It seems like I have always known about my great, great, great, great, grandfather, John Chipman Porter. My grandmother, Zilpha Estep Hughes and her sisters Angie, Florence, and Wilma Jane had conducted a lot of genealogical research in their time and the story of the Porter family was one in which they took a lot of pride. That and the fact that their grandmother Sarah Angeline Chauncey Scott, who lived to be 101 years old, had told them first hand the story of her grandfather, John Chipman Porter, the Revolutionary War Veteran.
John Porter responded to the Lexington Alarm, Massachusetts' call for aid following the battles of Lexington and Concord, April 19, 1775. This was the famous "shot heard 'round the world." We can proudly say our man, John Porter, was in the thick of things right from the very beginning.
He was 21 years old when he enlisted in Captain Thomas Burnham's company in April of 1775 at Ipswich, Massachusetts. They were a company of minute men who marched from Ipswich town to Lexington. The men were engaged in service for three months and were paid six pence a mile for a total of 50 miles.
He said in his declaration for pension that he enlisted again the last of April, 1775 and served as a private under Captain Abraham Dodge and Colonel Doolittle. During this enlistment he was at the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17, 1775.
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| Bunker Hill* |
He also served for 3 months, beginning in November of 1776 under Captain Benjamin Phillips and Colonel Robinson when he was marched to Fort Edward on the Hudson and on to Ticonderoga. He served again for a period of two months in April 1777, under Captain Benjamin Phillips and Colonel Robinson and finally for 4 months, beginning in July of 1777 under Captain Elisha Cranston and Colonel Wells.
John Porter applied for a pension based on his military service June 13, 1827 while a resident of New Lebanon, Columbia Co., New York when he was 73 years old. See his signature on the affidavit below.
Record of John's marriage to Mehitable Flower on May 29, 1777 is found in the church records of the Congregational Church of Ashfield, Massachusetts. They became the parents of eight children, all of whom were born in Ashfield. Mable or (Mehitable) was born August 2, 1778 and died soon after. Another girl born October 31, 1779 was also named Mable. Ebenezer was born May 20, 1781 and Elizabeth Nowel was born April 27, 1783. Rebekah arrived on September 5, 1784 and Hannah on April 30, 1786. A son John was born on November 11, 1787 and finally Sarah on July 26, 1789.
John Chipman Porter was the son of the Rev. Nehemiah Porter and Rebecca Chipman Porter. He was born on May 11, 1754 and died January 27, 1838. His wife, Mehitable Flower, was the daughter of Lamrock Flower the third and Mehitable Goodwin Flower. Mehitable, also known as Mable, was born March 5, 1751 in Ashfield Massachusetts. I would love to know where they are buried, but have not been able to locate that information. If anyone knows, please let me know. Pictures would be much appreciated.
About 1808 John Porter moved his family to New Lebanon, Columbia County, New York. This was about six years after his oldest daughter, Mable, my 3x great grandmother, married Russell Chauncey and also moved to New Lebanon. Russell and Mable Chauncey were the parents of my 2x grandmother Sarah Angeline Chauncey Scott, the lady who remembered stories about the roles her grandfather and great grandfather, Rev. Nehemiah Porter, played in the Revolutionary War.
* Copyright © 2004–2013. ClipArt ETC produced by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology, College of Education, University of South Florida.
This page © 2013, Cynthia H. Smith
Send email to chsmith47@yahoo.com
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