Gone for Soldiers: Abraham Heath at Valley Forge

Two hundred and thirty-nine years ago this week (December 19, 1777) Abraham Heath (c.1740-c.1807),* a private in the Virginia line of the Continental Army, found himself in winter quarters** with the rest of Washington's Army in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

[Valley Forge—Washington & Lafayette, 1856. Engraving, 7½ x 10½ inches (image). Henry Bryan Hall (1808–1884), after Alonzo Chappel (1828–1887). Martin, Johnson & Co., Publisher.

Photo Credit: David Bishop Skillman Library, Lafayette College, Easton, PA]

During my ancestor's time at Valley Forge his commanding officer was General George Weedon. In the map below you can see the location of the 6th Virginia Regiment's encampment.

["Encampment at Valley Forge 1778" by George W. Boynton (engraving) - Sparkes, Jered "The Life of George Washington" Boston: Tappen & Dennet 1843"The Cooper Collections of American History" (uploader's private collection)Scanned by the uploader, Centpacrr..

Licensed under PD-US via Wikipedia htps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Encampment_at_Valley_Forge_1778.jpg#/media/File:Encampment_at_Valley_Forge_1778.jpg]

Abraham's term of service was over in February of 1778 and as far as we know he went home to his wife and family (including my direct ancestor, his daughter Sallie Heath Chappell) as soon as he was mustered out.


*My paternal fifth great grandfather--I wrote a series of posts about what we know of his military experiences from the records in 2015: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI
 .
**You can learn more about the huts built by the soldiers at Valley Forge here.



© 2016 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.

Gone for Soldiers: Abraham Heath (About 1740 - 1807), Soldier (Part II)

Through records preserved in the National Archives, we can learn about Abraham Heath's military experience* while serving as a private in Captain Nathaniel Fox's Company of the 6th Virginia Regiment.

[The National Archives: War Department Collection of  Revolutionary War Records 1775-1783 (ARC Identifier 602383) Image via fold3.com]

The regiment was formed in Williamsburg in February of 1776, drawing volunteers from ten Virginia Counties (Pittsylvania, Amherst, Buckingham, Charles City, Lunenburg, New Kent, Mecklenburg, Dinnwiddie, Prince George, and Spotsylvania)** and Abraham Heath was part of the first group, signing on for two years. He and the other privates were paid 6-2/3 dollars a month.

[ A Map of the most Inhabited part of Virginia containing the whole province of Maryland with Part of Pensilvania, New Jersey and North Carolina. Drawn by Joshua Fry & Peter Jefferson in 1775. Printed for Robt. Sayer ... London. David Rumsey Historical Map Collection]

The earliest record we have for Abraham (#21)  is from a pay roll for the period April 1st to May 1st, 1777.

[The National Archives: War Department Collection of  Revolutionary War Records 1775-1783 (ARC Identifier 602384) Image via fold3.com]

While it would be great to find that my ancestor was a hero, the reality is that he wasn't healthy for much of the time as evidenced in the muster roll for the next month (May 1777). Abraham (#29) is listed as "Sick head Elk" which refers to Head of Elk (now Elkton), in Cecil County, Maryland.***

[The National Archives: War Department Collection of  Revolutionary War Records 1775-1783 (ARC Identifier 602384) Image via fold3.com]

Although the muster roll for August 1777 lists Abraham "Sick @ H Elk." I wonder if that's accurate because 17,000 British troops under the command of General Sir William Howe landed near there in late July to begin their attack on Philadelphia**** and there's no reason to believe that Abraham was ever a prisoner.

[The National Archives: War Department Collection of  Revolutionary War Records 1775-1783 (ARC Identifier 602384) Image via fold3.com]

Having set the stage, next time I will look more closely into the Philadelphia Campaign and what part the 6th Virginia played in it (and Private Abraham Heath, if he was healthy enough to participate).

And then on to Valley Forge.


*An overview of life as a Revolutionary War soldier is here.
**Unfortunately we don't know where Abraham (then in his mid-thirties) and his family were living at this time although Prince George County is a possibility.
***Located on the Elk River (of course).
****Philadelphia was the meeting place of the Continental Congress.



© 2015 Copyright, Christine Manczuk, All Rights Reserved.