Porter County and the Revolutionary WarVeterans of the American Revolutionary War in Porter County . . . .
Background Information
The American Revolutionary War began as a war between the Kingdom of Great
Britain and thirteen united former British colonies on the North American
continent, and ended in a global war between several European great powers. The
war was the culmination of the political American Revolution, whereby the
colonists rejected the right of the Parliament of Great Britain to govern them
without representation, claiming that this violated the Rights of Englishmen. In
1775, revolutionaries gained control of each of the thirteen colonial
governments, set up the Second Continental Congress, and formed a Continental
Army. Petitions to the king to intervene with the parliament on their behalf
resulted in Congress being declared traitors and the states in rebellion the
following year. The Americans responded by formally declaring their independence
as a new nation, the United States of America, claiming sovereignty and
rejecting any allegiance to the British monarchy. In 1777, the Continentals
captured a British army, leading to France formally entering the war on the side
of America in early 1778, having been providing supplies, ammunition, and guns
from 1776, and leveling the military strength with Britain. Spain and the Dutch
Republic, both French allies, also went to war with Britain over the next two
years. Throughout the war, the British were able to use their naval superiority
to capture and occupy coastal cities, but control of the countryside, where 90
percent of the population lived, largely eluded them because of the relatively
small size of their land army. French involvement proved decisive, with a French
naval victory in the Chesapeake leading at Yorktown in 1781 to the surrender of
a second British army. In 1783, the Treaty of Paris ended the war and recognized
the sovereignty of the United States over the territory bounded by what is now
Canada to the north, Florida to the south, and the Mississippi River to the
west.
Two individuals who served in the American Revolutionary War are buried in
Porter County; namely, Henry Batton and Joseph Jones. A third individual, James
Morgan, has been mentioned as possibly being a resident of Porter County, but no
proof has been uncovered to verify this claim.
Porter County American Revolutionary War Veterans
Batton, Henry
Pennsylvania Troops
Born: 1750
Death: February 1, 1845; age 94 years
Burial: Gossett/Hageman Cemetery in Liberty Township
Biographical Sketch: Henry Batton was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, in
1750. He enlisted for military service during the Revolutionary War in either
August or September 1776 in Fayette County, Pennsylvania, as a member of Captain
William Harrod's Company in Colonel Thomas Gaddis' Regiment. He served in this
command until February 1777. In April 1777, Batton enlisted in Captain Cross'
Company, where he served four months and then became a member of Captain
Theophilus Phillips' Company under Colonel Minor for eight months. Batton then
enlisted in the company commanded by Lieutenant McKinley, but he later returned
to Captain Phillips' Company and served under that command until September 1878,
when he left the army.
Batton applied for a military pension on March 11, 1833, when he was a resident
of Fountain County, Indiana. On July 3, 1840, Batton united with the
Presbyterian Church of Valparaiso via a letter from a congregation in Virginia.
Church records indicate that Batton passed away on February 1, 1845, at the age
of 94 years. His body was interred on the crest of a hill overlooking Salt Creek
in the Gossett/Hageman Cemetery in Liberty Township.
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Sources:
The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso, Porter
County, Indiana, in article
titled "Stone Marker Put on Grave of Old Soldier"
[August 6, 1935;
Volume 9, Page 2, Column 6].
The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso, Porter
County, Indiana, in article
titled "Plat Graves Of War Vets Over County"
[October 25, 1941;
Volume 15, Page 1, Column 3].
Anonymous. 1906. "Graves of Revolutionary Soldiers," The Indiana
Quarterly Magazine of History 2(2):97-99.
Jones, Joseph
Birth: Unknown
Death: Between March 11, 1840 and February 13, 1843
Burial: Cornell Cemetery in Boone Township
Biographical Sketch: Rather little is known of Joseph Jones' life. It is known
that prior to coming to Porter County in 1841 to reside in Boone Grove that
Jones was residing in Holmes County, Ohio. Jones' Will appears in Porter County
Will Book A (pp. 12-13), which indicates that he was from Richland County, Ohio.
The Will is dated March 11, 1840, and it was proven in open court on February 13,
1843. The Will also indicates that the name of Jones' wife was Hannah and that
he had a son named Moses and a daughter named Lydia (Jones) Fisher. Aaron Lytle,
a son of Hannah Jones, also appears in the Will. His body is interred in an
unmarked grave in the Cornell Cemetery in Boone Township.
__________________________________________________________________
Sources:
The Vidette-Messenger, Valparaiso, Porter
County, Indiana, in article
titled "Plat Graves Of War Vets Over County"
[October 25, 1941;
Volume 15, Page 1, Column 3].
Anonymous. 1906. "Graves of Revolutionary Soldiers," The Indiana
Quarterly Magazine of History 2(2):97-99.
Morgan, James
The following newspaper article was published in The Porter County
Vidette on April 5, 1916, suggesting that a James Morgan of Porter County
served in the American Revolutionary War. No additional information has been
found to verify that the James Morgan mentioned in the article either lived,
died, and/or was buried in Porter County.
HUNTING THE BURIAL PLACE OF OLD SOLDIER
Who knows the burial place of James Morgan, a revolutionary soldier, who died
here March 1, 1840?
The Daughters of the American Revolution want to know, that they may give his
grave the honor due. Until a letter was received here this morning, it was
believed that only two soldiers of the revolution had been laid to rest here --
Henry Battan and Joseph Jones.
Mrs. H. W. Stone, of Caldwell, Ida., in a communication to the county clerk's
office, sought the first name of her great-great-grandmother, and the dates of
her birth and death. In the same letter she gave the information about her
great-great-grandfather, which is received here with much animation.
"My great-great-grandfather, Jas. Morgan," Mrs. Stone writes, "died March 1,
1840, in or near Valparaiso. He was a revolutionary soldier and a brother of
General Daniel Morgan, 1737-1802. His wife died there also. Her last name was
Cox. Can you give me her first name; also the date of birth and death?"
The letter was a revelation to those here interested in the history of the
county. Everything possible will be done by the D. A. R. and Indiana centennial
organization to bring to light the patriot's resting place.
Further information is being sought at Washington on the record of Henry Battan,
who was buried in the Gossett cemetery, that an appropriate monument may be
erected there for him.
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Source:
The Porter County Vidette, Valparaiso, Porter County, Indiana [April 5,
1916; Page 4, Column 6]
Information abstracted by Steven R. Shook