• General Notes

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  John Rolland Godlsmith Sr. (a bricklayer by trade) served in the Revolutionary War.  He enlisted in February 1776 for two years in the 9th Virginia Regiment u nder Co. Matthews and was discharged form service at Valley Forge.  The 9th Reg iment was nicknamed "The Tall Virginians".  In December of 1776 he was at the b attle of Valley Forge where large numbers of his regiment were taken prisoner. John suffered cold, hunger, and sickness and had to occassionally be hospitali zed.  When he was discharged, he was suffering form black-water fever. on 25 Oc tober 1789, after having moved to Burke County, North Carolina, he purchased 10 0 acres on a branch of Peppers Creeek on the north fork of the Catawba River. He remained ther for over ten years, raising his fmaily there.  It was here tha t the Goldsmiths met the Sutherlands.  Soon after 1800 both families crossed tw o borders into the new state of Kentucky wehre they settled in Casey County and bought farms.  By 1820 John, now 63 years of age, was living in the town of Sh epheardsville in Bullitt County, Kentucky where two of his sons, Samuel and Joh n Jr. and his brother, Samuel were farming. He received a pension for service o n July 33, 1825.  (No. 35974) State of Kentucky - Bullitt County On this fourth day of July one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five personally appeared in open court, being a court of Record for Bullitt County, John Goldsmith resident of said County, aged sixty-eight years who being first duly sworn according to the law on his oath make the following Declaration in order to obtain the prov ision made by the act of Congress of the 18th March 1818 and the 1st May 1820: That he the said John Goldsmith enlisted for the term of two years on the ___ d ay of February 1776 in the state of Virginia in the Company commanded by Captai n James Woodson in the 9th Virginia Regiment commanded by Colonel Matthews in t he line of the State of Virginia on continental establishment that he consented to serve in said company until the expiration of the time for which he enliste d to when he was discharged rorm service at Valley Forge in the state of Pennsy lvania.  That he hereby relinquishes every claim towit to a Pension except the present: That his name is not on the Roll of any State except Virginia and that the following are the reasons for not making earlier application for a pension towit.  He obtained a discharge form an officer whose name he does not recolle ct and having lost said discharge by accident and having been informed that his Captain had long since departed this life he knows of no person nor does he ye t know of any person by whom he could prove his service and he was advised that it would be necessary to prove his service by writing before he could be place d on the Pension list persuance of an Act of the 1st of May 1820 I do solemnly swear that I am a present citizen of the United States the 18th day of March 18 18 and that I have not since that time by gifts taken or in any manner disposed of my property or any part thereof with interest thereby so to diminish it or to bring myself within the provisions of an act of Congress enlisted an act to provide for enlisted persons engaged in the ___ of ___ service of the United St ates in the Revolutionary War papers on the 18th day of March 1818 and that I h ave not nor has any person in trust to me any property or securities, contracts or debts due to me nor have I any income othe than what is contained in the sc hedule hereto annexed and by me subscribed.  That since the 18th of March 1818 the following changes have been made in my property.  About that time I had a E quitable claim to one hundred acres of land (of third rate), a mare and colt, a bout twenty dollars worth of cattle and about thirty dollars worth of hogs. The Declared further states that he is a Brick layer by trade but is now too old a nd infirmed to pursue it for a support.  He has a wife nearly of his own age wh o has been sick upwards of four years and he has

Details of John Rolland Goldsmith's family with Jane POWELL