if a substitute for whom? 4 Answer: I was a volunteer.
Question 5: State the names of some of the regular officers who were with the troops when you served; Such Continental & Militia regiments as you can recollect, & the general circumstances of your services. (Here the applicant answered in substance as he has stated in him foregoing petition)
6 [Question]: Did you ever receive a discharge from the service; & if so by whom was it given, & what has become of it? Ans. to 6: I received a discharge from Col. Malmedy which was burnt as above stated with my father's house.
7 Question: State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, & who can testify as to your Character for veracity, & their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution. Ans. to 7th Question: Applicant states that there is Hugh Pettit, sheriff of this county, & General James Davis, Michael Dickson, clerk of this court, & the presiding judge thereof John J. Winston, (General John Coffee of Lauderdale County Alabama) and many others, indeed almost all the multitude in the court — and also his Excellency, the President of the U.S., Andrew Jackson of Washington City &c.
This declarant David Allen hereby relinquishes every claim to a pension or annuity except to the present & declares that his name in not on the pension roll of the agency of any state, or any other pension roll whatever.
Sworn to & subscribed by the affiant
this 5th day of December 1832 in open court.
S/ David Allen
[Platt Stout, a clergyman, and Hugh Pettit gave the standard supporting affidavit.]
Of the State of Alabama Franklin County:
Know ye to whom these letters shall Concern whereas I David Allen living near the Chickasaw Indian line on the Indian side & near the boundary of the above named County, have applied at the late December term of the County Court of this County and made my declaration &c to get a pension as a revolutionary Soldier under the late acts of Congress – And do hereby authorize my son John L Allen (who is the Subagent of said nation) to demand receive & receipt for the same in my name as fully as I myself could do were I present in Washington.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 10th day of December 1832.
S/ David Allen
[Veteran was pensioned at the rate of $60 per annum commencing March 4th, 1831, for service as a private for 18 months in the North Carolina service.]
David was the son of David and Sarah Baker Allen. He married Ann McConnell and had at least three children: Thomas, John, and Sarah. Sarah married Thomas Lightfoot. The Daughters of the American Revolution designated David Allen as DAR Ancestor Number A212026, so his descendants are eligible to join the appropriate organization.
The burial site of David Allen has been lost to history. We have placed a Memorial Stone in his honor in the Cantrell Gilliand Memorial Garden. May this memorial serve as an expression of the gratitude we owe him for risking his life and braving the unknown to help build a new country: our America.
On October 7, 1780, the foundation that would forever change the world was established. Fewer than one thousand American Heroes, through skill, luck, and the leadership of cunning strategists, defeated Patrick Ferguson, a brilliant star of the British military might. David Allen was one of those Heroes.
His participation in the Battle of King's Mountain was documented by his Application for Revolutionary War Pension, S16601. Will Graves transcribed the application.
(Parenthetically, historians, genealogists, and descendants owe thanks to Will Graves for his hours spent transcribing the pension applications of American Revolution veterans. These papers were fragile and difficult to read, so this was a most difficult task, but so many people benefit from his efforts. Thank you, Will Graves.)
Southern Campaigns American Revolution
Pension Statements & Rosters
Pension application of David Allen
S16601 f28NC
Transcribed by Will Graves
6/17/06 rev'd 7/18/14
[Methodology: Spelling, punctuation and/or grammar have been corrected in some instances for ease of reading and to facilitate searches of the database. Where the meaning is not compromised by adhering to the spelling, punctuation or grammar, no change has been made. Corrections or additional notes have been inserted within brackets or footnotes. Blanks appearing in the transcripts reflect blanks in the original. A bracketed question mark indicates that the word or words preceding it represent(s) a guess by me. The word 'illegible' or 'indecipherable' appearing in brackets indicates that at the time I made the transcription, I was unable to decipher the word or phrase in question. Only materials pertinent to the military service of the veteran and to contemporary events have been transcribed. Affidavits that provide additional information on these events are included and genealogical information is abstracted, while standard, 'boilerplate' affidavits and attestations related solely to the application, and later nineteenth and twentieth century research requests for information have been omitted. I use speech recognition software to make all my transcriptions. Such software misinterprets my southern accent with unfortunate regularity and my poor proofreading skills fail to catch all misinterpretations. Also, dates or numbers which the software treats as numerals rather than words are not corrected: for example, the software transcribes "the eighth of June one thousand eighty six" as "the 8th of June 1786." Please call material errors or omissions to my attention.]
State of Alabama,
Franklin County
County Court of said County
Dec. Term 1832
On this Fifth day of December Eighteen hundred & thirty two—personally appeared in Open Court of the County of Franklin & State of Alabama, now sitting David Allen a resident of said State of Alabama residing in the Chickasaw nation & near the county line, aged about seventy three years (being now in his seventy third first year), who being first duly sworn in open court according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of congress passed June seventh Eighteen hundred & thirty two.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following officers & served as herein stated. That is he entered the service as [a] volunteer under Colonel Martin Armstrong in Surry County State of North Carolina, as well as he can definitely now state it was in the year Seventeen Hundred & Seventy Seven, & latter part—but what month he cannot say, but it was warm weather—at that time I think the company was commanded by a Lieutenant by the name of Adniram Allen [also spelled Adonirum Allen and Adnirum Allen]1 (who was brother to applicant). From that county we marched under Col. Martin Armstrong, to Moore's Bridge on Black River or creek—where we had an encounter with some Tories & defeated them [Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, February 27, 1776].
We then marched to Cross Creek, where all the prisoners we had taken were discharged on parole— we were thence remarched to Surry County, North Carolina.—Some short time after we were under General Butler [John Butler] called to South Carolina where Colonel Joel Lewis acted under General Butler—where near Charleston we joined General Lincoln [Benjamin Lincoln]. When with him, General Pulaski called for volunteers as light infantry, to strengthen the forces under Col. Malmedy [Francis de Malmedy, Marquis of Bretagne] who as under Genl. Pulaski. Here I think a man by the name of ___ Moore was Major.
I volunteered under Malmedy, we were marched thence to Georgia, crossing Savannah River just below Augusta, we marched down said river on the Georgia side to a place called Sunbury [perhaps a mistaken attempt to identify the Battle of Brier Creek, March 3, 1779], where we had an encounter with the British who were in the act of crossing the river, & their rear was in part taken prisoners—here we recrossed the river to the state of South Carolina, & moved on until we rejoined General Lincoln's forces, thence we marched under Lincoln to meet the enemy who were landed at Johns Island & we met them at Stono [June 20, 1779], where we found the enemy aided with a strong breastwork, we were ordered to storm the enemy's works & to rely solely on the bayonet--& as we were marching to do so we were met by two Brigades, or companies of Hessians and as we were in about sixty yards of the works against orders a firing commenced, the Hessians were vanquished, & we charged on to the enemies breastworks but they were reinforced from the island, we failed in storming their works and a general firing took place, after which we were ordered to retreat at which time I assisted in taking our Major from the ground, he was wounded in the thigh with a ball, canister or grape shot, & he died in a few days afterwards—I think his name was Moore.
We marched about in that part of the states for some time & at about two months thereafter I was discharged. I went home to my father's in Surry County North Carolina having been on service from the time I first entered about Eighteen months, part of the time I was on furlough, being what was called a minute man & always in readiness or in service-- -At Stono I rec'd a flesh wound in the left arm, which wound was inflicted with the enemies' bayonet.
In two or three months after all this I again volunteered under Colonel Benjamin Cleveland, who was raised in North Carolina. After the forces then collected to march were ready, one Arthur Campbell,(I think his name war Arthur) [probably a mistaken attempt to identify Colonel William Campbell] —took command as well as I recollect by election— our forces were divided into three parts, one under Shelby [Isaac Shelby], one under Cleveland(of whom I was one)--and one other party under Col. Williams [James Williams] (who was killed at King's Mountain). When thus arranged we all together marched to King's Mountain near the South Carolina line, there we had to fight [October 7, 1780], & vanquished the enemy completely killing Ferguson [Patrick Ferguson] the British Commander. We thence marched to Moravian town in North Carolina—there we disposed of the prisoners taken on parole.
We were then permitted to return home after some few months we were called on again & I was under the command of Major Micajah Lewis, under Col. Micajah Lewis we were scouring through the country in various directions, and Major Lewis was killed by a ball during the night. We were not again attached to any large body of forces. I was in a variety of skirmishes with the enemy & with Tories, after all of which I was regularly discharged, but I am not able to produce any documentary evidence of my discharge owing to the same having been burnt by a fire which consumed my father's dwelling shortly after my return home to Surry County, North Carolina. I cannot recollect Regiments or names of officers otherwise than as above stated. Lincoln, Pulaski, & Malmedy I think were the only regular officers under whom I acted at anytime during the revolution. I was in the service for more than two years & remained in the service until Cornwallis was taken--I was always a volunteer, some times under militia officers & sometimes under regular officers as above stated.
Sworn to & subscribed by applicant in open court 5 day of December 1832
S/ David Allen
The Court above, Gregory D. Stone, Presiding Judge, put the following interrogatories to the declarant David Allen, who seeks to obtain a pension as above mentioned.
Question by the Court:
1st Where & in what year were you born? Answer—I was born in New Jersey, I think as I have been told in Elizabethtown--I was a child when I left there. I think I was born in Seventeen hundred & Sixty One.
2 Question: Have you any record of your age, & if so where is it? I have a record in my bible at home some Eighteen miles distant.
3 Question: Where were you living when called into service? I was living in Surry County, North Carolina. Part of 3 Question: Where have you lived since the Revolutionary War, & where do you now live. I moved from North Carolina to Georgia, from there to Tennessee (Davidson County), and from there to Franklin County, Alabama, & I now reside just across the line between said county & the Chickasaw nation of Indians, where I live by permission from the Indian Chiefs of said nation-& I have lived at said places ever since the revolutionary war respectively as above stated.
4 Question: How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute, & if a substitute for whom? 4 Answer: I was a volunteer.
Question 5: State the names of some of the regular officers who were with the troops when you served; Such Continental & Militia regiments as you can recollect, & the general circumstances of your services. (Here the applicant answered in substance as he has stated in him foregoing petition)
6 [Question]: Did you ever receive a discharge from the service; & if so by whom was it given, & what has become of it? Ans. to 6: I received a discharge from Col. Malmedy which was burnt as above stated with my father's house.
7 Question: State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, & who can testify as to your Character for veracity, & their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution. Ans. to 7th Question: Applicant states that there is Hugh Pettit, sheriff of this county, & General James Davis, Michael Dickson, clerk of this court, & the presiding judge thereof John J. Winston, (General John Coffee of Lauderdale County Alabama) and many others, indeed almost all the multitude in the court — and also his Excellency, the President of the U.S., Andrew Jackson of Washington City &c.
This declarant David Allen hereby relinquishes every claim to a pension or annuity except to the present & declares that his name in not on the pension roll of the agency of any state, or any other pension roll whatever.
Sworn to & subscribed by the affiant
this 5th day of December 1832 in open court.
S/ David Allen
[Platt Stout, a clergyman, and Hugh Pettit gave the standard supporting affidavit.]
Of the State of Alabama Franklin County:
Know ye to whom these letters shall Concern whereas I David Allen living near the Chickasaw Indian line on the Indian side & near the boundary of the above named County, have applied at the late December term of the County Court of this County and made my declaration &c to get a pension as a revolutionary Soldier under the late acts of Congress – And do hereby authorize my son John L Allen (who is the Subagent of said nation) to demand receive & receipt for the same in my name as fully as I myself could do were I present in Washington.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 10th day of December 1832.
S/ David Allen
[Veteran was pensioned at the rate of $60 per annum commencing March 4th, 1831, for service as a private for 18 months in the North Carolina service.]
David was the son of David and Sarah Baker Allen. He married Ann McConnell and had at least three children: Thomas, John, and Sarah. Sarah married Thomas Lightfoot. The Daughters of the American Revolution designated David Allen as DAR Ancestor Number A212026, so his descendants are eligible to join the appropriate organization.
The burial site of David Allen has been lost to history. We have placed a Memorial Stone in his honor in the Cantrell Gilliand Memorial Garden. May this memorial serve as an expression of the gratitude we owe him for risking his life and braving the unknown to help build a new country: our America.
His participation in the Battle of King's Mountain was documented by his Application for Revolutionary War Pension, S16601. Will Graves transcribed the application.
(Parenthetically, historians, genealogists, and descendants owe thanks to Will Graves for his hours spent transcribing the pension applications of American Revolution veterans. These papers were fragile and difficult to read, so this was a most difficult task, but so many people benefit from his efforts. Thank you, Will Graves.)
Southern Campaigns American Revolution
Pension Statements & Rosters
Pension application of David Allen
S16601 f28NC
Transcribed by Will Graves
6/17/06 rev'd 7/18/14
[Methodology: Spelling, punctuation and/or grammar have been corrected in some instances for ease of reading and to facilitate searches of the database. Where the meaning is not compromised by adhering to the spelling, punctuation or grammar, no change has been made. Corrections or additional notes have been inserted within brackets or footnotes. Blanks appearing in the transcripts reflect blanks in the original. A bracketed question mark indicates that the word or words preceding it represent(s) a guess by me. The word 'illegible' or 'indecipherable' appearing in brackets indicates that at the time I made the transcription, I was unable to decipher the word or phrase in question. Only materials pertinent to the military service of the veteran and to contemporary events have been transcribed. Affidavits that provide additional information on these events are included and genealogical information is abstracted, while standard, 'boilerplate' affidavits and attestations related solely to the application, and later nineteenth and twentieth century research requests for information have been omitted. I use speech recognition software to make all my transcriptions. Such software misinterprets my southern accent with unfortunate regularity and my poor proofreading skills fail to catch all misinterpretations. Also, dates or numbers which the software treats as numerals rather than words are not corrected: for example, the software transcribes "the eighth of June one thousand eighty six" as "the 8th of June 1786." Please call material errors or omissions to my attention.]
State of Alabama,
Franklin County
County Court of said County
Dec. Term 1832
On this Fifth day of December Eighteen hundred & thirty two—personally appeared in Open Court of the County of Franklin & State of Alabama, now sitting David Allen a resident of said State of Alabama residing in the Chickasaw nation & near the county line, aged about seventy three years (being now in his seventy third first year), who being first duly sworn in open court according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of congress passed June seventh Eighteen hundred & thirty two.
That he entered the service of the United States under the following officers & served as herein stated. That is he entered the service as [a] volunteer under Colonel Martin Armstrong in Surry County State of North Carolina, as well as he can definitely now state it was in the year Seventeen Hundred & Seventy Seven, & latter part—but what month he cannot say, but it was warm weather—at that time I think the company was commanded by a Lieutenant by the name of Adniram Allen [also spelled Adonirum Allen and Adnirum Allen]1 (who was brother to applicant). From that county we marched under Col. Martin Armstrong, to Moore's Bridge on Black River or creek—where we had an encounter with some Tories & defeated them [Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge, February 27, 1776].
We then marched to Cross Creek, where all the prisoners we had taken were discharged on parole— we were thence remarched to Surry County, North Carolina.—Some short time after we were under General Butler [John Butler] called to South Carolina where Colonel Joel Lewis acted under General Butler—where near Charleston we joined General Lincoln [Benjamin Lincoln]. When with him, General Pulaski called for volunteers as light infantry, to strengthen the forces under Col. Malmedy [Francis de Malmedy, Marquis of Bretagne] who as under Genl. Pulaski. Here I think a man by the name of ___ Moore was Major.
I volunteered under Malmedy, we were marched thence to Georgia, crossing Savannah River just below Augusta, we marched down said river on the Georgia side to a place called Sunbury [perhaps a mistaken attempt to identify the Battle of Brier Creek, March 3, 1779], where we had an encounter with the British who were in the act of crossing the river, & their rear was in part taken prisoners—here we recrossed the river to the state of South Carolina, & moved on until we rejoined General Lincoln's forces, thence we marched under Lincoln to meet the enemy who were landed at Johns Island & we met them at Stono [June 20, 1779], where we found the enemy aided with a strong breastwork, we were ordered to storm the enemy's works & to rely solely on the bayonet--& as we were marching to do so we were met by two Brigades, or companies of Hessians and as we were in about sixty yards of the works against orders a firing commenced, the Hessians were vanquished, & we charged on to the enemies breastworks but they were reinforced from the island, we failed in storming their works and a general firing took place, after which we were ordered to retreat at which time I assisted in taking our Major from the ground, he was wounded in the thigh with a ball, canister or grape shot, & he died in a few days afterwards—I think his name was Moore.
We marched about in that part of the states for some time & at about two months thereafter I was discharged. I went home to my father's in Surry County North Carolina having been on service from the time I first entered about Eighteen months, part of the time I was on furlough, being what was called a minute man & always in readiness or in service-- -At Stono I rec'd a flesh wound in the left arm, which wound was inflicted with the enemies' bayonet.
In two or three months after all this I again volunteered under Colonel Benjamin Cleveland, who was raised in North Carolina. After the forces then collected to march were ready, one Arthur Campbell,(I think his name war Arthur) [probably a mistaken attempt to identify Colonel William Campbell] —took command as well as I recollect by election— our forces were divided into three parts, one under Shelby [Isaac Shelby], one under Cleveland(of whom I was one)--and one other party under Col. Williams [James Williams] (who was killed at King's Mountain). When thus arranged we all together marched to King's Mountain near the South Carolina line, there we had to fight [October 7, 1780], & vanquished the enemy completely killing Ferguson [Patrick Ferguson] the British Commander. We thence marched to Moravian town in North Carolina—there we disposed of the prisoners taken on parole.
We were then permitted to return home after some few months we were called on again & I was under the command of Major Micajah Lewis, under Col. Micajah Lewis we were scouring through the country in various directions, and Major Lewis was killed by a ball during the night. We were not again attached to any large body of forces. I was in a variety of skirmishes with the enemy & with Tories, after all of which I was regularly discharged, but I am not able to produce any documentary evidence of my discharge owing to the same having been burnt by a fire which consumed my father's dwelling shortly after my return home to Surry County, North Carolina. I cannot recollect Regiments or names of officers otherwise than as above stated. Lincoln, Pulaski, & Malmedy I think were the only regular officers under whom I acted at anytime during the revolution. I was in the service for more than two years & remained in the service until Cornwallis was taken--I was always a volunteer, some times under militia officers & sometimes under regular officers as above stated.
Sworn to & subscribed by applicant in open court 5 day of December 1832
S/ David Allen
The Court above, Gregory D. Stone, Presiding Judge, put the following interrogatories to the declarant David Allen, who seeks to obtain a pension as above mentioned.
Question by the Court:
1st Where & in what year were you born? Answer—I was born in New Jersey, I think as I have been told in Elizabethtown--I was a child when I left there. I think I was born in Seventeen hundred & Sixty One.
2 Question: Have you any record of your age, & if so where is it? I have a record in my bible at home some Eighteen miles distant.
3 Question: Where were you living when called into service? I was living in Surry County, North Carolina. Part of 3 Question: Where have you lived since the Revolutionary War, & where do you now live. I moved from North Carolina to Georgia, from there to Tennessee (Davidson County), and from there to Franklin County, Alabama, & I now reside just across the line between said county & the Chickasaw nation of Indians, where I live by permission from the Indian Chiefs of said nation-& I have lived at said places ever since the revolutionary war respectively as above stated.
4 Question: How were you called into service; were you drafted, did you volunteer, or were you a substitute, & if a substitute for whom? 4 Answer: I was a volunteer.
Question 5: State the names of some of the regular officers who were with the troops when you served; Such Continental & Militia regiments as you can recollect, & the general circumstances of your services. (Here the applicant answered in substance as he has stated in him foregoing petition)
6 [Question]: Did you ever receive a discharge from the service; & if so by whom was it given, & what has become of it? Ans. to 6: I received a discharge from Col. Malmedy which was burnt as above stated with my father's house.
7 Question: State the names of persons to whom you are known in your present neighborhood, & who can testify as to your Character for veracity, & their belief of your services as a soldier of the Revolution. Ans. to 7th Question: Applicant states that there is Hugh Pettit, sheriff of this county, & General James Davis, Michael Dickson, clerk of this court, & the presiding judge thereof John J. Winston, (General John Coffee of Lauderdale County Alabama) and many others, indeed almost all the multitude in the court — and also his Excellency, the President of the U.S., Andrew Jackson of Washington City &c.
This declarant David Allen hereby relinquishes every claim to a pension or annuity except to the present & declares that his name in not on the pension roll of the agency of any state, or any other pension roll whatever.
Sworn to & subscribed by the affiant
this 5th day of December 1832 in open court.
S/ David Allen
[Platt Stout, a clergyman, and Hugh Pettit gave the standard supporting affidavit.]
Of the State of Alabama Franklin County:
Know ye to whom these letters shall Concern whereas I David Allen living near the Chickasaw Indian line on the Indian side & near the boundary of the above named County, have applied at the late December term of the County Court of this County and made my declaration &c to get a pension as a revolutionary Soldier under the late acts of Congress – And do hereby authorize my son John L Allen (who is the Subagent of said nation) to demand receive & receipt for the same in my name as fully as I myself could do were I present in Washington.
In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 10th day of December 1832.
S/ David Allen
[Veteran was pensioned at the rate of $60 per annum commencing March 4th, 1831, for service as a private for 18 months in the North Carolina service.]
David was the son of David and Sarah Baker Allen. He married Ann McConnell and had at least three children: Thomas, John, and Sarah. Sarah married Thomas Lightfoot. The Daughters of the American Revolution designated David Allen as DAR Ancestor Number A212026, so his descendants are eligible to join the appropriate organization.
The burial site of David Allen has been lost to history. We have placed a Memorial Stone in his honor in the Cantrell Gilliand Memorial Garden. May this memorial serve as an expression of the gratitude we owe him for risking his life and braving the unknown to help build a new country: our America.
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