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Wilson and Margaret Hunt
On this 15th day of December 1832 personally appeared in open court, C. Hunter (sic), esquire, Mayor of the city of Lexington aforesaid, Wilson Hunt, a resident of said county, aged 79 years, states that he was born in North Carolina in Rowan in the year 1754. He has a record of his age now in his possession, he was in said Rowan County when called into service and during the war and until the year 1785 when he removed to Kentucky to said Fayette County where he has resided ever since. He volunteered on all of the tours which he served, he never received a discharge from service nor one cent of pay. First served in Captain Johnson’s minute men, a tour of nearly four months in 1780 against the Cherokee towns under the command of General Rutherford, on his return he remained in the same county and was called out during that year often and in 1781 and 1782 against the Tories under several officers Col. Lock commanded the regiment. He was generally employed against the Tories, he refers to the accompanying papers marked as a settlement of the particulars of his services. He says that he fully believes that he served two years in all his tours, although from his age and consequent weakness of memory he cannot be positive including the time he was in an organized company ready to be called out, he was perhaps much longer in service, he has no documentary evidence nor does he know of any living witness of his services he refers to Thomas Montague, George Berry, John Washington, Joseph Bryant, and Lewis Bryant, his neighbors who can testify as to his character for veracity. He hereby relinquishes all claim to a pension or annuity except the present and declares that his name is not on the pension roll of any state. Signed Wilson Hunt.
He states in another paper as follows: I did in the year 1780 under Captain John Johnson went out to guard the frontiers of North Carolina, near the head of the Catawba River from there. I went out under Captain Johnson and General Rutherford against the Indians at the Cherokee towns, which service I was in three or four months where myself and 69 other men pursued the company by traders, two days and nights and overtook them just at break of day on their returning and took seven prisoners and their plunder and after that I returned home and was at home a sort time, then the Tories agreed to race on a certain day and to take all the leading men of the settlement prisoners of which I was one and the British of the Whig Party and we got word of it and the night ____ and that all turned out that night and got together in the night, went to the house of the Whigs and so they got in one of our settlements and days afterwards we had killed all we could, which was about 70 men, myself and my brother were sent to view the Tories camp which was about __ miles distance at the Big Lick to see whether we were able to fight them or not just as we got in sight of their camp they had begun to march right towards our men, then we had to go around them and had to ride as hard as the horses could go to get to out men but they went on to my father’s and to get every horse there was on the farm and one of my riding horses, the best ever owned and a few days afterward they came as if they were going to attack us and came within two miles of us and then made a short attack across to go to the British Army we joined Col. Davis and pursued two days and nights and the last night we had a deceitful pilot, which led us nine or ten miles out of the way. We found then we could not overtake them and followed them no further. I was in several skirmishes in a short time, at Mosses Ferry on the Adkin, we were formed at Colston’s to fight British when their troops came in site and found we were prepared to fight They retreated with all their might I was then in a skirmish with them at Richmond in searah? company when the Tories proved too hard for us and we had to retreat. The Tories had about 300 men when we had only 20 and 30 men Whigs. We had a skirmish with the same body or Tories near Morovian towns and drove advanced party back but they spread out and liked to have taken us prisoners, but we retreated with all our might, they took but one of our men prisoners. Our company was called minute men and was very often called out on almost every occasion until the Battle of Guilford where General Green was obliged to retreat.
Margaret Hunt, the widow made application for pension 1855 September 5th. She was a resident of Owen County Kentucky in 1855 states she was married to said Wilson Hunt in Fayette Co, Ky November 24 ____ by John Price, and her maiden name was Margaret Shotwell, that her husband died in Fayette County 1833 January 28th. She further states that she was married to the said Wilson Hunt, November 24th 1793 in Fayette County by one John Price, a minister of the gospel and that her name before marriage was Margaret Shotwell, and that her husband died in Fayette County Kentucky January 28th 1833. And states that she is now residing in Owen County Kentucky and that from where she is living, it is about twelve miles to the county seat of Owen and on account of her old age and physical condition is unable to attend court personally, she appoints Benj. Graves her true and lawful attorney. The day of this affidavit is 1855 Sept. 5th. Affidavits of Samuel and James Arnold state that they have known her over twenty five years.
Affidavit of Wilson S Hunt appeared in the Fayette Co, Kentucky Court who is a resident of Fayette Co, says that he is the son of Wilson Hunt deceased and Margaret Hunt. States that he has examined the family Bible and finds the birth date of Wilson Hunt January 16-1754 and that Margaret Shotwell was born October 20-1776 and that the ages of the children of said Wilson and Margaret are recorded in said Bible:
Clarissa Hunt, the oldest child of said father and mother was born on the 25th day of November A.D. 1794 Pheba the second daughter born Feb 20-1796 Jasper born Oct 11-1798 John born 9-12-1800 Daniel born 3-31-1802 Nancy W. born 12-23-1804 Mary born 9-29-1806 Sarah born 10-3-1808 Wilson S. born 7-10-1810 That his father died January 28-1833 Wilson Hunt
Affidavit of George and wife Nancy Berry, saying they had been acquainted with Wilson and Margaret Hunt for many years, having lived close neighbors to them before and after marriage; that in the fall of 1793, said Wilson Hunt and Margaret Shotwell were married in and about one year thereafter they had a daughter born who they named Clarissa and after that they had several children in Fayette County born to them, all the time being close neighbors
Samuel Hunt of Owen Co, KY made affidavit; states that he was born in the year 1782, October12, as he has been informed in the county of Roan and state of North Carolina; that he is now age 73; that his father Wilson Hunt, he was informed was a revolutionary soldier and a pensioner and resided in Fayette County; that his father Wilson Hunt had three wives, that he is a son of the said Wilson Hunt by his first wife and that he is the only child by the first wife, that his father Wilson Hunt had only one child by his second wife Lomach? Hunt, who has not been heard from for the last 3 or 4 years; that in the fall of the year 1793, his said father Wilson Hunt married the 3rd time Margaret Shotwell in Fayette Co, Ky; that this wife was then about eleven years old and lived with his father at that time that he went to the wedding and saw his father Wilson Hunt and Margaret Shotwell married and that he lived with his said father and step mother in Fayette Co, Ky until about the year 1809, that he then married and went to live (illegible) in Fayette Co, Kentucky and about the year of 1823 that he removed to Owen Co, Ky and has remained in the said county ever since, that he well remembers that fact that about twelve months after his father Wilson Hunt and Margaret Shotwell his last wife Margaret Shotwell that the eldest child Clarissa was born, which was the 25th November 1794, that his step mother Mrs. Margaret Hunt remained in /Fayette County until about 1849 and removed to this county and has remained here ever since and resides with her son in law Samuel Arnold of Owen Co, has never married since the death of her husband Wilson Hunt.
Source: Records of Revolutionary War Pensions of Soldiers who Settled in Fayette County Kentucky Annie Walker Burns, compiler, Washington DC, 1936 Copy held by the Kentucky Room, Lexington Public Library Call number: R976.947 B4128r KY1936 |