Soldier of the American Revolution, Hampshire County, Virginia

Married Rebecca Jane Beatty

".........to Congress. 2E67.] Your memorialist, John Cullins, of Muskingum County, Ohio, respectfully represents that in the month of August, 1777, your memorialist, then a resident of Hampshire County, Virginia, volunteered under Capt. William Foreman, at said Hampshire County, and marched to Pittsburg, and joined troops then under the command of General Hand; thence, by order of General Hand, your memorialist with said Company, marched to Wheeling and was placed under the command of General Shepherd. After performing duty at Wheeling a few weeks, your memorialist was one of a party of forty-six men on a scouting party under command of Captain Foreman and some other officers, marched to the fort on Grave Creek, and on their return were attacked by a party of Indians, by whom the greater part of the party were cut off, and in this action your memorialist was wounded by a ball which broke his right leg in such a manner that he has never since that time recovered the full use of it.74 *

73 John Cullins was at this time nineteen years of age and very vigorous. In his later life he visited a William Linn of Brownsville, Pa., thinking that he was the Col. William Linn who had rescued him at Grave Creek. He found himself mistaken, for his benefactor had removed to Kentucky and there been killed by Indians. William Johnson Linn, son of the Brownsville man, told Dr. Draper Cullins's story as he had related it (37J38, 39). The latter said that as Foreman's party emerged from the narrows, where they had been marching single file, they deployed to right and left, presenting a quite formidable front. They advanced in a wide bottom above the end of the narrows, to where a cone, breast high, jutted from the rock. Behind this the Indians were posted, and probably others on the left of the path, along the bushes by the river. No enemy was discovered until within a few paces of the ambuscade. The work of death was the result of an instant. Some of the survivors fled up the river, some down, and others up the hill. Among the latter was Cullins, who when two-thirds up was shot by an Indian below, and had his thigh broken. Just above lay a large log; over this he threw himself to escape a second shot. At this juncture appeared Capt. William Linn and a few other men, dashing down the hill, whooping and firing. The Indians fled to their canoes and put off over the river. Linn and his lieutenant came upon Cullins. Linn wished to carry him away, but his lieutenant thought that they should rather seek their own safety. After some dispute, Cullins was at Linn's insistence carried up the hill, over a second ridge, and secreted in a fallen tree-top. Linn left him some food, promised to return, and then retreated. Faithful to his promise, Linn came back after dark, and carried Cullins on his back for over eleven miles to Shepherd's Fort, fearing to attempt the shorter road to Fort Henry, lest Indians be lurking to waylay them. Another pioneer told Dr. Draper (17S62) that the doctor wished to amputate Cullins's leg, but the latter resisted and in time was able to walk.—Ed. "

From "Frontier Defense on the Upper Ohio 1777-1778", compiled from the Draper Manuscripts

Edited by Laura Hubbard, great, great, great, great granddaughter, 3/20/2024

3/23/2024 - Per Google research, Hampshire County is actually in WEST Virginia. If that is the case, then possibly John, Sr's ancestors may have also been born, however, there is no record of them on Find-a-Grave. Records show that 5 of his 7 children were born in "Virginia", in general, but both George W. & Elizabeth are specifically documented as being born in West Virginia.

Contributed by Laura Hubbard